Mind-Controlled Prosthetic Limbs Allow Precise, Smooth Movement

It is a very unfortunate thing when we see a lot of people are there in this world with lost limbs. The main cause may be an accident or any sort of infection due to which the leg or hand had to be amputated from the body. But we have also seen that now with the help of the prosthetic limbs many people can walk even without their legs too. But then you must be wondering as to why then the mind controlled prosthetic limb had to be invented. Well to know that you have to know the disadvantages of the normal prosthetic limb.

The normal prosthetic limb is actually a robotic limb with a fixed movement so that the limbs can be moved to a limited extent. But this is not at all enough for the person to do his or her daily needs. Not only that these robotic limbs are actually very involuntary and will not work just according to the way you want it to. That is why a group of scientists has brought forward this new notion of the mind controlled prosthetic limb with the help of which the patient will at least be able to control the limb movements.

How will it be possible? 

At first the idea seems incredible as well as next to impossible but it has been possible only with the presence of micro electrodes. According to them if the prosthetic limb could be connected to the microelectrodes and then the microelectrodes could be implanted in that part of the individual’s brain that consisted of the intension to perform the movement, then the limbs even they are robotic cn be guided accordingly.

Formerly the problem was that even when the prosthetic limbs were forced to work in the right manner manually, the results were not very positive but now the scientists are themselves astounded by the results.

Case study: 

There was a person in Los Angeles named Sorto who was in the army but unfortunately in the year 2002 he became crippled for life as a result of a single gunshot. Since then, it had literally become impossible for him to perform even his daily needs and he hated to be dependent on anybody.

So the scientists did the first mind controlled prosthetic limb experiment on him. In the University of the Sothern California, a pair of small electrodes was placed on the posterior parietal cortex of Sorto. Then the pair of prosthetic limbs was connected to the computers that were carrying the brain signals of Sorto’s intentional movement.
It was seen that the limbs moved in the manners he wanted to and thus the scientists could successfully find out a way so that even the crippled did not have to be dependant in any way. While these robotic limbs encourage the fact that the work can be done faster formerly the prosthetic limbs used to do the work in a delayed and imperfect manner.

Iris Scanners Can Now Identify Us from 40 Feet Away

Nowadays, the government of every country believes that all the traffic cops should be provided with some high tech systems such as cameras or any other technology because these can help them to make out the potential risks from a secure distance. Thus, the latest designs of iris scanners may give a great help to the cops.

Iris scanner has been a portion of bio metrics. It is because just as finger prints, all people have unique iris. But, the iris scanners, which are utilized in the present days, would need the individual to give their permission for the analysis. Besides, the individual would need to come near the system to scan their iris. It is quite dangerous if the official needs to scrutinize the iris of any possible risky item. This is the main problem of the common iris scanners.

However, the researchers of Carnegie Mellon University have tried to develop an Iris scanner system with long range. This will be able to make out people who are present at a distance of nearly forty feet.
An engineering professor of Carnegie Mellon, Marois Savvides has found out a solution, which can assist the traffic officers to recognize the criminals or dangerous things within a very safe limit. This Iris scanner technology of Savvides is able to discover a person while they glance at the back view mirror. It is for the first time this kind of a device has been invented.

New system of Savvides is very easy to use 

In a discussion, Savvides stated that the researchers have made the overall user experience quite less disturbing and more comfortable. Moreover, he also said that there are not any X-marks-the-spot. Even there is no site you need to stand.

Savvides’ new Iris scanner system with long range can subtly scrutinize the iris as well as face of any individual. An associate of the Carnegie Mellon stated that in addition to the traffic stops, such technology may also get place at ID confirmation ports at all sites. This can also substitute the login system of laptop which is generally noticed in some other bio-metric structures.

However, the latest technology has some drawbacks that are clarified by the associate of the Carnegie Mellon with the help of some pictures. One of the demerits is that the government will be able to check face and even iris of every individual who is walking on a particular city without any approval or knowledge of the individual. It indicates that the scanner can make use of algorithmic techniques and spot any person who may be a disguised political advocate.

Prevention of many crimes with Iris scanner 

Savvides said that one of the major problems in this world is human trafficking and also sex trafficking. The children are often being kidnapped and trafficked across some borders. If the latest system can be placed at the borders, then it could make out them. A non-profit unit of Virginia, Seraphim Global that opposes all types of human trafficking, decided to deal with Savvides in order to attain their objective.

Injured Sea Turtle Gets 3D Printed Jaw

Sea Turtle Given 3-D Printed Prosthetic Jaw

A 45 kg loggerhead sea turtle has been given a 3-D printed prosthetic jaw, from the Dekamer Sea Turtle Research, Rescue and Rehabilitation Centre on the coast of Turkey. Akut-3, which has been named after the search and rescue team that found it, had been struck by the propeller of a boat and its jaws were nearly destroyed.

 This injury could prove to be fatal but Akut-3 was brought back to health by the Dekamer sea turtle rescue and rehabilitation centre. The sea turtle is one of the first of its kind to receive a 3-D printed prosthetic, after its success proclaimed on 14 May.

The turtle had been floating in the water back in July 2014 after being struck by the propeller of the passing boat where its injuries comprised of a fractured jaw where almost 60% of the lower and upper jaw towards the right side of his face was missing.

Where some humans tend to have a careless attitude to wildlife, there are others like those at Dekamer Centre who reach out in support and help them. The rehabilitation centre then contacted the Turkish company, BTech Innovation who is known for custom-making medical prosthetics and implants for humans, to seek its help.

Use of Mimics Innovation Suite

According to 3D Printing Industry, to improve the turtle’s prosthetic, the researchers took the CT scans of the skull of Akut-3 converting it into 3D models with the use of Mimics Innovation Suite. They printed a custom-fitted jaw and beak out of the titanium.

This was attached in surgery along with the help of surgeon and veterinarian with the use of Materialise’s 3-matic software developing a prosthetic which would be able to replace the part of the turtle’s face due to the injury.

This process appeared to work well and there seems to be no doubt with the improvement in the recovery of Akut-3.The turtle is presently convalescing at the recovery centre to make sure it has adjusted to the metal jaw which has been implanted. The beak which was made of medical grade titanium substituted the loggerhead turtles’ jaws which had been sheared off when it was struck by the passing boat.

Detailed Scan Aided in Generating Design 

With the help of detailed scans of the injured turtle’s head, it aided in generating the design of the prosthetic beak. The prosthetic was printed in medical grade titanium and sent to the surgical team where the same had been attached to the face of Akut-3.

After recovery from the anaesthetic, the turtle was in a position to move his jaw and is now recuperating on antibiotics to avoid any infection as the soft tissues of his face get attached to the prosthesis. Once it is fully recovered, Akut-3 would be returned to the sea to join the 47 other successful turtles that had been treated by the Dekamer Centre since its opening in 2009.

Besides the turtle that have been others too who have been benefitted from 3D printing, currently. There has been a tortoise in Denver who adapted to a prosthetic plastic shell made by a student at Colorado Technical University, when her original one had deteriorated because of poor diet.

How DNA Sequencing Is Transforming the Hunt for New Drugs

DNA Sequenced – For Development of Medicines

Manufacturers of drug have commenced amassing hugetroves of human DNA, hoping to shorten the time it would take in identifying new drug candidates which according to some could be a way of transforming the development of medicines. These attempts would help researchers in recognizing rare genetic mutation through scanning of large databases of volunteers who tend to agree in having their DNA sequenced, providing access to thorough medical records.

This is made possible by the lower cost of genetic sequencing which took the government funded scientist around $3 billion and 13 years in sequencing the first human genome by 2003. The cost was nearly $1,500 per genome as of last year which is down from $20,000 five years back.A deal signed by Regeneron Pharmaceuticals Inc. with Pennyslvania’s Geisinger Health System in January 2014 to sequence partial genomes of around 250,000 volunteers, is laying claims to the discoveries based on the new approach.

Company executives have informed Reuters that they utilised data from the first 35,000 volunteers to confirm the promise of 250 genes on the target list for drugs focused at common medication conditions which comprise of high level of cholesterol and triglycerides.

Regeneron Recognized New Gene Targets – Obesity

Regeneron informs that it has also recognized several dozen new gene targets which include a novel gene that plays a role in obesity. Biogen Inc., Pfizer Inc. and Roche Holding AG are working on identical projects which use DNA as well as patient health data to discover new drug targets or predict the effects of drugs.

These have been inspired by earlier successes in cancer with drugs like Pfizer’s lung cancer treatment Xalkori that gained approval in 2011 and targets mutation in tumours eliminating the disease. Recently, Vertex Pharmaceutical changed the treatment of cystic fibrosis with Kalydeco that targeted the diseases’ primary genetic cause.

 Earlier, the discovery of such genes was a difficult procedure which involved several years of research into isolated population. For instance, in 1991, researchers discovered a rare mutation in a gene known as Angpt13 which instigated low levels of artery-clogging cholesterol and triglycerides amid families in the remote Italian village of Campodimele. This took additional two decades together with several groups of scientist to thoroughly comprehend the potential cardiovascular benefits connected to mutations in that gene.

First Step – Recognizing Target Genes

The Regeneron Genetics Centre, since last autumn has sequenced the DNA of over 35,000 Geisinger patients and is now on the track in sequencing 100.000 by the end of this year. The company has already identified 100 people with similar cholesterol affecting mutations to the ones first observed in Compodimele and other areas.

Dr George Yancopoulos, chief scientific officer of Regeneron comments that `one would no longer have to find that one rare family in Italy because it is in the database’.Recognizing target genes is a first step but does not guarantee that a drug could be developed on a genetic lead or if it could be effective and safe enough to be used. Regeneron is sequencing exomes which is a protein making genes comprising of 1 to 2 percent of the genome, a search which costs around $700 for each person.

Others prefer looking at the whole genome costing around $1,500 per person. One of the first scientists, Craig Venter, to sequence the human genome is of the belief that the whole genome approach would be meaningful over a period of time.

He has stated that he would rather have a gold mine with a deep vein of gold and modern industrial equipment to mind it rather than sit there with a pan in a stream looking for gold. Both would find gold and it’s a question of how much you find.

Anticipating Winning Regulatory Approval for Cholesterol Lowering Drug

Regeneron is pushing for the Geisinger database in becoming a cornerstone of that attempt and intends creating a consortium of drug-makers to finance it. In response, Yancopoulos stated that the company hopes to regainsome of its investment. Regeneron has been identified by Dr Francis Collins, director of the National Institutes of Health, in charge of the precision medicine project, among a short list of potential contributors to the one million strong DNA study.

Others include Kaiser Permanente, Mayo Clinic and the Marshfield Clinic in Wisconsin and a decision is anticipated by early fall. Attraction of big payoff is strong for drug companies. Regeneron together with its partner Sanofi are looking forward in winning regulatory approval for a cholesterol lowering drug which works in blocking the PCSK9 gene. Pfizer and Amgen have also developed identical treatments.

Those born with non-functioning forms of PCSK9 tend to have very low cholesterol and the new drugs have the same effect and are considered poster child for treatment. This tends to take advantage of faults in the genome that could prove beneficial to the rare individuals carrying them. Wall Street analysts project that by 2019, Regeneron/Sanofi’s PCSK9 drug would be generating revenues of around $4.4 billion.

Regeneron has also partnered with academic centres in studying families having extreme genetic disorders that have led to the discovery of various new candidate genes according to Dr Aris Baras running the Regeneron’s genetic centre.

Eye-Tracking Tech Makes Virtual Reality Hands-Free

Eye Tracking Tech – FOVE Headset

People with certain disabilities can now look forward to new means of communication and interaction with the advanced virtual reality headset, which could be game changer for the entertainment industry according to developers.

FOVE headset utilises eye tracking technology to enable the wearer, a completely hands free virtual reality wherein the action could be controlled with the help of eye movements. The virtual reality technology has been advertised as the next social and communications platform with firms like Oculus VR being one the market leaders with their Oculus Rift, virtual reality glasses.

However, LochlainnWilson, FOVE’s co-developer as well as chief technology officer, states that their unique technology provides an immersive experience which has not been provided by anyone. He further adds that `eye tracking is game changing in VR.

 It allows for much more complex and subtle interaction than has been possible previously. By knowing exactly where the user is looking, characters in virtual reality can react to your gaze and return it naturally or avoid it or respond or question. But what really sets us apart is eye-tracking, of course. So with eye-tracking we enable a whole new world of interaction in VR. We enable really sensitive emotional experiences that could only otherwise be experienced in real life’.

Two In-Built Cameras – In Head Mount

This eye tracking technology utilises two in-built cameras which is in the head mount for recognizing the user’s eye movement. Presently users perform a short calibration system wherein the device tends to scan the user’s eye and track the movement of their iris.

According to the team, the next version of the device would use iris recognition for loading user profiles. Wilson informs that the device delivers an experience which was previously only possible in science fiction. He comments that `in the control sense, we enable science fiction like user interfaces like Tony Stark’s Ironman and Jarvis, just at a glance user interface respond and updates information, targets an enemy, hits another button and they’re blown up. It is pretty cool in that sense. In a more technical side of things, we enable what is known as foviated rendering, where you focus the processing power exactly on what the user is looking at. By doing this, we drastically reduce the computing power required to deliver a believable scene’.

Various Fields to Benefit with Technology 

Wilson also stated that the technology presents an occasion to re-imagine various tasks and social interactions in the field of education and medicine. This start-up was originated by Wilson together with CEO Yuka Kojima and with the games industry being their focus, the creators of FOVE convey that their device could bring about virtual reality to cinema, enabling viewers to interact within the headset with objects and characters.

He has also informed that they always thought that their technology would have applications which would be outside gaming. It would be suitable for education, training, psychology, research, neuroscience, with various fields which could benefit on having this form of technology.

He also informs that the technology provides a freedom of expression as well as creativity for individuals with certain disabilities, providing a level of communication which was otherwise impossible. The expected price point conveyed by him would be around $400.

The company would now launch a crowd funding campaign to raise $250,000 USD, on the Kick-starter platform, for a flawless product and begin developing its headsets.