Watch | A stunning mind-controlled drone race

Nimble minds, not fingers were put to the test as the University of Florida held what it called the first ever mind controlled drone race on April 8.Sixteen competitors equipped with special electroencephalogram (EEG) headsets measuring electrical activity in the brain, used their powers of concentration to send their drones down the 10 yard course to the finish line.”You start thinking and you hear that motor kick up and you know it kind of kicks you into a different mental state so you have got to focus,” Daniel Royer, a contestant and mechanical engineering student at the University of Florida said.According to CNET, pilots must first assign particular thoughts to different commands such as 'fly right' or 'fly lower.' Once they are able to see how different thoughts stimulate activity in different parts of the brain, they can make a create a complete menu of options using a brain computer interface (BCI) program.While drone technology is increasingly common, BCI programs are typically used to assist paralyzed individuals with controlling proesthetic limbs, according to techcrunch.com.