Denis Aabo Sørensen lost his left hand nine years ago, while handling fireworks. Since then, he has used prosthetic hands, but never one like this. Last year, a team of European engineers created for him a prosthetic hand that connects directly to the remaining nerves in his upper arm. That means the hand is able to send sensations of touch back through his arm and into his brain. Plus, when Sørensen wanted to grab something, he could move the hand by simply thinking about it.
Often only a few years separate the tinfoil hats from the millionaires to be. I was writing the piece on the Youbionic arm and thinking of how we will use 3D printing to augment human beings. Clearly augmenting the human body with mechatronics would be a good idea. The flesh is weak but stepper motors are strong! Oh how we will eeck, ooow, brrrr whine in our old stepper augmented age. Machines could very well fill the gaps once our bodies start failing us. But, will old people homes really be filled with Borg grandmas?
Will your grandad get that night vision upgrade he’s always wanted so he can deer hunt whenever he damn pleases? Would it be a good idea if I on a whim replaced my tennis elbow with a tennis racket? We never get the future right and most of our visions of mechatronic augmentations of humans are either a bit Johhny Cab or they’re ruined by that tiara Geordi was wearing across his face in Star Trek. I know he can’t see it, but someone should have told him really.
This is the next generation of robotic prosthetics. Here’s how they work.
Watch the full TED Talk here: http://bit.ly/2LQErPg
Posted in biotech/medical, cyborgs, robotics/AI, transhumanism
“Our main goal is to let patients control them as naturally as though they were their biological limbs,” says Professor Dario Farina from Imperial College.
A team of scientists from Imperial College London and the University of Göttingen have teamed up to create a ‘next generation’ bionic hand. This bionic hand is special because it uses artificial intelligence to improve its functionality.
https://paper.li/e-1437691924#/
Would you put on an exoskeleton that meant you could run for an entire day without getting tired?
What about one that would allow you to stay on your feet longer at work?
The technology to give people superhuman strength is currently being developed but the ethical questions about whether we should be developing it and in what circumstances it should be used, are only just beginning to be asked.
My grandparents’ generation saw the arrival of technology in peoples’ homes; my parents’ generation saw the arrival of technology in people’s lives; and the current generation is seeing the arrival of technology in peoples’ body.
Neil Harbisson goes into his goals and aspirations to unlock the potential of humanity and awaken a new age of cyborgism with the help of emerging technologies.
