Researchers Manipulate Neurons in Worms' Brains

Researchers Manipulate Neurons in Worms' Brains and Take Control of Their Behavior







J.G. Vibes
Activist Post

A team of Harvard scientists have discovered how to manipulate neurons in the brains of worms
in order to take control of their behavior. This literal mind control
is achieved through the use of precisely targeted lasers. So far
researchers have been able to take over an animal's brain, instruct it
to turn in any direction they choose, and even to implant false sensory
information, fooling the animal into thinking food was nearby.

When news of this reaches the mainstream media there is no doubt that
they will say that there is no intention in using this on more complex
life forms, however the researchers themselves are already discussing
just that.

Sharad Ramanathan, an Assistant Professor of Molecular and Cellular Biology recently told nature journal that "If
we can understand simple nervous systems to the point of completely
controlling them, then it may be a possibility that we can gain a
comprehensive understanding of more complex systems. This gives us a
framework to think about neural circuits, how to manipulate them, which
circuit to manipulate and what activity patterns to produce in them."

He also said that "Most of these approaches have
discovered neurons necessary for specific behavior by destroying them.
The question we were trying to answer was: Instead of breaking the
system to understand it, can we essentially hijack the key neurons that
are sufficient to control behavior and use these neurons to force the
animal to do what we want? We want to understand the brain of this
animal, which has only a few hundred neurons, completely and essentially
turn it into a video game, where we can control all of its behaviors."

Source:-
http://www.activistpost.com/2012/09/researchers-manipulate-neurons-in-worms.html