Rock And Scroll: X-Rays Peer Into The Ancient World By "Reading" Volcanically-Charred Papyrus

When we ponder the implications of modern and future technology, it is interesting to note that while they drive us ever further forward, they can also help us understand history more thoroughly.  Such a case was just brought to light by an x-ray technician who creatively solved a classic problem by using an unexpected piece of modern technology.

According to the BBC, Dr. Vito Mocella, of the National Research Council's Institute for Microelectronics and Microsystems in Naples, Italy, was at a scientific conference in France when he learned that "X-ray phase-contrast tomography", a common medical analysis method, was being adapted for use in paleontology. He liked the idea and extrapolated it for another interesting historical cause: how to read data on volcanically-scorched ancient scrolls.

It could save your life from breast cancer, but it can also tell of many lives past.
(Image courtesy nature.com.)

Phase contrast refers to the changing "phase" (slight distortion) of light waves as objects are X-rayed. The analysis of the contrast in the light provides a detailed 3D image of an object (as opposed to simply measuring the amount of light that is visible through the object, as is done with a conventional X-ray.) The technique is frequently used for mammograms, as it helps differentiate layers of an object when there is little contrast in the background material.

This allowed scientists to observe the difference between the ink and the papyrus of a scroll from the Herculaneum, an ancient library that was battered by the Mt. Vesuvius eruption in 79 AD. Volcanic gas at temperatures of 320 Celsius (608 Fahrenheit) charred the scrolls almost to the point of destruction, but ink remnants a mere tenth of a millimeter high were enough for the synchotron machine to deduce some of the words on the scroll.

"Cleopatra is a bitch."
(Image courtesy popsci.com.)

Though the squashed papyrus fibers made determining letters with straight lines difficult (as they were harder to distinguish from the fibers themselves), letters with curved elements were identifiable. The scroll was written in Greek, which was the language of philosophy in ancient Rome. The team believes the scroll to be a work called "On Frank Criticism", a study advocating honesty between friends, written by the Epicurean philosopher Philodemus.

The Herculeaneum, the only surviving library from the ancient world, as it looks today (fortunately sans any crazy volcano action.)  More collections from antiquity may benefit from the technology used on the scrolls found here.
(Image courtesy news.softpedia.com.)

Dr. Mocella admits that while the innovative deciphering technique hasn't yet been perfected, he intends to continue experimenting with the project.  Mocella's team was quoted in National Geographic, saying, "This pioneering research opens up new prospects not only for the many papyri still unopened, but also for others that have not yet been discovered."

The scroll, seen by the naked eye in Image A, and then as rendered by the phase contrast x-ray.
And you thought reading regular books was hard.
(Image courtesy nature.com.)

3D-Printed "Exo" Prosthetics Give A Lightweight Leg Up

With America's wars in Iraq and Afghanistan apparently concluded, a major source of the horrors our servicemen endured - losing body parts to improvised explosive devices - will hopefully now be curtailed.  But for the many whom these injuries have affected, as well as for those who have biological, accidental, or other medical issues that would cause the loss of a limb, art and science have combined to help rebuild the missing pieces.

The Exo, not alive, but definitely kicking.
(Image courtesy gizmag.com.)

As reported by wired.com, artist William Root (of NYC's Pratt Institute) has teamed up with MIT to produce effective, comfortable, and cool-looking prosthetics that are created via 3D printing.  Root's desire to combine form and function sacrificed nothing from the aesthetic nor biomechanical sides of the prosthetic process, which is in itself an innovative task.  “Prostheses are not aesthetically pleasing, extremely expensive, and difficult to produce,” he noted.

Using MIT's "Fitsocket" technology from their Biomechatronics Lab, a scan of the prospective recipient's leg is taken.  The Fitsocket technology adeptly gauges the strenth or give of the recipient's remaining tissue, then forms a perfectly specialized "socket" to join the wearer to the limb.  This data is then also used by Root to create a 3D model of the recipient's leg, using a stress analysis tool to determine where the new "Exo" limb would need the most weight support and how to avoid weak points.  A mesh structure is then rendered using this information.

Yes, it will eventually probably be used to make robots in your own image.  We'll deal with that later.
(Image courtesy beforeitsnews.com.)

The sintered titanium-powder (or heavy-duty plastic) mesh gives a minimalist yet realist visual impression of a leg.  While not as traditionally inconspicuous-acting as a flesh-toned limb trying to blend in, Root feels part of the part's new power is its unwillingness to appear as an imposter appendage like something that "crosses into the Uncanny Valley."  Eventually he plans for wearers to be able to fashionably customize their hot new legs to their personal tastes.

Unfortunately they're not yet available in "Crazy Stilts" version yet.
(Image courtesy diamondesqproductions.com.)

Root's business proposal for the Exo, as cited by 3dprintingindustry.com, illuminates the scope of his hope both in quantity and quality, stating, “There are over 2 million amputees in the United States with 185,000 amputations each year. Over 90% of those amputations are lower extremity amputations; millions of Americans are suffering from hindered mobility. Prostheses enable patients to regain their freedom and much of the functionality they had lost. At the same time they help to restore the amputees’ spirit and help with the psychological recovery from having lost part of oneself.”

Best of all, Root's current designs allow the limbs to be printed for as little as $1,800, where traditional prostheses could cost ten times that.  While specialized knee, ankle, or added-mobility joints will cost more, overall costs would likely fall as 3D technology escalates ever more rapidly.  Though the current "Exo" models are not tested to bear full human weight yet, this problem is being analyzed, with the Fitsocket computer program experimenting with where different points could feasibly be augmented to bear more of the burden.

The Fitsocket testing hardware has got your legs, and it knows how to use them.
(Image courtesy wired.com.)

The specialized socket fits, lightweight lift, unique design and ever-decreasing manufacturing costs could make life a lot happier for thos requiring prostheses.  And just as soon as the proper weight ratio is figured out on the Exo, you could use one to help jump for joy.

A closeup of Exo's mesh-meat.  This kind of cage means freedom!
(Image courtesy hexapolis.com.)

Pimp My Corporeal Ride: Smart Skin!

As discussed last week in our electronic tongue article, the human senses are being well replicated in the technological world.  But one particular sense - touch - has been implemented more on the giving than receiving end, up until now.

High five!
(Image courtesy technologyreview.com.)

While many forms of technology respond to a tap or swipe on a screen, the sense of touch has not been reflected electronically for the user like an electronic eye or hearing aid might.  However, now a company has invented prosthetic "smart skin" that can "feel" what it touches, making false limbs seem functionally real again.

As reported by cnet.com, researchers at Seoul National University, South Korea have developed the smart skin by using layers of sensors enabled by ultrathin, single crystalline silicone nanoribbon.  Where formerly only pressure was detected (to allow the user to tell if they were applying too much force with their awesome robot hands), now the sensors can indicate if the "skin" is being stretched too far or is in a humid environment.  The stretchable sensors, which are layered for durability, are connected to a multi-electrode array that targets the body's nerves via platinum nanowires and ceria nanoparticle electrodes.  Combined, this accurately simulates the sense of touch, even down to onboard "heaters" to make the smart skin seem warm.

Just don't try to tattoo anything on it.
(Image courtesy closethegap.humana.com.)

Used all together, the effect is realistic. According to the study's abstract, "This collection of stretchable sensors and actuators facilitate highly localised mechanical and thermal skin-like perception in response to external stimuli, thus providing unique opportunities for emerging classes of prostheses and peripheral nervous system interface technologies."

The fresh flesh allowed for prosthetic hands to discern the sense of touch while performing many routine tasks, such as grasping things, shaking hands, typing, touching wet or dry objects, and other unspecified "human-to-human contact."

Hot.
(Image courtesy wehuntedthemammmoth.com.)

So if you're in need of a physiological overhaul, or if you're just busy already designing your future brain-download's robot body, now "smart skin" is in.

Even the least intelligent sensors of the smart skin know how to sense a high-five.
(Image courtesy blog.cbtnuggets.com.)

Tech And Good Taste: Could An "E-Tongue" Be Used To Lick Pollution?

We have devices that mimic all of our major senses...cameras can capture things we see, microphones listen to us, tablets and other gadgets respond to touch, and bomb detectors "sniff" out explosive devices by detecting their particles in the air.  But what about taste?  Now, a new invention serves to recreate that popular sense...and for some good reasons.

It's complicated, trying to replicate human physiology.
(Image courtesy pubs.rsc.org.)

According to nanowerk.com, an electronic tongue is in development by scientists from the American Chemical Society.  Its uses could range from sampling food that may have gone disastrously bad to testing for water pollution or blood disease (stuff you wouldn't want your real tongue to have to endure.)  Sensors in the silicone-based "e-tongue" pick up traces of different "flavors" of things, much as tastebuds would, and the data is sent to a computer for assessment.

The e-tongue has already been critically tested on a very important distinction:  the difference between Armagnac, cognac, whiskey and water.  Proving successful at identifying the various "signatures" for each, the e-tongue can now undergo further tests to assess its adeptness at more nuanced (if gross) "flavors" of pollutants and bio-contaminants.  For a safe and smart means of testing a spectrum of such signatures, the e-tongue just makes sense.

Their prototype setup regarding testing for bio-contaminants is a little weird, though.
(Image courtesy mtvhive.com.)

Bitcoins And Biohacks: Dermally-Implant Your Dough?

Body modifications have been around as long as humanity.  We are constantly seeking new ways to embellish, improve, and artistically distinguish ourselves by pimping our corporeal rides, and now, technological innovations may be added to that mix.

As reported by the Telegraph UK, Dutchman Martijn Wismeijer has had 12mm NFC (near-field communication) computer chips embedded in his hands as a sort of human upgrade. On these chips, he stores the keys to his bitcoin wallet, as well as a personalized alarm clock where the chips must be held to a sensor to shut off his daily alarm.  

Easier than carrying around a sack of doubloons, for sure...but not as secure.
(Image courtesy techinasia.com.)

The 888-byte chips were installed via a ready-made syringe which delivered them to the fatty subdermal flesh.  While Wismeijer admitted that many doctors were recalcitrant to perform the modification, other body artists such as tattooists or piercers may be more amenable (although regardless of the surgeon, sterile conditions are still a must.)

The founder of Mr. Bitcoin, a company that deals in crypto-currency ATMs, Wismeijer says the chips are not secure enough to permanently carry the codes at the moment, but that his experiment in embedding them was a success.  He eventually would like the technology to include wireless key access for his home.  Wismeijer feels this type of "bio-hacking" is just the fingertip of the bigger body of possible uses for the technology.

In the beginning, there was the byte.
(Image courtesy storiesbywilliams.com.)

Wismeijer explained, “The reason I did take the implants is that I have real-world uses for it today, my phones and tablets are all compatible. I personally feel that by supporting these bio-hacking developments we can learn what works and what doesn't and that some day, in the not so distant future we will be able to implant more functionality like sub dermal glucose sensors or heart rate monitors and other vital health monitoring devices. Imagine a normally invisible tattoo on your arm glowing red when you get a heart attack, swipe your phone and your phone will notify doctor.

“By supporting these bio-hacking initiatives I believe we are paving the way for social acceptance while at the same time we support the bio-hacking technology that drives it.”

Bodymodding biohackers, use your new powers for good.
(Image courtesy hackpittsburgh.com,)

Does Mario Dream Of Electric Sheep? Nintendo To Create Sleep-Monitoring Device

Do you wake up sometimes wondering if you're just unhappy to be headed to work, or if you're actually experiencing sleep deprivation?  Do you wonder about how your sleep cycles are affected by various activities you may be hitting up before you hit the sack?  Soon, a device made by (stop laughing) Nintendo will be able to help you determine how healthy your sleep patterns are.

According to techlandra.com, Nintendo's president, Satoru Iwata, isn't just talking about a novelty invention.  This is a whole new means of categorizing a previously-unquantified issue that affects every human on earth.  "Since fatigue per se is not regarded as a disease in the medical world, it is said to be a field where sufficient research has yet to be conducted," Iwata said. "We have been fortunate to encounter several experts who have been conducting cutting-edge research in the science of fatigue. Together, we are now developing technology to estimate fatigue."

Optional dream-controlling hopefully to follow.
(Image courtesy uberreview.com.)

The device, as reported by Reuters, is as of yet unnamed but is planned to debut in 2015.  Developed in conjunction with the medical device company ResMed, the sleep-assessment system will be small enough to easily sit on your nightstand.  Using microwave sensors that do not come into contact with the body, the quality and length of sleep cycles are tracked and then sent to attendant apps for analysis.

This creation is part of Nintendo's new "Quality Of Life" initiative, which according to gamesindustry.biz seeks to "improve peoples' quality of life in enjoyable ways."  The new sleeping device will abide by five simple principles:  it need not be worn by the user, it need not touch the user at all, it need not be booted up by the user to begin working (it assesses things like body movement, heartbeat and breathing autonomously to determine sleep cycles), it provides data immediately, and it requires no complicated setup.

In other words, it's as easy as falling asleep!  And if you can't even do that right, Nintendo's new machine can help you.

If you get a good night's sleep, maybe you can work your way up to Player 1 status.
(Image courtesy builttoplay.ca.)

Re-Up Your Pup: Clone Your Pet And Be Best Friends Forever!

It's a question that's been on humanity's mind since the success of Dolly the sheep.  What if man's best friend (or some genetically-accurate approximation thereof) could stay with him for the duration of the human's longer life?  Now, thanks to cloning, you may be able to have a couple of copies of Fido to follow you through life's long walk.

According to businessweek.com, the Sooam facility in South Korea is the world's only doggie-doubling company, where for $100,000 your precious pooch can live on.  It only requires a somatic cell sample from the original donor dog, which scientists cryogenically freeze while a surrogate dog is prepared for pregnancy.  Immature ovum (oocytes) are flushed from the prospective parent-dog, then the somatic cells are injected into the ennucleated (nucleus-removed) oocytes.  The donor cells and egg are fused by electricity into a new embryo, and then implanted into the surrogate.  Shortly thereafter, your best friend is back!

Fresh piles of wrinkles...it's like reverse plastic surgery!
(Image courtesy nature.com.)

The process, which was perfected by geneticist Dr. Hwang Woo Suk, has been applied over 550 times since Hwang's first successful attempt in 2005.  Specialty dogs like Tibetan mastiffs and capable police dogs are popular pups, but next year the Sooam company will be expanding to help grow other animals like beef cows and pigs.  The process is the same one that was used to create Dolly the sheep in 1996 (as well as a veritable ark of animals since), and the patent for the process is leased to Hwang from the US company ViaGen.

A whole squad of murderdogs can be yours!
(Image courtesy sciencefocus.com.)

The Sooam team is currently able to produce 150-200 cloned critters per year, and has captivated clients from veterinarians to Middle Eastern royalty.  One customer even missed his Catahoula leopard dog Melvin so much that he had two of his doting doggies recreated.  However, it is not just canine companionship that drives the company.  Sooam regenerates dogs for scientific testing as well, creating critters with diabetes or Alzheimer's disease so that testing and research may alleviate these diseases (while operating in the comfortable confines of a well-controlled experiment.)

No cure has yet been found for the common pug.  They're just always going to be goofy like that.
(Image courtesy dogintonpost.com.)

Hwang doesn't want to stop at just a few species, either.  He has been working to clone rare animals like tigers and ibex, and possibly even to reboot extinct creatures like a woolly mammoth (whose frozen cells he believes could be made to gestate in a surrogate elephant.)  And of course, there's the ultimate goal: a handmade human.  “We will keep knocking on the doors,” Hwang says, “not only in South Korea but also in other countries, until we can continue our human stem cell research.”

While the pets are pleasant, there's a world of creatures to concoct.  So how long until we can have disciplined domestic dinosaurs instead of dogs?

Until then, this will have to do.
(Image courtesy amazon.com.)

Sick Tech: New "EbolApp" Tracks The Outbreak Via Your Smartphone

Even during a season when scary stories are the norm, the ever-expanding evil of the Ebola virus seems superlatively spooky.  With new cases escalating both in Africa and various places in the Western world, it seems that the contagion could soon be worthy of worry.  Worst of all, it might even be poised to affect chocolate prices worldwide (THE HORROR!)  So what can you do to make sure you steer clear of this vicious virus?

Thanks to suitapps.com, there is now an Ebola-tracking app that can keep you aware of any outbreaks around you.  The EbolApp features an interactive map indicating the known Ebola cases around the world, as well as realtime updates and notifications when a new case is confirmed.  Various news updates concerning the virus are also offered.

We're not saying to freak out.  Just be careful if you're living or working in an area that might harbor contaminants.  No one wants to become a REAL plague victim for Halloween.

Let's not have this become the hot new winter fashion trend.  Use EbolApp to stay away from the sickness.
(Image courtesy wunc.org.)

Don't Mess With Texas's Ebola-Killing Robot

It's like the Terminator...for the Ebola virus.

In light of the United States appearance of Africa's Least Wanted menace, a robot that can kill the Ebola virus using UV light has hit the market.  As reported by wtsp.com, the robot known as "Little Moe" sanitizes possible outbreak locations by blasting UV light to fuse and thus destroy the virus's DNA.  A xenon bulb flashes at 1.5 times per second - enough to clean a whole hospital room in five minutes, or to scrub an Ebola-tainted surface in two minutes.

The robot, developed by the Texas company Xenex, is now a feature of 250 hospitals nationwide.  Dr. Mark Stibich, who works with Xenex, explained, "...What our customers have seen and reported in the medical literature is reduction in these infections in the rate of up to 50 percent."

Shine on, Little Moe.

It also serves as party lighting for your "I Survived Ebola" celebration bash...if you make it.

Ashes To Ashes, Sludge To Sludge: Once You've Died, Get Liquefied?

Here's some news that's sure to brighten/frighten you for Halloween season:  now, instead of traditional burial or cremation, after death you have the option to be liquified.

It might make your skin crawl, but that's just because you still have skin to worry about.  For those who are planning what they want done with their body when their spirit has hit the road, the new "alkaline hydrolysis" may be the best final answer.  This way, you won't take up too much space or badly impact the environment after you've crossed the finish line in the human race.

According to the mirror.co.uk, the process is simple:  a body is put into a stainless-steel container with water and potassium hydroxide, then pressurized and heated for about three hours, like a creepy crock pot.  A green and brown syrup with an odor like...well, like a dissolved corpse...will be what remains of your remains, as well as a fine white ash.

Yay, my sweet embrace of death will be ecologically friendly!  This totally makes up for all the littering I did in the '50s.  (Image courtesy bioresponsefuneral.com.)

It won't take up the space a conventional burial would, it won't emit various effluvia into the atmosphere like a cremation, and the cask-distilled small-batch human juice won't be accidentally mistaken for shots if you have an Irish funeral.  The you-goo is disposed of by your mortician, but the ash is returned to to whom you bequeathed it, and it can still be kept in a vessel or distributed back to the earth if desired.

So if you haven't got the budget or archers sufficiently skilled in firing flaming arrows for your postmortem party, here is an option for a clean and earth-friendly exit.  Good going!

If there's a way death can be "healthy", this is it.  (Image courtesy snlabetterway.com.) 

Seared And Re-Engineered: Bioprinting "Living Bandages" For Burn Victims

The 3D printing revolution surges forward, and is now able to literally heal your wounds.  Scientists announced this week that 3D printed skin cells will be able to be applied to burned flesh to make it heal faster and become new again.

This amazing new development, as reported by the International Business Times, was invented at the University of Toronto, and takes an innovative approach to burn treatment.  While the successive layers of exterior and interior skin tissue (epidermis and dermis) have different cell structures and would normally require careful construction to individually repair, the scientists working on the PrintAlive project have created a "living bandage" to safely ensconce the wounded area in a healing hydrogel.

The PrintAlive bioprinter creates what is not exactly a skin graft, but rather an amalgamation of the patient's own skin tissue cells (keratinocytes and fibroblasts) along with cell nutrients, which fuse with a biopolymer that is then printed in stripes or spots to localize care as needed by the recipient.  The successive layers of skin tissue are printed together, so they will interact with the body as normally as possible to protect the damaged flesh until the wound heals itself.

Despite human trials being some 2-3 years away, the PrintAlive technology was advanced enough to win Canada's division of the prestigious James Dyson award in 2014.  The award is given to "the best student industrial or product projects in 18 countries that are able to solve a problem." They will now be competing internationally for a grand prize of $50,000 in funds.

But remember kids, just because we have this...

...doesn't mean you should do this.

Clot In A Shot: New Injectable Foam May Help Stop Catastropic Blood Loss

It has posed a problem for soldiers, adventurers, and the accident-prone since time immemorial: how can one quickly and effectively staunch a life-threatening bleeding wound? Several students at Johns Hopkins University have tackled this problem, and may soon be saving lives thanks to an innovative injector for biologically-safe polyurethane foam.

Hemorrhaging is the #1 cause of battlefield deaths, exacerbated in situations where a neck or limbs meeting the torso cannot be easily bandaged or tied with a tourniquet. Now, according to baltimoresun.com, the eight students who set out to solve this problem for a biomedical engineering class may have stumbled onto a brilliant solution. Their creation is the size of a whiteboard marker and blends separate chemicals that, when combined, create a foam that could staunch blood flow long enough for a soldier or other afflicted party to survive long enough to get more comprehensive secondary care.

"There is some bleeding we can't see and can't get a tourniquet around it," said Colonel Walter Franz, an Army surgeon who has commanded forward units in battlefields overseas. "We need a product we can pull out of a bag, which is self-contained and simple."

The idea has developed to the point of testing at All Children's Hospital in St. Petersburg, Fla., a training facility where medics in the Green Berets, Navy SEALS, Army Rangers and Marine Special Forces could subject the idea to various difficult battlefield conditions and scenarios. To be effective for the military, the foam would need to be nontoxic to all kinds of human organs, able to withstand heat and cold, and maintain its effectiveness in flight or in water. While some of these experiments had undergone rudimentary testing with the students, now chemical engineers are using the idea to craft a more comprehensive foam that can sufficiently harden inside ten seconds (a major amount of time when catastrophic blood loss is concerned.)

A previous type of clotting agent called Factor VII had fallen short of full capability, thus the importance of the new poly foam. Reportedly entering testing on live animals within the year, this foam could hopefully help bring more warriors home.

Home repairs for homo sapiens.

E-bola: Watch Virus's Developments With This App

With thousands of cases and escalating confirmed deaths attributed to the Ebola virus in Africa right now, it has become important to keep tabs on the spread of disease, preferably from as far away as possible. The CDC has stepped in to help, creating a new category in their Epi Info app to help monitor the outbreak.

As reported by gcn.com, the "contact tracing" ability of the app makes it possible to deduce where certain carriers of the disease have caused it to spread, allowing for others to avoid possible danger zones. The viral hemorrhagic fever (VHF) app creates databases of crucial patient information, such as names, locations, ages, gender, and the especially important "dead or alive" status. Those classified as "sick and isolated" with no further information are also considered cases. Aid workers can then use the data to visualize and assess VHF problems.

Once downloaded, the app is functional sans internet connection, which is useful in the many remote areas in which the disease flourishes. The Epi Info app also can be used to track other epidemics, such as Marburg, Crimean-Congo, Rift Valley, and Lassa. Hopefully, the current Ebola crisis can be partially mitigated in thanks to this careful observational/informational aid, in conjunction with dedicated workers.

“The bottom line with Ebola is we know how to stop it: traditional public health,” said CDC Director Tom Frieden. “Find patients, isolate and care for them; find their contacts; educate people; and strictly follow infection control in hospitals. Do those things with meticulous care and Ebola goes away.”

Maybe head to any other continent for vacation this year.