Mind Control!

Time magazine last week ran a story that I recently came across that has interesting and hopeful applications: using the power of thought on the battlefield.

Not being much of a psychologist, I was intrigued by this concept, and the research that the Army has decided to put into it. Certainly, from a tactical standpoint, having a soldier who could simply think communications to others instead of having to vocalize them would be a benefit. From an economic standpoint, I'm hoping that this technology can justify the investment. Chiefly, that each system must be individually created for the individual soldier. If the science pans out, and there is a way to interpret brain signals and tap into them before having to convey the intended message via visual or auditory signals, then it would also provide further motivation for the soldier to focus only on the task at hand. How embarrasing would it be to inadvertently have your thoughts slip to something you wouldn't want anyone else knowing, and having it conveyed to other soldiers? My only other worry about this is the precision of the control and the potential for error from the soldier. When a soldier gives a verbal order to a subordinate, he/she knows what they are saying, and how the soldier is going to interpret that order. With mental communication, how one soldier thinks or visualizes a command or objective might be different than another. One can hope that further training could help to minimize this risk.

A very intriguing article that holds promising hopes for what I think could be a very beneficial piece of technology. My favorite part of this article is the quote about the civilian applications that they concluded it with: "'How often have you been annoyed by people screaming into their cell phones?" Schmeisser asks. "What if instead of their Bluetooth earpiece it was a Bluetooth headpiece and their mouth is shut and there's blessed silence all around you?'" Too true.