TED talks worth noting

Of course almost all TED talks are worth noting, but three are particularly rocking. The first two are by Aimee Mullins. The first is more of a show and tell Q&A session, discussing the various legs she has and the stories behind them. The second is a formal talk with an interesting story about her interactions with children.





The third video, featuring Pattie Maes, discusses what her lab calls a "sixth sense" - a combination camera and projector system and is location and context aware. If you've seen some of the MIT 'cyborg' types before, think of this as the iPod-ization of that concept. Though I don't really consider this a new 'sensory' experience, the demo is pretty amazing.

Rockin tidbits

First, as I type, I'm watching the premier episode of Prototype This, and I gotta say I really like it so far. Check it out on Discovery Channel. As a bonus, the first episode features the Emotiv EEG BCI system. The task is to design a car that is driven by biofeedback (they started with the idea of shutting off a car in response to road rage, but it seems to be drifting towards the more fun idea of controlling the car's navigation). They also visit BioPac - which makes a number of biofeedback-related systems and sensors. Perhaps they should get one of these to add to the fun (sample video below).

The most important thing about this episode is that it highlights a concept that everyday people don't think about much, namely that any controllable signal can be translated into a computer input, and thus tied to anything a computer can control. This is a great concept to drive home for BCI enthusiasts and general hacker types. It also hits the real life issues introduced by using niche/'vertical market' devices. We know those problems all too well (and by we, I mean JDS, or as we call him "The BrainGate").



And a plane, which is the awesome-er-est:



Next, just a reminder that there are two available sites for news stories which are constantly updated .

For neuro/bci items:
http://www.google.com/reader/shared/user/12240293210094451962/state/com.google/starred

For tech items:
http://www.google.com/reader/shared/12240293210094451962

In da newz

Ah vacation. So nice. Here's what hit my radar the past few days...

The technique used by Dr Kuiken at Northwestern for control a robotic limb has been turned on its head, and used to supply touch sensation. Place some haptic sensors on the artificial arm, wire them up to various DRG afferents/efferents, and supply a little juice. (2nd report here.)

MIT, trying to map the whole damn brain. Pffft. Amateurs. Why don't they just stick to wearable motion capture systems?



Ah exoskeletons. How be-est the so rad? (Play the video above.)

DLR had their wares in the news a bit. Yay robots!

Surgery gets all touchy-feely

Sensory feedback is one of those annoying little essential aspects to developing good interfaces. Just look at the iPhone. What are people complaining about the most, besides AT&T's general status as a crappy necessity? The lack of buttons. So why is it surprising that surgery should be any different? Routing around in someone's gut with only a poor sense of elasticity seems awfully crude/dangerous/concerning.

Researchers at Concordia University have developed a tactile feedback system for minimally invasive surgery. The development uses some pretty interesting techniques, which i will leave you to read by your lonesome. In the same week, there was also news of a "tangible 3D" touch interface by a Japanese company, caught by Gizmodo. The whole idea of force feedback is obviously nothing new, and if you want some commercial options, check here or here.