5 ms·

Augmentation of cognitive brain functions with transcranial lasers

30 points by md224 12y ago

ianstallings 12y ago
Puts on brain power helmet We live in a crazy world.
- rcthompson 12y ago
  > brain power helmet No need to invent new names for things. We already have the term "thinking cap". :)
vinceguidry 12y ago
Imagine a future where all programming workstations came with one of these. Sit down, helmet up, then code like a boss.
JoelHobson 12y ago
So is this just heating areas of the brain? If bone isn't transparent to infra-red (I have no idea...), then it has to be, right?
- darkmighty 12y ago
  Thermal radiation is by definition sort of wideband (so it basically heats the surface without much penetration), this is apperently narrowband radiation over some penetration window targeted at a specific photon absorption mechanism in cells, which showed the described results.
md224 12y ago
For a broader overview of Low Level Laser Therapy: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3288797/ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3288797/
hownottowrite 12y ago
Or, you could sit outside on a sunny day. "the light intensities on the brain surface during OT obtained by using a commercially available system were about 2% for adults and 3% for neonates of those values obtained under midday sunlight on a sunny day in midsummer" http://biomedicaloptics.spiedigitallibrary.org/article.aspx?articleid=1351970 http://biomedicaloptics.spiedigitallibrary.org/article.aspx?... [Journal of Biomedical Optics 2007]
- gwern 12y ago
  As I understand it, the LLLT systems in question are usually focused on a fairly narrow range of wavelengths (this times into the postulated cytochrome mechanism: it only absorbs light energy at a few wavelengths), not smeared all over the infrared and visible and UV like sunlight.
- ehsanu1 12y ago
  The article actually notes that higher power densities showed a much smaller effect. Low doses were much more effectual, which is why sitting outside on a sunny day may not work quite as well, if at all.

30 points by md224 12y ago

ianstallings 12y ago

Puts on brain power helmet We live in a crazy world.

rcthompson 12y ago
> brain power helmet No need to invent new names for things. We already have the term "thinking cap". :)

vinceguidry 12y ago

Imagine a future where all programming workstations came with one of these. Sit down, helmet up, then code like a boss.

JoelHobson 12y ago

So is this just heating areas of the brain? If bone isn't transparent to infra-red (I have no idea...), then it has to be, right?

darkmighty 12y ago
Thermal radiation is by definition sort of wideband (so it basically heats the surface without much penetration), this is apperently narrowband radiation over some penetration window targeted at a specific photon absorption mechanism in cells, which showed the described results.

md224 12y ago

For a broader overview of Low Level Laser Therapy: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3288797/ http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3288797/

hownottowrite 12y ago

Or, you could sit outside on a sunny day. "the light intensities on the brain surface during OT obtained by using a commercially available system were about 2% for adults and 3% for neonates of those values obtained under midday sunlight on a sunny day in midsummer" http://biomedicaloptics.spiedigitallibrary.org/article.aspx?articleid=1351970 http://biomedicaloptics.spiedigitallibrary.org/article.aspx?... [Journal of Biomedical Optics 2007]

gwern 12y ago
As I understand it, the LLLT systems in question are usually focused on a fairly narrow range of wavelengths (this times into the postulated cytochrome mechanism: it only absorbs light energy at a few wavelengths), not smeared all over the infrared and visible and UV like sunlight.
ehsanu1 12y ago
The article actually notes that higher power densities showed a much smaller effect. Low doses were much more effectual, which is why sitting outside on a sunny day may not work quite as well, if at all.