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It might seem challenging enough to control an 850 Horsepower race car with conventionally abled hands and feet\\u2026 and for a quadriplegic, perhaps impossible.

Until now. In an effort described as \\u201ctremendous,\\u201d a student at Miami Dade College has demonstrated the capabilities of new technology enabling him to speed around a track in a NASCAR race car using the power of his mind.

Honduran native German Aldana Zuniga lost the use of his arms and legs after a car crash at age 16 injured his spinal cord. Nine years later, Zuniga is part of a study, spearheaded by the University of Miami Project to Cure Paralysis, that utilizes a brain implant that allows the user to drive using their mind. The BMI \\u2013 or brain machine interface \\u2013 functions as a sensor on the brain\\u2019s surface. When the user thinks of a task, the brain activates and the sensor picks up the signal to transmit the action.

According to the Miami Herald, the technology allowed Zuniga to control the throttle of the race car with his thoughts. The process was augmented by a device referred to as \\u201csip and puff\\u201d that he used to slow down the car, and another person was on hand as a safety precaution.

David McMillan, the director of education and outreach for the Miami Project, says that grading the throttle response was \\u201cthe primary engineering challenge\\u201d but years of trials helped the team develop a response that made the shifts in speed gradual.

Project stakeholders are excited about the possibilities for this technology outside of driving. For example, they describe a \\u201cparadigm shift\\u201d where this could be applied to everyday tasks, allowing a physically disabled person to turn on their lights or move a cursor on a computer screen.

After the experience, which Zuniga called \\u201can adrenaline rush,\\u201d he encouraged people experiencing similar circumstances to hold out hope for increasing capabilities as these types of technologies advance, saying \\u201chopefully one day everyone with a disability can walk again.\\u201d

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