Telepathy is already somewhat scientifically proven but not in the way you probably have in mind.
At least two scientific studies explored the validity of mind-to-mind communication, wherein two persons exchange information with each other without using their senses of vision, hearing, and touch. The results have shown the great promise of real telepathy albeit with the help of machines. It’s not the “Professor X” type of telepathy, but it’s exciting to find out where technological advancements would take it.
International telepathy research
A team of researchers from Harvard Medical School, Axilum Robotics, and research institute Starlab conducted a study in 2014 aimed at developing a system for enabling telepathic communication. The team published their research paper entitled “Conscious Brain-to-Brain Communication in Humans Using Non-Invasive Technologies” in the journal PLOS One.
The study’s setup is rather unrefined, and the researchers themselves admit that it is more of a proof of concept than an actual usable system. What the researchers wanted to do was to convey a simple message (a single word) from one person in one place to a number of people in remote locations, without the message sender speaking or writing the message. Correspondingly, the recipient had to get the message without using the senses traditionally used for communication. In other words, the message sender and recipients were supposed to communicate directly through their brains.
The setup called for the use of electroencephalography (EEG) sensors stuck to the scalp of the person sending the message and a transcranial magnetic stimulation system (TMS) on the heads of the receivers of the message. TMS is a device typically used in the treatment of depression; it noninvasively stimulates neurons in the brain.
For the sender to send the message, he first had to learn equivalent binary codes for individual letters. For example, the letter “h” in the system had the equivalent binary code of “0-0-1-1-1.” The message sender had to project the message without talking or writing. This was done by moving a hand to indicate “1” or leg to indicate “0,” to spell out a word according to the binary code the research team established. The sender had to mentally write the binary code for a specific letter until the full word is spelt out.
On the part of the recipient, the message is perceived as quick flashes of light. It’s comparable to the use of Morse Code. A “1” transmitted by the message sender translates to a flash of light while “0” is a blank. The recipient “sees” combinations of light flashes and blanks representing letters. Seeing here, by the way, does not mean literal image perception through the eyes as the receiver of the message is blindfolded. The person receiving the signal only sees the light flashes mentally, as induced by the TMS system.
It took approximately 70 minutes for the sender to completely relay the message. This communication experiment, by the way, happened between persons located in different countries. The sending party was in India while the receivers were in France. The first word transmitted was “hola” (Spanish or Catalan for “hello”) while the second transmission was “ciao” (Italian for “hello” or “goodbye”).
University of Washington telepathy research
The international telepathy research above is not exactly a new approach to explore the possibility of telepathy. A year before the 2014 study, the University of Washington conducted study with a similar EEG-to-TMS setup. However, instead of using brain signals to generate a message and transmit the message to the brain of a receiving person, this research used brain signals to control the hand motions of another person.
In the University of Washington research, researcher Rajesh Rao transmitted his brain signals to fellow researcher Andrea Stocco. The two were only on the same campus, but the signals were sent via the Internet. This machine-aided brain-to-brain communication made it possible for Rao to cause Stocco’s fingers to move on a keyboard according to his intention, to some extent.
The research setup required the subjects to be fully isolated from each other to make sure that they don’t have hints or other means of reading the intention of the message sender. They wore noise-cancelling earbuds and were looking at computer screens with different images shown.
One notable difference of this study with the one mentioned earlier is that the sender of the brain signal does not exactly try to make the other person take and understand a message. It’s more of telepathic control than telepathic communication. While this setup can be used to make the other person receive a message by controlling his fingers to type something into the keyboard, it does not constitute direct brain-to-brain message transmission.
The significance of the studies
Alvaro Pascual-Leone, a neurology professor at Harvard Medical School and one of the authors of the international research, said that one of their goals was to develop a new way of communication for patients who may not have the ability to speak and use other methods for communicating. In an interview with Smithsonian, Pascual-Leone, who is also a director of the Berenson-Allen Center for Noninvasive Brain Stimulation at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, said that he and his team sought to improve the ways people communicate as they are confronted with articulation and sensory limitations.
In other words, the research shows the possibility of communicating with someone who cannot make use of the usual alternative modes of communication such as sign language and Braille reading. Deaf and mute people can turn to sign language. Those who have lost their sense of sight can learn and use Braille. There’s even the option to use Morse code as long as a person still has at least one of the basic senses used to communicate (sight, hearing, and touch).
If a person no longer has the ability to see and hear, using sign language and Morse code is no longer possible. People who lose the ability to feel or move their bodies may no longer be able to use Braille. Here’s where the ability to telepathically communicate becomes a necessity
Applications beyond basic communication
Telepathy’s applications are not limited to basic communication with people who can’t see, hear, and feel. It can also be used in other settings like in the battlefield, to facilitate more efficient discrete communication among soldiers. It can likewise be used in business or government negotiations as a way of ensuring honesty or sincerity.
Moreover, it has the potential to become a revolutionary communication method not only between humans but also between humans and machines, as well as between humans and animals. It can revolutionize the way people interact with smart devices or equipment. With further research, it may even make it possible to communicate with animals with better comprehension. It can make humans understand what their pets are trying to say, while also making it possible for animals to understand better what their humans are trying to convey.
A new universal language based on English
At present, the phrase “universal language” often equates to English. It is the language understood by most of the world’s population. It is what many try to learn to be able to interact with others who speak different languages, without having to learn their respective native languages. Even when it comes to sign language, the American Sign Language (ASL) is regarded as the most popular or most commonly used system.
There’s no doubt that telepathy can become superior to any other method of communication. Arguably, it can also result in a better “universal language.” As mentioned, telepathic communication, at least according to the system proposed in the international research cited above, entails the learning of a new language (the binary codes corresponding to letters). It’s like having someone (capable of speaking and reading) learn and use Braille or Morse Code.
The proposed setup entails the development of a new system of writing and reading a message, although it will most likely be based on English. Users have to memorize binary codes for letters, numbers, and characters to be able to generate a message that can be read by a machine. Eventually, researchers would have to develop a better system to have a more efficient mental generation and interpretation of messages, thereby giving rise to a new language.
English or a better language with an alphabet-based form of writing is the most likely basis of the new language for the telepathic creation and reading of messages. Imagine how difficult it would be to memorize an extensive set of binary codes for kanji or Chinese characters and mentally generate a message with them. Alphabet-based systems are clearly more advantageous.
Telepathy is still far from perfect
It’s important to point out that the studies cited earlier don’t mean that telepathy will become a common mode of communication soon. There’s still a long way to go to perfect the technology for it.
To emphasize, what the two studies have achieved are limited to one-way communication. Add to this the long time it takes to generate and transmit the message. A system that can be readily used to have a conversation telepathically is still a remote possibility. There’s also the need for EEG and TMS equipment. They certainly don’t come cheap. Additionally, they are far from being portable or mobile.
Researchers believe that it would take years or even decades to achieve a usable two-way telepathic communication system. The ultimate goal is to take away the computer middleman (that facilitates the generation and interpretation of the message) to achieve full-fledged brain-to-brain communication. A near-perfect setup entails the use of wearable EEG-TMS caps used to directly interact with others who use the same devices or to interact with machines.
Communication with the help of translation
Telepathy may already be a reality but the technology that makes it possible is still in its very early stages. It will take more research and development to become adequately usable. It will take more time for it to become a new language or system of communication. In the meantime, if you want to communicate with others in a new language, you can rely on Day Translations, Inc. for accurate language services.
Our company provides topnotch translation, interpreting, transcription, and other related services for numerous languages in different parts of the world. We maintain network of language service providers who are native speakers of the languages they specialize in. This network surely has someone who has the right expertise, experience, and proficiency to serve your needs in whatever field or industry. Don’t hesitate to contact us via email at Contact us or by dropping us a line at 1-800-969-6853. We accommodate inquiries and appointments 24/7 throughout the year.