Subject: Memory enhancements. Telepathic rats? Fashion not function - advanced
From: "Bill Howell. Hussar. Alberta. Canada" <>
Date: Wed, 29 Aug 2018 22:30:22 -0600
To: Sarah "Howell." Director-Actor-Freelance "E-Journalist." Dream "Bravely."
Cc:

Catherine, Sarah -  For no particular reason, tired after working to 03:10 in the morning last night as a volunteer for the lion's casino, I checked up on the hippocampal prosthesis.   Turns out that earlier this year, a news article about www.kernel.com popped up : 

https://www.wired.com/story/hippocampal-neural-prosthetic/
Although human trials  were carried out, I have not yet looked at the scientific papers.   "...   The team worked with 22 patients awaiting surgery for epilepsy.   ..."  (good choice given ethics and concerned about ruining a normal person's memories).  In any case the results were quite impressive on the surface.

https://logancollinsblog.com/2018/01/02/global-highlights-neuroengineering-towards-whole-brain-emulation-and-mind-uploading/
Strangely, I would not have been able to predict the "telepathic rats", which was done in 2013. Was this substantial?  What does it mean?  Are rats firmly ahead of humans now?

Ted Berger, the long-term key scientist, broke off with the company, which started with Ted as Chief Scientist, [apparently, perhaps] out of concern with the demanded pace of advancement?
http://neurotechreports.com/pages/publishersletterFeb17.html

My own encounters with Ted :
  • IJCNN2004 Budapest - Ted gave a presentation
  • IJCNN2005 Montreal - I had invited him to present at this conference, which he did.  Strangely, enthusiasm for his work wasn't great at the conference. He was disappointed in me as he thought that a conference paper automatically would lead to a journal paper, and I can't remember if he was part of that conference's Best Papers Special Issue.   I did [get,?buy?] his book "Replacement Parts for the Brain" from him, which he didn't want to carry home, and read the book.
  • 22Feb2016 Giacomo Borachi sent me a review invitation - I was really surprised to see it turned out to be a paper by Ted Berger!  I was HUGELY enthusiastic, like a cheerleader, and gave it highest ratings.   I really liked the way their mathematical approches had advanced.   But I guess the other reviewers panned it.   I suppose it doesn't surprise you that your Dad's opinion often differes radically from the opinions of leading experts.

https://spectrum.ieee.org/the-human-os/biomedical/devices/starkeys-ai-transforms-hearing-aid-into-smart-wearables
Your grandfather's hearing is getting worse, so he shouts as he talks in A&W in the morning.  He never uses his hearing aids,, because of well-known problems with them.   DeLiang Wang, who I've know well since 2005 and from the INNS Board of Directors (I sat for two years), and as he is Co-Editor-in-Chief of the INNS Neural Networks journal, has progressed in his work with Deep Learning neural networks and hearing aids.  He collaborates with Starkey, a leading manufacturer, but they haven't produced a commercial model.  I've seen this before - I don't think they can sell hearing aids that require a wire that descends to a sub-clothing torso electric unit with the power to do that kind of processing.   Strange to me that people don't want function if it interferes with their looks?!?!


Mr. Bill Howell
1-587-707-2027     www.BillHowell.ca
P.O. Box 299, Hussar, Alberta, T0J1S0
member - International Neural Network Society (INNS), IEEE Computational Intelligence Society (IEEE-CIS),
            Association of Professional Engineers and Geo-scientists of Alberta (APEGA)
IJCNN2019 Budapest, Publications and Sponsors & Exhibits Chair, https://www.ijcnn.org/organizing-committee
WCCI2018 Rio de Janeiro : Publicity committee, mass emails http://www.ecomp.poli.br/~wcci2018/committees/
Retired: Science Research Manager (SE-REM-01) at Natural Resources Canada, CanmetMINING, Ottawa



------- Forwarded Message --------
Subject: Re: CI Magazine Special Issue - any time for an update?
Date: Sun, 21 Aug 2016 15:18:01 +0200
From: Giacomo Boracchi <>
To: () <>


Hi Bill,

yes, I remember you helped us in the revision process. 

That paper was unfortunately rejected, its technical quality was quite poor according to other reviewers. So it did not make it. However, only three papers will be published in the final issue...

cheers

g


On 17 August 2016 at 16:48, () <> wrote:
Wow!  This is crazy.  Remember you sent me an article to review for the CI Magazine last winter?  Here's an update - I wonder if the issue has already gone out, or it there is time for a one-line box update?

http://spectrum.ieee.org/the-human-os/biomedical/bionics/new-startup-aims-to-commercialize-a-brain-prosthetic-to-improve-memory


Bill



--
Giacomo Boracchi, PhD
Dipartimento Elettronica e Informazione
Politecnico di Milano
Via Ponzio, 34/5 20133 Milano, Italy.

http://home.dei.polimi.it/boracchi/




-------- Forwarded Message --------
Subject: review request
Date: Mon, 22 Feb 2016 18:16:31 +0100
From: Giacomo Boracchi <>
To: Bill Howell <>


hi Bill

I hope you are doing well.  I am fine, as I told you after the great IJCNN experience, I am trying to have more technical roles and now I am involved as Guest Editor in a SI for IEEE CIM (http://home.deib.polimi.it/boracchi/events/ModelComplexity.html).

I am looking for a reviwer for a paper with an egregious number of self-citations that makes it difficult to find experienced reveiwers.

I have sent you an invitation, it is related to interpretation and modeling of the human brain using spiking NN. I don't know whether it is of interest for you.

Let me know!

cheers
g



--
Giacomo Boracchi, PhDDEIB - Dipartimento di Elettronica,  Informazione e BioingegneriaPolitecnico di Milano 
Via Ponzio, 34/5 20133 Milano, Italy.
Tel. +39 02 2399 3467

http://home.dei.polimi.it/boracchi/