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Researchers in the US have used electrical brain stimulation to boost the vigilance of sleep-deprived military personnel working on an airforce base. Knowing t

Researchers in the US have used electrical brain stimulation to boost the vigilance of sleep-deprived military personnel working on an airforce base. Knowing the U.S. military, rather than addressing the root cause of the issue (namely: the totally senseless cult of sleep deprivation in the armed forces -- despite the ample research showing the mental and physical damage it causes), they'll start offering, what shall we call them? -- special "performance-enhancing" helmets. First on an optional basis, but then on a not-so-optional basis -- to administer optimally measured voltage, at optimally timed occasions. From there it's a short hop to having these helmets (by then no longer optional at all) administer other kinds of signals, directly to the soldier's brains: to relay orders, identify targets... and to tell them when to pull the trigger.

danpat 12y ago
From there it's a short hop to having these helmets (by then no longer optional at all) administer other kinds of signals, directly to the soldier's brains: to relay orders, identify targets... and to tell them when to pull the trigger. Don't radios with earpieces already do that?
- dreamweapon 12y ago
  Transmit directly into the brain? No.
  - criley2 12y ago
    But, the process of breaking down a citizen and building a solider could easily be described as developing a new operating system for the soldier, one which is designed to utilize the radio/hearing/brain pathway to achieve an identical end to your electrical end. With "electronic helmet brain control", boot camp is irrelevant, but bootcamp and culture is itself an archaic "brain control", which serves an identical purpose already.
ed 12y ago
Uh – you're arguing tDCS is a form of mind control?
Kenji 12y ago
This is a classic example of a slippery slope argument.
drcomputer 12y ago
I don't think that would happen. Plenty of people are already willing to pull the trigger, especially if people are pulling the trigger at them, or they think people are going to pull a trigger at them. More nuanced training and preparation, sure, possibly. I'm more concerned with targeted desensitization, but this is hugely arm chair philosophical at this point. I don't know if having concern for the future actually does anything. The world is so large, and so complicated. If these were simple problems, they would have been solved.
wdr1 12y ago
> Knowing the U.S. military, rather than addressing the root cause of the issue (namely: the totally senseless cult of sleep deprivation in the armed forces I believe the root cause is that the military prepares for war, and in war you can't schedule breaks or nights of rest.
- jfoutz 12y ago
  That really really depends on how well you prepare.
  - TeMPOraL 12y ago
    Well but if you look at it from another angle, you can simplify your logistics if you can train soldiers to not need regular sleep breaks - and that is of value during war. If one is to believe Suvorov, the Soviets designed their logistics so that they didn't have to ship food and sleep bags to the front lines - soldiers were expected to fight three days without food or sleep, and then retreat to have few days of break with as much food and sleep as they wanted, while the next wave of well-fed and fully rested soldiers was sent in their place.
jqm 12y ago
Eh, there is too much that can go wrong with that plan... Besides, the meat puppets will have families back home that might get all sentimental when the inability to question the stupidity of your orders gets them shot. Maybe better just go ahead and develop the robot army which will render the whole meat puppet order following helmet moot. Besides being many times more effective, the robot army won't eat as much, won't require a lifetime of pension and medical care, and there will presumably be fewer problems with sexual harassment in the ranks. So much for the years of developing iron clad discipline... the steam drill is here John Henry.

danpat 12y ago

From there it's a short hop to having these helmets (by then no longer optional at all) administer other kinds of signals, directly to the soldier's brains: to relay orders, identify targets... and to tell them when to pull the trigger. Don't radios with earpieces already do that?

dreamweapon 12y ago
Transmit directly into the brain? No.
- criley2 12y ago
  But, the process of breaking down a citizen and building a solider could easily be described as developing a new operating system for the soldier, one which is designed to utilize the radio/hearing/brain pathway to achieve an identical end to your electrical end. With "electronic helmet brain control", boot camp is irrelevant, but bootcamp and culture is itself an archaic "brain control", which serves an identical purpose already.

ed 12y ago

Uh – you're arguing tDCS is a form of mind control?

Kenji 12y ago

This is a classic example of a slippery slope argument.

drcomputer 12y ago

I don't think that would happen. Plenty of people are already willing to pull the trigger, especially if people are pulling the trigger at them, or they think people are going to pull a trigger at them. More nuanced training and preparation, sure, possibly. I'm more concerned with targeted desensitization, but this is hugely arm chair philosophical at this point. I don't know if having concern for the future actually does anything. The world is so large, and so complicated. If these were simple problems, they would have been solved.

wdr1 12y ago

> Knowing the U.S. military, rather than addressing the root cause of the issue (namely: the totally senseless cult of sleep deprivation in the armed forces I believe the root cause is that the military prepares for war, and in war you can't schedule breaks or nights of rest.

jfoutz 12y ago
That really really depends on how well you prepare.
- TeMPOraL 12y ago
  Well but if you look at it from another angle, you can simplify your logistics if you can train soldiers to not need regular sleep breaks - and that is of value during war. If one is to believe Suvorov, the Soviets designed their logistics so that they didn't have to ship food and sleep bags to the front lines - soldiers were expected to fight three days without food or sleep, and then retreat to have few days of break with as much food and sleep as they wanted, while the next wave of well-fed and fully rested soldiers was sent in their place.

jqm 12y ago

Eh, there is too much that can go wrong with that plan... Besides, the meat puppets will have families back home that might get all sentimental when the inability to question the stupidity of your orders gets them shot. Maybe better just go ahead and develop the robot army which will render the whole meat puppet order following helmet moot. Besides being many times more effective, the robot army won't eat as much, won't require a lifetime of pension and medical care, and there will presumably be fewer problems with sexual harassment in the ranks. So much for the years of developing iron clad discipline... the steam drill is here John Henry.