[ti:Using the Brain to Move a Robotic Arm] [ar:June Simms] [al:Technology Report] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]This is the VOA Special English Technology Report. [00:05.13]Cathy Hutchinson is a tetraplegic. [00:09.31]She has not been able to move her arms, [00:12.10]legs or speak since suffering a stroke [00:15.83]nearly fifteen years ago. [00:18.87]Recently, she learned how to control a robotic arm [00:23.70]using her thoughts. [00:25.74]She now can use brain activity to serve herself a drink. [00:31.06]The American woman is one of two people [00:35.04]who took part in a research project known as BrainGate2. [00:40.57]The researchers have spent years [00:43.50]studying how to help people who are paralyzed [00:47.09]regain movement in their arms and legs. [00:51.07]John Donoghue is a neuroscientist with Brown University [00:56.24]and the Department of Veterans Affairs. [00:59.13]He also was part of the project. [01:02.76]JOHN DONOGHUE: "People who are paralyzed [01:04.15]have their brain disconnected from their body. [01:07.39]So they are not able to go out [01:09.03]and do everyday things that you and I can do, [01:12.07]like reach for a glass of water or scratch your nose. [01:14.85]So our idea is to bypass that damaged nervous system [01:21.58]and go directly from the brain to the outside world [01:23.47]so the brain signals can, not control muscle, [01:26.66]but control machines or devices [01:28.20]like a computer or a robotic limb." [01:30.64]The two paralyzed people had small sensors [01:34.57]connected to the part of the brain that controls movement. [01:38.85]The devices measured brain activity [01:41.69]and sent that information to a computer. [01:45.22]The computer has special software [01:49.15]that turns the information into digital commands [01:52.88]for operating other devices. [01:55.71]The researchers used a highly developed robotic arm [02:00.40]to recreate human actions. [02:03.48]Scientists from Massachusetts General Hospital, [02:08.91]Harvard Medical School and the German Aerospace Center [02:13.39]also took part in the study. [02:16.12]The BrainGate team had its first success [02:20.41]in two thousand six. [02:22.41]A tetraplegic stabbing victim [02:25.19]was able use the brain-computer interface system [02:29.57]to control a computer cursor. [02:33.09]John Donoghue says the latest development [02:36.89]using robotic arms is a major victory. [02:41.42]A video of the latest experiment shows Cathy Hutchinson [02:46.19]using the robotic arm to pick up a cup of coffee. [02:50.52]She guides the cup toward her mouth, [02:53.46]moves it forward and drinks through a straw. [02:57.44]Lead investigator Leigh Hochberg says [03:00.77]the first time she did it was a magical moment. [03:04.51]LEIGH HOCHBERG: "To see her with that robotic arm [03:07.39]reach out and pick up that cup of coffee [03:09.58]and serve herself that coffee for the first time [03:12.52]in nearly fifteen years, it was an incredible moment." [03:15.46]The research team carried out almost two hundred tests [03:20.21]with two different robotic arms. [03:23.45]The two individuals were able to pick up [03:26.73]their target objects forty-three [03:29.57]to sixty-six percent of the time. [03:32.11]The researchers are calling the information very promising. [03:38.18]But they say it will take years [03:40.52]to fully develop the technology for everyday use. [03:45.05]A report on the BrainGate study appeared last week [03:49.57]in the scientific journal Nature. [03:53.11]And that's the VOA Special English Technology Report. [03:58.98]I'm June Simms.