How Brain Science is Changing the Future

     As scientists broaden research on brain science and ways to improve upon it, profit-minded individuals are quick to find ways to turn the field into a business. As a result, entrepreneurs such as Paul Allen, Jeffrey Hawkins, and Robin Li have since made ground-breaking inventions that will forever change the future of the brain. These inventions not only create ingenious ways to reverse and alter brain illnesses, but alo give the gift of life to many who would not be able to survive without it.
            As researchers dig deeper into the workings of the brain, more and more details have been uncovered, allowing for a much better understanding of how the brain would react to connections with machines, also known as brain-computer interfaces (BCI). BCIs are currently being used by paralyzed patients by allowing them to turn thoughts into emails, among other actions. Mind mapping is another new term that has made it’s way into the brain science world. This allows for a patient to undergo a brain scan that could potentially detect early warning signs of diseases such as Alzheimer's and schizophrenia. Furthermore, for those without mental illnesses, BCI still has a place in everyday life. For example, there are BCI racing games, an Australian “attention-powered” car, and mind-controlled drones - just to name a few.
            At the rate that the brain science industry is growing, venture capitalist Vinod Khosla interprets that technology will soon replace over 80% of the time a doctor would normally take to make a health decision for a patient. With ongoing projects, such as the Allen Institute Brain Atlas and Cell Types project, the Brain Initiative, the Human Brain Project, the Blue Brain Project and the China Brain Science Project, the possibilities of brain technology are limitless. A hundred years ago no one would have believed that a car would be able to be powered by real-time sensors that monitor a driver’s concentration, but now that this is a reality, who knows what will happen in another hundred.
 
To learn more visit: https://www.weforum.org/agenda/2015/08/5-brain-technologies-future/