I got a mention in the RFID Gazette DIY project post (pdf) today and thought about Kevin Warwick’s uber-cool cyborg implants. The man was one of the first to implant an RFID transponder under his skin (not the first, but pretty close), and he stepped it up a notch by injecting an array of 100 electrodes into the median nerve fibers of his left arm. With this implant he could not only record nerve activity but he could also stimulate the nerves, giving his brain an extra-sensory like perception. In only a couple weeks his brain was able to adjust to this new sensory signal and he was able to easily make sense of the meaning behind the new stimulation. It’s an amazing experiment, and I for one am interested in seeing where this kind of technology can go. But, I think I’ll wait a decade or so before I give it a try. I like my nervous system and I’d like to see this type of implant technology become much more mature than what basically amounts to simply shooting a pronged chunk of metal willynilly into my nerve tissue.
I’d also like to note that I’ve been getting a lot of comments about being a Cyborg lately. I’m not a cyborg, and I tend to disagree with the Kevin Warwick’s thought that implanting an RFID transponder under your skin somehow qualifies you as a Cyborg. In reality, your body is not interacting with the technology at all, your skin is simply acting like a flesh pocket for the implant, nothing more. As far as the body is concerned, it’s nothing more exotic than a fancy ear piercing or nose ring or any other kind of cosmetic implant you can think of. Now a pacemaker or a cochlear implant, that’s a different story… those devices are actually interacting with the body… enhancing its function… working with the body to bolster an existence that is greater than the sum of the biological and electronic and mechanical parts. To me, that’s what defines the term cybernetics. I just don’t think you can call yourself a Cyborg by simply implanting a piece of technology thats function is completely unrelated to it being located inside or outside of the body.
