3. Brain Implants
This has been a long-standing trope in science fiction, but neural implants, embedded deep within the brain to deliver shocks to specific regions, have been a reality for a lot longer than most people think. Neurostimulators are increasingly used to treat medical conditions such as Parkinson's, epilepsy and even depression via deep brain stimulation. This is a pretty well-accepted procedure these days, but the use of electronic implants to alter
personality is more of a moral grey area. How much a of leap is there from treating mood disorders such as depression, to artificially altering a person's disposition and even personality? Way back in the 1960s, a man named José Delgado conceived of a device that would do just that. His "stimoceiver" was implanted into the brain, but instead of stimulating the parts that would control tremors or fits, it was positioned to alter the individual's
feelings instead. Delgado claimed that the device could be used to create any emotion, including love. Understandably, people were a bit iffy about this mind-altering device and rejected him as a mad scientist. Now, I'm all for freedom of scientific enquiry, but this kind of device could be potentially disastrous in the wrong hands.