![Pinterest](https://pinterest.com/pin/create/button/?url=https://uknews.evprotec.com/machine-can-read-the-mind-and-help-paralysed-people-communicate/&media=https://uknews.evprotec.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/11/TELEMMGLPICT000315519713_trans_NvBQzQNjv4Bqey5VrC_5ny_dp6O_XDtIXY9NbzJRqyfjap-on4syXoM.jpeg&description=The man had an electrocorticography array implanted in his head to monitor his brain activity and was asked to spell out sentences such as "I do not want to do that" or "tell me about your family" and "you have got to be kidding". When he finished a sentence, he was asked to attempt to squeeze his hand to indicate a full stop. As well as simply deciphering the brain waves, the device also uses deep learning algorithms and natural language models to predict the sentence and insert spaces between words. Early attempts by the team to decode the brain activity of entire words stalled after the team found they could only interpret around 50 words, and only if the participant attempted to speak the word out loud, which took significant effort. System could enable general communication The researchers were also concerned that it would not be useful for people who were not able to make any sounds at all. To get round the problem, they picked individual letters. The new system has shown for the first time that silent attempts to speak can also be decoded. The team believes the system could eventually be trained to understand 9,000 common English words, which exceeds the threshold for basic fluency and would enable general communication. Currently, people with severe paralysis are forced to use touch screens, laboriously pointing to letters or words to communicate using head or eye movements to control a laser or stylus. The late scientist Professor Stephen Hawking had one of the most advanced systems, which used a sensor on his glasses which he controlled by twitching his cheek. The research was published in the journal Nature Communications.){kind=link}
The device can analyse the brainwaves of non-verbal patients and turn them into sentences
A mind-reading device that can peer into the brain and pluck out language has been developed to help paralysed people communicate.
In a major breakthrough, neuroscientists have decoded the brain activity produced when a person silently speaks the phonetic version of an individual letter – for example ‘alpha’ for the letter ‘A’ or ‘bravo’ for ‘B’.
The method allows complete words to be spelled out, one character at a time, simply by thinking.
It could help those who struggle to communicate because of conditions like amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), stroke, a spinal cord injury or muscular dystrophy.