don't even think about it...

as a former media ecologist, i find this article fascinating for three reasons. first, 10 years ago i wrote a thesis arguing that neuroscience and the decoding of the human genome would eventually bring about and socialize a Science of Individuality. second, i do believe people are stupid enough to one day incorporate this kind of technology into institutional processes. third, i have enormous respect for the work these scientists do, despite the pleasure they seem to take in destroying all my romantic illusions.

We Knew You Would Read This Story

A TEAM of world-leading neuroscientists has developed a powerful technique that allows them to look deep inside a person's brain and read their intentions before they act.

The research breaks controversial new ground in science's ability to probe people's minds and eavesdrop on their thoughts.

It raises serious ethical issues over how brain-reading technology may be used.

The team used high-resolution brain scans to identify patterns of activity before translating them into meaningful thoughts, revealing what a person planned to do in the near future. It is the first time scientists have succeeded in reading intentions in this way.

"Using the scanner, we could look around the brain for this information and read out something that from the outside there's no way you could possibly tell is in there," said John-Dylan Haynes at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Germany. He led the study with colleagues at University College London and Oxford University.

The research builds on a series of recent studies in which brain imaging has been used to identify tell-tale activity linked to lying, violent behaviour and racial prejudice.

The latest work has prompted the researchers to call for an urgent debate on the ethical issues of the technology.

If brain-reading can be refined, it can quickly be adopted to assist interrogations of criminals and even usher in a Minority Report era (as portrayed in the Steven Spielberg film), where judgements are handed down before the law is broken on the strength of an incriminating brain scan.

(This article appeared in The Age ealier this month. What's that you ask? Well, it's like the aussie New York Times, except they can say "asshole" and "shit" if they want to.)