Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
Scientists Develop Prosthetic Voice That's Able To Interpret Brain Signals And Turn Them Into Understandable Speech
The New York Times: Scientists Create Speech From Brain Signals
“In my head, I churn over every sentence ten times, delete a word, add an adjective, and learn my text by heart, paragraph by paragraph,” wrote Jean-Dominique Bauby in his memoir, “The Diving Bell and the Butterfly.” In the book, Mr. Bauby, a journalist and editor, recalled his life before and after a paralyzing stroke that left him virtually unable to move a muscle; he tapped out the book letter by letter, by blinking an eyelid. Thousands of people are reduced to similarly painstaking means of communication as a result of injuries suffered in accidents or combat, of strokes, or of neurodegenerative disorders such as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or A.L.S., that disable the ability to speak. (Carey, 4/24)
NPR: Scientists Tap Into Brain Signals To Synthesize Speech
"Finding a way to restore speech is one of the great challenges in neurosciences," says Dr. Leigh Hochberg, a professor of engineering at Brown University who wasn't associated with the study. "This is a really exciting new contribution to the field." Right now, people who are paralyzed and can't speak or gesture often rely on eye movements or a brain-controlled computer cursor to communicate. These methods allow them to spell out words one letter at a time. (Hamilton, 4/24)
