Can you imagine our future communication to heavily rely on Brain-Computer-Interfaces(BCI) technologies? Does that make you immediately think about the Matrix trilogy? The technology enabling interaction between the human brain and the computers, of course, must function through protocols. In this non-fiction in-depth reporting project, I am going to tell you about the fascinating anatomy of BCI protocols, starting from a very interesting phenomenon in BCI’s development: BCI illiteracy.
What is BCI illiteracy? It’s the phenomenon that some 15 to 30% of the human brains have serious difficulties in using electroencephalography-based BCIs. The major reasons for this include the high individual invariability in brain structures, and also because different human beings use different cognitive strategies. This controversially-named problem will be used to show how BCI engineers and users construct Brain-Computer communication protocols, and the technological, neuroscientific, psychological, ethical and social complexities involved in their construction. The reporting will be based on personal interviews, desk research, and fieldwork.