Paralysed man able to control robotic arm by thought

A MAN paralysed from the neck down has shown he can open email, control a TV and move objects with a robotic arm by thought alone.

The 25-year-old American Matthew Nagle had a computer-linked implant placed in his brain that enabled him to operate devices just by thinking about it.

Brain-computer interfaces have been demonstrated before in humans and animals. But this is the biggest step taken so far towards developing “bionic” systems that can restore motor function in people who have lost control of their limbs.