Another breakthrough in neuroscience is also based on the successful use of a brain implant.

Called the BioBolt, it uses the body's skin like a conductor to wirelessly transmit the brain's neural signals to control a computer. It may eventually be used to reactivate paralyzed limbs.

The BioBolt looks like a bolt and is about the circumference of a dime, with a thumbnail-sized film of microcircuits attached to the bottom. It is implanted in the skull beneath the skin and the film of microcircuits sits on the brain.

The microcircuits act as microphones to "listen" to the overall pattern of firing neurons and associate them with a specific command from the brain. Those signals are amplified and filtered, then converted to digital signals and transmitted through the skin to a computer.

According to University of Michigan engineering professor Euisik Yoon, this design is much less invasive than other neural interface technologies that establish a connection from the brain to an external device such as a computer.

The interfaces that are currently being used require the patient's skull to remain open while neural implants are in the head, which makes using them in a patient's daily life unrealistic. The BioBolt does not penetrate the cortex and is completely covered by the skin to greatly reduce the risk of infection.

The researchers believe that their device represents a critical step toward allowing a paralyzed person to reactivate limbs by transmitting brain signals directly to muscles.