A Brainwave-Controlled Version of "Pong"

This isnt new. In fact this has already been done for Stroke Victims with a Brain Interface game that refocuses brainwaves. In the Stroke variant, lining up all three spaceships, in the game, retrains the users brainwaves,or refocuses them.

http://nanopatentsandinnovations.blogspot.com/2011/07/umd-brain-cap-technology-turns-thought.html

Again, the human brain is the ultimate gaming platform. It can simulate reality that is indistinguishable to the brain. Most of you will spend more time, while your health wastes away, playing online RPGs like EverQuest or World of Warcraft. You will do this for countless hours performing everyday tasks that take slightly less time than in real life. This is a huge market and leads to the possibility of the evolution of the gaming platform. While you constantly pump more money into your computers, graphics cards, sound cards, etc. to gain more realism, your brain is already the ultimate platform capable of ultimate reality.

Brain interfacing is a serious scientific realm of science that happens to overlap with an already popular software driven market of Online Gaming. Too many of you would be all too happy to spend more time in a virtual world, where you could be anything, and experience virtual reality in the most real form. Like a very vivid dream you could be anything and do almost anything. Sex in dreams is as good as sex in reality and you dont need your limbs to perform actions in virtual reality. This will lead to most people spending more time in VR than in reality. I imagine that a great many people will spend money on forms of induced comas to stay in their VR, as it will be more gratifying than real life.

The ugly will be beautiful in VR. The handicapped will be whole in VR. It is sad but most will prefer VR real life. Avatars will be all too important in the real world since your physical bodies will be weak and useless. More complex Brain Interfacing Technology, capable of this level of realism will be a matter of WHEN and not IF.

Human concousness, I fear, we will find is not that complex. This is a very real evolution of humanity. Transcending reality into virtual reality and interfacing the human brain with... whatever.

The ability to be anything at anytime. To do anything that one desires at will, is the ultimate in selfishness and greed. Lifes without purpose. Existences that have no ends accept to fullfil the desires of the person who lives in VR.

Real life is out here people. A life without purpose is a life without meaning. Having goals that were never attained, and experiences that were never fullfilled is part of life. Dealing with the cars you are dealt gives you character. Having everything at your fingertips and doing everything you wish, will be a boring life indeed.

This is one of those areas where technological leaps can seriously stunt human psychology and I hope that regulations are placed on its use should Virtual Reality become on Par with "Reality".

"Do not try and bend the spoon. That's impossible. Instead... only try to realize the truth. There is no spoon."

D13 -
While you have some good points, I see promising applications for this. I like to translate this from a mind connected to a game to a mind connected to a remote control (logistically, basically the same). If this remote was then interfaced with your house, appliances, and car, there would be no limit to what you could do. Unlock the door with your mind, turn on some music, use the bathroom then flush the toilet and turn on the sink with your mind. If you're connected to a remote then why not a "cell phone" or other device - do a Google search with your mind... answers to your questions could play audibly on your home speakers or be displayed on your tv.

Now lets say everyone has dozens of those quadcopters we keep seeing on PopSci - in 20 years they should be stable, cheap, available in different sizes, and with lots of added functionality. Have one copter open your fridge and bring you a beer, another one turn on the stove and a third grab a box of pasta from the pantry.

I see mind control technology as an inevitable evolution of humanity (assuming our survival of course). Our only limitation will be our own mental focus, unless other technology helps with that too. To D13s comment, hopefully people will embrace this technology's ability to enhance reality rather than create a new one.

If I had a cap like this plugged into my computer, with good visual and or sound feed back, I could practice making alpha waves produced for relaxation. There maybe a lot of postive health benefits for home user.

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SPOOKY!...... Life is

I see this as a great therapy tool for people with anger issues! the game teaches you to relax on command to get the paddle to go up and concentrate to move down.This would help when feelings override common sense.

Contoria, you CAN get EEG Headsets for home use NOW. Check out MindWave Mobile (~$100. This is the one I have.) and eMotive's EPOC Neuroheadset (~$300). I'm not an affiliate of either, just someone who wants everyone to know about this technology, esp as it relates to enhanced meditation levels.