The brain-computer interface (BCI) is clearly not a ubiquitous technology, yet it has tremendous potential to improve the lives of disabled individuals who cannot communicate or control their environments through traditional channels. This experiment is our first investigation into providing means for patients with locked-in syndrome to manipulate computer displays through a direct brain interface. Using functional near-infrared imaging, specifically the Optical Tomographic Imaging Spectrometer (OTIS), we have shown that this new technology can allow a person to communicate through brain signals alone.