Harvard University’s Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering has developed 4D printing – that is 3D printing which moves and grows.
They printed cellulose fiber flowers which contain acrylamide hydrogel which absorbs water. So, when the flowers are placed on water, the gel absorbs the water and the flowers move. Very cool video here:
As an article about the implications discusses, […]
Greene, J. A. (2016) Do-It-Yourself Medical Devices — Technology and Empowerment in American Health Care. New England Journal of Medicine, 374, 305-308.
http://www.nejm.org/doi/full/10.1056/NEJMp1511363?rss=searchAndBrowse
We are used to seeing articles and research about smartphones and how helpful they can be for logging appointments, helping remember when to take medication, giving helpful information and so forth, but there are also apps which are designed to diagnose, too.
In an article in Nature, three such apps are detailed: ResApp, Priori and ApneaApp. The all use sound […]
An article, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association talks about the expanding market of wearable devices. However, the gap between recording information with them and projected or hoped-for changing behaviours is still wide and they propose and discuss a number of reasons for this.
The article is here:
Wearable Devices as Facilitators, Not Drivers, of Health Behavior Change
by Mitesh S. Patel, MD, […]
Proteus’ intelligent pill, named Helius, is designed to be swallowed with medicines. The embedded microprocessor is powered by acid in the stomach in same way as a potato battery. The pill can then monitor patients’ medication use, compliance with doctors’ instructions or report vital signs. Read more here in a Nature article from 2012.
http://www.nature.com/news/say-hello-to-intelligent-pills-1.9823
An article on the Financial Times, commenting on Google links with Novartis, to develop a “smart” contact lens designed to help diabetics track their blood sugar levels.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/9738eec8-0c0e-11e4-9080-00144feabdc0.html#axzz3L2n2ppuU
It also mentions the “electroceuticals” – “implants that use electronic impulses to affect and modify the functions of the body”
“a skin patch that’s thinner than a sheet of paper and can detect subtle tremors, release drugs stored inside nanoparticles on-demand, and record all of this activity for review later … The system represents a new direction in personalized health care that will eventually enable advanced diagnostics and therapy on devices that can be worn like a child’s temporary […]
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