Miguel Nicolelis, MD, PhD - The Future of the Brain
Dr. Miguel Nicolelis discusses his research with brain-machine interfaces and the implications of this futuristic technology for humanity on The FitMind Podcast episode 87.
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Episode Overview
Miguel Nicolelis, MD, PhD is a Brazilian neuroscientist and physician famous for his pioneering work in the field of brain-machine interface (BMI) technology.
Dr. Nicolelis’s extensive research with brain-machine interfaces blurs the lines between real life and science fiction.
In this episode, we discuss neuroprosthetics, monkeys controlling robots, brain-to-brain communication, and the key implications of these wild, futuristic technologies for us all.
Hope you enjoy!
P.S. — If you’re serious about starting or deepening your meditation practice, check out the FitMind meditation app.
Miguel Nicolelis, MD, PhD Bio
Dr. Nicolelis is a professor emeritus in the Department of Neurobiology and co-director of the Neuroengineering Center at Duke. He is also the co-founder and scientific director of the International Institute for Neuroscience of Natal, a brain research facility in Brazil.
Dr. Nicolelis holds an MD and a PhD from the University of São Paulo and did his postdoc in physiology and biophysics at Hahnemann University. In 2011, he was appointed by Pope Benedict XVI as an ordinary member of the Pontifical Academy of Sciences.
Show Notes
0:00 | Intro to Dr. Miguel Nicolelis
4:20 | Monkeys Controlling Robots
10:30 | Mirror Neurons & Brain-Machine Interface (BMI)
13:02 | Advances & Applications of BMIs
17:50 | BMIs for Parkinson’s Disease
21:36 | Upgrading the Human Mind?
24:50 | Why Machines Will Never Think Like a Human
29:56 | Brains are Changed by Digital Systems
32:50 | Limitations of Computers
37:07 | How Nature Shaped the Brain
40:15 | We Only Experience a Sliver of Reality
49:45 | Viruses of the Mind
59:30 | Rapid Fire Questions