Recently, a research project, funded by the US Army, was completed, the main task of which was to increase and strengthen human memory. The research results are encouraging.
The 15 participants in the experiment suffered from epilepsy-related memory loss. Before the start of the experiment, all of them had already undergone surgery, during which small implants were implanted into their brains that could track what was happening in the brain.
In a study reported in the Journal of Neural Engineering, participants were asked to perform a simple task: look at an image, and then correctly identify it among four or three other images after a short break. While the patients were fulfilling the request, the researchers mapped the participants' brain activity to identify the brain region that was most involved when the participant recalled the correct object.
On a second try, the scientists used the same implant to stimulate the “correct response” zones they had just identified.
Result? Participants' stimulated short-term memory improved by 37% and long-term memory by 35%.
“For the first time, scientists have been able to identify a cellular code or pattern for memory in a patient's brain and essentially write this code so that existing memory works faster. This is an important first step in a potential cure for memory loss,”says Robert Hampson, the project's principal investigator.
The scientists have received funding from DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), which hopes such work will help soldiers with memory loss after severe head injury.
One thing is true: this clinical trial was performed on only 15 patients who were asked to complete a very simple task in a hospital setting. It is not yet clear whether such a system will help students study better or pass exams, and whether it will require surgery. So far, this is just a test of concept.
Promotional video: