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The Ultimate Cure: The $2 Trillion Race to Fix Your Brain

portfolio.com — The neurotech industry is engaged in a $2 trillion race to fix your brain. Many players will fail, but the payoff will be huge for those who succeed.

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  • lucidguru, on 05/16/2008, -2/+18Neurogenesis FTW!
    • wjackson, on 05/16/2008, -1/+1That would be fantastic. I'd love to be involved with something meaningful like this...instead of toiling as a consultant :-/
    • kaleesh, on 05/16/2008, -0/+1borg implants w00t!
    • TopherT, on 05/16/2008, -0/+1Why shouldn't we be able to augment our own brains? Who are these regulators to tell me how to manage my own brain chemistry, what gives him the authority. I understand the problem with addicting chemical dependencies because they have a negative affect on both the individual and the society, but smart drugs would have positive effects for both, so what the hell is the problem?
  • killbert24, on 05/16/2008, -1/+6This looks like a great field of science that will offer some very promising cures in the future.
    Imagine if we could make mentally retarded people function on a higher level, or make Alzheimer patients remember their spouses.
    • intilli4, on 05/16/2008, -1/+2What a rocking thing to think about. Man I am geeking out about the possibilities.
    • highlyhigh, on 05/16/2008, -9/+1why do we need to fix them? we already have normal people with normal intelligence. leave those dumb people alone so we can laugh at them and feel good about ourselves.
      • BodomX, on 05/16/2008, -0/+6I'm assuming you get laughed at a lot.
      • highlyhigh, on 05/16/2008, -2/+0that's some dumb ***** logic. now i know you get laughed a lot.
        • dr3minem, on 05/16/2008, -0/+1I dugg you up, but only because your comment was posted 4h and 20 mins ago.
          That was a ***** comeback
        • highlyhigh, on 05/16/2008, -0/+0thats your reason? something that was only relevant for a brief minute. thanks. now i have really something to laugh at.
    • saggygrandma, on 05/16/2008, -5/+3Sadly it will come too late for George Bush
      • Risingashes, on 05/16/2008, -1/+2Unfortunately the problem with George Bush isn't fixable by science.
  • Ghoztt, on 05/16/2008, -10/+3Sorry, nothing wrong with my brain.
  • oldcrows40, on 05/16/2008, -8/+7my is brain fine.
  • intilli4, on 05/16/2008, -1/+10Yay Better Cognition FTW!!!
  • anotherwalt, on 05/16/2008, -6/+5interesting, my brain is OK, :)
  • arrriaa, on 05/16/2008, -6/+1But... will it play Doom?
  • Prescottonian, on 05/16/2008, -2/+6GATACA?
  • austin006, on 05/16/2008, -6/+1I see this as a precursor to mind control:
    Your brain will not comply?
    Well here's one that does!
  • yaddayaddayoda, on 05/16/2008, -0/+11Has nobody here read "Flowers for Algernon"?
    • Lewie, on 05/16/2008, -1/+2I have. It was sad :(
      Similar to "Awakenings" with Robin Williams and Robert DeNiro. Also sad :(
  • negativenancy, on 05/16/2008, -1/+10The Singularity is near...
    • badger500, on 05/16/2008, -0/+1Oh, it is not! Stop that!
    • Risingashes, on 05/16/2008, -0/+2Preview from 2100: The Singularity is near.
  • Voku, on 05/16/2008, -0/+8I feel a zombie apocalypse coming along anytime soon now.
  • cbodall, on 05/16/2008, -2/+1lol
  • Ionworm, on 05/16/2008, -0/+1Cool, will I be able to control the TV without the remote?
    • Risingashes, on 05/16/2008, -0/+1You'll be able to watch TV... IN YOUR MIND!!!
  • Kahnza, on 05/16/2008, -0/+9Sad all the time? We'll make you happy with our compliance chip!
  • badart, on 05/16/2008, -1/+1Huh?
  • spyd3rweb, on 05/16/2008, -3/+8My brain is just fine the way it is, and so is yours.
    • Akairenn, on 05/16/2008, -3/+0Dr. Baltar? Is that you?
    • cosmicv, on 05/16/2008, -2/+1And mankind, your hand based dirt moving is just fine...no sense on trying to improve that...I mean granted someone might be able to invent something that would move lots more dirt then your hands...but that would be artificial now wouldn't it? Down with bulldozers!
  • texxel, on 05/16/2008, -0/+7This has got Big Pharma written all over it !
    • badger500, on 05/16/2008, -0/+1There are many of Little Pharma involved, too.
  • Gloogle, on 05/16/2008, -0/+4He says "it's the century of the brain" It better be, a lot people are counting on it.
    • jhshukla, on 05/16/2008, -0/+1I don't think we should be talking in terms of centuries any longer. IMO 25 years sounds lot more appropriate.
  • KhanneaNL, on 05/16/2008, -0/+2This gives me HOPE.
  • Egophilia, on 05/16/2008, -0/+2Space is not the final frontier. We are.
    The thought of our limitless potential for self exploration gives me chills.
  • orph3us, on 05/16/2008, -0/+2so are they gonna help you achieve nirvana and enlightenment too? Ok, I'm joking of course, but too many people are relying on drugs for things that can be fixed by talking to a friend, doing exercise, going on a walkabout, or just plain old life experience. The article does talk about helping with things like alzheimers and multiple sclerosis. But I still believe we have to be careful. The brain is sacred!! Many things that should come about through just plain old living and learning are being substituted with chemical relief. It just doesn't come with the same level of satisfaction as fixing the problems yourself. Multiple sclerosis and alzheimers are not something you can fix by walking a lot or going on a spiritual quest I know, but Insomnia and depression are things that can be fixed with effort and those are the worst offenders in terms of being exploited by big pharmaceutical companies who push doctors way too hard to prescribe them. Ok, I'm trying to find a reason to bash pharma :), I'll stop. I just don't trust the big companies. I trust the researchers, not big corps, yadayada :P
  • smartass007, on 05/16/2008, -0/+2downloading all your brain's data to a diamond-based, mega-capacity thumbdrive = immortality

    grow a new brain spawned with your dna+stem cells, then upload data from thumbdrive into new brain...perhaps even a partly synthetic brain for long durability until another 'refresh' / regeneration is required.

    until then, next best thing is to have your severed head frozen in liquid nitrogen after death and hope for the best.
  • edebolt, on 05/16/2008, -0/+4this is good because my penis runs my brain now and it keeps getting rammed into strange places. Save me science !
  • zacharytelschow, on 05/16/2008, -0/+2$2 trillion race? Don't any of the commenters above me have a grasp of how much money that is and the good sense to call bullcrap? The US GPD is approximately $14 trillion dollars. Even dispersed over the course of a decade or two, I very highly doubt that $2 trillion will be spent on neurotech research.
    • Frostek, on 05/16/2008, -0/+1Yes, it's almost like they thought there were *other* countries in the world, apart from the US...
      • zacharytelschow, on 05/17/2008, -0/+1I used the US GDP as a baseline to illustrate how much money that is, since the US GDP is approximately 4 times that of the next closest country.
  • Exhibitionist, on 05/16/2008, -0/+3Dugg for having a "View All On One Page" option.
  • TheHim, on 05/16/2008, -1/+1Quis custodiet ipsos custodes - Who guards the guards?
  • MiserJ, on 05/16/2008, -0/+2Nobody touches my brain.
  • TubeDigger, on 05/16/2008, -0/+1Colloidal Gold look it up
  • ypoimla, on 08/10/2008, -0/+1Objectives * Provide an overview of the prostatitis syndromes * Present a practical approach to diagnosis * Summarize current treatment options Materials and Methods The recent literature on the prostatitis syndromes was reviewed with particular reference to randomized controlled clinical trials (RCTs).
    http://canadianpharmacyrx.org/pharmacy/?p=172
    http://sisterspharmacy.org/pharmacy/
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