意念控制的電子游戲成為現(xiàn)實(shí)

Picture this： You put on a headset and relax your mind. Soon you begin controlling an object with your thoughts.

This mind-power trick may seem far-fetched， like something from a late-night science fiction movie or the back of an old comic book. But several companies are bringing this technology to life with affordable headsets that determine a person’s state of mind.

The gadgets translate brain waves into digital information and beam it wirelessly to computers or other devices.

想象一下這個(gè)場景：你戴上耳機(jī)，放松精神，然后很快你開始用意念控制某個(gè)實(shí)物。

這種意念控制的把戲看上去也許不可信，好像是深夜科幻電影或者舊連環(huán)漫畫里的場景。但有一些公司正在讓這種技術(shù)變成現(xiàn)實(shí)，他們推出的耳機(jī)可以測定人的精神狀態(tài)。

這種裝置可以把腦電波轉(zhuǎn)變成數(shù)字信息，然后通過無線方式將數(shù)字信息發(fā)送到電腦或其他設(shè)備。

So far the headsets are confined to mostly digital interfaces videogames and movies whose plots can be altered with the mind—although in some cases real-world objects have been used.

Behind much of the technology is San Jose-based NeuroSky Inc， which first made a splash in 2009 when toy maker Uncle Milton Inc used its headset for the Star Wars Force Trainer toy that let youngsters suspend a ball inside a tube. As the child concentrated， a fan would spin and blow the ping-pong ball upward.

The novelty toy was more than a “gee-whiz” moment. It was the first time consumers could see brain waves translated into specific commands in the physical world.

迄今為止，這種耳機(jī)主要運(yùn)用于數(shù)字界面的視頻游戲，以及情節(jié)可以隨思維變動(dòng)而改變的電影──有時(shí)候也使用了現(xiàn)實(shí)世界中的東西。

這項(xiàng)技術(shù)背后的主要推手是總部設(shè)在圣何塞的神念科技有限公司，該公司因于2009年給玩具制造商“米爾頓叔叔”的“星球大戰(zhàn)原力訓(xùn)練器”提供耳機(jī)而名噪一時(shí)。那是一款讓圓管里的小球飄起來的玩具，當(dāng)小朋友聚精會神之時(shí)，玩具內(nèi)置的風(fēng)扇會轉(zhuǎn)動(dòng)起來，把小球向上吹。

這款新穎的玩具不僅只讓人發(fā)出“哎呀”這樣的感嘆，而且讓消費(fèi)者第一次看到了腦電波怎樣被轉(zhuǎn)換成真實(shí)世界的具體指令。

Now， about 1，700 software developers are working with NeuroSky’s technology， with the majority of them making mind-controlled computer games for the company’s $129 MindWave Mobile headset， according to NeuroSky chief executive Stanley Yang.

Among the offerings available in the company’s app store are desktop games like “MindHunter”， in which players must focus single-mindedly in order to fire a weapon， and meditation aids like “Mind Labyrinth”， which grants players access to 52 different levels of an ancient temple as their relaxation grows deeper. Most of the games cost between $5 and $20， but other offerings—like the attention-building game， billed as a serious educational tool—can cost as much as $150.

“There is going to be a whole ecosystem of new players， and NeuroSky is very well-positioned of this new industry，” said Alvaro Fernandez， chief executive of SharpBrains， a brain-fitness analyst and consultancy. “They are to be inside a lot of what’s going on.”

神念科技公司首席行政長斯坦利·楊透露，現(xiàn)在，大約有1700家軟件開發(fā)商在使用神念科技公司的技術(shù)，他們中大多數(shù)都是為了用上該公司價(jià)值129美元的“腦立方移動(dòng)版”耳機(jī)，而制作用意念控制的電腦游戲的。

該公司的應(yīng)用商店銷售諸如“心靈捕手”這樣的桌面游戲，玩家必須聚精會神才能激發(fā)武器。店里還有“智力迷宮”這樣定神冥思的輔助游戲，它可以隨玩家放松程度的提升，授權(quán)他們進(jìn)入一座有52個(gè)不同級別之分的寺廟。這些游戲大多售價(jià)5至20美元。但銷售的其他軟件——比如以教育軟件性質(zhì)而定價(jià)的凝神訓(xùn)練游戲——售價(jià)可能高達(dá)150美元。

腦健康分析咨詢機(jī)構(gòu)銳腦公司的首席行政長阿爾瓦羅·費(fèi)爾南德斯說：“一個(gè)擁有新玩家的完整生態(tài)體系將會形成，而神念科技就占據(jù)了極佳的位置。對于正在發(fā)生的一切，他們會了如指掌。”

London-based MyndPlay Ltd is using NeuroSky chips inside its own headset to enable viewers to control the outcome of movie scenes by concentrating and relaxing. In addition to being a novel twist on the movie going experience， the technology has implications in behavior modification， chief executive Tre Azam said.

Other developers are taking a more whimsical approach. Among the various toys and gadgets that run on mind control is the NecoMiMi headset， a fashion accessory that has taken fans of Japanese anime by storm. Built by NeuroSky and a Japanese partner， NecoMiMi is a set of catlike ears that perk up when the wearer’s concentration intensifies， and flatten out when relaxed. It’s said that it could provide a way for young people to express romantic interest.

總部設(shè)在倫敦的意念電影有限公司在其耳機(jī)里使用了神念科技的芯片，這樣可以使觀眾通過集中精神和放松精神來控制電影里的場景效果。意念電影公司首席行政長特里·阿桑說，除了給電影觀賞帶來新奇體驗(yàn)之外，這項(xiàng)技術(shù)在行為矯正方面也能發(fā)揮作用。

其他公司的研發(fā)途徑更是奇異無常。在各種使用意念控制的玩具中，有一種作為時(shí)尚配件的“貓耳”耳機(jī)，在日本動(dòng)漫迷中大受歡迎。“貓耳”耳機(jī)由神念科技公司和他的日本合作者共同制造，形如貓咪的耳朵，當(dāng)戴耳機(jī)的人精神集中時(shí)，貓耳會豎立起來，當(dāng)精神放松時(shí)貓耳則會平倒下去。據(jù)說這種耳機(jī)可以為年輕人提供一種表達(dá)愛意的方式。