Comments on: When opportunity knocks with a bionic arm

By: Hrafn Thorisson

Hrafn Thorisson — Sat, 27 Sep 2008 00:54:29 +0000

Before we’ll see a world where people actually want prostheses without having lost a limb, I think we’ll have had ample opportunity to evaluate the body’s adaptation. i.e. if future artificial replacements include neural connections, or in some way move closer to replicating real thing (possibly even some electrical feedback to “fool the brain”), we’ll have observed how those that don’t have a choice respond to them.

Now if they could just develop a better LES…

LES?

By: Gnorb

Gnorb — Tue, 23 Sep 2008 14:48:32 +0000

You know, at one point in my life I was faced with the very real possibility that my leg would be amputated from the knee down.

I’m a huge believer in the idea that the body’s nervous system replicates different parts of the body in others (as is used in acupuncture), so I can’t say that I support the idea of replacing a perfectly healthy limb with an artificial one. That said, what this means to people who don’t have that choice, who’ve been maimed in some way, is incredible.

Now if they could just develop a better LES…