Rethinking the Human Body Beyond a Computer Analogy

Over the past decade, neuroscience has made remarkable strides: brain-controlled prosthetics have been developed, and numerous studies suggest that slowing down aging might one day become possible. Many envision a future where technological optimization of the entire human body is within reach.

For instance, in April, representatives from Meta Platforms Inc. announced plans to create a neural interface that would allow users to send thoughts directly to social media without using a keyboard. The company aims to launch this groundbreaking technology within a few years. Additionally, Elon Musk recently revealed the launch of Neuralink, a company dedicated to developing brain implants capable of reading thoughts.

While these goals are impressive, the reality is far more complex. The human body is not a computer that can be hacked, reprogrammed, or upgraded.

Take the brain, often considered the most 'computer-like' organ. Unlike computers, the human brain does not store or process information in a binary or straightforward manner. It lacks automatic settings to overwrite unpleasant memories like in the movie "Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind."

Why Tech Entrepreneurial Approaches Don’t Translate to Biology

Research in this area continues. For example, neural interfaces show promise in treating mental health disorders. The U.S. Department of Defense’s Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) funds a $65 million project aimed at developing treatments for psychiatric conditions using implanted electrodes. Despite over a decade of research, identifying the precise brain regions to target for each disorder remains challenging.

Silicon Valley entrepreneurs, venturing into biology, often bring a hacker mindset to the field.

Meta Platforms Inc. plans to determine within two years whether their concept of transmitting thoughts directly to a screen at 100 words per minute is feasible. Currently, the fastest typing speed using brain implants is about 8 words per minute.

Elon Musk predicts Neuralink’s first neural interface will be available within a decade, despite brain-reading technologies still being largely speculative. Today, we can only measure a fraction of the neural activity needed to connect an entire human brain to a computer or enable telepathic communication.

In 2009, researchers at the University of Wisconsin-Madison successfully posted a short message on Twitter using a neural interface.

"Sending an email or Facebook post is far more complex," explains Justin Williams, who led the study. "It seems simple, but consider the cognitive processes involved: filling in the subject and recipient fields, then composing the message. From both biological and technological perspectives, this is very challenging."

Recently, a person was able not only to control a prosthetic arm with their brain but also to feel its movements. However, understanding how 100 billion neurons and 100 trillion connections in the brain work remains a distant goal. Creating technology that connects the entire brain to a computer is even further off.

Nonetheless, the tech industry's "it must be done" approach is spreading rapidly.

The Human Body: More Than Just a Well-Oiled Machine

Comparing the human body to a machine has long been common. In the 16th century, the invention of spring- and lever-powered mechanisms led thinkers like René Descartes to describe humans as complex machines. In the 19th century, German physicist Hermann von Helmholtz likened the brain to a telegraph. In 1958, mathematician John von Neumann stated in his book "The Computer and the Brain" that the human nervous system is "digital unless proven otherwise."

As technology evolved, metaphors changed, but the core idea remained: the human body is a complex mechanism.

However, this perspective is misleading and potentially dangerous, especially when biology is intertwined with computer systems. Treating our intricate, fragile, and mysterious bodies as mere machines risks unrealistic expectations, wasted resources, and compromised health.

Ultimately, we are living beings, not soulless machines, and this fundamental truth must never be overlooked.

*Meta Platforms Inc. and its social networks Facebook and Instagram are restricted in certain regions.

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