Development of a Brain Prosthesis**About half of this research was carried out while the author was on the faculty of the Delta Regional Primate Research Center, Tulane University, and was supported by Contract Nonr-475(11) from the Office of Naval Research, and by National Institutes of Health Grant FR-00164. The remainder of the work was completed at the Stanford Research Institute, and was supported by Contract N00014-68-C-0184 from the Office of Naval Research. Design and development of the computer-controlled stimulators was by Mr. E. A. Elpel of SRI, the software by Mr. P. C. Reynolds of Stanford University, and the interfacing hardware and software by Mr. J. H. Glick also of Stanford University. Dr. J. N. Kaplan, Mrs. P. A. Johnson, Mr. E. Davis assisted with surgery and testing of animals. I wish to thank all the many students, graduate students, colleagues, and visiting fellows who contributed to these studies

Publisher Summary This chapter discusses the details of the development of an experimental brain prosthesis using primates. By brain prosthesis is meant artificial brain, a term used for the brain just as artificial heart, artificial lung, and “artificial kidney are used to denote devices and techniques for replacing functions of those organs lost by injury or disease. This is in contra-distinction to replacing a peripheral function controlled by the brain, such as movement of an arm, by devising an artificial arm when the brain has been injured. The chapter discusses a successful prosthesis for simulated stroke to apply the method to retinal blindness, problems of consciousness (as in coma), and mental retardation. The basis of method is the programmed electrical stimulation of the brain, whereby brain tissue not damaged, but somehow still involved in the lost function, is stimulated to function in time as it might normally.