The power of the brain; as demonstrated by rhesus monkeys

http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2014/11/141118-exoskeleton-neuroscience-brain-monkey-wheelchair-science/

I think this technology is extremely fascinated, innovative, and quite useful if I am being honest. In fact, it sort of surprises me that scientists are just now discovering how to use the redirect the signals in the brain to somehow “trick” a subject into thinking that they have the ability to move, or preform some sort of function which the currently cannot. This though came to me when I first heard of the disorder called “phantom limb”. It is a very strange, yet quite disabling syndrome where a person who has lost a limb I any instance (e.g. amputation, car accident, construction accident, war violence etc.) and with time they begin to feel as though their limb has suddenly reappeared.  It can also be explained as “feeling sensation that the limb could have experienced prior to the amputation” which according to many sources can be extremely painful. WedMD claims, “in addition to pain in the phantom limb, some people experience other sensations such as tingling, cramping, heat, and cold”. The reason for this syndrome is not entirely known, however many studies are being conducted in order to fully understand this phenomenon. What is known though, is that is entirely due to brain signals and nerve endings. To be specific researchers claim “nerve endings at the site of the amputation continue to send pain signals to the brain that make the brain think the limb is still there” (WebMD). It seems to me that this experience should be much further investigated. Fortunately this study with the rhesus monkeys proves that there is promise for some paralyzed people. Similarly to the research on phantom limb, a national geographic article by Dan Vergano reports "We are actually fooling the brain of patients to think it is not a machine carrying them, but they feel they are themselves walking forward."

            I think this article is proof that there are amazing things coming in the future for people with paralyses and other disabilities of this like. I think Vergano makes some incredible points in this article, which are worth reading. The discovery of brain-machine interfaces should be the primary focus of much more research in the near future. The article notes “brain-machine interfaces are giving us results producing a basic understanding of neural mechanisms.” Obviously this relates greatly to my neuroscience class and the content we are currently studying. More importantly, this article means we are approaching something revolutionary in medicine, and that relates to an incredible amount of people outside my psychology class as well.