The idea of artificially enhancing our brains is no longer science fiction - it's already here - and coming from surprising places. One of the best ways to enhance brain functioning is by playing video games. The right games improve memory, motor speed, visual-spatial skills and tasks requiring cognitive flexibility.  

 

If gaming is not your speed, electrical stimulation of your brain can improve mathematical ability. Scientists looking to improve memory and treat those with memory-related disorders have even had success by adapting viruses. Meanwhile advances in brain training will lead to more effective programmes to keep your brain fit and literally stay on the road. And if playing too many video games ruins your powers of concentration, neuroenhancing drugs may soon be made available on request. 

 

At the same time, the ways our brains interact with and are influenced by technology are changing. Imagine being able to sense friends' and colleagues' thoughts and feelings almost as they experience them. This is the idea behind a "world wide mind" - using technologies that combine genetic engineering and computer chips to capture activity in the brain and wirelessly stream the data to others. Some computers are already able to read a user's mind and using a mouse and keyboard may soon be a thing of the past. 

 

Ultimately, these advances may prove a preface to the ultimate computer-brain interface: the day when we can upload our consciousness into a computer and store it there, in effect making ourselves immortal - a prospect Ray Kurzweil now predicts for 2045.

 

21 Drivers for the 21st CenturyTM by Outsights is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Non-Commercial-Share Alike 2.0 UK: England & Wales License.