Brave new (zen) world?

[Jundo]

More details on this ...

Elon Musk wants to insert Bluetooth-enabled implants into your brain, claiming the devices could enable telepathy and repair motor function in people with injuries.

Speaking on Tuesday, the CEO of Tesla (TSLA) and SpaceX said his Neuralink devices will consist of a tiny chip connected to 1,000 wires measuring one-tenth the width of a human hair.

The chip features a USB-C port, the same adapter used by Apple's (AAPL) Macbooks, and connects via Bluebooth to a small computer worn over the ear and to a smartphone, Musk said.

"If you're going to stick something in a brain, you want it not to be large," Musk said, playing up the device's diminutive size.

Neuralink, a startup founded by Musk, says the devices can be used by those seeking a memory boost or by stroke victims, cancer patients, quadriplegics or others with congenital defects.


The company says up to 10 units can be placed in a patient's brain. The chips will connect to an iPhone app that the user can control.

The devices will be installed by a robot built by the startup. Musk said the robot, when operated by a surgeon, will drill 2 millimeter holes in a person's skull. The chip part of the device will plug the hole in the patient's skull.

"The interface to the chip is wireless, so you have no wires poking out of your head. That's very important," Musk added.

Trials could start before the end of 2020, Musk said, likening the procedure to Lasik eye correction surgery, which requires local anesthetic.

https://us.cnn.com/2019/07/17/tech/elon-musk-neuralink-brain-implant/index.html

Gassho, J

STLah

[Yokai]

ZEN...forever the antidote to Fake Plastic Trees

https://youtu.be/n5h0qHwNrHk

Gassho, Chris2.5(defunct) stlah

Thank you Radiohead.

[Amelia]

Radiohead's been live streaming some old concerts lately. Worth a watch if you're a fan! It's nice to see the ones I missed live, those tickets are hard to get.

Gassho
Sat today, lah

[Jundo]

By the way, I am getting ready to submit the "Zen of the Future!" manuscript in the OP (thank you for the edits. Kirk), but had to add a bit for the current crisis ...

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The future will bring technological revolutions, stunning innovations, new discoveries and near-miraculous cures.

But will we use them wisely?

Will our inventions serve as tools to build a better, kinder, fairer world, or as weapons of violence, robbers of resources and Orwellian means of oppression? Can advances in scientific ability go hand-in-hand with heightened respect for nature, a cherishing of sustainability and stillness, a willingness to stop or slow down the non-stop assembly lines? Will increased social complexity be infused with simplicity, a prioritizing of human well-being and human rights, equal opportunity and freedom instead of raw economic expansion, selfishness and social inequalities? Will we live in harmony with the planet, or continue to disrespect and destroy nature, too easily overlooking life’s simple treasures in favor of our continued consumption frenzy and addiction to “progress?” Will we improve human life, share in health and healthy living, or will we enslave humans in the service of industrial and other masters, some of whom may be “enhanced” lifeforms and machines not “human” at all?

Zen values can serve as a shining beacon illuminating healthier paths.

Whether the future results in dystopian nightmare to rival any Hollywood fantasy, or realizes paradise and the Pure Land on earth, is largely up to us. Buddhist wisdom and compassion can guide us in good and healthful directions.

What are the challenges we face?

...

The human race has passed through thousands of years of plagues, parasites and pandemics. A simple virus, too small for the naked eye to see, can bring the whole world to a standstill and send so many of us to our graves. Medical science has advanced, but is yet no match for the raw power of viruses and bacteria, malignant cells and unseen poisons, and our own bad lifestyle habits. Today, world travel networked by plane, crowded urban life, impurities in our air, water and food, as well as our character as social animals who require the touch of others, means that contagions can have a global field day. Unseen enemies can bring us down, lock us in our homes, endanger our more vulnerable loved ones, rob us of employ and grind our economy to a halt.

Nature is not always our friend and, while the spread of epidemics and infections is greatly enhanced by humanities mistakes, the predators and sicknesses that seek to feast on our bodies must be tamed. Science is our savior and friend in this war. Modern medicine, combined with better lifestyle choices, are our only hope. Millions of people die each year from causes that may be preventable or delayable. In the future, shall we invest more on medical research, medicines and hospitals, and a little less on weapons of war and the latest fashions? Will we gain new respect for real science and clinical expertise, learning to distinguish the reliable information from rumor, ignorance and innuendo “retwitted” by twits like viruses in their own right? Will we learn to take preventative measures long before the beast of disease is unleashed? I am hopeful.

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Gassho J

[Yokai]

Zen values can serve as a shining beacon illuminating healthier paths.

Whether the future results in dystopian nightmare to rival any Hollywood fantasy, or realizes paradise and the Pure Land on earth, is largely up to us.

Gassho, Chris stlah