# House ep.: Does this technology exist? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 30, 2016, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-ep-does-this-technology-exist/744696 "2016-01-30T22:46:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Horatio\_Hellpop](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/e5b9ba/32.png) [@Horatio\_Hellpop](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horatio_Hellpop)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2016, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-ep-does-this-technology-exist/744696/1 "2016-01-30T22:46:17Z")
I’m watching an episode of **House** (s. 6, ep. 16) and they have some gadget that can show images from the patient’s subconscious mind. I’ve never known this to be a science-fiction show, and hospitals have lots of stuff I could never imagine, but is this based on actual, existing medical technology? Or am I being whooshed? ---
**Author:** ![Palooka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/palooka/32/2902_2.png) [@Palooka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Palooka)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2016, 10:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-ep-does-this-technology-exist/744696/2 "2016-01-30T22:51:34Z")
It vaguely exists in research labs, but it didn’t at all when the episode came out. ---
**Author:** ![beowulff](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/beowulff/32/542_2.png) [@beowulff](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/beowulff)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2016, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-ep-does-this-technology-exist/744696/3 "2016-01-30T23:04:52Z")
_Images_? Like, what they are thinking about (say, a photo of a ham sandwich?)? If so - no, nothing like that even remotely exists. ---
**Author:** ![friedo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/8edcca/32.png) [@friedo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/friedo)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2016, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-ep-does-this-technology-exist/744696/4 "2016-01-30T23:43:05Z")
> [@Palooka](#): > > It vaguely exists in research labs, but it didn’t at all when the episode came out. No it doesn’t. ---
**Author:** ![jtur88](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e9c0ed/32.png) [@jtur88](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jtur88)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2016, 11:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-ep-does-this-technology-exist/744696/5 "2016-01-30T23:51:40Z")
Can we say that the technology exists, but the application is yet nowhere near well developed enough that it can gather the specific data from the brain and convert it into meaningful output? We already have the technology necessary, but don’t yet know how to access the correct parts of the brain and process and interpret what it tells us. ---
**Author:** ![Nicest\_of\_the\_Damned](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/8baadc/32.png) [@Nicest\_of\_the\_Damned](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nicest_of_the_Damned)\ **Post date:** [January 30, 2016, 11:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-ep-does-this-technology-exist/744696/6 "2016-01-30T23:52:44Z")
I remember reading this article after the show aired and it was the first thing I thought of. > **[So our minds CAN be read: Magnetic scanner produces these actual images from...](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2040599/Minds-eye-Experts-use-magnetic-scanner-videos-playing-inside-peoples-brains.html)** > > Researchers have created a remarkable technology which analyses blood flow through the brain's visual cortex to produce reconstructions of videos from inside the mind ---
**Author:** ![usedtobe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/ec9cab/32.png) [@usedtobe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/usedtobe)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2016, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-ep-does-this-technology-exist/744696/7 "2016-01-31T00:21:13Z")
How long until the reader realizes the nature of _The Daily Mail_? ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2016, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-ep-does-this-technology-exist/744696/8 "2016-01-31T00:25:16Z")
> [@jtur88](#): > > Can we say that the technology exists, but the application is yet nowhere near well developed enough that it can gather the specific data from the brain and convert it into meaningful output? We already have the technology necessary, but don’t yet know how to access the correct parts of the brain and process and interpret what it tells us. No, we can’t say that. We can say that we are able to determine which of a limited set of options a subject is thinking about at the moment, but we are nowhere near producing images as described in the OP, nor do we have any practical idea how to do that. ---
**Author:** ![Nicest\_of\_the\_Damned](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/8baadc/32.png) [@Nicest\_of\_the\_Damned](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nicest_of_the_Damned)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2016, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/house-ep-does-this-technology-exist/744696/9 "2016-01-31T00:53:00Z")
> [@usedtobe](#): > > How long until the reader realizes the nature of _The Daily Mail_? Sigh. OK, then google “Professor Jack Gallant” if you want other sources. Here is one from the BBC: > **[Neuroscience: ‘I built a brain decoder'](https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20140717-i-can-read-your-mind)** > > What are you looking at? Scientist Jack Gallant can find out by decoding your thoughts, as Rose Eveleth discovers The first link had a nice selection of screen shots for anyone who doesn’t want to wait for a video to load.