當大腦和機器直接相連，我們還需要身體嗎？

近日，清華大學科學博物館舉辦了一場激烈又精彩的圓桌討論。談論焦點正是一項顛覆性技術——腦機接口。

Tsinghua University Science Museum hosted a roundtable discussion focusing on brain-computer interfaces (BCI).

腦機接口技術有可能極大地改變我們對心智、身份與人體的認知。它提出了一些根本性問題：如果大腦能夠直接與機器交互，我們將如何定義“自我”？身體又將扮演何種角色？

BCI technology has the potential to significantly change how we think about the mind, identity, and the human body. It raises fundamental questions: If the brain can interact directly with machines, how will we define the self? What purpose will the physical body serve?

討論中，多位專家學者齊聚一堂，探討腦機接口技術發展中的意識、自我、倫理問題，及其在技術發展中的邊界。

Bringing together experts and scholars, the event explored issues related to consciousness, self-identity, and ethics related to BCI technology, as well as its limits.

北京大學哲學系博士胡翌霖表示：“腦機接口的發展雖然是大勢所趨，但還是要保留一些間接性，過于直接會破壞我們的自主性。比如，我去飯店點菜，可以看著菜單自主選擇不同的餐品。但如果沒有菜單作為媒介，走進飯店時大腦自動和廚師連接，盡管腦對腦的溝通更加直接，卻有可能讓人喪失自主性，而可視化的界面呈現就是保留間接性的一種方式。”

"Although the development of BCI is an irreversible trend, we must preserve some level of indirectness. Excessive directness could undermine our autonomy," said Hu Yilin, a PhD student from the department of philosophy at Peking University.

"For example, when we go to a restaurant, we can look at the menu and make independent choices among the dishes. But if there is no menu as a medium, and our brains connect with the chef automatically the moment we walk into the restaurant, it may be more direct, but it could deprive us of our autonomy. Visual interfaces are a way to preserve such indirectness."

對此，清華大學神經工程實驗室博士生鄭輝表示，現在的廣告植入、開屏廣告都還處于自主控制范圍內，消費者可以自主選擇關閉或退出。而某種意義上腦機接口沒有提供自主選擇權，會在潛移默化中影響人的言語和行為。

In response, Zheng Hui, a PhD student at Tsinghua’s laboratory of neural engineering, said that current product placements and advertisements remain within our control, and consumers can choose to close or exit them. BCI offers no such autonomous choice and may subtly influence people’s speech and behavior.

圓桌討論現場 供圖

當前，腦機接口技術的發展仍然離不開身體的參與，但是萬一未來不需要了呢？

Currently, BCI technology still relies on physical participation. But what if, in the future, it is no longer needed?

“如果未來真能實現大腦和機器的無縫對接，不再需要身體介入，會不會出現一種可能：身體反而成了累贅和干擾，影響腦信號與機器的順暢溝通？”胡翌霖表示，盡管現在推崇健美的身形，但隨著腦機接口技術的發展，未來是否會更加青睞賽博格形態，用機器、義肢替代原有身體。

"If seamless brain-computer connection becomes a reality in the future, eliminating the need for physical intervention, could the body instead become a burden and distraction and disturb the smooth communication between brain signals and computers?" Hu said.

He noted that while a fit figure is valued today, the advancement of BCI might make cyborg forms more favored in the future, with machines and prosthetics replacing the human body.

清華大學心理與認知科學系長聘副教授張丹表示，人類的很多認知必須通過身體與物理世界的交互才能完整形成，不是大腦單獨能完成的。

Zhang Dan, a tenured associate professor from the department of psychological and cognitive science at Tsinghua University, said that much of human cognition can only be fully formed through the body’s interaction with the physical world, not by the brain alone.

張丹團隊通過研究發現，身體信號對情緒反應至關重要。在張丹看來，如果大腦不發生革命性的重大變化，身體和大腦就一定無法分離，盡管能把兩個大腦直接對接，但雙方可能都是零散思緒，根本沒法準確理解彼此。“正是通過身體器官的動作，比如說話和手勢，才能把模糊的概率性想法，轉化為明確的、可傳遞的信號。”

His team’s studies found that body signals are crucial to emotional responses. In Zhang’s view, the body and the brain can never be separated without revolutionary changes. Even if two brains could be directly connected, they would only exchange fragmented thoughts and be unable to understand each other truly. "It is through the movements of organs, such as speaking and gesturing, that we can convert vague thoughts into clear, transmissible signals," he said.

他進一步表示，未來隨著大腦和人工智能、外部機器共同進化，也許會形成全新的生命體。那時或許會出現脫離現有身體形態的存在，但已經是完全不同的生命形式了。

He further noted that as the brain co-evolves with artificial intelligence and external machines, entirely new life forms may emerge beyond the current physical form.

胡翌霖認為，“人的意識本質上是雙向的，既有輸入也有輸出，因此腦機接口的發展不能只停留在‘讀取工具’的定位上，更該往‘表達工具’的方向探索。但是在此過程中，要格外重視腦機接口技術應用的邊界，避免加劇社會不平等問題。”

Hu said: "Human consciousness is bidirectional, with both input and output. BCI’s development shouldn’t be just a ‘reading tool’, but needs to explore being an ‘expression tool’." He added that special attention must be paid to the boundaries of the use of BCI to avoid intensifying social inequalities.

清華大學科學博物館館員、活動總策劃王玥涵說，“無論技術以何種方式推進，此刻，身體還是我們最重要的伙伴，它是我們與世界互動的首要媒介。即便腦電活動與意識狀態不斷被重新定義，我們與自然的實際接觸仍需回到身體這個界面。”

Wang Yuehan, a curator of the Tsinghua University Science Museum and chief planner of the event, said, "No matter how technology advances, the body is still our most important partner at this moment. It is the primary medium for interacting with the world. Even as brain electrical activity and consciousness are constantly being redefined, we still need to rely on the body as the interface for our contact with nature."

記者：陳美玲

實習生：劉雪茹

來源：中國科學報

跟著China Daily

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