1. INTRODUCTION
CYBORG, a compound word derived from cybernetics and organism, is a term
coined by Manfred Clynes in 1960 to describe the need for mankind to artificially enhance
biological functions in order to survive in the hostile environment of Space. Originally, a
CYBORG referred to a “Human being with bodily functions aided or controlled by
technological devices, such as an oxygen tank, artificial heart valve or insulin pump”. Over
the years, the term has acquired a more general meaning, describing the dependence of
human beings on technology. In this sense, CYBORG can be used to characterize anyone
who relies on a computer to complete his or her daily work.
1.1 WHAT IS CYBORG?
A CYBORG is a Cybernetic Organism, part human part machine. This concept is bit
tricky but let see an example of a CYBORG; you may have seen the movie TERMINATOR.
In that ARNOLD was a CYBORG. He was part man part machine. Well definition exactly
says this; CYBORG can be made by technology known as CYBERNETICS. What is
CYBERNETICS? To understand CYBORG this is the first step next we will see this.
1.2WHAT IS CYBERNETICS?
Cybernetics is a word coined by group of scientists led by Norbert Wiener and made
popular by Wiener's book of 1948, Cybernetics or Control and Communication in the
Animal and the Machine. Based on the Greek "kybernetes," meaning steersman or governor,
cybernetics is the science or study of control or regulation mechanisms in human and
machine systems, including computers.
CYBERNETICS could be thought of as a recently developed science, although to
some extent it cuts across existing sciences. If we think of Physics, Chemistry, Biology, etc.
as traditional sciences, then Cybernetics is a classification, which cuts across them all.
Cybernetics is formally defined as the science of control and communication in animals, men
and machines. It extracts, from whatever context, that which is concerned with information
processing and control. ... One major characteristic of Cybernetics is its preoccupation with
the construction of models and here it overlaps operational research. Cybernetic models are
usually distinguished by being hierarchical, adaptive and making permanent use of feedback
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loops. Cybernetics in some ways is like the science of organization, with special emphasis on
the dynamic nature of the system being organized."
1.3 PERSONS BEHIND CYBERNETICS
Dr. KEVIN WARWICK
Kevin Warwick is Professor of Cybernetics at the University of Reading, UK where
he carries out research in artificial intelligence control and robotics. His favorite topic
is pushing back the frontiers of machine intelligence. Kevin began his career by joining
British Telecom with whom he spent the next 6 years. At 22 he took his first degree at Aston
University followed by a PhD and research post at Imperial College, London. He
subsequently held positions at Oxford, Newcastle and Warwick Universities before
being offered the Chair at Reading, at the age of 32.
Kevin has published over 300 research papers and his latest paperback In the Mind
of the Machines gives a warning of a future in which machines are more intelligent than
humans. He has been awarded higher doctorates both by Imperial College and the Czech
Academy of Sciences, Prague and has been described (by Gillian Anderson of the X-Files)
as Britain’s leading prophet of the robot age. He appears in the 1999 Guinness Book of
Records for an Internet robot learning experiment and in the 2002 edition for his Cyborg
research. In 1998 he shocked the international scientific community by having a silicon
chip transponder surgically implanted in his left arm. A series of further implant
experiments have taken place in which Kevin’s nervous system was linked to a computer.
This research led to him being featured in February 2000, as the cover story on the US
magazine wired. Kevin also presented the Year 2000 Royal Institution Christmas Lectures
with great success. Kevin's new implant experiment called 'Project Cyborg' got underway in
March 2002 and is providing exciting results.
Brian Andrews
Professor Andrews was trained in Cybernetics, Control Systems and Bioengineering
at the Universities of Reading, Sheffield and Strathclyde. He has held academic and clinical
appointments in the UK, USA and Canada. He is presently Director and Professor of
Biomedical Engineering at the National Spinal Injuries Centre at Stoke Mandeville Hospital
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and the University of Reading. He has published more than 300 research articles on the
application of neural prostheses, bioengineering and cybernetics in spinal injury.
Peter Teddy
Peter Teddy MA DPhil FRCS Consultant Neurosurgeon and Clinical Director, Dept
Neurological Surgery, Radcliffe Infirmary, Oxford Consultant Neurosurgeon, Nat. Spinal
Injuries Centre, Stoke Mandeville Consultant Neurosurgeon, Pain Relief Unit, Oxford Univ
Oxford Medical School. BM,BCh 1973, FRCS(Lond)1978 Special interests: Spinal
Neurosurgery (including intramedullary tumours and syringomyelia), Pain surgery,
Neurovascular surgery. Examiner, Intercollegiate Board for FRCS(SN), Advisor
(Neurosurgical Appointments) RCS Will be involved in operative implantation of the device.
Amjad Shad
Amjad Shad is a neurosurgeon with interest in spinal surgery and neurostimulation.
Amjad was trained in Edinburgh where he spent 6 years. Afterwards he took position in
Oxford and is actively involved in the research in the field of Spine and neurostimulation. He
has published in this field and delivered lectures internationally. He helped in designing the
implanting system for the microelectrode array.
Mark Gasson
Mark Gasson is a design engineer and has been with the University of Reading for
six years. Having previously specialised in robotics, he joined the Implant project in 2000 as
the lead technical engineer and project co-ordinator. Mark received a degree in Cybernetics
and Control Engineering from Reading in 1998, and is currently working towards his PhD.
In addition to the implant research, he keeps active within the department by teaching
bionics and robotics, as well as participating in public lectures all around the world.
Brian Gardner
Brian Gardner MA (Oxon), BM BCh, FRCP, (Lon &Edin) FRCS Consultant
Surgeon in Spinal Injuries since 1985 and Lead Clinician since 1998 at the National Spinal
Injuries Centre, Stoke Mandeville Hopsital, Aylesbury Bucks.
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This research team is made up of 20 scientists, including two who work directly with
Dr. Kevin Warwick: Professor Brian Andrews, a neural-prosthesis specialist who recently
joined this project from the University of Alberta in Canada, and Professor William Harwin,
a cybernetics expert and former co director of the Rehabilitation Robotics Laboratory at the
University of Delaware in the US. The others are a mixture of faculty and researchers,
divided into three teams charged with developing intelligent networks, robotics and sensors,
and biomedical signal processing - i.e., creating software to read the signals the implant
receives from Kevin’s nervous system and to condition that data for retransmission. They are
in discussions with Dr. Ali Jamous, a neurosurgeon at Stoke Mandeville Hospital in nearby
Aylesbury, to insert next implant, although they are still sorting out the final details.
Ordinarily, there might be a problem getting a doctor to consider this type of surgery, but
Warwick’s department has a long-standing research link with the hospital, whose spinal-
injuries unit does a lot of advanced work in neurosurgery. They've collaborated on a number
of projects to help people overcome disabilities through technical aids: an electric platform
for children who use wheelchairs, a walking frame for people with spinal injuries, and a self-
navigating wheelchair. While Jamous has his own research agenda, they are settling on a
middle ground that will satisfy both parties' scientific goals.
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2. CLASSIFICATION OF CYBORGS
2.1 REAL LIFE CYBORGSCyborgs are Cybernetic Organisms. The term was coined in 1960’s when
Manfred Clynes and Nathan used it in an article about the advantages of self- regulating
human-machine systems in outer space. The Cyborgs got there fame mainly through the
super
talented characters in the fiction stories.
A cyborg can be defined as the human being who is technologically
complemented by external or internal devices that compliment or regulate various
human body functions. Cyborgology is a technical and socio-philosophical study which
deals with the development and spreading of the technology to the society.
` Fig 2.1 Example of real Cyborg
2.2 ROBOTS & CYBORGS
All of them, to some degree, are programmed; they're basically computers
that move. A robot, however, doesn't necessarily have to resemble a human. It can be in the
shape of a dog, or a lunar Lander, or one of those giant arms in a car factory. But cyborgs
are beings that are part mechanical and part organic. In fact, some theorists consider anyone
whose body relies on a form of machinery in order to survive - such as a pacemaker or an
insulin pump - to be a cyborg.
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CYBORGS
Convenient Cyborgs Conditional Cyborgs
Cyborgs are categorized into two types based on their structural and
functional role play. Structurally cyborgation can take place either internally or externally.
The former Convenient cyborgs may refer to any external provision of an exoskeleton for
the satisfying the altered fancy needs of body, and the latter Conditional cyborgation
includes bionic implants replanting the lost or damaged body part for the normal living in
the present environment. There are also different types of cyborgs differentiated as per their
body working.
2.3 HYBROTS:
A Hybrots (short for "hybrid robot") is a cybernetic organism in the form
of a robot controlled by a computer consisting of both electronic and biological elements.
The biological elements are rat neurons connected to a computer chip. This feat was first
accomplished by Dr. Steve Potter, a professor of biomedical engineering at the Georgia
Institute of Technology. What separates a hybrot from a cyborg is that the latter term is
commonly used to refer to a cybernetically enhanced human or animal. While a hybrot is an
entirely new type of creature constructed from organic and artificial materials. It is perhaps
helpful to think of the hybrot as "semi-living," a term also used by the hybrot's inventors.
Another interesting feature of the hybrot is its longevity. Neurons separated
from a living brain usually die after a short period of time; however, due to a specially
designed incubator utilizing a new sealed-dish culture system, a hybrot may live as long as
two years.
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3. DESIGN AND IMPLANTATION
3.1 THE CHIP USED TO MAKE FIRST CYBORG
The transponder that was implanted in the forearm of Professor Kevin Warwick, on
24th August 1998 consists of a glass capsule containing an electromagnetic coil and a
number of silicon chips. It is approximately 23mm long and 3mm in diameter.
Fig 3.1 First chip implanted into Kevin Warwick
When a radio frequency signal is transmitted to the transponder, the coil generates an
electric current (an effect discovered by Michael Faraday many years ago). This
electric current is used to drive the silicon chip circuitry, which transmits a unique,
64-bit signal. A receiver picking up this signal can be connected in an Intelligent
Building network.
By means of a computer, it is able to recognize the unique code and, in the case of an
implant, the individual human in question. On picking up the unique, identifying
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signal, a computer can operate devices, such as doors, lights, heaters or even other
computers. Which devices are operated and which are not depends on the
requirements for the individual transmitting the signal.
The silicon chip transponder had not, prior to this experiment, been surgically inserted
into a human. It was not known what effects it would have, how well it would operate
and, importantly, how robust it would be. There was the very real possibility that the
transponder might leak or shatter while in the body with catastrophic consequences!
The implant in Kevin Warwick's forearm was successfully tested for nine days before
being removed.
3.2 THE NERUAL CONNECTION
On March 14 th , 2002 at 8.30 am an operation was carried out at the Radcliffe
Infirmary, Oxford, UK to implant a microelectrode array onto the median nerve of
Professor Kevin Warwick. Mr.Peter Teddy, Consultant used in a series of experiments
and was finally removed to avoid medical complications, after nine Neuro-surgeon,
led the operating team which included Mr Amjad Shad.
Fig 3.2 Implantation surgery
The research team involved with the project is co-led by Professor Brian Andrews,
who assisted in the operation, and includes Mr Mark Gasson. Brian, Kevin and Mark
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are all based at the Department of Cybernetics, University of Reading, UK. The
operation, which lasted just over 2 ¼ hours, went very well and has been declared a
success. This is the world’s first operation of this type.
The array, which has been positioned in the wrist, contains 100 spikes with sensitive
tips – each of these making direct connections with nerve fibres. Wires linked to the
array have been tunneled up Kevin’s Arm, where they appear through a skin
puncture, and 15cm away from the array. These wires are to be linked to a novel radio
transmitter/receiver device which will be externally connected, its aim being to join
Kevin’s median nerve to a computer by means of a radio signal. It is hoped that the
project will result in considerable medical benefits for a large number of people, in
particular assisting in movement for the spinally injured. The team will now be
involved in a wide variety of investigations in the weeks ahead, hopefully also
looking into enhancing capabilities when a human and machine are joined - Cyborgs.
3.3 Neural Interfacing?
The Society for Neural interfacing (SNI) actively promotes research on innovative
approaches dedicated to Neural Interfacing (NIF). Evaluating current technology and
its intrinsic limitations it is possible to outline an almost perfect Neural Interfacing
technology, however, predictions are largely based on current visions and one's
imagination. Thus, the content of this site is expected to be up dated on a regular
basis. NIF techniques with the potential of significantly improving current
electrophysiological approaches should exhibit the following features:
Non-invasive communication with the neural tissue.
No harming side effects.
Spatial resolution in the range of 85micro- or nanometres in order to specifically
target individual neuritis.
Temporal resolution at the millisecond level in order to capture neural processes
Real-time data acquisition and processing
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An interesting concept that may ultimately unify the requirements listed is the
communication with neural tissue by means of electromagnetic fields. An ideal
NIF technology would enable the real-time visualization of thoughts. A related
concept was employed in the movie "Minority Report" (see below). Thoughts and
thus neural activity is directly visualized by means of optic scanning
Fig 3.2 Scene from the movie "Minority Report"
3.4 HOW THIS NERUAL CONNECTION WORKS?
The US Professor and visionary, Norbert Weiner founded the field of Cybernetics in
the 1940’s. He envisaged that one day electronic systems he called “Nervous
Prostheses” would be developed that would allow those with spinal injuries to control
their paralysed limbs using signals detected in their brain.
In the UK two internationally renowned professors, in the department of Cybernetics
at the University of Reading, Brian Andrews and Kevin Warwick, together with the
eminent neurosurgeon Peter Teddy have just taken a step closer to this dream. The
team have come together from different branches of Cybernetics and Neurosurgery.
Kevin Warwick specializes in the field of Artificial Intelligence and Robotics and
Brian Andrews in the field of Biomedical Engineering, Neural Prostheses and Spinal
Injuries. Peter Teddy has a long involvement with neural implants and is the head of
Neurosurgery at Oxford. Although seemingly worlds apart, these fields have many
common threads.
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The principal investigators Andrews, Warwick and Teddy, lead a large team of
surgeons and researchers including, Brian Gardner, Ali Jamous, Amjad Shad and
Mark Gasson of the world famous National Spinal Injuries Centre (NSIC)-Stoke
Mandeville Hospital, the Radcliffe Infirmary in Oxford and the University of
Reading, UK. The team are supported by the David Tolkien Trust, Computer
Associates, Tumbleweed and Fujitsu.
A sophisticated new microelectronic implant has been developed that allows two-way
connection to the nervous system. In one direction, the natural activity of nerves are
detected and in the other, nerves can be activated by applied electrical pulses. It is
envisaged that such neural connections may, in the future, help people with spinal
cord injury or limb amputation. The microelectronic chip implant, shown in figure 1,
comprises an array of fine spikes with sensitive tip electrodes. These spike electrodes
are extremely thin, similar in dimension to a human hair. They can safely penetrate
nerve tissue and allow the activity of axons close to each tip to be recorded or
stimulated i.e. the array chip allows a two-way interface.
The device has been inserted into the median nerve of a healthy volunteer –Professor
Kevin Warwick. In this way the basic safety and function of the device can be
established before it is explored further in patients. The median nerve contains a
mixture of many individual sensory and motor axons. The sensory axons conduct
signals generated by skin receptors in response to temperature and pressure changes
applied in the region of the thumb, index and middle fingers and palm as illustrated in
figures 1 & 2. Motor axons that are located within the median nerve conduct signals
from the 6 spinal cord to muscles, such as the thenar muscle group located at the base
of the thumb as shown in figure 1 (c). The array was inserted into the median nerve
such that the sensitive tips of the microelectrodes were distributed within the nerve
trunk. Some electrodes can pick up signals from sensory axons whilst others pick up
mainly motor axon signals. Others pick up a mix of the two. The array is connected to
an external amplifier and signal processing system through fine wires passing through
the skin as shown in figure 4.
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Fig 3.4.Design of Implant
A main objective, at this stage, is to demonstrate clinical and technical easibility of
implanting the array safely, with minimal discomfort for a prolonged period without
infection.
The team will now attempt to record nerve signals from individual axons with
sufficient fidelity to allow them to discriminate them from background noise. In a
series of tests, specific sensory stimuli (for example light touch, vibration heat etc.)
will be carefully applied to various points on the skin whilst recording the
microelectrode signals. These signals will be computer analyzed in an attempt to
identify the type of receptors being excited. In other tests.
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Professor Warwick will contract his thenar muscles to generate controlled movement
and force whilst the corresponding activity from the microelectrodes will be examined
to determine if motor and sensory activity can be adequately separated.
In separate tests, low-level electrical signals will be applied to individual
microelectrodes in the array. When such stimuli are applied to motor axons the
corresponding muscle fibres will contract. If however, the electrical stimuli are
applied to sensory axons these may be perceived by Professor Warwick as sensations.
By carefully applying patterns of precisely controlled low-level electrical stimulation
to the sensory axons the investigators will determine if sensations recognizable to
Professor Warwick can be generated. This first stage should allow the team to
determine the feasibility of using microelectrode arrays to transmit and receive two-
way signals between peripheral nerves and external microcomputers by wires through
the skin. In the future, the through-the-skin wire may be replaced by a radio link
connecting the fully implanted component with the external control computers as
illustrated in figure 5. For now, the present system allows a relatively low cost and
minimally invasive system to be used for research and development. We envisage that
such neural prostheses may be used to restore sensory and motor functions lost by
spinal injury, other neurological lesions or limb amputation. Two examples are given
below to illustrate the sort of applications we have in mind.
Even after spinal injury the nervous tissue below the lesion is usually alive and
operating even though it is disconnected from the brain i.e. signals are still being naturally
generated by sensory receptors and transmitted to the spinal cord but are not perceived by the
brain. Similarly, signals are still being put 7 out by the spinal cord and causing muscles to
contract. However, these contractions are reflexive and not voluntarily controlled
contractions. Tetraplegics cannot voluntarily move or feel their hands; microelectrode arrays
could in principle be inserted into the median and radial nerves. Muscles that control the
hand could be activated using electrical pulses to microelectrodes close to the axons
innervating those muscles. Electrical pulses could be generated precisely using a
microcomputer as part of some future neuroprosthesis. Receptors in the patient’s skin and
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muscle will fire as the hand opens, makes contact and grasps an object. The receptor signals
would be detected by the microelectrodes positioned close to their axons and fed out to the
controlling microcomputer which, in turn, would automatically regulate the degree of
activation of muscles, so as not to grip the object too tightly or loosely. It may also be
possible to feed back sensory signals picked up by microelectronic arrays in the hand and
impose them onto sensory pathways above the level of the lesion using another array. These
arrays may even be inserted into the motor cortex to provide brain signals for the control
system, just as Weiner had envisaged. Other potential applications in spinal cord injury are
envisaged, including, devices to improved bladder and bowel control and perhaps facilitate
standing and walking in paraplegics.
Amputees still have living nerves in their stumps into which microelectrode
arrays could be inserted. These nerve stumps still relay voluntary signals to amputated
muscles and are still capable of conducting sensory signals that previously originated in the
amputated skin and muscles. For the amputee, miniature force, pressure and temperature
sensors can be built into the artificial limb. These sensors could be connected to a control
microcomputer which would in turn generate and apply pulses to electrode tips that have
been previously associated with the appropriate sensation. If a hand amputee, wearing such
prosthesis fitted with miniature pressure sensors in the index finger tip were to touch or press
on object, the fingertip sensor would generate an electrical signal proportional to the applied
pressure.
This pressure signal could then be acquired by a microcomputer, which would
then apply stimulus pulses to sensory nerve fibers within the stump using a microelectrode
array to recreate realistic sensation of pressure at the index fingertip. Being from the field of
Cybernetics it is also possible to speculate that such devices could be used in the future to
extend the capabilities of ordinary humans, for example enabling extra sensory input and to
provide new methods of communication with machines or other humans. Although this may
sound, to some, rather alarming, futuristic and more the domain of Cyborg science fiction,
we emphasize that the short term goals of our work are aimed at developing useful clinical
applications within present day ethical constraints It should be emphasized that although an
exciting step has been taken it is still very early days. The examples we have indicated are
speculative at this stage and although we are cautiously optimistic, a great deal of work
remains to be done to determine if the approach is practical. Furthermore, significant
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technical development is required to make these devices available to patients. 8 It could
take 10 or more years before such systems start to become widely available.
Fig 3.4 Nerves responding to Implantation
Figure 1 The main hand nerves (a). The median nerve and its branches (b).Sensory signals
from receptors in the shaded area of the skin are routed through the median nerve en-route
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to the spinal cord. The median nerve also contains motor axons that conduct signals from
the spinal cord to muscles in the hand such as the thenar group shown superimposed in (c).
Fig 3.4 (A) various sensory receptors in the skin.
Fig 3.4 (B) Microelectrode Array
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Figure 3 The microelectrode array showing 100 Axons, shown colored, conduct
signals from individual spikes with sensitive tips. Activity Individual receptors to the
spinal cord through of axons that are close to each tip can be nerves such as the median
nerve detected or stimulated by a computer.
3.5 THE NEURAL SYSTEM CONTINUING WITH TRANSPODER:
The interface to Professor Warwick’s nervous system was a micro electrode array
consisting of 100 individual electrodes implanted in the median nerve of the left
arm. A 25-channel neural signal amplifier amplifies the signals from each electrode
by a factor of 5000 and filters signals with corner frequencies of 250Hz and 7.5KHz.
The amplified and finltered electrode signals are then delivered to the neural signal
processor where they are digitized at 30,000 samples/second/electrode and scanned
online for neural spike events. This means that only 25 of the total 100 channels can
be viewed at any one time.
Neural spike events are detected by comparing the instantaneous electrode signal to
level thresholds set for each data channel. When a supra-threshold event occurs, the
signal window surrounding the event is time stamped and stored for later, offline
analysis. The neural stimulator allows for any of the 25 monitored channels to be
electrically stimulated with a chosen repetition frequency at any one time.
This implant, like the first, will be encased in a glass tube. We chose glass because
it's fairly inert and won't become toxic or block radio signals. There is an outside
chance that the glass will break, which could cause serious internal injuries or prove
fatal, but our previous experiment showed glass to be pretty rugged, even when it's
frequently jolted or struck.
One end of the glass tube contains the power supply - a copper coil energized by
radio waves to produce an electric current. In the other end, three mini printed circuit
boards will transmit and receive signals. The implant will connect to my body through
a band that wraps around the nerve fibers - it looks like a little vicar's collar - and is
linked by a very thin wire to the glass capsule.
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The chips in the implant will receive signals from the collar and send them to a
computer instantaneously. For example, when I move a finger, an electronic signal
travels from my brain to activate the muscles and tendons that operate my hand. The
collar will pick up that signal en route. Nerve impulses will still reach the finger, but
we will tap into them just as though we were listening in on a telephone line. The
signal from the implant will be analog, so we'll have to convert it to digital in order to
store it in the computer. But then we will be able to manipulate it and send it back to
my implant.
3.6 HUMAN IMPLANTED WITH CYBER CHIP
Fig 3.6 showing human-computer interface, the implanted chip in shoulder and the
response of the computer.
As discussed earlier the chip in the implant will receive signals from the nerve fibers
and send them to a computer instantaneously. For example, when we move a finger,
an electronic Signal travels from the brain to activate the muscles and tendons that
operate the hand. These Nerve impulses will reach the finger. The implanted silicon
chip receives these nerve pulses and it sends the signal of impulses to a computer
through wireless path. The signal from the implant will be analog, so we'll have to
convert it to digital in order to store it in the computer. The computer receives the
signal and sends it back to the implant. This ensures whether the same response of
moving the finger will be by sending same impulse signal to the implant
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Fig.3.6 (B) shows a blind man wearing a camera interfaced to nerve cells in brain to View
images on Television artificially.
This camera captures images and sends them to the silicon chip implant
where the images are sent to the brain and processing takes place with this the
image is seen by the blind person even without his eyes.
IMPLANTATION PROCEDURE
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Fig : 3.6 ( C ) Eye implantation
By using this technology not only blind people can be assisted but it may also be
possible to capture signals responsible for happiness, ,pain ,anesthesia
etc .Experiments are also being conducted to establish wireless communication
between two persons by placing similar chips ,that are capable of using the
energy in the body and can transmit and receive impulse signals between them. If this
experiment is proved to be possible then “cyborg” which was assumed to be a
science fiction is no more a distant dream. With this technique there would be no
use of any speech to communicate ,Just the impulses in the human body can be
used convey the information between each other. Thought communication will
place telephones firmly in the history books. Another Important application of
cyborg would be in curing diseases. If this type of experiment works, we can
foresee researchers learning to send antidepressant stimulation or even
contraception or vaccines in a similar manner. With this we can gain a potential
to alter the whole face of medicine, to abandon the concept of feeding people
chemical treatments and cures and instead achieve the desired results electronically.
Cyber drugs and cyber narcotics could very well cure cancer, relieve clinical
depression.
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3.7 PROBLEMS CAME DURING IMPLANT OPERATION:
They have transponder in the glass tube so while sterilizing it they had put it into the
hot water and because of the thin glass it was blast as it had became very hot.
They have to think how they can link that chip with the computer as it was implanted
in the forearm of Pr. Warwick.
They have implanted chip in left arm of Pr. Warwick as they were afraid that if
operation failed than he can work on with his right arm as he was right.
The main thing was to put a chip in the main nerve of arm in such a manner that the
nerve should not be broken as by happing so they may lose Pr. Warwick.
The silicon chip transponder had not, prior to this experiment, been surgically inserted
into a human. It was not known what effects it would have, how well it would operate
and, importantly, how robust it would be.
There was the very real possibility that the transponder might leak or shatter while in
the body with catastrophic consequences! The implant in Kevin Warwick's forearm
was successfully tested for nine days before being removed.
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4. TESTING
4.1 AN IMPORTANT TEST TO SHOW THAT CHIP IMPLANT IS NOT
HARMFUL BUT CAN BE PLANTED INTO HUMAN BODY WITH
EASE:
An important aspect of Project Cyborg 2.0 is to monitor Kevin’s hand function before,
through the duration of the implant period and after the electrode array has been removed.
The results need to be objective in order to be used as a comparative tool. The problem has
been solved using the SHAP (Southampton Hand Assessment Procedure) test. The score
given by the SHAP test is a functional score, 100% being normal hand function, made up of
five sub-scores for each of the different hand grips: lateral, power, tripon, extension and
spherical.
Fig : 4.1 Hand functionality testing
The test consists of a series of abstract and day-to-day activities and was
specifically developed to test hand function rather than dexterity. Hand function is
in fact considered more important in the clinical assessment of the hand. Each
activity is measured against time and the subject is asked to start and stop the
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timer to eliminate possible miss judgments’ from the assessor. A standard
assessment procedure is followed to ensure objectivity during the test. The SHAP
test has been successfully proved to be a reliable and repeatable test and it is
currently used in several hospitals across the UK. As can be seen below, the tests
carried out show no degradation of hand functionality resulting from the implant
procedure or experiments carried out during Project Cyborg 2.0.
09/01/02 27/03/02 04/05/02 27/05/02 19/07/02
Overall 97 97 97 98 98
Spherical 97 95 96 96 96
Tripod 95 97 96 99 99
Power 96 96 95 96 96
Lateral 96 97 99 98 98
Tip 97 96 95 98 99
Extension 95 97 98 98 98
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5. ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES
Whether it is a new emerging technology, a new instrument or new equipment, everything
has got its advantages and disadvantages. It depends on the user to make a proper use of
equipped devices & the technologies. So, here are the set of advantages and disadvantages
of CYBORG.
5.1 ADVANTAGES:
The human cyborg represents a ‘transitional species’ of sorts, before the human enters
total post-biological obsolescence.
If evolution is theorized from an abstract perspective as an attempt to increase the
information processing power latent in matter, in the struggle against entropy, it is clear
that artificial life will eventually win out against organic life since it is more durable and
more efficient.
These extropians see this as perhaps bad news for the human race, but in the long term at
least good news for the planet and apparently the universe.
There are others who foresee perhaps a more peaceable coexistence for human beings
and electronic ‘life’, however. one recent theory that has been bantered about lately is
that the human race may have reached the saturation point for economic growth, but this
is fortunate since it has arrived in time for it to work on ‘human growth’, i.e. the re-
engineering of the human species.
We can ‘graducate’ from being victims of natural selection to masters of self-selection.
It seems hard to argue against increasing human longevity, intelligence, or strength,
since human beings seem to live too short a span, to make too many mistakes in
reasoning, and to lack the physical endurance necessary to make great accomplishments.
Lastly, there are the postmodern theorists, normally noted for their anti technological
stance, who have taken a favorable position on the coming of the cyborg.
Electronic tagging can be regarded as a more permanent form of identification than a
smart card. Information on the holder can be read into a computer system. In a simple
example, when a smart card or tag is presented, and the individual is recognized,
machinery such as light or a door can operate depending on what the system thinks of
that individual's status.
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Going a step further, the individual could be implanted with silicon chip circuitry which
gives out a unique code, identifying the individual concerned. The potential of this
technology is enormous. It is quite possible for an implant to replace an Access, Visa or
bankers card. There is very little danger in losing an implant or having it stolen!
An implant could carry huge amounts of data on an individual, such as National
Insurance number and blood type, blood pressure etc. allowing information to be
communicated to on-line doctors over the internet.
Within businesses, there is the possibility of individuals with implants could be clocked
in and out of their office automatically. The exact location of an individual within a
building would be known at all times and even whom they were with. This would make
it easier to contact them for a message or an urgent meeting.
The technology could be extremely useful for car security. For example, unless a car
recognized the unique signal from its owner, it would remain disabled.
The implant communicated via RF to the department's 'Intelligent Building'. At the main
entrance, the computer said "Hello" when the Professor entered; detected progress
through the building, opening doors on approach and switching on lights.
Not only were the methods of non-percutaneous information transfer between computers
and the human body investigated, but physical and mental effects of implants were
discovered, forming the first stage of an ongoing research project.
Currently in development is a new implant that will directly interface with the
Professor's nervous system. This will allow the implant to record, identify and simulate
motor and sensory signals, as well as allowing interface of new senses to the body.
This type of device could allow treatment of patients whose central nervous systems
have been damaged or affected by diseases like multiple sclerosis, to achieve controlled
muscle function. Or it could allow more natural control of prosthetic limbs using
remaining nerve fibres, and alternative senses for the blind or deaf.
Ultimately the research may lead to implants being placed nearer to the brain or into the
spinal cord. We may be able to artificially affect emotions, perhaps abandoning the
concept of feeding people chemical treatments and instead achieve the desired results
electronically. Cyberdrugs and cybernarcotics could very well relieve clinical
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depression, or perhaps even be programmed as a little pick-me-up on a particularly bad
day.
If initial experiments are successful, then implants would be placed into two people at
the same time, sending movement and emotion signals from one person to the other,
possibly even via the Internet.
5.2 DISADVANTAGES:
The critics of bioelectronics and biocomputing foresee numerous potential negative
social consequences from the technology. One is that the human race will divide along
the lines of biological haves and have-nots.
People with enough money will be able to argument their personal attributes as they see
fit as well as to utilize cloning, organ replacement, etc. to stave off death for as long as
they wish , while the majority of humanity will continue to suffer from hunger, bad
genes, and infirmity.
Certainly, it would be easy to utilize bio-implants that would allow people to trace the
location and perhaps even monitor the condition and behavior of implanted persons.
This would be tremendous violation of human privacy, but the creators of human
biotech might see it as necessary to keep their subjects under control. Once implanted
with bio-implant electronic devices, ‘cyborg’ might become highly dependent on the
creators of these devices for their repair, recharge, and maintenance.
It could be possible to modify the person technologically so that body would stop
producing some essential substance for survival, thus placing them under the absolute
control of the designer of the technology.
Even those not spiritually inclined who still nevertheless posses the feeling that there is
something within humanity which is not found in animals or machines and which makes
us uniquely human, worry that the essence of our humanity will be lost to this
technology.
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6. APPLICATIONS
IN MEDICAL FIELD:
In medicine, there are two important and different types of cyborgs: these are
the restorative and the enhanced. Restorative technologies “restore lost functions, organs
and limbs”. The key aspect of restorative cyborgization is the repair of broken or lost
processes to revert to a healthy or average level of function. There is no enhancement to
the original faculty and processes that were lost.
The enhancement cyborgation follows the Principle of Optimal performance:
maximizing the output with a minimized input. Thus, the enhanced cyborg intends to
exceed normal processes or even gain new functions that were not originally present.
Fig 6.1 Cyborg medical Experiment
IN MILITARY:
In defensive applications the Cybernetics and Cyborgological
experiences are held for the development of “Cyborg soldier”. The cyborg soldier often
refers to a soldier whose weapons as well as the survival systems are integrated into the
self, creating a human-machine interface. Military organizations research has recently
focused on the utilization of cyborg animal.
DARPA has announced its interest in developing “cyborg insects” to
transmit data from sensors implanted into the insect during its pupal stage. The insect’s
motion would be controlled from a Micro-Electro-Mechanical- System for detecting the
presence explosives and Gas. DARPA is also developing neural implant to remotely
control
the movement of sharks.
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Powered Exoskeleton is another proposed product from Cyborgology for
military purpose, which combines a human control system with robotic muscle.
IN SPORTS:
Prosthetic legs and feet are not advanced enough to give the athlete the edge, and people
with these prosthetics are allowed to complete, possibly only because they are not
actually competitive in such -athlons. Some prosthetic leg and feet allow for runners to
adjust the length of their stride which could potentially improve run times and in time
actually allow a runner with prosthetic leg to be fastest in the world.
IN ART:
The concept of cyborgation to associate to mostpeople with science fiction, they tend to
believe Cyborgs exist only in imaginations of writers and artists.
Cyborgs get famed through mainly science fiction films and through stories of writers.
IN POPULAR CULTURE:
Cyborgs are become a well known part of sience through fiction literature and other
media. Examples of Famous organic–based fictional cyborg include
Terminator, Starwar’s etc. Mechanical based models include Replicants and Cylons.
replicants and cylons.
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7. SOME EXAMPLES OF CYBORG’S
Fig : 7.1 (A ) Eye cyborg
Fig: 7.1 (B) Eye cyborg , Fig: 7.1 (C) Eye cyborg (Mechanical substitution)
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8. CONCLUSION
Humans have limited capabilities. Humans sense the world in a restricted way, vision
being the best of the senses. Humans understand the world in only three dimensions and
communicate in a very slow serial fashion called speech. But it must get improved for the
human beings to exist in this competitive world. Only technology can make it possible and
cyborgology is the future technology for the purpose to be get real. Even it has some major
defects and wrong sides as like any technologies evolving now days.
Finally I would like to say that if the future of intelligent robots, then to protect
mankind, we must need some TERMINATORs. They all are CYBORGS. Because by
making human CYBORGS, we may have the following extra ordinary capabilities….
We will be able to communicate between each other by thought signals alone, so no
more need for telephones, old fashioned signals, we all are able to think to each other via
implants.
Instead of communicating by speech as we do presently, we will be able to think to
each other, simply by implants connected to our nervous system linking our brains
electronically together, possibility even over the internet.
We won’t need the languages that we presently do, we’ll need a new language of
ideas and the concepts in order to communicate thoughts from brain to brain.
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9. BIBLIOGRAPHY
1. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cyborg
2. http://www.bostonretinalimplant.org/implant.php
3. D. S. Halacy, Cyborg: Evolution of the Superman
4. http://www.lucifer.com/~sasha/articles/techuman.html
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