Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

The concept of reading thoughts once belonged to the realm of science fiction, but breakthroughs in neural decoding are turning it into reality. This technology, which interprets brain activity into meaningful signals, has already allowed scientists to reconstruct words and images from brainwaves. Now, researchers at the University of California, Berkeley have taken it a step further. In August 2023, they managed to recreate a Pink Floyd song purely from brain activity, a discovery published in PLOS Biology that offers new insight into how the brain processes music.

A team led by Robert Knight and Ludovic Bellier conducted the study on 29 epilepsy patients at Albany Medical Center in New York who were undergoing brain surgery. While the patients were in the operating room, they listened to "Another Brick in the Wall, Part 1" by Pink Floyd. Electrodes placed directly on their brains recorded the electrical signals produced as they processed the song. Using artificial intelligence, Bellier later reconstructed the track based entirely on these neural recordings. The final result was hauntingly distorted yet unmistakably recognizable. "It sounds a bit like they’re speaking underwater, but it’s our first shot at this," Knight told The Guardian.



"It’s a wonderful result. It gives you the ability to decode not only the linguistic content but some of the prosodic content of speech, some of the effect. I think that’s what we’ve begun to crack the code on." — Robert Knight

This study provided fresh insights into how the brain interprets rhythm, melody, and speech. According to the university’s press release, the ability to record and decode brainwaves could help scientists better understand prosody—the elements of speech beyond just words, such as rhythm, stress, and intonation. These features play a crucial role in conveying emotion and meaning. Since the team used intracranial electroencephalography (iEEG) recordings, which collect data directly from the brain’s surface, their findings offer an unprecedented look into the auditory processing centers of the mind.

Representative Image Source: Unsplash | Pawel Czerwinski

The potential applications of this research are profound, especially for individuals who struggle with communication due to stroke, paralysis, or neurological disorders. A technology that translates brain signals into speech or music could offer new ways for these individuals to express themselves. "Music allows us to add semantics, extraction, prosody, emotion, and rhythm to language," Knight explained in an interview with Fortune.

Giphy


Music was chosen as the focus of the study because of its universal nature. Knight elaborated on this decision, saying, "It preceded language development, I think, and is cross-cultural. If I go to other countries, I don’t know what they’re saying to me in their language, but I can appreciate their music."


"Right now, the technology is more like a keyboard for the mind. You can’t read your thoughts from a keyboard. You need to push the buttons." — Ludovic Bellier

Bellier compared the current state of neural decoding to a keyboard—capable of producing words but still lacking the expressive freedom and nuance of natural speech. However, the study also identified brain regions that process rhythm, such as the sounds of instruments like a guitar. In addition, the findings reinforced existing knowledge about brain hemispheres: the left side is more involved in language, while the right side plays a bigger role in processing music and sound patterns.

Representative Image Source: Pexels | Pixabay

As Bellier put it, "It wasn’t clear it would be the same with musical stimuli. So here, we confirm that that’s not just a speech-specific thing, but that it’s more fundamental to the auditory system and the way it processes both speech and music."


Giphy


This research opens the door to future technologies that could restore communication abilities for those who have lost their voices due to illness or injury. While the current reconstructions are imperfect, they represent an exciting step toward translating brainwaves into words, melodies, and even full conversations.

More For You

Neil Armstrong’s widow finds forgotten artifacts from Apollo 11 hidden in a closet
Cover Image Source: Instagram | @neilarmstrongofficial

Neil Armstrong’s widow finds forgotten artifacts from Apollo 11 hidden in a closet

Months after Neil Armstrong’s passing in 2012, his widow, Carol Armstrong, stumbled upon a surprising discovery in his closet—a white bag filled with spacecraft equipment from the Apollo 11 mission, according to My Modern Met.

The items, tucked away for decades, were never meant to return to Earth. But thanks to Armstrong’s quiet decision to keep them, a fascinating piece of space history was uncovered.

Keep ReadingShow less
asteroids, asteroids hitting earth, neil degrasse tyson, cosmos, space

Neil DeGrasse Tyson says the threat of an asteroid hitting Earth is very real

Left: Neil DeGrasse Tyson, photo by Norwegian University of Science and Technology | Wikimedia Commons. Right: Artistic representative photo of asteroid by Javier Miranda | Unsplash

Asteroid’s odds of hitting Earth just went up. Neil deGrasse Tyson warns: ‘We cannot ignore this.’

The risk of an asteroid striking Earth is something scientists closely monitor, but new data has sparked serious concern. NASA recently announced that the impact probability of asteroid 2024-YR4 has doubled, prompting astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson to weigh in with a stark warning.

Taking to X (@neiltyson), Tyson urged people to pay attention, emphasizing the need for continued investment in scientific research and planetary defense.

Keep ReadingShow less
Planets aligned; boys looking through telescope

The next parade will be in 2040.

All seven planets in our solar system will appear in Earth's sky for one night

Standing under the night sky is breathtaking. As stars, tiny pools of light, poke through an endlessly dark blanket, we feel humbled and are reminded of our great luck: We are here, in this moment, right now, a product of everything that has come before and playing a role in everything that will come after.

Nights like these already feel like a small miracle. But on February 28th, something positively incredible happens: the 2025 planetary parade. Imagine stepping out on a clear February evening and seeing not just one or two, but SEVEN planets shining brightly in the distance like a string of cosmic jewels.

Keep ReadingShow less
a man running up a vertical wall, three images

A gravity-defying stunt

Chinese man uses physics to miraculously escape from a 20-foot pit

A video went viral on the Chinese social media platform Rednote, also known as Xiaohongshu. It features a man who appears trapped at the bottom of a colorful pit—until he begins to run. The walls are nearly vertical and at least four to five times taller than the man (approximately 20 feet high). Yet, he manages to climb out in ten seconds or less by consistently running in a perfectly timed circle.


Keep ReadingShow less
The Himalayas on a clear day.

The towering Himalayas may seem unshakable, but deep beneath them, the Earth is shifting in ways scientists never expected.

Beneath the Himalayas, something unexpected is happening—and it could shake the world

The Himalayas, one of the most awe-inspiring mountain ranges on Earth, have long captured the imaginations of adventurers and scientists alike. Towering above the clouds, these colossal peaks hold not only breathtaking beauty but also crucial geological secrets. Recent research suggests something astonishing: the Indian tectonic plate—the very foundation of the Himalayas—may be splitting in two deep beneath the surface.

For millions of years, the Indian Plate has been pushing northward, colliding with the Eurasian Plate and giving rise to the Himalayas. But new findings from Stanford University geologist Simon L. Klemperer and his team indicate that this seemingly solid landmass is undergoing a dramatic transformation, one that could have significant implications for earthquakes and mountain stability in the region.

Keep ReadingShow less