The Future of the Mind (17 page)

In the future, one can imagine the most dangerous jobs being done by robots controlled by humans in this fashion. Dr. Nicolelis says, “
We will likely be able to operate remotely controlled envoys and ambassadors, robots and airships of many shapes and sizes, sent on our behalf to explore other planets and stars in distant corners of the universe.”

For example, in 2010 the world looked on in horror as 5 million barrels of crude oil spilled unabated into the Gulf of Mexico. The Deepwater Horizon spill was one of the largest oil disasters in history, yet engineers were largely helpless for three months. Robotic subs, which are controlled remotely, floundered for weeks trying to cap the well because they lacked the dexterity and versatility necessary for this underwater mission. If surrogate subs, which are much more sensitive in manipulating tools, had been available, they might have capped the well in the first few days of the spill, preventing billions in property damage and lawsuits.

Another possibility is that surrogate submarines might one day enter the
human body and perform delicate surgery from the inside. This idea was explored in the movie
Fantastic Voyage
, starring Raquel Welch, in which a submarine was shrunk down to the size of a blood cell and then injected into the bloodstream of someone who had a blood clot in his brain. Shrinking atoms violates the laws of quantum physics, but one day MEMS (micro-electrical-mechanical systems) the size of cells might be able to enter a person’s bloodstream. MEMS are incredibly small machines that can easily fit on a pinpoint. MEMS employ the same etching technology used in Silicon Valley, which can put hundreds of millions of transistors on a wafer the size of your fingernail. An elaborate machine with gears, levers, pulleys, and even motors can be made smaller than the period at the end of this sentence. One day a person may be able to put on a telepathy helmet and then command a MEMS submarine using wireless technology to perform surgery inside a patient.

So MEMS technology may open up an entirely new field of medicine, based on microscopic machines entering the body. These MEMS submarines might even guide nanoprobes as they enter the brain so that they connect precisely to the neurons that are of interest. In this way, nanoprobes might be able to receive and transmit signals from the handful of neurons that are involved in specific behaviors. The hit-or-miss approach of inserting electrodes into the brain will be eliminated.

THE FUTURE

In the short term, all these remarkable advances taking place in laboratories around the world may alleviate the suffering of those afflicted by paralysis and other disabilities. Using the power of their minds, they will be able to communicate with loved ones, control their wheelchairs and beds, walk by mentally guiding mechanical limbs, manipulate household appliances, and lead seminormal lives.

But in the long term, these advances could have profound economic and practical implications for the world. By mid-century, it could become commonplace to interact with computers directly with the mind. Since the computer business is a multitrillion-dollar industry that can create young billionaires and corporations almost overnight, advances in the mind-computer interface will reverberate on Wall Street—and also in your living room.

All the devices we use to communicate with computers (the mouse, keyboards,
etc.) may eventually disappear. In the future, we may simply give mental commands and our wishes will be silently carried out by tiny chips hidden in the environment. While sitting in our offices, taking a stroll in the park, doing window-shopping, or just relaxing, our minds could be interacting with scores of hidden chips, allowing us to mentally balance our finances, arrange for theater tickets, or make a reservation.

Artists may also make good use of this technology. If they can visualize their artwork in their minds, then the image can be displayed via EEG sensors on a holographic screen in 3-D. Since the image in the mind is not as precise as the original object, the artist could then make improvements on the 3-D image and dream up the next iteration. After several cycles, the artist could print out the final image on a 3-D printer.

Similarly, engineers would be able to create scale models of bridges, tunnels, and airports by simply using their imagination. They could also rapidly make changes in their blueprints through thought alone. Machine parts could fly off the computer screen and into a 3-D printer.

Some critics, however, have claimed that these telekinetic powers have one great limitation: the lack of energy. In the movies, super beings have the power to move mountains using their thoughts. In the movie
X-Men: The Last Stand
, the super villain Magneto had the ability to move the Golden Gate Bridge simply by pointing his fingers, but the human body can muster only about one-fifth of a horsepower on average, which is much too little power to perform the feats we see in the comic books. Therefore, all the herculean feats of telekinetic super beings appear to be pure fantasy.

There is one solution to this energy problem, however. You may be able to connect your thoughts to a power source, which would then magnify your power millions of times. In this way, you could approximate the power of a god. In one episode of
Star Trek
, the crew journeys to a distant planet and meets a godlike creature who claims to be Apollo, the Greek god of the sun. He can perform feats of magic that dazzle the crew. He even claims to have visited Earth eons ago, where the earthlings worshipped him. But the crew, not believing in gods, suspect a fraud. Later they figure out that this “god” just mentally controls a hidden power source, which then performs all the magic tricks. When this power source is destroyed, he becomes a mere mortal.

Similarly, in the future our minds may mentally control a power source
that will then give us superpowers. For example, a construction worker might telepathically exploit a power source that energizes heavy machinery. Then a single worker might be able to build complex buildings and houses just by using the power of his mind. All the heavy lifting would be done by the power source, and the construction worker would resemble a conductor, able to orchestrate the motion of colossal cranes and powerful bulldozers through thought alone.

Science is beginning to catch up to science fiction in yet another way. The
Star Wars
saga was supposed to take place in a time when civilizations span the entire galaxy. The peace of the galaxy, in turn, is maintained by the Jedi Knights, a highly trained cadre of warriors who use the power of the “Force” to read minds and guide their lightsabers.

However, one need not wait until we have colonized the entire galaxy to begin contemplating the Force. As we’ve seen, some aspects of the Force are possible today, such as being able to tap into the thoughts of others using ECOG electrodes or EEG helmets. But the telekinetic powers of the Jedi Knights will also become a possibility as we learn to harness a power source with our minds. The Jedi Knights, for example, can summon a light-saber simply by waving their hands, but we can already accomplish the same feat by exploiting the power of magnetism (much as the magnet in an MRI machine can hurl a hammer across a room). By mentally activating the power source, you can grab lightsabers from across the room with today’s technology.

THE POWER OF A GOD

Telekinesis is a power usually reserved for a deity or a superhero. In the universe of superheros appearing in blockbuster Hollywood movies, perhaps the most powerful character is Phoenix, a telekinetic woman who can move any object at will. As a member of the X-Men, she can lift heavy machinery, hold back floods, or raise jet airplanes via the power of her mind. (However, when she is finally consumed by the dark side of her power, she goes on a cosmic rampage, capable of incinerating entire solar systems and destroying stars. Her power is so great and uncontrollable that it leads to her eventual self-destruction.)

But how far can science go in harnessing telekinetic powers?

In the future, even with an external power source to magnify our thoughts, it is unlikely that people with telekinetic powers will be able to move basic objects like a pencil or mug of coffee on command. As we mentioned, there are only four known forces that rule the universe, and none of them can move objects unless there is an external power source. (Magnetism comes close, but magnetism can move only magnetic objects. Objects made of plastic, water, or wood can easily pass through magnetic fields.) Simple levitation, a trick found in most magicians’ shows, is beyond our scientific capability.

So even with an external power supply, is it unlikely that a telekinetic person would be able to move the objects around them at will. However, there is a technology that may come close, and that involves the ability to change one object into another.

The technology is called “programmable matter,” and it has become a subject of intense research for the Intel Corporation. The idea behind programmable matter is to create objects made of tiny “catoms,” which are microscopic computer chips. Each catom can be controlled wirelessly; it can be programmed to change the electrical charge on its surface so it can bind with other catoms in different ways. By programming the electric charges one way, the catoms bind together to form, say, a cell phone. Push a button to change their programming, and the catoms rearrange themselves to re-form into another object, like a laptop.

I saw a demonstration of this technology at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, where scientists have been able to create a chip the size of a pinpoint. To exam these catoms, I had to enter a “clean room” wearing a special white uniform, plastic boots, and a cap to prevent even the smallest dust particle from entering. Then, under a microscope, I could see the intricate circuitry inside each catom, which makes it possible to program it wirelessly to change the electrical charge on its surface. In the same way we can program software today, in the future it may be possible to program hardware.

The next step is to determine if these catoms can combine to form useful objects, and to see if they can be changed or morphed into another object at will. It may take until mid-century before we have working prototypes of programmable matter. Because of the complexity of programming billions of catoms, a special computer would have to be created to orchestrate the charge on each catom. Perhaps by the end of this century, it will be possible to mentally control this computer so that we can change one object
into another. We would not have to memorize the charges and configuration within an object. We would just give the mental command to the computer to change one object into another.

Eventually we might have catalogs listing all the various objects that are programmable, such as furniture, appliances, and electronics. Then by telepathically communicating with the computer, it should be possible to change one object into another. Redecorating your living room, remodeling your kitchen, and buying Christmas presents could all be done mentally.

A MORALITY TALE

Having every wish come true is something that only a divinity can accomplish. However, there is also a downside to this celestial power. All technologies can be used for good or for evil. Ultimately, science is a double-edged sword. One side of the sword can cut against poverty, disease, and ignorance. But the other side can cut against people, in several ways.

These technologies could conceivably make wars even more vicious. Perhaps one day, all hand-to-hand combat will be between two surrogates, armed with a battery of high-tech weapons. The actual warriors, sitting safely thousands of miles away, would unleash a barrage of the latest high-tech weaponry with little regard for the collateral damage they are inflicting on civilians. Although wars fought with surrogates may preserve the lives of the soldiers themselves, they might also cause horrendous civilian and property damage.

The bigger problem is that this power may also be too great for any common mortal to control. In the novel
Carrie
, Stephen King explored the world of a young girl who was constantly taunted by her peers. She was ostracized by the in-crowd and her life became a never-ending series of insults and humiliations. However, her tormentors did not know one thing about her: she was telekinetic.

After enduring the taunts and having blood splashed all over her dress at the prom, she finally cracks. She summons all her telekinetic power to trap her classmates and then annihilate them one by one. In a final gesture, she decides to burn the entire school down. But her telekinetic power was too great to control. She ultimately perishes in the fire that she started.

Not only can the awesome power of telekinesis backfire, but there is another problem as well. Even if you have taken all the precautions to understand
and harness this power, it could still destroy you if, ironically enough, it is too obedient to your thoughts and commands. Then the very thoughts you conceive may spell your doom.

The movie
Forbidden Planet
(1956) is based on a play by William Shakespeare,
The Tempest
, which begins with a sorcerer and his daughter stranded on a deserted island. But in
Forbidden Planet
, a professor and his daughter are stranded on a distant planet that was once the home of the Krell, a civilization millions of years more advanced than ours. Their greatest achievement was to create a device that gave them the ultimate power of telekinesis, the power to control matter in all its forms by the mind. Anything they desired suddenly materialized before them. This was the power to reshape reality itself to their whims.

Yet on the eve of their greatest triumph, as they were turning on this device the Krell disappeared without a trace. What could have possibly destroyed this most advanced civilization?

When a crew of earthmen land on the planet to rescue the man and his daughter, they find that there is a hideous monster haunting the planet, slaughtering crew members at will. Finally, one crew member discovers the secret behind both the Krell and the monster. Before he dies, he gasps, “Monsters from the id.”