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Banbury Center Workshop Series

Neurocomputational Strategies: From Synapses to Behavior (1998)
Functional Organization of the Thalamus and Cortex and their Interactions (1999)
Toward Animal Models of Attention and Consciousness (2000)
Persistent Neural Activity (2000)
Can a Machine Be Conscious? (2001)
Communication in Brain Systems (2004)
Neurobiology of Decision-Making (2005)
Computational Approaches to Cortical Functions (2006)
New Frontiers in Studies of Nonconscious Processing (2007)
Theoretical and Experimental Approaches to Auditory and Visual Attention (2008)
Searching for Principles Underlying Memory in Biological Systems (2009)
Neuronal Response Variability and Cortical Computation (2011)
Connections and Communication in the Brain (2014)

Richard Andersen

Theoretical And Experimental Research For The Development Of A Neural Prosthesis For Paralyzed Patients

California Institute of Technology

Over the last few years we have identified and studied an area of the posterior parietal cortex in monkeys where the first plans for reaching are formulated. This region also exists in the human brain, and is intact in patients paralyzed due to peripheral neuropathies or spinal cord damage. We are beginning experiments to record neural activity from this area in monkeys using arrays of tiny, implanted electrodes. We hope to "read out" their movement intentions, and use them to operate external devices such as robot limb or a computer for surfing the Internet. If these experiments are successful, then a similar approach may be used in the future to design a neural prosthesis for paralyzed patients.