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Woman's experimental bionic hand passes major test

gizmodo.com

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Re: Woman's experimental bionic hand passes major test

#21

Post by notaustinpowers »

Dig1t wrote: post #15
autoexec wrote: post #6

I've seen some amazing prosthetics on the internet, I've been seeing them for decades, but none of them get wide use. They're either all "experimental" or so insanely expensive that nobody can get them. These kinds of articles can make us feel good about science and hopeful about our future, but the reality is that the people who need these things are basically never going to have one or anything close to one.

You’re damned if you do and you’re damned if you don’t. Look how much hatred there is for Neuralink. A company actually trying to productize and bring to market a device that will allow quadriplegic people to move and walk again, which could restore life for so many people who need help and have no other options. So if you do try to bring it to market you’re pilloried by the press and everyone online and if you don’t…

I think the main concern with Neuralink isn't so much the technology/mission itself, it's Elon. We've seen with his other companies how he runs testing. Blow up rocket after rocket after rocket until it goes right. And even when it does go right, cause catastrophic damage to the launch pad, damage they were warned would happen. With earth Tesla Autopilots it was very finicky and absolutely should have gone through more in-house training rather than releasing it to the public, calling it a "beta" and hoping for the best.

We've seen his track record and have a perceived idea of how he prefers to advance technology. That's why a lot of people are very nervous about him putting a chip into people's brains.

Re: Woman's experimental bionic hand passes major test

#22

Post by mikem170 »

Dig1t wrote: post #15
autoexec wrote: post #6

I've seen some amazing prosthetics on the internet, I've been seeing them for decades, but none of them get wide use. They're either all "experimental" or so insanely expensive that nobody can get them. These kinds of articles can make us feel good about science and hopeful about our future, but the reality is that the people who need these things are basically never going to have one or anything close to one.

You’re damned if you do and you’re damned if you don’t. Look how much hatred there is for Neuralink. A company actually trying to productize and bring to market a device that will allow quadriplegic people to move and walk again, which could restore life for so many people who need help and have no other options. So if you do try to bring it to market you’re pilloried by the press and everyone online and if you don’t…

> Look how much hatred there is for Neuralink. A company actually trying to productize and bring to market a device that will allow quadriplegic people to move and walk again

People are wary of Neuralink because of how big tech manipulates peoples and pollutes society for profit, not because they are opposed to helping quadriplegics.

Re: Woman's experimental bionic hand passes major test

#23

Post by altruios »

lo_zamoyski wrote: post #16
altruios wrote: post #8

in a 'perfect' future: we would cut off our own limbs to get the nimble-tron 5000 with magnetic finger extensions and predictive AI that totally doesn't strangle anyone even a little. I joke... but I unironically can't wait for replacement limb tech to be that desirable. Imagine the upgrades people would get...

This is not an "upgrade". A replacement is a concession, a patch, a crutch, a mere instrument. It doesn't matter if the crutch can crack open Brazil nuts or turn your TV on or allow you to fetch the keys that fell behind the fridge. Metaphysically, it is always an inferior, if sophisticated, instrument. Ridding yourself of perfectly good limbs to replace them with an instrument is not only a "downgrade", but gravely…

whoa...

hold on there...

I replace my 2080ti with a 4080ti... is that's not an upgrade: that's instead categorically always a 'patch' to you?

metaphysically - a replacement says nothing to the quality of replacement.

Silly to think any change on anything is always for the worse...

A replacement can also be an upgrade. those are not mutually exclusive labels.

Re: Woman's experimental bionic hand passes major test

#25

Post by Dig1t »

notaustinpowers wrote: post #21
Dig1t wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You’re damned if you do and you’re damned if you don’t. Look how much hatred there is for Neuralink. A company actually trying to productize and bring to market a device that will allow quadriplegic people to move and walk again, which could restore life for so many people who need help and have no other options. So if you do try to bring it to market you’re pilloried by the press and everyone online and if you don’t…

I think the main concern with Neuralink isn't so much the technology/mission itself, it's Elon. We've seen with his other companies how he runs testing. Blow up rocket after rocket after rocket until it goes right. And even when it does go right, cause catastrophic damage to the launch pad, damage they were warned would happen. With earth Tesla Autopilots it was very finicky and absolutely should have gone through mo…

If you’ve ever built anything you know that the only way anything gets built is with iteration. There are very few examples in history where something new got built and was a perfect finished product v1. The way we build new things is making something, testing it, measuring the outcome and then using the information to build v2.

Look at literally every product ever built, that’s how it was made. Rockets especially need this treatment, you have to blow up a lot of rockets to refine the process in any reasonable time frame.

It’s not just Elon’s methodology that’s all new things. How many iPhone prototypes do you think they created before they shipped the first one?

Neuralink is doing the same thing with lab animals, which by the way is an established practice used in all of science. The end result will be a cure for people who desperately need it and it will be within our lifetime if they are allowed to continue without regulatory roadblocks.

Re: Woman's experimental bionic hand passes major test

#26

Post by Dig1t »

mikem170 wrote: post #22
Dig1t wrote: post #15

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You’re damned if you do and you’re damned if you don’t. Look how much hatred there is for Neuralink. A company actually trying to productize and bring to market a device that will allow quadriplegic people to move and walk again, which could restore life for so many people who need help and have no other options. So if you do try to bring it to market you’re pilloried by the press and everyone online and if you don’t…

> Look how much hatred there is for Neuralink. A company actually trying to productize and bring to market a device that will allow quadriplegic people to move and walk again People are wary of Neuralink because of how big tech manipulates peoples and pollutes society for profit, not because they are opposed to helping quadriplegics.

I agree there are things to be wary of, all new tech is a double edged sword. But the pro’s obviously outweigh the cons in the same way the internet and smart phones have.

You’ll find very few people who will say they would prefer to live in a world where all humanity’s collective knowledge is not instantly accessible to everyone. You used to have to drive to the library to look things up! Is that old world better? Heck no.

It will be the same with neural implants. Overcoming neurological illness and giving everyone’s brain super computer capabilities are worth the risk.

Re: Woman's experimental bionic hand passes major test

#27

Post by sigmar »

roarcher wrote: post #12

This is pretty amazing, but I wonder--how does the body adapt to having a piece of hardware that extends through the skin? Does the body not see this as an open wound? It seems like being permanently impaled with a metal pole.

There are some metals that are well known to be biocompatible, as in no immune response. The video in the article has diagram of the inner screws into her arm. I'd guess the screws are Ti6Al4V, which is frequently used in knee replacements and other orthopedic surgeries.

Re: Woman's experimental bionic hand passes major test

#28

Post by tspike »

Dig1t wrote: post #26
mikem170 wrote: post #22

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Look how much hatred there is for Neuralink. A company actually trying to productize and bring to market a device that will allow quadriplegic people to move and walk again People are wary of Neuralink because of how big tech manipulates peoples and pollutes society for profit, not because they are opposed to helping quadriplegics.

I agree there are things to be wary of, all new tech is a double edged sword. But the pro’s obviously outweigh the cons in the same way the internet and smart phones have. You’ll find very few people who will say they would prefer to live in a world where all humanity’s collective knowledge is not instantly accessible to everyone. You used to have to drive to the library to look things up! Is that old world better? H…

> in the same way the internet and smart phones have

I think the jury is very much still out on that one. I just got on Facebook for the first time in almost 10 years, and the comments on 'suggested' content have made me seriously question whether society was ready for these technologies. The corrosive impact of the falsehoods that are being thrown around has only begun to take effect.

Re: Woman's experimental bionic hand passes major test

#29

Post by eichin »

autoexec wrote: post #6

I've seen some amazing prosthetics on the internet, I've been seeing them for decades, but none of them get wide use. They're either all "experimental" or so insanely expensive that nobody can get them. These kinds of articles can make us feel good about science and hopeful about our future, but the reality is that the people who need these things are basically never going to have one or anything close to one.

I thought the DEKA arm was shipping, but apparently https://www.unionleader.com/news/scitech/dean-kamens-new-luk... it's finally coming to market this quarter - "testing by nearly 100 amputees for more than 10,000 hours of use" now that it actually has FDA approval; earliest demo that turns up in a quick search was 2007 ... so it's the kind of success that makes your point :}
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