New robotic limbs controlled by mind

Hello, take any object, raise your hand to ask for the bill in a restaurant or something as seemingly simple as walking are some of the actions that people who, having suffered the amputation of their limbs or had paralysis, can not carried out. Therefore, there are many cases in which they turn to the implementation of an artificial arm or leg.

So far, the moves could be made with these synthetic members have been quite small, but technological advances are helping to reduce these limitations.

A group of scientists formed by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and the Applied Physics Laboratory of Johns Hopkins University, located in Maryland, both in the U.S., has managed to increase the degree of mobility of some robotic limbs that are controlled by the mind.

They have succeeded in developing a modular prosthesis of the limbs (MPL), a bionic tip made ​​of a combination of carbon fiber and high strength alloys.

Characteristics of the prosthesis

This tip has 22 ° of freedom of motion (human arm has 30 degrees) and can pick up objects accurately without crushing fragile. In additionthe wrist the elbow of the prosthesis rotate with ease and, as a human limb, weighs 4.5 kilos.

"I would say is close to human skill," predicts Michael McLoughlin, responsible for developing one of these prostheses in the Applied Physics Laboratory (APL, for its acronym in English) from Johns Hopkins. "You can not do everything. For example, you can hollow the palm of the hand, but you can control all the fingers individually. Do not think there is another member who comes to this," says the researcher.

A prototype of the modular prosthesis has been tested by amputees and both arms. To do this, by surgery, researchers redirected lost nerves that normally control the arm to the chest muscle. There, the electrodes that guide robotic limb interpret nerve signals and perform the movement.

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A treatment kills cancer cells with nanoparticles in half an hour

A team of scientists from the University of Georgia, United States, have used nanoparticles and alternating magnetic fields to attack the cancer cells of head and neck tumors in mices.

The nanoparticles used were iron oxide nanoparticles (a component of many minerals also present in our body), which recently have become very important for their applications as carriers of antitumor drugs or molecules in the blood detectors linked to certain diseases , among other uses.

The results revealed that this system can kill cancer cells in just half an hour without being damaged nearby healthy cells.

The advance is in addition to other investigations that are noting the usefulness of these microscopic particles to treat cancer. In fact, nanoparticles can also be used to carry drugs to tumors and there supply them, very selective.

Qun Zhao, director of research and professor of physics at the Franklin College of Arts and Sciences, UGA says: "We've shown that we can use a small concentration of nanoparticles to kill cancer cells."

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Augmented reality promises astronauts instant medical knowhow

A new augmented reality device developed by ESA could help astronauts diagnose medical problems or perform surgery in a completely autonomous way. Will be as easy as putting on a visor and follow the instructions in 3D.

For now, CAMDASS (Computer Assisted Medical Diagnosis and Surgery System ) only guides the user through the implementation of ultrasound examinations, but is a technology that in principle could apply to any medical procedure.

It has been decided to start with ultrasound examinations because they are a versatile and effective diagnostic tool, and because in the International Space Station already have the equipment needed to run them.

The astronauts who embark on future missions of exploration of the solar system will have to learn to take care of themselves. As they move away from our planet, conversations with experts on the ground will entail several minutes of delay, or will be blocked entirely.

"Although the crews have some medical knowledge, can not pretend that the astronauts know and stay trained in all medical procedures that could eventually be needed," said Arnaud Runge, a biomedical engineer who oversees the project for ESA.

The indications of CAMDASS help the user to place and move correctly the ultrasound transducer to examine the area of interest

The prototype has undergone a series of usability tests at the University Hospital Saint-Pierre in Brussels, Belgium, with medical students and nursing and paramedical staff and the Belgian Red Cross.

During these tests, users with no experience were able to perform relatively difficult procedures without outside help, the transducer operating properly.

The prototype has been developed for ESA by a consortium headed by Space Applications Services NV in Belgium, with support from the Technical University of Munich and the German Center for Research on Cancer, DKFZ, with funding from the ESA's Program for the Development of Basic Technology.

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A wireless power system

Scientists at Stanford University in the U.S., have designed a charging system that uses highly efficient magnetic fields to transmit electrical currents between metal coils spaced several meters, without using a single cable.

The long term goal of the research is to apply this system to transfer power wirelessly to the roads. Thus, when electric cars circulate through the highways, your batteries will be recharged, without requiring vehicles to stop.

According to Stanford University in a statement, in the future, this technology could dramatically increase the rate of conduction of electric vehicles and transform travel by highway.

Thus, could be resolved one of the main problems with electric cars: limited autonomy. Generally, these vehicles can travel less than 160 miles after each refueling, and its batteries take to recharge several hours.

The ability to be recharged while driving exceed this limitation, it would allow a drive for an indefinite period of time, without having to stop. In fact, at the end of each trip, the batteries would be fuller than at the time of departure.

In 2007, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) used magnetic resonance coupling to power a 60 watt bulb.

In experiments, it was shown that electricity could be transferred between two fixed coils, separated by a distance of six feet, even when standing between two obstacles.

The tests also found that the magnetic fields did not affect the people, though they be rooted in the middle of the coils, which is important in terms of security.

MIT researchers created after these findings, the company WiTricity, which is developing a charging system capable of transferring wireless about three kilowatts of electricity to a vehicle parked in a garage or street.

The researchers aim to ensure that this source of electricity will not affect drivers and passengers or electronic devices of vehicles that are responsible for controlling, among other factors, air conditioning or power steering.

Scientists have also begun to study the optimal design of electric road transmitters, and determine whether the metals used as reinforcement in the highways could reduce the electrical efficiency of the network of coils.

According to Fan: "We have an opportunity to rethink how to deliver electricity to our cars, homes and work. We are accustomed to thinking in such terms of supply cables and plugs. Imagine that instead of cables and plugs, can transfer electricity through a vacuum. Our work is a step in that direction. "The results of detailed research have appeared in the journal Applied Physics Letters (APL).

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The satellite telephony is less secure than believed

In some regions, the common communication via mobile phones is not available, due to lack of necessary infrastructure. In war zones, developing countries and on the high seas is usually only feasible to use satellite phones, which are connected by radio directly to a satellite. This passes the incoming call to a ground station. From there, communication also uses the public telephone network.

So far, thanks to this method, the encryption algorithms A5-GMR-1 and A5-GMR-2 of the "European Institute of Telecommunications Standards" (ETSI), the satellite phone appeared to be safe from intruders. However, a team of researchers has managed to crack the encryption algorithms from ETSI, thereby revealing that the system has obvious weaknesses.

In less than an hour and with simple tools, these researchers from the "Horst Goertz Institute of Technology Security Information (HGI)" of the Ruhr University in Bochum, Germany, found the encryption key that is needed to intercept telephone conversations. Using open source software based on the results of previous research, were able to exploit security weaknesses.

To verify the results, the team of "Benedikt Driessen" intercepted and recorded his own telephone conversations. Carsten Willems, from the research team, admitted they were surprised of the lack of additional security measures that would have dramatically complicated their work to intercept telephone conversations.

Encryption algorithms are used to protect user privacy, so it should be sufficiently robust to withstand at least the hacker attacks made ​​from current resources or moderate. "Our results show that the use of satellite phones holds hazards, and that the current encryption algorithms are not at the required height," says Ralf Hund, another of the experts from the University.

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