Ann Johnson got married 20 years ago. Eighteen years ago she had a massive stroke that rendered her paralyzed and unable to speak.
Until, arguably, this week:
On Wednesday, scientists reported a remarkable advance toward helping her, and other patients, speak again. In a milestone of neuroscience and artificial intelligence, implanted electrodes decoded Mrs. Johnson's brain signals as she silently tried to say sentences. Technology converted her brain signals into written and vocalized language, and enabled an avatar on a computer screen to speak the words and display smiles, pursed lips and other expressions.
It's the stuff of science fiction, now become hopeful reality:
Of course, all of this is still in its infancy. But scientists plainly believe there is huge potential here. And every new use of this technology will yield new data and new information to make it more refined, more responsive, and more able to help medical patients communicate again.
Notably, this is not merely a fancy cerebral text-to-speech device. Researchers "trained the sophisticated artificial intelligence to recognize not individual words, but phonemes, or sound units like 'ow' and 'ah' that can ultimately form any word." That opens up the vistas of communication far more than a simple transcription bot would allow.
Johnson and her husband were even able to communicate through the system, displaying her optimistic sense of humor:
He asked how she was feeling about the Toronto Blue Jays' chances. "Anything is possible," she replied.
It certainly is.
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