7 Awesome X-Men That Could Actually Exist (And How You Could Be One Too)
6. Professor X (Telepathy)
Eager scientists have been trying to prove the existence of ESP since England's Society of Psychical Research first conducted studies in 1882. The researchers proved their subjects could tell what the others were thinking more often that would occur by guessing... which is absolutely true, because these sneaky subjects later confessed to communicating with each other using non-verbal cues.
Most of what we attribute as "telepathy" comes from subtle, subconscious signals that we observe through our ordinary senses. Anyone who's watched a Derren Brown performance (or seen episodes of The Mentalist or Lie to Me) knows how powerful this can be!
So: Telepathy is definitely debunked, right? Not when technology's involved! In X-Men, Professor X uses a machine called Cerebro to help communicate with other mutants. In 2014 a research team used technology to allow a person in India to mentally communicate with people in France. The telepathy machine uses a combination of EEG sensors, which measure brainwaves in the person sending the message, and TMS impulses, which influence brainwaves in the person receiving the message. Move over, iPhone, there's a new device in town!
Harvard is working on a second telepathic machine: one that uses neural implants to read the minds of quadriplegics, allowing them to control computers. Maybe they could rig Professor X with a set of mind-controlled legs!