A team led by neurobiologist Dr. Miguel Nicolelis started by observing the activity of almost 500 neurons in both cerebral hemispheres of the animals’ brains. One of the monkeys then learned to use its own hands on physical joysticks, to move the arms of an avatar monkey on a computer screen. Whenever that avatar successfully performed a specific bimanual motor task (putting its hands on targets that would pop up), the real monkey would receive a fruit juice reward.
That monkey was subsequently trained to control the avatar arms simply by moving its own arms, with no joysticks present. When its arms were then “gently restrained,” it learned to work the avatar arms just by thinking of moving its own. A computer decoded its neural activity, and moved the avatar arms accordingly.
via Gizmag
