Latest Technology News: Technology Video & Technology News // Current

featured 07.08.09

Wifi Cap

The new WiFi detecting cap is the ideal gift for anyone that can’t stand to be offline for long! The WiFi detecting cap... more

TravG73
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The Seven Types of Employees at Best Buy

This is so true! Now I need to hit my local branch, and tally my results.

shocksopping
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Did China's nuclear tests kill thousands and doom future generations?

"Enver Tohti remembers the week that it rained dust. That summer of 1973 he was in elementary school in Xinjiang Province,... more

DeliaTheArtist
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The Next Hacking Frontier: Your Brain?

Hackers who commandeer your computer are bad enough. Now scientists worry that someday, they’ll try to take over your brain.

In the past year, researchers have developed technology that makes it possible to use thoughts to operate a computer, maneuver a wheelchair, or even use Twitter — all without lifting a finger. But as neural devices become more complicated — and go wireless — some scientists say the risks of “brain hacking” should be taken seriously.

“Neural devices are innovating at an extremely rapid rate and hold tremendous promise for the future,” said computer security expert Tadayoshi Kohno of the University of Washington. “But if we don’t start paying attention to security, we’re worried that we might find ourselves in five or 10 years saying we’ve made a big mistake.”

Hackers tap into personal computers all the time — but what would happen if they focused their nefarious energy on neural devices, such as the deep brain stimulators currently used to treat Parkinson’s and depression, or electrode systems for controlling prosthetic limbs? According to Kohno and his colleagues, who published their concerns July 1 in Neurosurgical Focus, most current devices carry few security risks. But as neural engineering becomes more complex and more widespread, the potential for security breaches will mushroom.

For example, the next generation of implantable devices to control prosthetic limbs will likely include wireless controls that allow physicians to remotely adjust settings on the machine. If neural engineers don’t build in security features such as encryption and access control, an attacker could hijack the device and take over the robotic limb.

“It’s very hard to design complex systems that don’t have bugs,” Kohno said. “As these medical devices start to become more and more complicated, it gets easier and easier for people to overlook a bug that could become a very serious risk. It might border on science fiction today, but so did going to the moon 50 years ago.”

Some might question why anyone would want to hack into someone else’s brain, but the researchers say there’s a precedent for using computers to cause neurological harm. In November 2007 and March 2008, malicious programmers vandalized epilepsy support websites by putting up flashing animations, which caused seizures in some photo-sensitive patients.

“It happened on two separate occasions,” said computer science graduate student Tamara Denning, a co-author on the paper. “It’s evidence that people will be malicious and try to compromise peoples’ health using computers, especially if neural devices become more widespread.”

In some cases, patients might even want to hack into their own neural device. Unlike devices to control prosthetic limbs, which still use wires, many deep brain stimulators already rely on wireless signals. Hacking into these devices could enable patients to “self-prescribe” elevated moods or pain relief by increasing the activity of the brain’s reward centers.Hackers who commandeer your computer are bad enough. Now scientists worry that someday, they’ll try to take over your brain.... more

pjacobs51
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8 responses

13 hours ago

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Modern Bedfellows: LSD Inventor Wrote to Steve Jobs, Asked for Support

Apple CEO Steve Jobs is rumored to have dropped a little acid in his day, and apparently Albert Hofmann, the inventor of LSD, knew... more

ras_menelik
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14 responses

10 hours ago

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Germany calls for ban of neo-Nazi sites abroad

BERLIN — Germany's Justice Minister is calling for Internet service providers in the U.S. and elsewhere to remove... more

singrrr
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92 responses

16 hours ago

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Israel Threatening to Use Nukes....Again!!!

Oh here we go AGAIN! The little Zionist bully in the Middle East is threatening MAD--Mutually Assured Destruction. They say... more

blueghost09
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10 responses

12 hours ago

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How much does it cost to buy every iPhone app?

To buy all 55,732 apps in the app store as of (7/6/2009) it would cost $144,326.06 .. or $2.59 per app ($3.34 if you don't... more

TravG73
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1 response

2 hours ago

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Space Elevator

Every revolutionary idea seems to evoke three stages of reaction. They may be summed up by the more... phrases: (1) It's... more

ras_menelik
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10 responses

1 hour ago

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The Girl at the Video Game Store-Music Video

Nerf Herder frontman Parry Gripp celebrates Attack of the Show's 1000th episode with a very special music video.... more

Agent_Alpha
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2 responses

6 hours ago

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Hulu Video Downloader crushes the dreams of Windows users

While this tool would have been great, it was plagued with problems before it even attempted to get off the ground.

admillios
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2 responses

9 hours ago

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Is Sat-Nav(GPS) Destroying Local Knowledge?

"Joe Moran writes in the BBC News Magazine that Sat-Nav clearly suits an era in which 'map-reading may be going the way... more

Tyrannous
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1 response

17 hours ago

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The Evolution of Data Encryption Regulations

Massachusetts is taking data encryption regulation to the next level by actually defining what is meant by... more

Paisano1
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0 responses

3 hours ago

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Japanese Dentists practice on robot patient

Trainee Japanese dentists now have a way to avoid causing pain and damage if they mix up their molars - by practising on a robotic patient.

The robot, called Simroid, has sensors in its teeth and body which feed back on how well the dentist is doing. Movements such as blinks and muffled gurgles are designed to show normal patient responses such as fear, discomfort, pain and tension - without putting any real person’s mouth at risk.

“I made this robot so that students can understand patients’ feelings,” said Professor Naotake Shibui of the division of pediatric dentistry at the Nippon Dental University Hospital in Tokyo.

“Then they become a dentist who doesn’t just concentrate on technique but also understands the patient. Everyone is a little afraid when they come to the dentist, and we should appreciate that,” he told BBC World Service’s Digital Planet programme.

Sensors in the robot’s teeth trigger red lights to illustrate when a drill has gone too far.

However, the robot, which is designed to look like a female, has sensors in other areas on its body too, to provide feedback about the patient’s whole experience.

“The whole training session can be recorded and you can review it anytime you want,” he added. “We can stop the video and tell our students, ‘you had a red light because you touched the patient here’.”

The robot has also been designed so that when it speaks, it does so with the open-mouthed series of grunts familiar to anyone who has sat in the dentist’s chair with a mouthful of foam.

Dr Shibui, who has been working on the project for two years, said that treating the robot as a real patient was essential to training.

“Actually talking to the patient makes you understand their feelings,” he said.

A new version of the robot, Simrod II, is now being worked on by the same companies that created the first - a combination of J Morita WFG, Nissin Dental Products and Kokoro Company.

Simroid II will have an improved response, automatic voice recognition and speech synthesis.Trainee Japanese dentists now have a way to avoid causing pain and damage if they mix up their molars - by practising on a robotic... more