5 neurogadgets that will empower your brain

According to SharpBrains, more than 70 million people around the world are using portable devices and smartphone apps as “electric dope”. In Europe and America, the use of neurotechnology to stimulate the brain has long been commonplace. They are used by housewives, businessmen, managers, athletes, officials and Hollywood stars.

Scientists are sure that this is far from the limit. Very soon, using neurogadgets will become as commonplace as taking vitamins.

So which device will help get rid of depression, and which one will teach you to read minds?

1. Neuro-hoop MUSE

It turns out that controlling your emotions is much easier than you think. Unsuccessful attempts to mentally count to ten and anti-anxiety pills are a thing of the past.

The invention of Canadian scientists - the MUSE neuro-hoop - allows you to control your mood. It is a smooth plastic strap that fits over your head and is controlled by your smartphone via Bluetooth.

The device reads brain activity using electroencephalography and translates brain signals into sounds of music or wind noise.

For example, if you are calm and focused, the breeze will resemble a sea breeze. If you are distracted, the wind will turn into a real hurricane. Further, the device invites you to perform simple exercises and take tests in order to further control your emotions and create the desired mood for yourself.

Interestingly, to increase the effectiveness of the method, the creators of the device studied the meditation process of Buddhist monks to find out how they control emotions. In addition, the MUSE developers conducted preliminary studies of the device on more than 6,000 volunteers aged 18 to 88 years. The device attracted the attention of both Hollywood actor Ashton Kutcher and three-time world figure skating champion Elvis Stoyko.

2. Device for lucid dreaming LucidCatcher

Go on vacation to the Hawaiian Islands, visit Mars, eat the largest chocolate cake in the world - all this is possible, but only … in a dream. The LucidCatcher device allows you to control your dreams using the tAS method - transcranial alternating current stimulation. Scientific research confirms that this method can induce a lucid dream in a person who has never experienced anything like this the first time.

Lucid dream is a state of consciousness in which a person not only understands that he is sleeping, but can also control his actions and even come up with the plot of the dream himself.

Some lucky people are able to see such dreams without gadgets. This phenomenon is rare, but scientifically proven. In addition, there are sophisticated long-term workouts that require you to wake up in the middle of the night and record your dreams.

To see lucid dreams with the LucidCatcher, training is also necessary, but it is much easier, and the result comes much faster - in a few days.

LucidCatcher is a headband that is equipped with electrodes and connects to a smartphone via Wi-Fi. You put on the gadget when you go to bed, and it records the phase of REM sleep and acts on the brain with weak impulses, putting you into a state of lucid sleep. It is at this moment, according to the creators of LucidCatcher, that real miracles happen. You just plot the route and make a wish - the device does the rest.

By the way, the device not only gives new impressions, but also improves the quality of sleep. You can sleep and fly to the moon.

3. Brainstorm neurostimulator

The Brainstorm gadget, designed to train various parts of the brain, will help improve memory and reaction, learn to concentrate at the right moment, and speed up the learning process.

The device works like this: electrodes are attached to certain areas on a person's head, through which weak microcurrents pass. This technology is called transcranial electrical stimulation (tDCS). The current accelerates the passage of impulses between neurons, as a result of which the contacts between nerve cells are enhanced.

The development of the gadget was preceded by many years of scientific research by tDCS around the world, the number of which already exceeds three thousand.

We found that people who received the full dose of tDCS did twice as well as people who received little or no dose of tDCS.

Vincent Clarke professor at the University of California

Electrostimulation of the brain is used by American pilots and infantrymen to speed up training before being sent to hot spots. In 2016, athletes from the US Olympic team announced the use of tDCS during training. Interestingly, tDCS has been used for several decades in medical clinics in Europe and America for the treatment of depression and pain.

The Brainstorm gadget is designed to be used regularly during education, intellectual work, or training. Depending on what goal you are pursuing (to learn a foreign language, develop attention or improve memory), you select the area of the brain responsible for a particular skill and stimulate it. Twenty minutes of tDCS a day for a week is enough for the improvement to last for several months.

4. Neuroshelmet Emotiv EPOC

Ever dreamed of learning to read minds? This can be helped by the invention of American scientists - the Emotiv EPOC neuro helmet. The gadget reads brain signals at 14 different points and transmits them to a smartphone or computer via Wi-Fi. The device is able to determine mood, facial expression, mental activity, and also to control objects with the help of thoughts. Using such a device, you can play computer games, directing the characters with the power of thought and head movements, or, for example, turn on and off the lights just after thinking about it.

It is curious that the creators of the device were inspired by the Star Wars movie. “The ability to manipulate objects with just the power of thought is magic,” says Kim Doo, vice president of Emotiv. By the way, Disney has already used the device to accurately determine the emotions of people who are watching an advertisement or a movie in real time. In addition, Emotiv has partnered with National Geographic magazine to track how nature affects brain activity.

Emotiv doesn't stop there. The company intends to use its device in virtual environments for training, simulations and design.

People are increasingly starting to use the achievements of science in their daily lives. Some time ago this was not possible, but now we can live smarter thanks to new technologies.

Vice President of Emotiv Kim Doo

5. Thync electronic antidepressant

The Thync gadget, developed by American scientists, is capable of getting rid of insomnia and suppressing anxious feelings. The device is designed according to the "two in one" principle: it can either relieve the owner of stress, or, conversely, charge him with energy.

The developers of the gadget believe that their device can be an excellent alternative to antidepressants and tranquilizers.“Our goal is to improve the mental and emotional well-being of people around the world,” says one of the creators of the device, Simon Paul.

The device has been tested for five years, more than five thousand subject tests have been carried out on volunteers. Other volunteers included journalists from CNN, Mashable and Digital Trends. Poe, four out of five users of the device report a decrease in anxiety and an improvement in sleep.

Thync is a triangular accessory that is attached to the head in the temple area and sends microelectric impulses to the brain, which, in turn, calms the user down or gives him a boost of vigor. The developers of the gadget claim that it takes only five minutes to achieve the desired effect. The device connects to a smartphone via Bluetooth, and the person himself chooses the mode of using the device through a special application.