By Brian Handwerk, for National Geographic
Our brain controls what we think, feel, and do, but scientists have a limited capability to watch it at work outside the lab. National Geographic Emerging Explorer Tan Le hopes to change that while, in the process, fighting neurological disorders, enhancing learning, and even helping the disabled move things in the physical world with the power of the mind.
Emotiv, the company Le co-founded, produces portable, high-resolution EEG (electroencephalogram) brain-scanning headsets that Le hopes will open new windows on the complex functioning of our brain. On August 1, Emotiv unveiled Emotiv Insight, a faster, next-generation wireless brain scanner that collects real-time data on the wearer’s thoughts and feelings and delivers it directly to a computer, phone, or other device through Android, iOS, OSX, Linux, and Windows platforms.