#Brain-Computer Interface Advancements

[neosciencehub]

Future of Neurotechnology in Post - Neuralink Era!

Future of Neurotechnology in Post-Neuralink Era! @neosciencehub #neosciencehub #science #neurotechnology #neuralink #braincomputer #neurological #brainchip #NeuralinkDevelopment #DataSecurity #ArtificialIntelligence #AITech #HumanAI #NSH #Innovations

The successful human implantation of Neuralink’s brain-computer interface marks a watershed moment in the field of Neurotechnology. This achievement not only demonstrates the immense potential of merging human cognition with artificial intelligence but also sets the stage for a future filled with extraordinary possibilities and challenges. NSH’s special report is to explore what lies ahead in the…

[codexofforbiddenknowledge]

Ever heard of hidden technology like predictive AI or micro-drones? This fascinating video on YouTube uncovers the secret tech innovations of the last few years—and a surprising twist! Watch now on YT.

[presswoodterryryan]

🧠 Unlocking the Secrets of the Nervous System: Ariel’s Ultimate Guide!

By Alice My big sister Ariel isn’t just an amazing artist—she’s also a brilliant scientist! 🔬✨ She just wrote an incredible paper all about the brain, spinal cord, and reflexes, inspired by her passion for understanding how the body works and her curiosity about how science helps people recover from neurological injuries. In this fascinating work, she delves deep into the complex interplay…

[akwbrain122]

"Unlock Your Full Potential: How AKW Brain Technology is Revolutionizing Cognitive Enhancement"

[mehmetyildizmelbourne-blog]

Brainoware: The Hybrid Neuromorphic System for a Brighter Tomorrow

A glimpse into the double-edged nature of Brain Organoid Reservoir Computing, with the pros/cons of this biological computing approach From a young age, I was captivated by the mysteries of science and the promise of technology, wondering how they could shape our understanding of the world. I was fortunate to receive STEM education early on in a specialized school, where my creativity and…

[open-era]

Next-Gen Tech: The Rise and Potential of Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs)

🧠💻 Mind meets machine: The stuff of sci-fi dreams is becoming real with Brain-Computer Interfaces! Imagine controlling tech with your thoughts. 🚀 Get ready to explore the limitless possibilities of BCIs. The future is now! #BCIs #Tech #ElonMusk

Imagine a world where you can make things happen with just your thoughts. As technology zooms ahead, something truly mind-blowing is emerging: Brain-Computer Interfaces, or BCIs. These amazing devices are like bridges between our minds and computers, creating a future where our thoughts and computers work together like never before. Let’s explore the incredible world of BCIs and see how they’re…

[vergess]

You've probably seen some folks fear-mongering about an "M.I.T. study" that was recently released "proving" that using LLMs causes "cognitive decline."

In fact, I can link you to the very study right now. It's DOI page:

And the study PDF itself, which you can reach by clicking the "view PDF" in the upper right of the DOI page.

So, this is a very scary study that uses a lot of advanced jargon from two fields with fairly little overlap. That makes it a hard read. Which wouldn't be an issue if it were going through peer review. However, it was published to an archival service; it is not a journal and it is not peer reviewed.

The first red flag we all need to consider is that this was not read by other specialized experts in cognition, machine learning, or the overlap between the two fields. It wasn't reviewed by anyone beyond a content moderator making sure it looks "appropriate and topical. Material that contains offensive language, non-scientific content, or is plagiarized may be removed."

So the number one thing to remember, as I critique this study, is that it has had no review. Which forces every reader to do their own review. Which is a problem when you're writing in specialized technical language from two rarely overlapping fields.

So now that we know there was no review and the only oversight came from the authors themselves, let's look at those authors.

Nataliya Kosmyna is a human/computer interfacing expert who specializes in neurotechnology. She is also extremely pro-AI. Make a note of that, it will be important later.

Eugene Hauptmann is an AI developer himself, with a "faith based" AI company he started to build a "technological singularity".

Ye Tong "Tina" Yuan graduated Wellesley last month (May 2025)! First off, congratulations to you, Tina. Well done on getting this much press attention as a fresh Bachelor!!!

Xiao-Hao "Harry" Liao is an expert in UX design. He is also pro-AI, and even develops his own LLM interfaces.

Ashly Vivian Beresnitzky has no other publications or significant online presence I was able to find.

Iris Braunstein is another AI developer and design expert.

The same is true of Pattie Maes.

Are we noticing a pattern here?

We have a lot of computer scientists--dazzlingly advanced experts--who love AI. We also have a stark absence of cognitive scientists of any sort.

This study was not authored by experts in cognition. It also did not use any standard forms of cognitive testing.

That's right! It turns out writing essays with electrodes on for 20 minutes once a month for 4 months isn't "cognitive testing."

Those electrodes measure how many signals different regions of your brain are sending, with relatively low precision. They do not and cannot measure how hard you are thinking or how well you are learning. That is not how that works.

They also graded the essays. Oh wait, no they didn't. An LLM graded the essays.

But they did do n-gram analysis on the essays too! That's where you look for common word groups of different lengths. In fact, n-grams are the underlying mathematics of LLMs! Which is why this batch of LLM scientists decided to use them. And worse, they used them exactly the way you would use them to test an LLM's functionality.

So, let me repeat that in different terms:

A bunch of computer scientists decided to run a cognition study, using only their familiar computer science methodologies, consulting no cognition testing experts, and without actually grading the fucking essays.

They then published their unreviewed gibberish to an archive, where the media picked it up, misread it, and misapplied it.

I say misapplied, because if you look at the selection of experts who wrote the paper, another pattern emerges from their past published works: they are making LLM software in direct competition with chatGPT.

This was an attack ad to try to drive AI loving consumers away from chatGPT and towards their own products.

And then people somehow misunderstood that and went ballistic about how interacting with AI is ~basically brain damage~. A thing the study was not even trying to prove in the first place, and in no way proved by accident either.

[mindblowingscience]

Researchers have developed a new method for intercepting neural signals from the brain of a person with paralysis and translating them into audible speech—all in near real-time. The result is a brain-computer interface (BCI) system similar to an advanced version of Google Translate, but instead of converting one language to another, it deciphers neural data and transforms it into spoken sentences.  Recent advancements in machine learning have enabled researchers to train AI voice synthesizers using recordings of the individual’s own voice, making the generated speech more natural and personalized. Patients with paralysis have already used BCI to improve physical motor control function by controlling computer mice and prosthetic limbs. This particular system addresses a more specific subsection of patients who have also lost their capacity to speak. In testing, the paralyzed patient was able to silently read full text sentences, which were then converted into speech by the AI voice with a delay of less than 80 milliseconds. Results of the study were published this week in the journal Nature Neuroscience by a team of researchers from the University of California, Berkeley and the University of California, San Francisco. 

Continue Reading.

[unclegrumbles]

ULTIMATE DANNY PHANTOM

TUCKER FOLEY

Tucker had his nose buried in his phone before it was cool. Beyond gaming, he loves tinkering with his many gadgets to find new and creative ways to optimize them. Having access to the spare parts bin from the Fentons' laboratory grants Tucker a veritable buffet of tech to play with. Using their old tech, Tucker created his beloved PDA. Hidden beneath its standard functions is an encryption-cracking algorithm Tucker developed himself, capable of hacking into the most secure computers in town. Once Danny got his powers, Tucker began upgrading a special backpack with even more FentonWorks tech to aid in ghost hunting. Tucker's "Battlepack" contains a powerful, compact radio receiver linked to his PDA which allows him to tap into police radio comms and the FentonWorks' satnav ghost radar. It also includes a link port compatible with Fenton Thermoses, allowing Danny and the team to inspect certain traits of captured ghosts. An integrated Fenton powerbank can charge up all manner of devices, from phones to Fenton Thermoses and beyond. While Tucker takes pride in his role as the team's tech guy, he harbors some jealousy over Danny getting superpowers. That doesn't stop him from being Danny's closest, most reliable and loyal friend.

Powers and Abilities

Multitasking: Heavy is the head that wears the crown. As the self-described brains of the operation, Tucker is thusly saddled with the responsibility to handle more of the complex strategizing that comes with ghost hunting. After all, one does not simply hunt a ghost on a school night. Tucker takes on the task of checking weather, traffic, security, and even variables like public transportation and community events while coordinating with the rest of Team Phantom during a hunt. Tucker's obsession with data and details often prevents him from seeing the bigger picture.

PDA: While Tucker is too insecure to realize or admit it, the PDA he created is practically a superpower of its own. The encryption-cracking algorithm he created is based on a primitive program found in a discarded FentonWorks hard drive, but Tucker's skill with tech advanced the program far beyond its original state. By plugging into any computer linked to a network, Tucker can gain full access to all of its protected files. At the time of its creation, WiFi was still in its infancy. Regardless, Tucker integrated state-of-the-art WiFi tech into his PDA, allowing it to remotely interface with networked devices. Tucker can coordinate nearly all of Team Phantom's operations from the little machine.

Gamer™: Tucker, like Danny, is a proud member of the PC master race. Tucker has one of the best rigs in town, built with his own two hands, and has poured countless hours into late nights playing DOOMED with Danny. Once word slipped that Sam was one of the best gamers in their group, Tucker made it his life's mission to beat her high score in Superman 64, or die trying.

Confidence: Despite his very nerdy interests, Tucker oozes self-confidence. That translates well when talking to peers and adults alike. When Danny needs a pep-talk (that doesn't involve screaming from Sam), he goes to Tucker for wise words of encouragement.

---

Tucker is immensely proud of this encryption-cracking algorithm, but recently it's given him cause for concern. During routine maintenance he'll sometimes discover lines of code that he didn't write. Other times the algorithm diagnostic log shows encryption-cracking attempts that he didn't initiate. It's almost as if the algorithm has taken on a life of its own...

[neosciencehub]

Pioneering BCI : Journey Before Neuralink

Pioneering BCI : Journey Before Neuralink @neosciencehub #neosciencehub #science #neuralink #neurotechnology #neurotech #neuroscience #BrownUniversity #scientific #BCI #JohnDonoghue #braincomputer #research #BlackrockNeurotech #NSH #BrainImplants

The recent success of Neuralink in implanting a brain-computer interface (BCI) in a human brain has captured the world’s attention. However, it’s crucial to recognize that this achievement stands on the shoulders of numerous pioneering efforts in the field of neurotechnology. This article explores the significant contributions made before Neuralink that have shaped the current landscape of BCI…

[rowansender]

Man, writing general intro stuff is poison to my brain. I feel like I have this one chance to sell the vibe of the game, and I can’t quite get it to feel right in about four paragraphs. I don’t really like either of them. The first is too conversational and I accidentally wrote it in second person. The other one is clinical and has no flavor.

Idk man this is really the worst parts of projects for me.

——

You are a wizard with a day job. The world is mostly mundane. You go to work, you eat, you sleep. And that’s how most people around you live as well. But every so often, when the stars align, some odd shit happens and someone needs 2-4 wizards to come fix it.

Your wizard is a normal person. They have about as much magic skill as the average office worker has tech skill. It’s enough to get by and do their job, and if they were ambitious they should probably learn more, but they’re not experts.

You work along side orcs and dragonlings who are in about the same boat as you. They come in, sit at their desk for a few hours, use the company issued wand-o-sorting to file some documents so they look busy, and then they go home.

On your walk home, you pass by food carts wheeled by hulking stone constructs, willed to life by the mana stone in their chest. The cobblestone streets and old stone fortress walls around your neighborhood are looking rough these days, covered in graffiti. You swear you voted on some ordinance or another that was supposed to clean that up.

You get to your tower. Your apartment is on the fifth floor. If you got a unit in one of the new mage-bound buildings it would be cheaper, but you’d have to walk up 30 stories. Not worth it.

But it’s the weekend. Your crew is probably already waiting. The adventure boards have been busy lately. You decided on the old count with the vampire bat problem last night, hopefully the port stones will be loaded already so you can leave right away.

——————

In Weekend Wizards you play as career wizards who have taken up adventuring on the weekends as a hobby. The world is a semi-modern fantasy where people commonly learn magic as a part of their careers. These work wizards might be trained in magic as it relates to their job, but few people ever pursue the practice far enough to be considered an Arch mage: a person who has a wholistic mastery of magic. They act as the bulk of the workforce; from doctors down to laborers, almost everyone is trained in at least some magic for their job. Jobs that use magic more in their day-to-day have greater mana reserves, but no job is innately better at magic. Waiters, truck drivers, office workers, ecologists are all wizards with their own expertise and abilities.

The world is a medieval fantasy that has progressed to the level of technology of early analogue computing. Through magic, tech wizards construct Ley networks and rudimentary logic systems out of enchantments. Orbs are user interfaces and runestones are payphones. Bustling towns are built inside of stone walled keeps and enchanted forests may be just a day trip for city-goers. All varieties of fantasy races coexist in these packed cities, each culture morphing with the advancing society. The first skyscrapers are being constructed, a new age wizard towers full of trained arcane workers.

On these magical networks, Adventure Boards have popped up: services that connect clients with adventuring mercenaries. Adventuring has become a growing hobby for bored work wizards. The Ley networks let them connect with clients quickly and the ABs supply waygates that get adventurers to and from their destinations quickly. Each play session is one weekend of adventuring and the next session has a week between where your character goes to work and lives their normal life.

[thiriumhound]

connor idea: after escaping the zen garden during markus' speech, that is unfortunately not the last he sees of it. the connection between him and the external server of the zen garden keeps getting rebuilt and he gets pulled in and retrapped over and over, posing a threat to both connor as he nearly freezes to death inside and everyone around him when he's not in control.

done with the stress, he disconnects himself from the internet. weeks pass, and... it's stopped. he's fine. finally, he has an escape. but he goes back online for just a moment, just to send a message or something equally small, and gets immediately pulled back in again. it's relentless- every moment he's online is another second used to pull him under again. he completely turns off his internet connection until further notice, making him incapable of using it for anything- no info searches, no instant-identification, no software updates that might be rolling out, nothing.

he's utterly isolated. no android was ever meant to be permanently removed from the internet. he feels blinded, like one of his essential senses was just cut off. humans grew up learning things, but androids like him were printed into an adult body and adult mind, given no time to learn- access to the world's wealth of information was how they functioned despite that. connor loses this access, while all other androids just continue on, knowing things instantly that he just can't anymore.

of course, there's always phone lines, though. he can still text and call- he can still communicate wirelessly and instantly, like any other android. even if he's lost in terms of information, at least the world isn't completely cut off to him.

but then he finds himself in the garden again anyway.

amanda is too advanced. she IS code, she understands the nonphysical world unlike any other consciousness alive, and she'll twist anything she can into a new access point. absolutely anything is a weakness, and cell service is just another avenue of connection to exploit. connor is forced to disconnect from phone services, too.

one by one, all of his communications are cut off the same way. every little thing is a vulnerability, direct access into his brain. he can't interface with any devices lest the connection between him and its own internet access be exploited. he can't even do bluetooth or short-range transmissions to other androids anymore, whether out of fear or real risk not really mattering anymore. he has to get any software updates he might want or need by going directly to his friends so they can update him manually with no gap a malicious program can slip through.

hell, amanda might not be the only one after such a useful, dangerous tool like him.

he's not a human. he's an android. it's like having limbs cut off. he can't even interface with other androids anymore- despite their advanced protections, it's only a matter of time before his friends' own connections to the internet and anything else will be anything but another risk.

he ends up getting all his connectivity functions physically removed. nothing in him that can receive wireless signals, nothing that can function as any kind of external breach- nothing can get him if those functions can't even be turned on again because they aren't even there. pieces removed until he's as isolated as an '80s desktop computer. despite hesitation he ends up getting his mere ability to interface physically removed too. completely cut off from his own people, his coded mind completely isolated from threat.

his only consolation is getting a cell phone. it's barely a glimpse into what he had before- more of an aid to make up a tiny bit for what he's lost- but at least there's that.

[tcfactory]

I'm not bothered by spoilers gimme that good Sentinel info. *grabby hands*

OKAY, I'm practically exploding here to talk about my blorbo, so some spoilers for Crossed Sparks and overly long musings on my personal flavor of Sentinel from the fic and his many complicated reasons why he fucking sucks at sex and what that says about him as a person under the cut.

So, depending on where you are in the timeline —during the events of Crossed Sparks or sometime after the story, when 'sticky' interfacing upgrades have caught on— Sentinel is really quite bad at sex in two diametrically opposite extremes, which is quite an achievement.

Sentinel, as we meet him, is insatiable and not in the fun way — it's in the sense that his energy requirements are much too high for any one mech to get him off unless they are powered by the endless energy of the Matrix or are overpowered giants like Megatronus Prime was. When he was reformatted into his current body they had some specifics in mind and his comfort was not something they considered in the least. He is an ungodly combination of super lightweight, insanely energy efficient main systems pared down to the absolute minimum, completely subordinated to an almost parasitical tactical apparatus that's made up of four brain modules salvaged from other tactician frames and assorted top-of-the-line analytical hardware.

Now this is usually not much of an issue on a day to day basis —he needs to jump through some hoops if he wants to access his super-smarts that come from all that extra nonsense, but he's plenty smart on his own— because he has some fail safes that keep his tactical system from draining energy from the rest of him and keep all that monstrously energy hungry mess dormant when not in use, but there is no such precaution in place to prevent it from pouncing on any scrap of extra energy and gobbling it all up.

As soon as there is any extra charge in his body, his energy consumption skyrockets, which, other than putting the very chance of an overload far out of his reach without some very creative problem solving, is dangerous for his partner because linking systems with him essentially hands over all their energy to him too. It's like trying to sate a vampire by slashing all your veins open and Barricade can attest that it's not a good feeling to be drained into stasis.

There are other ways to be intimate than straight up linking systems, but it falls into the same issue, for one —any extra charge he generates through tactile stimulation goes right into the endless yawning void of his analytical hardware— but he was not made to be touched to begin with. He has decent levels of sensation in his hands and face and some of his internal components if you can get him to open his chest plates up —the parts of him made from protometal— but very few sensors in his body as a whole —refurbished spaceship hull is not exactly designed to convey a lot of tactile sensation and (with a few exceptions) his ports are the bad kind of sensitive— and none at all in his imitation 'wings'.

He was constructed to be a pretty, mobile shell housing the most advanced tactical computer the Primes had access to at the time, a useful and well-crafted tool, but the fact that he was also a person was not much of a consideration. His ability to be intimate with others is hobbled by the realities of what he is. Even when he falls into a relationship with Screamer and the two Waves (give or take some extras; the more the merrier! which is to say, the more participants the better energy production vs energy consumption gets balanced between everybody and more fun is had) he is still awfully hard to get off. They have to sate his tactical systems first and he then gets off on the relief of systems running smoothly and the feedback of pleasure from the others rather than any pleasure of his own.

Does this give him complexes around intimacy and interfacing? Oh boy does it ever! They can go in a pile with the rest of his traumas and complexes around his personhood, so it's nothing out of the usual for him at least.

Then, when things eventually settle down, the schematics of the organic-styled 'sticky' interface upgrades (courtesy of the bots from the other timeline) start circulating and most of the bots in command opt into them too. Sentinel is the last one to get the upgrade, as well as some other tweaks. More sensors in his body, a software upgrade that prevents his tactical systems from activating without his deliberate, conscious choice to cut down the issues with his energy requirements at the very roots, all good stuff that should make his intimate life easier.

It catapults him right into the other extreme: his body is conditioned and fine-tuned to trip into overload when it can hold onto even a minuscule amount of charge. He's on a hair trigger and incredibly easy to overwhelm to the point of painful overstimulation. It gets a little better with some adjustments and practice, but it doesn't ever get anywhere 'good' or 'normal'. When he finally gets to experience pleasure, it's too much, too intense. Even with these new upgrades, the realities of his construction haunt him and he remains an awkward lover who can't please his partner alone and needs to be carefully accommodated and indulged, because now it's so very easy to hurt him. He finds the entire situation humiliating to the extreme to begin with. Sharing intimacy or pleasure become something vulnerable and terrifying to him, something that takes long, long years of trust and work to unlearn again.

He has the right personality that with a healthy frame functioning on normal parameters, he could be the most demanding, needy pillow princess or the most selfish, callous 'alpha male' who cares only for his own pleasure and nothing else, but that's not how he's built. So, instead, he's insecure and paranoid and it brings out the fucking worst side of him because he's a scared turbofox that bites when he feels threatened. He almost ruins his relationships because of it, multiple times. He is incredibly fucking lucky that (by this point in time) he has people who care a lot about him and willing to help negotiate his relationships because he's incapable of doing it himself; if it was up to him, his personal life would implode in some overblown drama that leaves everyone feeling guilty and deeply hurt and mentally scarred and with absolutely no will to address or fix any of that.

He's a highly emotional, selfish disaster and I'm really damn fond of him, truth be told.

[colinmkl]

Kamen Rider NRV Lore Dump!

Manticore

Manticore LLC is a major medical technology company. Publicly, they are most known for their artificial organs and limb prosthesis as well as several other medical devices and equipment used in hospitals worldwide. Less widely publicized are their numerous military contracts, developing cutting edge medical treatment technologies but also advanced weapons, drones, and other offensive hardware.

Nanoderm

The scientific breakthrough that lead Manticore to dominate in the field of med-tech is the invention of micro-sensors that are capable of reading brain signals in the nervous system and translating them into data a computer can interpret with absolute precision. These microscopic sensors can be integrated into programmable nanomachines that interlock in a mesh that forms durable skin-like material called Nanoderm.  If an exposed section of human tissue is covered in Nanoderm and then allowed to heal, the Nanoderm will become integrated with the tissue like a layer of natural skin. Any impulses or signals sent by the brain to that part of the body will be received by the Nanoderm and translated into data. That data can then be read as motor commands by a Manticore prosthesis. Basic prosthesis models can receive this data via magnetic nodes embedded in the surface of the Nanoderm but more advanced models, capable of finer dexterity/expanded functionality, require a “bone spike,” a rod-like data plug that interfaces with a port in the Nanoderm area that is connected to more advanced sensors. The socket and sensor hardware is imbedded in the body through a surgical procedure.

The catch with the Nanoderm system is it must be applied to the body before the exposed tissue heals over and the exposed nerve endings have a chance to close off, or in other words, while the wound is “fresh”, otherwise the healed tissue must be cut away and a fresh wound made. This means that in emergency situations a patient or their next of kin must make a snap decision to undergo the expensive Nanoderm compatibility surgery as part of their emergency treatment. Of course some insurance plans will cover some or all of this cost. Additionally Manticore has deals with some insurance providers that the surgery come standard with higher end coverage plans, forgoing the need for patient consent. Manticore has exclusive patent rights to the Nanoderm system, meaning once you are Nanoderm compatible, you are locked into the Manticore ecosystem of prosthesis and devices. Additionally your devises can only be serviced by Manticore certified technicians and only Manticore doctors are trained in Nanoderm patient care.

Remote Command (RC)

Manticore is a sprawling corporation with many secrets. One such secret is the Remote Command program. A project Manticore has been working on behind closed doors, the Remote Command program involves research into sending brain signals over great distances without a physical connection between the sensor and the receiving devise. With RC a person could control a prosthetic arm in another part of the world as though it were part of their body. This is achieved by broadcasting the impulses across a proprietary electromagnetic wave length to the receiving nodes. The signal travels point to point and back again at light speed. The potential RC has for the future of drone warfare is staggering, not to mention the potential for profit.

Sensitive as this information is, there’s another layer. All Nanoderm currently in use by people around the world is capable of receiving Remote Command. With the right inputs it can reshape its self, self-replicate, and even, under certain conditions, send signals back to the user’s brain, causing brain damage or, theoretically, controlling them. Whether this functionality of Nanoderm was an intentional feature or not is unknown to anyone currently employed at Manticore but the company has no pans currently to use the Nanoderm in this way. What is known, however, is that if this function ever becomes public knowledge it would be disastrous for Manticore, not to mention the chaos that would ensue if a bad actor were to exploit this function for malicious purposes.

Manticore Special Security (Spec-Sec)

Manticore LLC has secrets, and it has enemies. To protect its secrets, combat its enemies, address the threats to public safety those things pose, (and protect its corporate interests), Manticore formed the Manticore Special Security Division. More than just your standard private security outfit, Spec-Sec is a fully equipped task force and strike force designed to identify, target, track, confront, and nullify any threat to the company and its assets. Thanks to Manticore’s history of generous donations and good standing with local police forces, the Spec-Sec Division is able to operate with a certain degree of discretion, allowing them to carry out operations without interference from police or the legal system. Lead by Special Security Director Sloane, her hand-picked crack team of Special Officers have carried out dozens of high risk operations with ruthless efficacy and, so-far, minimal casualties. Spec-Sec utilizes the most cutting edge technology and weaponry Manticore has, often before it’s even close to market ready. In some cases necessity dictates that Spec-Sec operations serve as ad hoc field tests for experimental equipment.

Core Drivers, Data Boosters, and the Kamen Rider program

The Core Driver is a piece of technology that was developed as part of research into the use of Nanoderm to enhance a soldier’s physical performance on the battlefield. The concept was to temporarily cover the user’s entire body in a layer of Nanoderm mesh that could respond to the signals from the user’s brain in such a way that would increase their strength, speed, perception, and reflexes. The solution was the Core Driver, a device that would house the billions of Nanoderm nanomachines and serve as the computational core for the whole mesh network. Along with the Core Driver was the Data Booster, a flash drive-like device shaped like a syringe. The data booster contained the information that told the nanomachines to deploy from the Core Driver and cover the user. Additionally the Booster came with its own payload of nanomachines that, when the plunger of the syringe was depressed, would also be deployed through the Core Diver and take the form of armor and weapons. Basically, a user need only insert the Data Booster into the Core Diver, clearly speak a voice authentication phrase, and depress the plunger and they would instantly be wearing a powerful yet flexible armored body suit. The project was called the “Kamen Rider program” after the masked visage of the user’s armored faceplate (“Kamen” being the Japanese word for “mask”).

The Project had its drawbacks, however. For one a user would need to already be Nanoderm compatible for the suit to work at all, meaning, practically speaking, the user would need to be an amputee, and the prospect of convincing soldiers to sacrifice a limb to use the Driver was deemed a “hard sell” and the idea of a approaching a freshly maimed soldier with the offer of further combat, well, that wouldn’t be a good look either. The second and most important drawback was the simple fact that the Kamen Rider program was far, FAR too expensive to be profitable, and the thousands of man hours it took to produce just one Core Driver meant mass producing them to sell by the battalion, as Manticore had planned, was simply out of the question.

The Kamen Rider Program was not completely abandoned, however. The first completed Core Driver, designation SVR (Special Versatility Rider model or “Sever” colloquially) is currently coded to Director Sloane of Spec-Sec, who happens to be a double transfemeral amputee. With the Director’s input, the device and the suit itself have been modified heavily over its years of use. It now features the ability for additional Data Boosters to be employed, loaded with weapons and tools in the form of appendages that attach to highly advanced versions of Bone Spike sockets on the suit at the amputation sites of the Rider’s body. The nerve signal enhancing properties of the suit allows the Rider to manipulate these complex, non-human-like appendages with a natural ease and minimal adjustment period.

A second Core Driver has just recently been put to use in the field at Spec-Sec. The first Kamen Rider designed from the ground up with Spec-Sec modifications. Designation NRV (Neo Rider Variant or “Nerve” colloquially) is encoded to the Division’s newest member, Special Officer Nat Agbayani. A right shoulder disarticulation amputee, he was promoted to the Special Security Division from the internship program in the research wing by the COO of Manticore himself… wait what? That can’t be right…

The existence of any other Core Drivers, in use or otherwise, is classified.

Thanks for reading

[friendofthew0rld]

BLOG POST #6 - Due (3/13)

1. In what ways do cyborgs in cyberspace blur the lines between human and machine?

There are many ways that cyborgs in cyberspaces “blur” the lines between human and machines. For one, various technologies have been advanced to create tech such as artificial intelligence, virtual reality games, and brain-computer interfaces. We also have many developments such as implants or prothestics which are utilized to improve a human’s quality of life. Such advances may be seen as beneficial to human life, although “it is not clear who makes and who is made in the relation between human and machine. It is not clear what is mind and what body in machines that resolve into coding practices” (Haraway, p. 356-357).

2. How is heteronormative masculinity reinforced or challenged in online communities?

Cyberspaces such as gaming and social media promote traditional ideas of masculinity, such as aggression, dominance, and competition. These spaces reinforce hegemonic ideals of masculinity, however, are continuously challenged through practices of feminity and inclusive communities that aim to breakaway from hegemonic norms.

3. In what ways does the performance of femininity in cyberspace challenge or reinforce patriarchal structures?

In terms of challenging, femininity is exemplified through individual who will to assert their autonomy and gender roles. Feminists tend to challenge traditional notions such as ideas that women are submissive, meet a eurocentric beauty standard, and are often sexualized through cyberspaces that uphold patriarchal values. On the opposite end, feminity may reinforce patriarchal structures through the use of various social media sites (e.g., TikTok, Instagram, Onlyfans) that pressure women to conform to idealized versions of feminity.

4. How do video games and social media platforms perpetuate the ideals of hypermasculinity or toxic masculinity?

One major way that video games perpetuate ideals of toxic masculinity are through the heavy masculinization of protagonists in first-person-shooter (FPS) games. These main characters are often portrayed as rugged, aggression, and disconnected from humanity. When picking screen names “men tend to choose screen names that refer to and honor heroes and martyrs of the movement, while women mostly do not.” (Daniels, p. 64). Not only do male players attributed their characters to masculine martyrs, they partake in toxic habits, such as bullying, harassment, and using slurs in chatrooms and voice chat.

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Scientists Gingerly Tap into Brain's Power From: USA Today - 10/11/04 - page 1B By: Kevin Maney

Scientists are developing technologies that read brainwave signals and translate them into actions, which could lead to neural prosthetics, among other things. Cyberkinetics Neurotechnology Systems' Braingate is an example of such technology: Braingate has already been deployed in a quadriplegic, allowing him to control a television, open email, and play the computer game Pong using sensors implanted into his brain that feed into a computer. Although "On Intelligence" author Jeff Hawkins praises the Braingate trials as a solid step forward, he cautions that "Hooking your brain up to a machine in a way that the two could communicate rapidly and accurately is still science fiction." Braingate was inspired by research conducted at Brown University by Cyberkinetics founder John Donoghue, who implanted sensors in primate brains that picked up signals as the animals played a computer game by manipulating a mouse; the sensors fed into a computer that looked for patterns in the signals, which were then translated into mathematical models by the research team. Once the computer was trained on these models, the mouse was eliminated from the equation and the monkeys played the game by thought alone. The Braingate interface consists of 100 sensors attached to a contact lens-sized chip that is pressed into the surface of the cerebral cortex; the device can listen to as many as 100 neurons simultaneously, and the readings travel from the chip to a computer through wires. Meanwhile, Duke University researchers have also implanted sensors in primate brains to enable neural control of robotic limbs. The Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA) is pursuing a less invasive solution by funding research into brain machine interfaces that can read neural signals externally, for such potential applications as thought-controlled flight systems. Practical implementations will not become a reality until the technology is sufficiently cheap, small, and wireless, and then ethical and societal issues must be addressed. Source