[Reader-list] What after MNIC? The MIND, the final frontier.

[Kshmendra Kaul]

Dear Vivek
 
Apart from your frothing, there isnt much sense in what you have written.
 
It was a News Report being reproduced. I did not editorialise it with my judgements. So you have no way of knowing what I think of the report. Your presumptions about my thoughts on the basis of which you have asked me questions, are therefore foolish. 
 
As an analogy, if you were to post a News Report about some development or claimed development (not neccessarily one connected with science only) it would not mean that you Vivek automatically subscribe to or agree with the contents of that News Report. Does that sound logical? If it is then you will recognise your own foolishness in what you have written to me.
 
Incidentally, the News Report has mention of the fascinating topic of Language, Linguistics and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (Applied Psycholinguistics). You will enjoy reading up on it. I am sure.
 
Kshmendra
 

--- On Thu, 4/9/09, Vivek Narayanan <vivek at sarai.net> wrote:

From: Vivek Narayanan <vivek at sarai.net>
Subject: Re: [Reader-list] What after MNIC? The MIND, the final frontier.
To: kshmendra2005 at yahoo.com
Cc: "sarai list" <reader-list at sarai.net>, 2tahamehmood at googlemail.com
Date: Thursday, April 9, 2009, 7:16 PM

Dear Kshemendra,

You talk of Sunita Narain being ill-informed and having a superficial
intellect, and then this--which suggests, to me, how easy it is to pull a fast
one on you! 
Do you believe this project, in the way it's being promoted in this
article, has any concrete scientific basis at all?  How close do you think our
brave scientists are to developing a mind-reading technology?  And how exactly
would they go about telling a non-terrorist brain from a terrorist one? 
Perhaps you think that in a couple of years time, Indian scientists will be
able to plug a couple of electrodes into a suspected terrorist and have the
story of his life play for them on a screen, like a hollywood movie?

Go and investigate what and how much qualified neuroscientists today actually
understand about the brain and get back to me on this one. 
And I do hope, when they've cracked it, that they don't look into your
brain and find-- despite your protests-- that you have a little terrorist hiding
inside.

Thanks
vivek

Kshmendra Kaul wrote:
>  
> India developing technology to read terrorist's mind
> Agencies Posted: Apr 07, 2009 at 1255 hrs
>  Bangalore In what could help building better strategy for anti-terror
mechanism in the country, the Department of Science and Technology is
facilitating a group of bright scientists to develop a complex human cognitive
technology which would allow reading the mind of a terrorist.  At the same time,
scientists are also developing sensors that would detect hidden devices. As many
as 30 groups are involved in the initiative, part of homeland security, said
Secretary in the Department of Science and Technology, T Ramasami.  The idea is
to integrate the technology and sensors to nail down terrorists, he said. The
Department is funding the programme, which has been taken up on a consortium
model, Ramasami said, adding, he is requesting Indian Institute of Science,
Bangalore, to lead the teams.  "People who understand language, linguistics
and people who look at nuclear magnetic resonance...they have come together to
really understand the human cognition associated with the linguistic language
processes in the mind," he said.  "This would really involve people
from highly different disciplines including social sciences and humanities to
people who understand physics in this mechanism." 
http://www.expressindia.com/latest-news/India-developing-technology-to-read-terrorists-mind/444166/
>  
> 
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