Scientists use computer to 'read minds' on screen

Scientists have discovered how to read 'the mind’s eye' using a computer that can replicate what humans are seeing or recalling by monitoring their brain activity. The breakthrough, by a team at the University of California, raises the prospect of scientists eventually being able to record dreams or enable police to identify criminals by recalling the memories of a witness.

The development is similar to that envisaged in the film Minority Report, in which an individual’s private thoughts can be readily accessed by the authorities. Neurologists at the university have already matched patterns of activity in the brain with static images seen by the person, and now say it is possible to “decode” signals generated in the brain by moving scenes. Their work, which has yet to be peer reviewed, could lead to technology that would allow security agencies to interrogate prisoners.