Matt Nagle
Encyclopedia
Matthew Nagle was one of the first persons to use a brain-computer interface
to restore functionality lost due to paralysis
. He was a C3 tetraplegic, paralyzed from the neck down after being stabbed.
Nagle died on July 24, 2007 in Stoughton, Massachusetts
.
Neural Interface System (developed by Cyberkinetics
) out of a desire to again be healthy and lead a normal life, and in hopes that modern medical discoveries could help him. He also hoped that his participation in this Clinical Trial would help improve the lives of people who, like him, suffered injuries or diseases that cause severe motor disabilities.
The device was implanted on June 22, 2004 by neurosurgeon Gerhard Friehs. A 96-electrode
"Utah Array" was placed on the surface of his brain
over the region of motor cortex
that controlled his dominant left hand and arm. A link connected it to the outside of his skull, where it could be connected to a computer. The computer was then trained to recognize Nagle's thought patterns and associate them with movements he was trying to achieve.
While he was implanted, Matt could control a computer "mouse" cursor, using it then to press buttons that can control TV, check e-mail, and do basically everything that can be done by pressing buttons. He could draw (although the cursor control is not precise) on the screen. He could also send commands to an external prosthetic hand (close and open). The results of the study are published in the journal Nature. Per Food and Drug Administration
(FDA) regulations and the study protocol, the BrainGate
device was removed from him after approximately one year.
indicted on a second-degree murder charge Nagle's attacker Nicholas Cirignano. Cirignano had in 2005 been convicted of Nagle's stabbing and sentenced to nine years' imprisonment. District Attorney William Keating used the state medical examiner's ruling that the stabbing had caused Nagle's eventual death as grounds to seek the murder charge.
On April 10, 2009, a Superior Court Judge ruled that Cirignano could not be tried for murder, as the jury's verdict from the original assault case had already determined that one of the key components to a murder charge, malice, was negated by excessive force in self-defence. However, the lesser charge of manslaughter
could still, in theory, be applied.
Brain-computer interface
A brain–computer interface , sometimes called a direct neural interface or a brain–machine interface , is a direct communication pathway between the brain and an external device...
to restore functionality lost due to paralysis
Paralysis
Paralysis is loss of muscle function for one or more muscles. Paralysis can be accompanied by a loss of feeling in the affected area if there is sensory damage as well as motor. A study conducted by the Christopher & Dana Reeve Foundation, suggests that about 1 in 50 people have been diagnosed...
. He was a C3 tetraplegic, paralyzed from the neck down after being stabbed.
Biography
Nagle attended Weymouth High School (Class of 1998). He was an exceptional athlete and a star football player. In 2001, he sustained a stabbing injury while leaving the town’s annual fireworks show near Wessagussett Beach on July 3. He was stabbed and his spinal cord severed when he stepped in to help a friend.Nagle died on July 24, 2007 in Stoughton, Massachusetts
Stoughton, Massachusetts
Stoughton is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 26,962 at the 2010 census. The town is located approximately from Boston, from Providence, and from Cape Cod.-History:...
.
BrainGate Clinical Trial
Nagle agreed to participate in a clinical trial involving the BrainGateBrainGate
BrainGate is a brain implant system developed by the bio-tech company Cyberkinetics in 2008 in conjunction with the Department of Neuroscience at Brown University. The Braingate technology and related Cyberkinetic’s assets are now owned by privately held Braingate, LLC...
Neural Interface System (developed by Cyberkinetics
Cyberkinetics
Cyberkinetics is an American company. It was cofounded by John Donoghue, Mijail Serruya, and Gerhard Friehs of Brown University and Nicho Hatsopoulos of the University of Chicago. The Braingate technology and related Cyberkinetic’s assets are now owned by privately held Braingate, LLC...
) out of a desire to again be healthy and lead a normal life, and in hopes that modern medical discoveries could help him. He also hoped that his participation in this Clinical Trial would help improve the lives of people who, like him, suffered injuries or diseases that cause severe motor disabilities.
The device was implanted on June 22, 2004 by neurosurgeon Gerhard Friehs. A 96-electrode
Electrode
An electrode is an electrical conductor used to make contact with a nonmetallic part of a circuit...
"Utah Array" was placed on the surface of his brain
Brain
The brain is the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals—only a few primitive invertebrates such as sponges, jellyfish, sea squirts and starfishes do not have one. It is located in the head, usually close to primary sensory apparatus such as vision, hearing,...
over the region of motor cortex
Motor cortex
Motor cortex is a term that describes regions of the cerebral cortex involved in the planning, control, and execution of voluntary motor functions.-Anatomy of the motor cortex :The motor cortex can be divided into four main parts:...
that controlled his dominant left hand and arm. A link connected it to the outside of his skull, where it could be connected to a computer. The computer was then trained to recognize Nagle's thought patterns and associate them with movements he was trying to achieve.
While he was implanted, Matt could control a computer "mouse" cursor, using it then to press buttons that can control TV, check e-mail, and do basically everything that can be done by pressing buttons. He could draw (although the cursor control is not precise) on the screen. He could also send commands to an external prosthetic hand (close and open). The results of the study are published in the journal Nature. Per Food and Drug Administration
Food and Drug Administration
The Food and Drug Administration is an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services, one of the United States federal executive departments...
(FDA) regulations and the study protocol, the BrainGate
BrainGate
BrainGate is a brain implant system developed by the bio-tech company Cyberkinetics in 2008 in conjunction with the Department of Neuroscience at Brown University. The Braingate technology and related Cyberkinetic’s assets are now owned by privately held Braingate, LLC...
device was removed from him after approximately one year.
Murder charges
On June 5, 2008, the year after Nagle's death, a grand jury in Norfolk County, MassachusettsNorfolk County, Massachusetts
-National protected areas:* Adams National Historical Park* Boston Harbor Islands National Recreation Area * Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site* John Fitzgerald Kennedy National Historic Site-Demographics:...
indicted on a second-degree murder charge Nagle's attacker Nicholas Cirignano. Cirignano had in 2005 been convicted of Nagle's stabbing and sentenced to nine years' imprisonment. District Attorney William Keating used the state medical examiner's ruling that the stabbing had caused Nagle's eventual death as grounds to seek the murder charge.
On April 10, 2009, a Superior Court Judge ruled that Cirignano could not be tried for murder, as the jury's verdict from the original assault case had already determined that one of the key components to a murder charge, malice, was negated by excessive force in self-defence. However, the lesser charge of manslaughter
Manslaughter
Manslaughter is a legal term for the killing of a human being, in a manner considered by law as less culpable than murder. The distinction between murder and manslaughter is said to have first been made by the Ancient Athenian lawmaker Dracon in the 7th century BC.The law generally differentiates...
could still, in theory, be applied.