Intel joins search for thought-controlled cell phones
Santa Clara microchip giant Intel has joined a growing technological quest once considered the stuff of science fiction: enabling people to operate computers, television sets and cell phones solely with their thoughts.
"If we could access the global information network simply by using the power of our thoughts, it would open up incredible new opportunities for computing technology," said Dean Pomerleau, an Intel researcher in Pittsburgh, who is working with scientists at Carnegie Mellon University and elsewhere to decipher brain patterns in a preliminary study of the concept.
By analyzing the brain's electrical activity and blood flow when people ponder certain words and actions, scientists have identified patterns that computers can be programmed to read. That has opened the door to a number of intriguing applications.
