Scientists Gave People Wings in VR, And It Triggered Changes in the Brain

Chinese researchers found that brief VR training with artificial wings shifted volunteers’ brain activity toward patterns usually seen for human body parts.

After the flying tasks, fMRI showed stronger occipitotemporal responses to the wings and greater similarity to arm-related neural patterns.

Connectivity also increased with movement-planning frontoparietal regions, suggesting the brain began treating the wings more like part of the body.

The findings point to a new way immersive VR could reshape body representation, with potential uses in rehabilitation, prosthetics, and human-machine interfaces.