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I have no comment about this particular technology and how well it works, but there are already people wired to naturally feel happy or unhappy. Therapy can't c

I have no comment about this particular technology and how well it works, but there are already people wired to naturally feel happy or unhappy. Therapy can't change their base state all that much. A hypothetical implant just gives you a choice.

klyrs 5y ago
Not if such implants become state-mandated. And don't be quick to dismiss that; if effective, this could be the sole avenue to freedom for somebody who's been involuntarily committed. And the implant doesn't appear to give you a choice. It makes the determination of when to fire off a pulse. Probably through Machine Learning, the same technology that can't tell the difference between a stopped emergency vehicle and a clear lane -- a mistake even toddlers know to be wrong -- applied to a signalling environment that even experts can't readily understand. Parents died in a freak accident? That might end up being the happiest day of your life.
- blowski 5y ago
  > Not if such implants become state-mandated If the state is willing and able to abuse people, they already have plenty of tools available to do so.
  - klyrs 5y ago
    They're always seeking more.
    - blowski 5y ago
      So what do you suggest? Immediate cessation of all research?
      - klyrs 5y ago
        Not at all. But extreme suspicion is warranted here. Folks who have experienced drugs like Zoloft know that antidepressants can go "too far." At the very least, I'd want to see a hard off switch to put the implantee into control. I'd much prefer a device like this to be at-will (a button that fires a pulse when the patient wants one, possibly with a rate-limiter) and in conjunction with talk therapy to train the patient to recognize depressive spirals so that they can better help themselves. Early in that therapy, it may be necessary for the therapist to trigger the device, but after a certain point, the functionality for an external trigger should be permanently disabled. Being locked in a mental institution is depressing, and any treatment plan must take that into account.

klyrs 5y ago

Not if such implants become state-mandated. And don't be quick to dismiss that; if effective, this could be the sole avenue to freedom for somebody who's been involuntarily committed. And the implant doesn't appear to give you a choice. It makes the determination of when to fire off a pulse. Probably through Machine Learning, the same technology that can't tell the difference between a stopped emergency vehicle and a clear lane -- a mistake even toddlers know to be wrong -- applied to a signalling environment that even experts can't readily understand. Parents died in a freak accident? That might end up being the happiest day of your life.

blowski 5y ago
> Not if such implants become state-mandated If the state is willing and able to abuse people, they already have plenty of tools available to do so.
- klyrs 5y ago
  They're always seeking more.
  - blowski 5y ago
    So what do you suggest? Immediate cessation of all research?
    - klyrs 5y ago
      Not at all. But extreme suspicion is warranted here. Folks who have experienced drugs like Zoloft know that antidepressants can go "too far." At the very least, I'd want to see a hard off switch to put the implantee into control. I'd much prefer a device like this to be at-will (a button that fires a pulse when the patient wants one, possibly with a rate-limiter) and in conjunction with talk therapy to train the patient to recognize depressive spirals so that they can better help themselves. Early in that therapy, it may be necessary for the therapist to trigger the device, but after a certain point, the functionality for an external trigger should be permanently disabled. Being locked in a mental institution is depressing, and any treatment plan must take that into account.