Interesting tidbit of research...
There's a fair amount of interesting research in the areas of exploring brain function, and just recently there's been a bit on implants that may be able to help with certain psychological disorders. These devices stimulate parts of the brain, to correct for problems in brain chemistry. So far, based on the article, they've tested it with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder patients, and though they've had some initial success they're proceeding cautiously.
A lot of this stuff still has a disclaimer along the lines of "Well, we don't really know how it causes these changes, but it seems to work most of the time," but it'll be interesting to see research in this area progress over the coming years. As complex as functionality of the brain is (both physiologically and psychologically), it's good to see progress.
In addition to this research there's been some work on restoring sight to those who are blind. The view offered to those have the implants made successfully is rather primitive/simple (basically a field of dots or points of light), It's still fantastic that things have come this far.
On the more ranty side of things, I've recently had it pointed out to me that the medical field essentially focuses on finding problems and fixing them. While it doesn't sound so bad on the surface (heck, it's the way that science and engineering work), it doesn't really aknowledge the fact that you're working on a human being. It's just rather cold and calculating. It's almost like taking a car in for a repair. You go in to have something fixed, not really to get well. I don't think the current system is even equipped to handle things differently.
A lot of this stuff still has a disclaimer along the lines of "Well, we don't really know how it causes these changes, but it seems to work most of the time," but it'll be interesting to see research in this area progress over the coming years. As complex as functionality of the brain is (both physiologically and psychologically), it's good to see progress.
In addition to this research there's been some work on restoring sight to those who are blind. The view offered to those have the implants made successfully is rather primitive/simple (basically a field of dots or points of light), It's still fantastic that things have come this far.
On the more ranty side of things, I've recently had it pointed out to me that the medical field essentially focuses on finding problems and fixing them. While it doesn't sound so bad on the surface (heck, it's the way that science and engineering work), it doesn't really aknowledge the fact that you're working on a human being. It's just rather cold and calculating. It's almost like taking a car in for a repair. You go in to have something fixed, not really to get well. I don't think the current system is even equipped to handle things differently.