Artificial Vision A vital component of transhumanism

Machinehead Merger of human and machine Ray Kurzweil’s “The Singularity is Near”

Overview of retinal processing Photoreceptor –Rods (low light) and cones (color) Bipolar cells Ganglion cells –Axons form the optic nerve to lateral geniculate nucleus of thalamus

Motivations Correcting disabilities –Macular Degeneration—removes ability to see in most sensitive area. –Retina Pigmentosa—diminished ability of photoreceptors. Transhumanism –Our design is flawed. Blind spot Blinking

Beyond the blind spot Eventually plug in a video signal directly into brain –Already exists for cochlear implants— audio jack into transmitter Steve Mann has demonstrated a wearable computer.

Approaches Eye –Subretinal (Optobionics) –Above retina (Humayan) Visual cortex (stop after thalamus) –Doelle

Optobionics Implantable beneath retina to function as photoreceptors 5000 receptors versus over 100 million in healthy eye No need for batteries, powered by light coming into the eye

Mark Humayun’s Retina Implantable above ganglion cells Powered and fed data wirelessly Only 16 electrodes –Soon 1024 (32x32)

William Dobelle’s brain implant Activates electrodes on surface of visual cortex Requires permanent skull interface

Conclusions Research is nascent. –Requires more research into signal processing from photoreceptors