Massachusetts Institute of Technology

New Capabilities

Published consciousness research roadmap

For decades, scientists faced an impossible choice when studying the deep brain: observe from outside with blurry tools, or implant electrodes through surgery. Transcranial magnetic stimulation reaches only 2-4 centimeters below the skull. Functional MRI shows correlation, not causation. Deep brain stimulation requires opening the skull. Now, transcranial focused ultrasound is changing that calculus—sending acoustic waves through intact bone to stimulate regions as small as a few millimeters, deeper and more precisely than any previous noninvasive method.

Updated Feb 10