Ethical and Social Challenges of Brain-Computer Interfaces

In John Donoghue's lab at Brown University sits Matthew Nagel, who is a quadraplegic. From the top of his head emerges a pedestal plug that is connected to a socket that runs to a computer. Hard-wired into that computer through a technology called BrainGate, Matthew can move the cursor entirely with his brain waves [1]. He has become so adept that he beat a Wired reporter in a video game when the reporter came to see the lab.