IBM Predicts Mind-Reading Machines

My Fox New York

ARMONK, N.Y. - Century-old technology colossus IBM on Monday depicted a near future in which machines read minds and recognize who they are dealing with.

The " IBM 5 in 5 " predictions were based on societal trends and research which the New York State-based company expected to begin bearing fruit by the year 2017.

"From Houdini to Skywalker to X-Men, mind reading has merely been wishful thinking for science fiction fans for decades, but their wish may soon come true," IBM said in its annual assessment of innovations on the horizon.

"IBM scientists are among those researching how to link your brain to your devices, such as a computer or a smartphone," it continued.

IBM gave the examples of ringing someone up just by thinking it, or willing a cursor to move on a computer screen.

Biological makeup will become the key to personal identity, with retina scans of recognition of faces or voices used to confirm who people are rather than typing in passwords, the company forecast...[Full Article]

Mind-reading tech predicts terrorist's intentions

A simple slide show could be the next weapon against terrorists. Using a brain-electrode cap and imagery, scientists at Northwestern University can pick the date, location and means of a future terrorist attack from the minds of America's enemies.

The new research could not only stop terrorist attacks before they happen, but could also be used to help prevent other capers, or convict criminals after they break the law.

"We presented [the mock terrorists] with stimuli that are rational choices of what they might do, said J. Peter Rosenfeld, a scientist at Northwestern University and coauthor of a new study in the journal Psychophysiology.

"They sit in a chair, we put brain wave recording electrodes on their scalp and they look at the screen."

The electrodes measure the P300 brain wave, an involuntary response to stimuli that starts in the temporoparietal junction and spreads across the rest of the brain. When the wave hits the surface of the brain, the electrodes detect the signal. The stronger the reaction of the subject to a particularly stimuli, the stronger the P300 brain wave...

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