Singularity with a multi-electrode array.

If your "brain" is pretty much a computer system open to the internet then, yes, I'm sure it could be fucked up by some malicious individuals :P. Even if it could be "reformated" as you suggest, you'd temporarily cease to exist :P.

Your thinking wrong. Theres two sides to the array, the computer side that computes your senses and the brain side. The brain is the hardware and the computer side is the software. Viruses dont physically damage hardware, just software. Your desktop gets a critical virus and you can wipe it clean and reinstall your OS. All your hardware is undamaged though.

So if a virus infected this muli-electrode array, we would cut off the pipeline from the computer to the brain, wipe the computer, reinstalled you calibrations, reconnect pipeline. Now all you have is 'memory' of a virus that attacked you and you can recognize it now and defend against it in the future.

Anyways why do you guys seem opposed to this? Its a good thing for the human race.

It can be creepy even if you're not religous, I don't want to live in a world where computers think by themselves and are smarter than Humans.

Hello Terminator.

Terminator: 100% computers

This is made from someone who lived a life. Chances are they would want to help the human race not harm it. But of course we should put proper security measures in place... or maybe not even allow a link to the internet. Let them run around on their own server farm creating their own content.

It can be creepy even if you're not religous, I don't want to live in a world where computers think by themselves and are smarter than Humans. Hello Terminator.

SYG 02 at your service.
Don't forget about The Matrix trilogy

I'm not opposed to it. I just don't think it's all peachy. Back-ups can be infected. Hence why a lot of times it's suggested to keep windows system restore off. So, they're keeping a physical, gooey brain alive? That's little like immortality. Otherwise you're just a bunch of data on storage, which can (as we all know) be corrupted. And you're reliant on people to support and reformat you. Unless that's going to be robots or some shit.

There some confusion going on so let me try and best...

How does your brain work right now? You see something on tv and you 'remember' it. You smell chicken cooking in the oven and you remember and recognize that smell again. This computer only has software on it that digitally recreates those sense your human body had. Then it sends those signals onto wires connected to your brain in the same places where your nerves connected the brain to the rest of your body. So when this brain is "reading" some file, its actually looking at a document and signals are sent through to where your eyes used to be connected to your brain.

Am I making sense?

Ive named the multi-electrode array with a human brain The Singularity Genus (Syg).

Some pros and cons of sygs:
Pros:
They can be used in various applications such as working with game programmers or movie studios doing motion capturing work.
They can work with scientist to understand how our brain works to someday build a real AI without any biological parts.
Without the needs of a body a syg can use its vast computing power and resources to research and cure various human ailments such as aids and cancer.
Some sygs might opt to work as virtual warriors and combat against computer viruses, completely wiping them off the internet.
Sygs could be sent into space for longer trips then a human astronaut could, they could land us on Mars and do research in that harsh environment.

Cons:
Yea its possible there would be rouge sygs that would harm our computer infrastructure. Those that did it would have to be kept in solitary off the internet.
If religion is right and God exist... would we be punished for playing god like this?
Sygs would be taking jobs away from normal humans if they were exceptionally good at making new software/games/cgi movies/etc

list your pros and cons if you want

Yea its possible there would be rouge sygs that would harm our computer infrastructure. Those that did it would have to be kept in solitary off the internet.

Just real quick and maybe I'll give you more input later after having thought more about it(this week I have 3 big tests, I'm about to take the 3rd, so I don't have a lot of time right now). After having read The Ender's Game series with Jane having complete control over any computer she wants within her network, I started to think about that. I thought more of an AI, which in my opinion would be infinitely more useful than a human brain tied to a computer, or SYG(tm). For two simple reasons I can think of off hand: Size of Memory and speed of execution.

With the SYG, are you inferring that there would be a processor on both sides? I see that as the only way, and I'm assuming that's how the frankenrobot works, and how some of the new brain sensor periphreal devices work. Where there is a certain signal from the brain, and then the computer processor translates that signal and performs the appropriate action. Of course, I doubt the person would be directly tied to the processor, but rather a software interface between (This is because you want a wide array of processes available to the brain, and most processes performed by processers are basic processes, done a number of times). Say for example you want to move just one pixel across the screen(as as been done with brian sensory equipment), the processor probably takes 100 cycles to do that, it has to add one to the value of the block, however wide the screen is, then has to redraw the screen each time, and store the new value of the block. This would all be done with one thought from the person, but with many 'thoughts' from the processor. Here, you see, it is probably impossible to tie the person directly to the processor. The person would be learning the processor's language, rather than the other way around.

So the software is calibrated to the person, and then he can do a lot with the computer. But how much? He is of course limited by two things. The hardware and software. How complex is the software? If I say in my head that I want to run a brute force hacking system of a network password, how would that be controlled exactly? I am of course limited to the hardware, so if the network cable were say unplugged, I'd be screwed. If the processor blows a fuse and can no longer multiply, I also cannot multiply. Althought such things are unlikely to occur, I'm just trying to let you know how you would be limited by the processor. The software also limits you, though. If you want to run the brute force hack, how would that be handled? Maybe you have complicated software that has that exact command, so when you think it, it happens. Or maybe you have more advanced software, that you can think "I want to throw every possible word in a dictionary at this password, then I want to start trying every combination of letters, number, and symbols" and the software automatically recognizes these thoughts(which of course were calibrated at some point), and does it. But it really isn't that much of an advantage compared to someone typing it, because you are still limited the same as a regular computer in the speed you can execute that hack.

I will say this, one thing the SYG would have over someone else is possibly writing their own software. Since you wouldn't have to repeatedly type and thinking of lines of code would be much faster, then you could essentially program your own software. However, in the end, your software would still would have to adhere to the same network protocols that any normal hacking software would. In short, I don't think SYGs would pose a threat as a "rogue hacker"

Sorry it's so disorganized I just typed as I thought, didn't proofread at all. But those are my initial thoughts on the SYG as a hacking device. I'm not saying it's useless, but that it would prove more useful in other cases... I will post more on it later.

Possibly like you said, learning how the brain works to make a fully function non-biological AI? Now that's a different story altogether.

Your thinking wrong. Theres two sides to the array, the computer side that computes your senses and the brain side. The brain is the hardware and the computer side is the software. Viruses dont physically damage hardware, just software. Your desktop gets a critical virus and you can wipe it clean and reinstall your OS. All your hardware is undamaged though.

Got a link to where one could read about the Array and the whole setup?

Under basic logic and computer knowledge, the array could be compared to a router, as it's essentially translating. Receiving, storing, and accessing data makes the brain dangerously akin to a hard drive, whose data is easily corrupted by malicious software.