Elon Musk's Neuralink Wins US Approval to Test Brain-Chips in Humans (Free English Lesson)
Lesson made on May 27, 2023
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Reading Lesson:
Neuralink, a company owned by Elon Musk, has been given permission by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to start testing their brain-chip technology on humans. These chips could eventually help people who can't see or move by connecting their brains directly to computers.
Neuralink isn't looking for people to test the chips just yet, though. They tried to get approval before, but the FDA said it wasn't safe enough. The chips, which have been tested in monkeys, work by reading brain signals and sending information to devices like computers and smartphones.
Even with this approval, the technology will need a lot of testing. There are technical issues to work out and ethical questions to answer before these brain implants can be widely used.
Neuralink shared the news on Twitter and thanked the FDA and its own team for their hard work. They also promised to share more information about the human tests soon.
Despite this positive news, Neuralink has often overpromised on how quickly it can make progress. The company wanted to start putting chips in human brains back in 2020 but couldn't. There was also some trouble last year when people accused the company of not treating animals properly during their tests. Neuralink denied these accusations.
Other groups, like Swiss researchers, have also been making progress with brain implants. They helped a man who couldn't move his legs to walk just by thinking about it.
Comprehension Questions:
Speaking and Writing Activities:
- Discuss these questions with a partner or a small group.
- Choose one topic and write a response to it. Show your writing to a classmate or teacher.
1. If you could control computers with your brain, what are some things you would want to do?
2. How do you feel about the idea of connecting our brains directly to computers? Can you think of any dangers of this new technology?
3. Many new medical treatments are tested on animals. Do you think it's okay to use animals this way?
More Reading Practice:
What is Neuralink?
Neuralink is a company founded by Elon Musk, the same person who started companies like Tesla and SpaceX.
The goal of Neuralink is to create devices that can be put inside the brain. These devices are designed to help people with different types of brain and nerve problems. For example, if someone has trouble moving their arms or legs because of a disease or an injury, a Neuralink device might be able to help them.
This sounds like something out of a science fiction book, doesn't it? But it's really happening. The device they're developing is very small, almost like a tiny chip. This chip can communicate with the neurons in our brain. Neurons are like the "wires" in our brain that send messages around. If we can understand these messages better, we might be able to help fix problems when these wires aren't working the right way.
But Neuralink isn't just about helping with medical problems. It also aims to enhance our capabilities. In other words, Neuralink is trying to make it possible for people to do things they wouldn't normally be able to do. This might include being able to control a computer with just your thoughts!
Neuralink's work is really advanced, and it's not something that everyone agrees with. Some people worry about the ethical issues of putting technology inside our brains. But no matter what, it's definitely a groundbreaking area of science and technology. It will be interesting to see what they'll be able to accomplish in the future.
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