I'll be dating myself here, but The Bionic Woman was a show from the late seventies about Jamie Sommers, who is saved from near death by bionic implants that giver her superhuman abilities. It was an offshoot of The Six Million Dollar Man, in which main character Steve Austin is given extraordinary abilities such as superhuman speed, vision, sight, and jumping ability from the same type of procedure. It also, incidentally, contains one of the most well-known opening scenes/monologues in television history. Both of them were fascinating shows back then, when we could only imagine a future in which human beings could be enhanced by bionics.
Well guess what? Some of you may remember back in mid-2102, a tragic story made national news in which 24-year old Aimee Copeland fell from a zip line and contracted flesh eating bacteria through a gash in her leg. Afterwards, she lost both arms below the elbow and one of her legs to the infection.
Well, believe it or not there is a bionics-related upside to the whole thing. She was the first person in the world to be fitted with the most advanced, articulate prosthetic arms available at that time, the iLimbs, created by Touch Bionics. Their web page has some amazing information about where this kind of thing is going. They cost $100,000 each, and they take training to use, but ultimately they move the same way we all move our hands *now.* Our brain sends a signal saying 'move your arm' and our arm moves thanks to electrical signals stimulating the muscle. Same for her, except the electronic signals move her prosthetic.
But hey, don't take my word for it. Watch the video below for a real glimpse of the future.
One word to describe this type of technology: FACINATING! It shows that just like the 60 Minutes video from the discussion that technological advancements for this type of product are coming together rather quickly and for it to allow the human brain to operate the functioning, just like we do, is rather outstanding. Aimee has also been able to heal from the amputations and learn how to control the devices in less than two years, which I find is amazing and shows that the advancement of this type of technology is moving along quite quickly. Also about pricing, I thought that they would be a more expensive than $100,000 being that they are the most advanced type of prosthetic limb that you can currently purchase.
ReplyDeleteWell first of all I don't want to go back to 2102, we have some eighty something years before that. But I agree with Shane, this is extremely interesting, one of the moments that I really do see technology and medicine going hand by hand to the future and helping human beings. This kind of technology also reminds me a lot of the movie iRobot in which Will Smith actually enjoys a whole arm that is prosthetic.
ReplyDeleteSeeing that we can actually get these kind of limbs and that we have created something so great that we can still let our brain manage is mind bottling to me, and very pleasing and enjoyable at the same time.
This is simply amazing! The sheer joy of having independence again must be indescribable. I am anxious to see the cost of the device go down so that it is available to more people. However, $100,000 is not that bad when you consider the cost insurance companies’ pay for most surgeries. To give you a reference point, my insurance company paid just over $8,000 for a tiny pin in my knee, which frankly, I think I could have bought at the Home Depot.
ReplyDeleteI checked out the Touch Bionics website and it said that insurance coverage varies greatly from country to country. From there, the only thing I found was a contact form and a phone number, so I am pretty sure insurance companies are not all on board yet. However, if this technology were to become more affordable, the possibilities are limitless.
This kind of advancement in technology is absolutely incredible! Helping a person bring their life back a little more after a tragic situation is amazing. It just shows how much futher technology and medicine are helping people and will continue to help. I'm shocked at the pricing of the Bionics and i assumed it would be much more expensive. I wonder if most insurance companies would cover any of the costs.
ReplyDelete-Kristen Lalli
I think this is amazing. Continuing to try and advance technology can cause great things and this proves it. Technology is not just about advancing weapons, this is an advanced technology that can give people their lives back. For people who have lost limbs, getting prosthetics might not give them superhuman abilities but it will allow them to use their arms or legs again. This is incredible to me that we have come this far that someone can move their prosthetic the exact same way that we move our hands and everything now. Looking at the most recent blog post with the photo of the old prosthetic compared to what we have now is a huge step in technology. Hopefully one day we will be able to “re-grow” real limbs.
ReplyDelete-Stephanie Theobald
The one thing that I can imagine getting old to certain people who end up getting one of these is that they might not be able to "feel" anything with these prosthetic limbs. Some people may just think of it as "I'm just grateful to have an arm or leg again" however some people might miss the sensation of being able to feel again.
DeleteHalf of me thinks this is great technology and that this is quite literally a life saver for people who are trying to get their lives and independence back. However, the other half of me kind of finds this just a little bit creepy since I cannot help but see this and think that we are building human robots.Maybe I'm just being a little pessimistic, but overall, I do think that this is great for people who are unfortunate in life and do need prosthetic limbs to continue with their daily lives. The only questions I really have with this kind of advancement is whether or not this is going to be available to everyone or if it's just going to be offered to the rich. Will insurance pay for this kind of thing?
ReplyDeleteThis is a great advancement in technology! It is great for those that need this in order to function normally and doing everyday tasks. It is also help get their independence back rather than depending on someone to help out. Unfortunately, it's pretty pricey and not everybody has that type of cash just laying around. It would be amazing though if they're able to develop something a little less expensive so many more would benefit from this amazing development.
ReplyDeleteI love to see this kind of stories. I can't wait for this kind of technology to be offered for much less. When the cell phones first came out it was practically impossible for just anyone to get a plan because of the monthly cost but with time it became attainable for just about anyone. I believe that to be true for something like this. I think $100,000 is crazy. I believe that insurance companies should cover cost like these.
ReplyDeleteIt's stories like this one that makes it all worth the hassle of trial and errors. I feel like with inspiring stories like this one that many will grow awareness to the possibilities and that might trigger more funding into creating a much more advances concept to help improve this everlasting need that has been going on without for too long. What an amazing post! Thanks for sharing with the class!
ReplyDeleteWow, its amazing how far the technology in the medical field has advanced. I find it comforting to hear stories like this one of people able to function normally. Sometimes in life we don't look at how fortunately we are to have our health. This will bring a lot of inspiration to those in need of this type of prosthesis. The more we advance in this field the lower the cost it will be for those who are in need of it. I cant wait to see what other medical advances the future brings.
ReplyDeleteTechnology just keeps amazing me. It seems like science is making leaps and bounds in this area. I think this will bring hope to many people in the future after they get the costs under control and can mass produce it. Perhaps in the future we will have the titanium "under skeleton" and they will place our own tissue upon the surface for a more natural realistic look.
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