AP Biology
10/7/19
Current Event 4
Temming, Maria. “Maryam Shanechi Designs Machines to Read Minds.” Science News, 2 Oct. 2019, www.sciencenews.org/article/maryam-shanechi-sn-10-scientists-to-watch.
The article “Maryam Shanechi Designs Machines to Read Minds” explains the relevance of a fascinating new study by neuroscientist Maryam Shanechi. The study primarily revolved around the utilization of a brain-machine interface to stimulate cells and thus alter one’s mood. A brain-machine interface is essentially a device that translates neuronal signals into commands, which can control hardware such as a robotic arm. These interfaces have given humans a limited ability to control robotic limbs for almost twenty years. With Shanechi’s specially-designed brain-machine interface, however, she can track individual nerve firings with much more accuracy. Her new system was tested on a group of monkeys, and it was discovered that the new interface could predict their motions with significantly greater precision than the old ones. After this breakthrough, Shanechi continued to create new algorithms to turn thoughts into motions. One study has already proven the usefulness of the improved brain-machine interfaces; after studying people’s brain activity for several days, a computer algorithm was able to use nerve cell firings to predict their moods with the correct results. These algorithms have the potential to help millions of people in the future by detecting their mood and finding out how to change it.
Shanechi’s discoveries could have an enormous impact on our modern society. Mental manipulation by the brain-machine interfaces would allow for improved treatment for patients with psychiatric disorders by guiding them into healthier mental states. The device would seamlessly analyze a patient’s symptoms and alter them for the better. Psychiatric disorders impact a great number of people in the United States; over 40 million people suffer from anxiety, which is 18.1% of the country’s population. 6.7% of adults in the United States have depression. With the new technology being currently developed, anyone impacted by these disorders could receive treatment as opposed to the few people who currently respond to existing therapies. Shanechi said, “what I really enjoy is to see a mathematical concept making its way toward making a difference in people’s lives.” If her device works as expected, Shanechi may accomplish her goal and improve the lives of millions of people.
Maria Temming’s article was successful at conveying the importance of this topic and bringing to light the potential for Shanenchi’s new discovery. The writing was both formal and analytical, which helped to develop a thoughtful vision of the future. It was also very detailed and provided the background and results for several experiments. However, I feel it could be improved by explaining brain-machine interfaces in more depth and talking more about possible negative aspects of the technology. Though the article focused on many of the positive effects of the machine, it did not go into the “mind-control” aspects many are concerned about. The article also included a lot about Shanechi’s personal life, but I think adding more information regarding the technology would have been a better portrayal of the paper’s primary focus. Overall, however, it did an excellent job of explaining the potential for an exciting new scientific development.
Ellyn Paris AP Biology
ReplyDeleteMr. Ippolito Current Event 5
10/18/19
Temming, Maria. “Maryam Shanechi Designs Machines to Read Minds.” Science News, 2 Oct. 2019, www.sciencenews.org/article/maryam-shanechi-sn-10-scientists-to-watch.
Sullivan did a very good job on her summary paragraph. Her description of the article was detailed and taught the audience much about the subject that is being discussed. Even though there were technical concepts added to her summary paragraph, she managed to talk about them in a way that readers who have never heard about brain technology were able to understand. Furthermore, Sullivan added statistics to her second paragraph. The use of numbers makes her review seem more professional and adds a quantitative value to her summary. Thirdly, the feedback she suggested was very constructive and could be easily be used to improve the article. She was right that the technological aspect of the article was more important than the personal life of one of the key individuals.
Sullivan could have added citations to her quotes. While there is no specific rule for this assignment that says citations are necessary, they make a review seem more professional. It also helps people who wish to learn more about the subject. They can refer to the citation to find that quote they wish to focus on. Also, she could have watched out for repetition. Although it is not a significant problem in her writing, she repeated the phrase “millions of people” multiple times. Avoiding this could improve the quality of her review.
I was very surprised that there was a way of detecting people’s moods using technology. The brain is a very mysterious part of our bodies, and there is much to learn about it. Articles about discoveries of the brain are very interesting to me.
Amanda Troy
ReplyDeleteAP Bio
Mr. Ippolito
10/17/19
Temming, Maria. “Maryam Shanechi Designs Machines to Read Minds.” Science News, 2 Oct. 2019, www.sciencenews.org/article/maryam-shanechi-sn-10-scientists-to-watch.
Eve did an extremely fine job on her current event summary. I thought she produced a detailed write up and she taught the reader new information in a comprehensive way. For example, she discussed many technical and complex concepts in her summary paragraph, but she managed to discuss this in a way that the reader can clearly understand the ideas regarding new brain technology. Additionally, Eve included important statistics in her second paragraph. The use of numbers makes a more clear and professional review of the concepts and makes the ideas easier to comprehend. The use of numbers here adds a quantitative value to her summary, something that I really appreciated. Lastly, Eve discusses how Shaneci’s discoveries could have an enormous impact on our modern societies. This is important for her to note as mental manipulation by the brain-machine interfaces would allow for improved treatment for patients with psychiatric disorders by guiding them into healthier mental states.
Something that can be improved upon is the lack of citations when Eve included quotes. Including citations makes a more professional and effective summary. While including citations is not required in the assignment, it may have made Eve’s summary more engaging and competent as a whole. Including citations also adds the opportunity for the reader to research more about the topic if they are interested. They can refer back to the citation to find the quote in the actual article. Another thing that can be improved upon is Eve’s frequent repetition of certain phrases, especially in the first two paragraphs. Eve notes that the algorithms have potential to help “millions of people.” Soon, Eve notes that over 40 million people suffer from anxiety. Then, Eve states that “Shanechi may accomplish her goal and improve the lives of millions of people.” The repetition of “millions of people” suggest some inconsistency. Avoiding this may improve the quality of her summary.
It was very intriguing to learn that there is a way of detecting people’s personal moods through the use of technology. This just goes to show that technology is advancing everyday, and will soon be incomprehensible. This summary was also eye-opening as it suggests just how mysterious our brains are. There are so many elements of our brains that we don’t know about, and there is so much more to learn. I find it interesting to read about not only the complexity of the human body, but also the suggestion that there is much more to be discovered.
Olivia Conniff
ReplyDeleteAP Biology
Mr. Ippolito
November 4th, 2019
Temming, Maria. “Maryam Shanechi Designs Machines to Read Minds.” Science News, 2 Oct. 2019, www.sciencenews.org/article/maryam-shanechi-sn-10-scientists-to-watch.
Sullivan, Eve. “Maryam Shanechi Designs Machines to Read Minds.” Maryam Shanechi Designs Machines to Read Minds, 1 Jan. 1970, bronxvilleapbiology.blogspot.com/2019/10/maryam-shanechi-designs-machines-to.html#comment-form.
For Current Event 7, I chose to read Eve Sullivan’s review of the article, “Maryam Shanechi Designs Machines to Read Minds” by Maria Temming. I thoroughly enjoyed reading Eve’s article as it was informative, detailed, and clear. I appreciated the use of statistics and numbers in her review, as it adds quantitative data, which has a certain value that is not present with only qualitative data. Furthermore, I thought the criticism she provided to Temming was very constructive and insightful. Finally, the discussion of how Shanechi’s discoveries will impact society were a crucial addition to the review and a great way to make sure the reader understands the significance of the findings.
While overall Eve’s article was excellent, there are a few minor adjustments that could be made to better it further. I feel that her review became a bit repetitive at times, which can undermine the clarity of the writing. If she used a bit more variety in her explanations, it would improve them greatly. Also, when using quotes she should have included in-text citations. This would make her writing much more professional and formal, improving it that much more.
Eve’s review was extremely interesting and I was very surprised to learn that technology can be used to detect people’s moods. I find the brain very interesting, as it is extremely complex, and we are discovering new things about it everyday. Reading about this new technology furthers my belief that experimental findings can be built upon and create new discoveries. There are so many elements and parts of the brain that we can keep investigating, and discovering new things about.