The Age Of Telekinetic Cyborg Monkeys Is Upon Us

Last year, a monkey managed to move a robot arm using nothing
but its mind. The arm was wired to the monkey's brain, and
the simian test subject maneuvered the arm as if it was its
own appendage. Where do you go from there? Apparently, you go
wireless.

A team at the University of Utah has created a brain chip
that uses broadband RF to communicate with machines. Without
wires to tangle up with each other, the wireless brain
implants can cover more of the brain than their wired
counterparts, thus providing more function and more control.

The wireless brain implant represents a breakthrough in
cooling technology. Beforehand, the electricity needed to
power the wireless signal would heat the implants up so much
they would fry any neurons they touched. Now, the University
of Utah team has managed to keep the implants cool enough to
allow the monkey's brain to go Wi-Fi.

The researchers hope that the wider range of movement enabled
by brain implants without cumbersome wires will one day allow
humans to operate their robotic limbs during physical
activities like dance and sports. Or, we could all get the
implants and log into the Matrix without that pesky plug in
the back of the head.