Brain Implant Prosthetic for the Blind

Researchers have proposed a brain impant for the blind, whereby visual signals could be wirelessly beamed directly into the brain. The idea behind this is that a blind person would wear a special pair of glasses that could record video images using two digital cameras. This video would then be wirelessly beamed into an implant that would translate the data into electrical signals to stimulate a specific area of the brain. This area is called the lateral geniculate nucleus (LGN) and is a part of the brain's processing system for sight. By electrically stimulating this part of the brain, it can give a blind person the impression that they are actually seeing something visually. Scientists have already stimulated this area of the brain in primates and found it had induced sight perception.

Doing this procedure would require brain surgery to an area deep inside the brain, which could be somewhat risky. However, scientists have already implanted deep brain stimulation devices inside the brain, and this brain implant would work in a similar manner. The very first devices to be tested will likely be very crude and allow people to see only in very limited detail. However as the technology improves it is possible that scientists would get better at generating sight within the brain that was comparable to a normal person's vision. It is even possible that this technology could be used to enhance a humans vision above and beyond what is normal. The eyesight of a hawk for instance is about 8 times as powerful as human vision. I wouldn't mind being able to have extreme long distance vision, infrared capabilities and increased image resolution for my eyesight. All of these things might in theory be possible in the distant future and could definitely come in handy.

Not only that, but a brain implant could beam in virtual reality images right into your head. This would bypass your vision and would potentially give you a truly immersive virtual reality experience. The science for this specific prosthetic device is still in the preliminary stages, but I wouldn't be surprised to see it tested out in humans in the near future. You can read another good article here on past attempts at creating implantable prosthetics for the blind.