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After watching the movie "Minority Report", many viewers had two different responses: first, they thought, "This is pure science fiction," but then they might have thought, "What if this was possible?" How many of us haven’t imagined what we’d do if we ever crossed paths with someone who took our car? Or maybe while shopping at Best Buy, you briefly wondered what it would feel like to pick up that 60-inch DLP TV, throw it on your back, and walk out without paying. Would you be caught by security?
But these are just fleeting thoughts, often joked about. They’re not serious plans, are they? The line between thoughts and plans forms the heart of the ethical debate in a study published in the journal Current Biology in February 2007. The study, led by John-Dylan Haynes of the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive Brain Sciences in Germany, reveals how brain scans combined with advanced software that tracks brain activity can accurately predict a person's intentions.
How was this accomplished? Read more on the next page.
Understanding Mind Reading and Intentions
The scientists who conducted the study employed functional MRI (fMRI) to observe brain activity in subjects as they formed and held an intention. The participants were informed that they would be presented with two numbers and asked to decide in advance whether they wanted to add or subtract them. There was a brief pause during which the participants focused on their intention. By separating the intention from the numbers and the subsequent mathematical operations, the researchers aimed to isolate the brain activity related to the intended action ("I will add it" or "I will subtract it") from any brain responses triggered by the numbers and the calculations themselves.
The brain scans were just one aspect of the study; the researchers also had to determine which brain activity patterns would correspond to specific intentions in order to develop a computer algorithm capable of interpreting the fMRI results. The software involved was highly sophisticated. Brain activity isn't always confined to one area; sometimes it’s necessary to interpret patterns from multiple regions of the brain at once. Technological advancements played a crucial role in what seemed to be a successful attempt at mind reading.
By combining the brain scans with the computer software, the researchers were able to predict with 70 percent accuracy whether the participant intended to add or subtract the upcoming numbers—a fairly impressive success rate for mind reading. Activity in the middle of the prefrontal cortex showed distinct patterns depending on whether the participant intended to add or subtract. The researchers essentially scanned the brain and, based on the observed activity, especially in the prefrontal cortex, determined whether the brain was preparing to add or subtract.
The study also validated some intriguing hypotheses proposed in previous experiments, which are likely to accelerate advancements in mind reading through brain scans:
- Intentions that are freely chosen are stored in the prefrontal cortex.
- Intentions based on external commands are stored in a different region of the brain compared to those based on internal decisions. Intentions driven by "following orders" are located near the surface of the brain, not deep within the gray matter.
- When intentions are acted upon, the neural activity shifts to another area of the brain, suggesting that the brain essentially "copies" the intention and transfers it to execute the action.
The next phase of the research involves expanding on these findings to develop a mind-reading database of intentions. If scientists can accurately identify brain activity that signals specific intentions—such as violent or criminal thoughts, the intention to lie, or the desire to read or speak a particular word, or move a limb in a precise way—the potential applications for this technology are limitless. This is where the ethical considerations come into play.
Progress in mind-reading technology could lead to improved brain-controlled wheelchairs, computers, and prosthetic limbs. For instance, someone without the use of their hands might think, "I want to check my e-mail", and a computer could automatically open their inbox. On the darker side, while current mind-reading technology is still in its early stages, it could eventually be used to prevent crimes before they happen, with the government implanting chips in everyone that alert authorities when someone’s brain shows the intention to break the law. But what if the intention is merely a fleeting thought? Some scientists worry that this new technology might be used prematurely, and many have called for an international dialogue on the ethical implications of mind reading.
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