Mind-reading machine helps man walk again 讀腦機械裝置讓癱瘓者再次行走

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有關 “technology（科技）” 的詞匯

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How did Thibault practise using the brain implants?

文字稿

It’s a small step for Thibault, but could this be a giant leap in paralysis?

雖然這對蒂博來說是一小步，但對治療癱瘓來說會不會是一大步？

Thibault’s arms and legs were paralysed after a fall damaged his spinal cord four years ago.

蒂博四年前在一次跌倒意外後脊髓受損，導致四肢癱瘓。

But when he’s strapped into this robotic suit, he can use his thoughts to move again.

但當他穿上這套機器人服裝時，便可通過思想來控制四肢再次移動。

He told me learning to walk came quite quickly, but using the exoskeleton to precisely bend and stretch his arms or rotate his wrists took much longer.

他告訴我學走路很快，但用機械外骨骼精準地伸屈手臂或扭動手腕則用瞭更長的時間。

So how does the exoskeleton work? Well, first Thibault has implants resting on the surface of his brain. They are reading his thoughts, his brain activity, his brainwaves, and they are being beamed to a computer. Now, the computer has to rapidly digest that information and transform that brain activity into instructions, which are sent to the exoskeleton. From thought to movement, it takes less than a third of a second.`

機械外骨骼的工作原理是什麼？首先，在蒂博的大腦表面上植入設備，讀取他的想法、大腦活動和大腦信號，這些信息被傳送到一臺電腦上。接著，電腦需快速消化這些信息，並將大腦活動轉換成指令，發送給機械外骨骼。從思想轉換成運動，隻需要不到三分之一秒。

Thibault first used his brain implants to control a computer game before trying the exoskeleton.

在嘗試機械外骨骼前，蒂博最初曾使用大腦植入設備控制一款電子遊戲。

Now the French researchers plan to test the technology on three more patients.

現在，法國研究人員計劃在另外三位患者身上測試這項技術。

This experimental exoskeleton is not going to become widely available soon. If you look, Thibault is attached to the ceiling to stop him falling over. It means the exoskeleton can’t be used outside the laboratory. And this kit is also too expensive for most of the world to benefit. But this is still a breakthrough and shows the potential of technology to transform lives.

這種實驗性的機械外骨骼不會很快普及開來。仔細看就會發現，蒂博與天花板相連，以防止他跌倒。這意味著機械外骨骼不能在實驗室以外的地方使用。而且這套裝備過於昂貴，無法造福大多數國傢的患者。但這仍是一項重要的突破，顯示出瞭科技改變人生的潛力。