A Better Way to Culture Central Nervous Cells
A protein associated with neuron damage in Alzheimer’s patients provides a superior scaffold for growing central nervous system cells in the lab.
Scientists Use Prosthetic Device to Restore and Improve Impaired Decision Making Ability in Animals
Scientists used an electronic prosthetic system to tap into existing circuitry in the brain at the cellular level and record the firing patterns of multiple neurons in the prefrontal cortex, the part of the brain involved in decision-making. They then “played” that recording back to the same brain area to electrically stimulate decision-based neural activity. Not only did it restore function, in some cases, it also improved it.
An Artificial Retina With the Capacity to Restore Normal Vision
Researchers decipher the retina’s neural code for brain communication to create novel, more effective prosthetic retinal device for blindness.
Scientists Read Monkeys’ Inner Thoughts
By decoding brain activity, scientists were able to ‘see’ that 2 monkeys were planning to approach the same reaching task differently – even before they moved a muscle.
Musical Glove Improves Sensation, Mobility for People with Spinal Cord Injury
Georgia Tech researchers have created a wireless, musical glove that may improve sensation and motor skills for people with paralyzing spinal cord injury (SCI).
Controlling Your Computer With Your Eyes
Millions of people suffering from multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s, muscular dystrophy, spinal cord injuries or amputees could soon interact with their computers and surroundings using just their eyes, thanks to a new device that costs less than £40 (~$63).
Robot Vision: Muscle-Like Action Allows Camera to Mimic Human Eye Movement
Using piezoelectric materials, researchers have replicated the muscle motion of the human eye to control camera systems in a way designed to improve the operation of robots. This new muscle-like action could help make robotic tools safer and more effective for MRI-guided surgery and robotic rehabilitation.
Researchers Develop an Artificial Cerebellum that Enables Robotic Human-like Object Handling
Researchers developed an artificial cerebellum (a biologically-inspired adaptive microcircuit) that controls a robotic arm with human-like precision.
Robots Get a Feel for the World
Robots equipped with tactile sensor able to identify materials through touch, paving the way for more useful prostheses. What does a robot feel when it touches something? Little or nothing until now. But with the right sensors, actuators and software, robots can be given the sense of feel, or at least the ability to identify [...]
Neuroscientists Explore Innovative Way to Help People Who are Blind
When people close their eyes, they can form mental images of things that exist only in their minds. Neuroscientists studying this phenomenon at medical schools in the Texas Medical Center believe that there may be a way to use these mental images to help some of the estimated 39 million people worldwide who are blind. [...]
