Can China control pigeons with micro electrodes in their brains?

[Newbie says Hi]

There were bat bombs in WWII, Acoustic Kitty thanks to that other government agency, dolphins de-mining harbors, robotic mice to help search and resue, and now China brings the world...

http://edition.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/asiapcf/02/27/china.pigeon.reut/index.html

According to the article:
Scientists in eastern China say they have succeeded in controlling the flight of pigeons with micro electrodes planted in their brains, state media reported on Tuesday.

Scientists at the Robot Engineering Technology Research Centre at Shandong University of Science and Technology said their electrodes could command them to fly right or left or up or down, Xinhua news agency said.

"The implants stimulate different areas of the pigeon's brain, according to signals sent by the scientists via computer and force the bird to comply with their commands," Xinhua said.

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If China publically has this, makes you wonder what the CIA already had?

Everytime I see any bird pearching near a white house window, I'm going to wonder...

 

[Schrodinger's Dog]

Now if it can perfect robo-humans we won't see a repeat of Tiananmen square

 

[Newbie says Hi]

We could use these pigeons to investigate the happenings of area 51.

Wonder how the security at the base would defend against such an intel nightmare.

 

[ziad1985]

I guess it would be impractical, imagine a pigeon with a wireless camera on it.
Like writing on your forehead "I'm a spy"

 

[Schrodinger's Dog]

I guess it would be impractical, imagine a pigeon with a wireless camera on it.
Like writing on your forehead "I'm a spy"

Remember how small cameras are these days, not only that but the Russians developed a tiny non electrical device that when radio waves were bounced off it, it could pick up sound. Those bugs remained undetected for years during the cold war.

How about a Cockroach ala The Fifth Element, or a fly?

Who cares about area 51, let's put fly spies in Iran and China and North Korea

 

[Panda]

The photograph in the Reuters report looked quite grim. Not sure what the end goal of this research is, I thought that neural implants had been pretty much dismissed due to everybodies brain being wired slightly differently.

How many Pidgeons found that pain receptors were triggered rather than flight muscles?

I'm all for injecting fluffy bunnies with drugs to cure diseases, but I'm not sure where this sort of research is taking us.

 

[Ivan Seeking]

It makes me wonder what the limits are for this technology.

As for the pigeons and where the research is taking us: Remote controlled poop dive-bombers.

 

[ziad1985]

I don't know something tell me that it won't work.
But if it can be done, then I guess the Chinese already have all the info they would ever spy there way into..

 

[Schrodinger's Dog]

I don't know something tell me that it won't work.
But if it can be done, then I guess the Chinese already have all the info they would ever spy there way into..

No it's not possible atm, but who knows, I was joking around.

 

[Newbie says Hi]

How can such a diabolical instrument of government imagination be protected against? How do the secret service agents know that the birds or other wildlife in the lawn are not foreign agents? They don't really even need a camera on the bird, just a microphone and a ditigal recorder to gather information. And I doubt they are going to stop at pigeons, vultures for example would carry a more massive payload.

 

[Mental Gridlock]

As for the pigeons and where the research is taking us: Remote controlled poop dive-bombers.

Have we discovered which area of their brain controls sphincter release?

 

[enricfemi]

control pigeons ? it's nothing , some people control human being for fun.

take a look at this:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/news/archive/2005/10/25/financial/f133702D73.DTL