A Carolina woman has become one of the first of a group of blind people to have had their sight restored through cybernetics.
Electrodes implanted in Cheri Robertson’s brain receive a video signal from a small camera worn on her eyeglasses and processed through a wearable computer, a la Geordi LaForge.
Patients with the implants see flashes of light and outlines of objects, but there’s a good chance that the technology will improve with time.
The CBC reports that a study put up by the Canadian Recording Industry Association may be showing that music downloading is not harmful to the recording industry. The study shows that the largest music downloading demographic is also the largest music buying demographic, among other interesting results.
The interpretations are being debated over by recording industry heavyweights. I think the real good news here is that the question is being earnestly considered.
Scientists at the Massachusets Institute of Technology were able to restore sight to rodents blinded by brain damage. They grew brain cells on a nano-scale artificial scaffolding, which later dissolves away.
It is hoped that this technology can one day be developed enough to treat human patients who have suffered vision loss due to stroke, spinal cord injuries or other nervous ailments.
In 1995, an Indian doctor named Madan Kataria started a club in India which prescribes a healthy dose of humour to prolong and enrich life, and the idea (like the laughter) is contagious.
They begin by limbering up and relaxing their muscles, and then laugh with each other for hours! The club members report, not surprisingly, decreased stress and increased happiness. American researchers corroborate the story with evidence that laughter prolongs life, boosts the immune system and reduces stress.
Over 5000 laughing clubs have sprung up in India, Halifax, Illinois, and around the world. Why not start a laughing club in your area?
Segway Scooter inventor Dean Kamen is at it again. But this time instead of helping those in rich countries to get off of their feet, he wants to help poor countries get back on their feet!
He’s developed two washing-machine sized devices: one that filters 1000 litres of water per day; and one that continually produces a kilowatt of energy, powered by cow dung.
Kamen has partnered with Iqbal Quadir, of Bangladeshi company Grameen Phone (see our previous coverage of Grameen Bank). Their business model encourages entrepreneurs in developing nations to offer power and water as services to local populations.
CNN.com has the full story.