Wirehead (science fiction)

Wirehead is a term used in science fiction works to denote different kinds of interaction between people and technology.

Known Space stories

In Larry Niven's Known Space stories, a wirehead is someone who has been fitted with an electronic brain implant (called a "droud" in the stories) to stimulate the pleasure centres of their brain. In the Known Space universe, wireheading is the most addictive habit known (the only given example of withdrawal is Louis Wu), and wireheads usually die from neglecting themselves in favour of the ceaseless pleasure. Wireheading is so powerful and easy that it becomes an evolutionary pressure, selecting against that portion of Known Space humanity without self-control. Wireheading need not use an actual brain implant; the pleasure centre can be remotely activated by a small device called a "tasp" (important in the Ringworld novels).

In 2006, The Guardian reported that trials of deep brain stimulation with electric current, via wires inserted into the brain, had successfully lifted the mood of depression sufferers. This is the method used by wireheads in the earlier Niven stories (such as the 'Gil the Arm' story Death By Ectasy).

Snow Crash

In Neal Stephenson's novel Snow Crash, a "wirehead" (also called "antenna head") is someone fitted with low level brain stem implant used (perhaps among other things) for control by and communication with a "hacker-in-charge, an en, sitting in the Enterprise's control tower, moving these guys around like an air traffic controller." The name "wirehead" refers to the foot long black rubber antenna that protrudes from their heads. The antenna is permanently grafted to their skulls and enables them to receive nam-shubs, spoken programs which they immediately carry out, sometimes causing them to speak other nam-shubs to other non-wired but programmable, Asherah-infected people around them. They are said by Eliot to be "Raft gargoyle types" suggesting a capability for information gathering and surveillance.

Shaper/Mechanist stories

In the Shaper/Mechanist stories of Bruce Sterling, "wirehead" is the Mechanist term for a human who has given up corporeal existence and become an infomorph.

Known experimental examples

• 1950-60-70: Tulane University School of Medicine. Approximately 100 patients were experimented on using electrical brain stimulation.
• 1963: "Electrical self-stimulation of the brain in man." by Dr. Robert Heath
• 1972: A 24-year-old man with temporal lobe epilepsy. Identified as patient "B-19". "He was permitted to wear the device for 3 hours at a time: on one occasion he stimulated his septal region 1,200 times, on another occasion 1,500 times, and on a third occasion 900 times. He protested each time the unit was taken from him, pleading to self-stimulate just a few more times... "
• 1986: A 48-year-old woman with chronic pain. "the patient self-stimulated throughout the day, neglecting personal hygiene and family commitments."
• 2005: A man with Parkinson’s disease.

See also

• Drug addiction
• Mindkiller, a novel by Spider Robinson
• The Experience Machine
• Brain stimulation reward (BSR)