Do you think mind control technology would be possible? How long do you think it would take to be invented? (propaganda and indoctrination does not count, I mean actual mind control)
Watched too many sci-fi shows and kinda getting unsettling to think about.
We already have it. It's called targeted advertising. Also, tik-tok
I think it's plausible right now. We have brain-computer interfaces under active research (for things like stroke recovery or limb-loss patients).
At the same time, neuroscience researchers have been able to switch off parts of the brain temporarily to study things like how the Wernicke area affects our use of language.
You could probably combine the two for something that fits the bill.
That being said, what I'm envisioning is more along the lines of "strap the victim into a chair and hook them up to a lot of fancy equipment for a reprogramming session" than "point a remote at the victim and press a button".
Still, it's pretty spooky to think about.
It's an interesting thought, one that has crossed my mind a time or two.
I think in reality, we don't have anything that is "absolute" mind control, but we come pretty close through long-term exposure to biased information (propaganda). You asked for this to be an exception, so I won't go into details there.
There is a famous study done by Olds and Milner in the world of psychology, where they hooked up rats' reward center in the brain to some electrodes, resulting in incredible change of behavior. The rats were stimulated by them pulling a lever, and this felt so rewarding to them that they couldn't think of anything else. After the stimuli was given, they kept pulling the lever to exhaustion, not even prioritizing food or sleep anymore. The scientists also attempted the reverse; to inhibit the reward system. The rats became lethargic, and didn't have motivation to do anything at all, not even eat.
This is, to much smaller degree, effectively the same that happens with humans that are addicted. Whether it's to gambling, porn, drugs, gaming, or social media.
So if one can spontaneously create an addiction in someone, you're one step closer to mind control.
One show that caused a bit of a psychological unease with me was first season of Jessica Jones, where David Tennant makes an excellent performance of a character who can make anyone do exactly as he says. I think this is the kind of mind control that we fear, where we are completely aware of ourselves, but cannot help but do what we have been commanded to do.
Edit:
I forgot to answer your question: Yes, I think it will be invented (and to some degree already has), and total mind control is probably at least 50 years away, as we research the psychological basis that was found with the aforementioned research.
The problem is first getting past the hurdle of defining what mind is and how consciousness works. Hell, we still don't know much about our brain at all. Most of our mental health medications were found as a result of unexpected side effects. The brain is too complex and risky for us to understand easily, and to go into the metaphysical world of consciousness would be even more challenging. I am more interested in the consciousness uploading part of possibilities. This will 100% be abused by corporations, but in theory, you could be "alive" in virtual worlds even after the death of your physical body. We could be in one right now and not be aware of it. Once we come to a conclusion on the philosophical questions, we can then look into the physical and psychological.
propaganda and indoctrination don't count
🤦🏼♂️ Thafuq do you think psyops is, son? Smdh.
That's manipulation.
Using a thermostat and central heating/cooling system as an example. So you have this thermostat that has its controls locked by a password.
Manipulation is placing a hot/cold object to the temperature sensor in order to trick it into commanding an increase/decrease in temperature.
"Mind Control" would be hacking straight into the thermostat's software/firmware and directly using its ability to change the temperature.
How I would differentiate:
People still have agency when faced with propaganda and indoctrination. Actual mind control is more of a physiological effect that removes agency.
To answer your question: yes I think it is possible. Consider what chemical substances can do to the brain.
Let me ask you: What's the difference in result?
ohffs
Your analogy is flawed. Read your own words, then maybe reply. Please.🤦🏼♂️
Define 'mind-control'. Trans-cranial magnetic stimulation has been perfectly capable of changing people's broad moods since 1985 and is being actively used to treat depression right now. The underlying technology is only going to get more precise, especially as more research on spintronics is done for other purposes. Sure, right now our understanding of how what goes on in a given brain translates to 'thoughts' is insufficient to change those thoughts in any reliable way, but there's little doubt that when we do, the technology to make it happen will almost certainly be around.
Was gonna say, we have proven that external stimulus can change the brain so yes in a broad sense we can mind control today.
Given enough time and research I'm confident we could understand how to influence the brain in more complicated ways.
We still don't really understand the brain though and it's perfectly possible that other things can influence it (gut bacteria?) so strictly sending stimulus to the brain might not be enough
OP hasn't even bothered to glance at the decades-long research on direct mind-to-computer control, much less the recent advancement in non-invasive results from such. They're clearly imagining a very narrow range of specific technology and implying their personal understanding of the entire field defines the term.
FFS, the written word itself is mind control via technology, but I wouldn't bet they're all that familiar with that, either.
Good point. Imo humans are just biological machines responding to stimulus so any stimulus is going to change the system somehow.
Ah yes, the printing press: Likely the most cumulatively subversive memetic infection vector ever conceived.