# Key Points from #hplusroadmap IRC Discussion

• Transcranial ultrasound emerged as a potential brain stimulation technology, with participants sharing a collection of research papers on the topic at diyhpl.us/~bryan/papers2/neuro/ultrasound/, indicating growing interest in non-invasive neuromodulation techniques.

• An implementation of Emokit (EEG interface) with websockets was demonstrated at makemyactionschainreactions.net/eeg/, showcasing practical integration of brain-computer interface technology with web applications.

• A philosophical divide in AI research was debated, contrasting top-down approaches (starting with formal theories) versus bottom-up statistical approaches, with some arguing that historical assumptions have limited AI progress.

• Participants proposed an "intellectual property tax" as an alternative to limited monopolies, suggesting all products should have their information and designs publicly available, reflecting transhumanist values of open knowledge.

• Graphene processors were discussed as a promising technology that could potentially increase clock speeds to the 300-500GHz range, representing a significant advancement in computing hardware that could accelerate AI and other computational fields.

• The limitations of Markov models for natural language processing were analyzed, with participants noting that while they can generate text, they lack semantic understanding and cannot handle the non-regular nature of human language.