Star Wars Toy Trains Would Be Jedis How to Use The Force

Midi-chlorians not included.

there's no risk of it all going wrong and the ball controlling your mind is there....?

(no I'm not serious, yes this is a reference to Spiderman 2) jeez.

I've been following brain-to-computer output technology for a while, and this is exciting. I can't wait for this to be advanced enough to be implemented it a lot of stuff with on/off functionality, like door locks or 'clapper' like light switches. :P

They have had this working in Vancouver at the Telus Sphere for some years now. In that version, it is a head to head game that measures your brain's Alpha waves, compares them to your opponent's and moves the ball (which is inside a tube like this but horizontal) toward the 'weaker' side. First one to cross the other's threshold is delcared the winner.

Very interesting tech which has a ton of promise.

Looks thrilling.

Just a guy,

I've been following this stuff as well. I think it is great seeing the progress it's made to allowing people who have lost limbs to be able to interface with technology, with something as simple as moving a mouse cursor across the screen. I'm very interested to see where development of artificial limbs goes from here on.

Very cool. Was it here on Neatorama that I saw that 60 Minutes bit about this same type of technology? Very cool stuff.

This is not new. I experienced "bio-feedback" back in the seventies. The object it to calm your thoughts or brain activity to reach a blisslike state. But cool its now in a toy!!

That kid looks liek a mini Harry Potter.

Didn't the aliens have something like this in the movie "Forbidden Planet"? It was next to the machine that let you build whatever you wanted by picturing it clearly in your head.

There's therapy potential for this. Let's say you're one of those people who have depression due to a problem in a specific part of the brain. Calibrate a game like this to focus on the weak part of the brain and you can strengthen it like a muscle by reinforcing those neurons.

giltwist - unfortunatly, even if we could pinpoint the correct physical part of the brain, that wouldn't work. Brain cells don't operate the same way as muscles cells.

Simplified: Muscles strengthen by tearing in tiny little places all over the muscle during exertion, then growing new cells to fill those holes, making the muscle bigger and stronger.
Brain cells don't do that, and brain tissure isn't designed to contract or expand. And if you somehow cause a tear between cells, new cells wouldn't grow to replace them. (Like nerve cells and spinal cells, the connection would be severed, and a large enough severence in brain cells would really mess someone up).

A new way to enjoy ping pong balls, nice!

I can slow my heart rate by 20 beats per minute in less than three second (Well, twenty years ago, I could). I can still change my skin temperature, warm it or cool it, at will. Blood pressure takes continuous practice, if I work at it for a month, I can drop it by 30 points at will.

Here is the real challenge: what the hell good is all this? Those skills are as useless as making a ping pong ball float in a tube.

'toys' are generally useless.

Toys are usually fun, too. This looks interesting for about thirty seconds.

so if we buy this and we master it... can we actually have the force? if we can, all we need is a lightsaber.