Scientists from Stanford: a gadget placed in the ear will be able to monitor the functioning of the brain
Representatives of Stanford said that devices that are installed in the ear and monitor the functioning of the brain will soon become a reality. In any case, work on such devices is already underway, as reported by Poppy Krum, a university neuroscientist .
Moreover, such systems in the future can not only monitor the functioning of the brain, but also positively affect the cognitive abilities of people.
Scientists compare ears with a USB port that you can connect to, provided that you know what and how to connect . And this “port” can be used not only for “writing” data to the brain - for example, when listening to music or a lecture, but also for “reading”. Specialized gadgets provide an opportunity to assess the emotional state of a person.
The built-in gadget can detect when the brain is overloaded and help focus on the desired sound source. They can also reduce the level of signals that provoke stress and even “connect” a person to smart devices, such as thermostats and lighting systems. The point is that the device evaluates the condition of a person and accordingly changes the operating mode of the surrounding devices.
Specialists from Stanford even called such gadgets "empathetic", responsive to the emotional state of the owner, as mentioned above.
An example is the situation when a person tries to follow the events of a TV show in the kitchen while cooking. It is hard to hear and the user is under stress. A gadget built into the ear “understands” that the owner has a stressful situation associated with a low sound level. “Understanding” comes after a detailed analysis of blood pressure, brain activity, and eye movement. As a result, the gadget automatically raises the volume of the show being shown. This is a simple but illustrative example.
Second example. You come to a restaurant and try to relax. But it doesn’t work, because the music sounds loud, plus other visitors make noise. The gadget, as in the previous example, "understands" why a person is stressed and adjusts the volume level of the built-in microphones in such a way that extraneous noise goes away and the music becomes quieter, despite the fact that the owner perfectly continues to hear his interlocutor. Modern hi-tech earplugs can do something like this.
In addition, such systems can evaluate the state of the human body, highlighting deviations from the norm, which may indicate a particular disease (for example, heart problems).
Developers of wearable devices have long been releasing a wide variety of gadgets that can monitor pressure, heart rate, mood, oxygen level in the blood and many other parameters. Some devices are able to amplify some sounds and drown out others (we are talking about earplugs like Bragi Dash or Samsung Gear IconX).
It is likely that in the near future the functionality of different devices will be combined into a single whole, and the gadget itself will be built into the ear.
According to scientists from Stanford, technologically, such solutions will be possible within five years. “This type of gadget will be able to assess and“ understand ”the needs of its owners, automatically responding to external and internal factors,” says Crum.