Medical Technology  

As research and testing is carried out around the world, healthcare is one of the industries that's always at the forefront of emerging technologies.

New techniques, evolving IT systems, and cutting-edge equipment are being integrated into healthcare systems that are advancing patient care more rapidly than ever. Here are just some of the ways that new technology is improving our health.

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Wearable Technology

A growing range of wearable devices is helping to improve patient care. Outside the hospital, individuals with serious medical conditions can be outfitted with wearables that monitor glucose levels, blood pressure, and more. With Wi-Fi technology, these devices provide an automatically downloaded record of patient care to healthcare computers. They can also issue alerts or medication reminders when readings fall below acceptable levels. Even home health patients remain connected for fast response in emergencies.
3D Printers

Since the arrival of 3D printing, healthcare researchers have been devoted to creating biologic materials that can be applied in the additive form of manufacturing. Using stem cells and incubation techniques, medical professionals are already reproducing a number of cell types that can be used to grow living tissue. This is gradually making it possible to recreate a patient's skin cells, blood vessels, muscle, cartilage, bones, and even heart tissue to custom specifications, and without the risk of rejection.

Analytics

These devices are part of the Internet of Things (IoT). Smart technology can monitor conditions and feed real-time data into information systems for analysis. Far beyond simply recording vital signs, facility sensors, cameras, bar codes, and microchips can track patients, staff, equipment, and supplies in a variety of ways, 24/7. Qualified professionals, such as those who may have their mba in computer information systems, can perform analyses to improve efficiency and reduce waste. This leads to not only better care, but lower costs that can be passed on to consumers.

Internal Sensors

It's also possible to aid diagnoses and treatments from the inside. Sensors that the patient can swallow have been around for several years now and are steadily improving. These small devices, no bigger than a large pill, can relay information on how various body systems are functioning, as well as the effects of medications on particular processes. They can be powered by the human metabolism itself to continue providing internal data that doctors otherwise couldn't get without extensive testing.

These technologies are becoming technical standards in patient care that combine to provide faster and more accurate results. More efficient diagnoses and treatments due to developing technology will save more lives.

By  Hannah Whittenly	Embed
Author Bio - Hannah Whittenly is a freelance writer and mother of two from Sacramento, California.

Big Data  

It is possible for any small business to benefit from big data. This is a valuable tool that can provide small businesses with a number of advantages.

The positive aspects of big data are how it provides small businesses with the opportunity to react quickly to the results of data collection and more.

Understanding Customers

Big data makes it easier for a small business to obtain a complete picture of their customer base. They will be able to know patterns of purchasing, what are the preferences as well as what makes the small business preferable. It's also possible to know if customers are recommending the small business to others. This can make a small business aware of important changes they may need to make and more.

Cost Effective

It is possible for the collection of big data in a small business to pay for itself in a short period of time. Many small businesses are able to have minimum data collection abilities. They can slowly increase the benefits of the data collection as the business grows and expands. This is essential as the level of competition among small businesses is always increasing. It is important that a small business put forth every effort to transition from a company that makes intuition-driven decisions to one where decisions are based on analysis of collected data.

Trends

Things such as website data extraction can help a company determine if a trend will impact their business and identify if it needs to be quickly embraced. Every business will be subject to trends in their industry. This will require a company to be in the best possible position to take advantage of it. The collection of big data will provide important information, so a small business is able to see a trend in its industry and be ready to take advantage of it.

Customer Interactions

It has been estimated that less than 18 percent of small businesses utilize systems designed to collect data on their company's interactions with its customers. This type of data collection is considered essential. It is more involved than simply obtaining customer’s email address and requesting they take a survey online. The use of software designed to capture more types of information will give a small business a clear picture of a customer's experience with their company. This is a way to identify any accommodations that may need to take place.

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Competition

Many small businesses don't devote enough time to learning about their competition. Too often this is limited to what others say about the competition as well as visiting their business or website. It's now possible to collect financial data that is easily obtained. A small business can also use social media analysis to obtain information on the popularity of a company as well as what customers are saying about the competition and more.

Improve Operations

Optimizing its processes in a small business is made easier when big data is utilized. A company needs to invest in processes development that generates data. This could involve sensors on production machinery as well as company vehicles and more. It's possible to create a situation where data is being regularly obtained. This data can be then used to make important operational alterations to increase productivity.

Efficiency

Most of the systems for small businesses associated with big data are simple to install. These systems can begin collecting important data within weeks and even days. It won't take a commitment of months or years to complete the installation. Many of these systems are able to be integrated with a company's existing system. This means a company can have the benefits of big data without paying the high prices charged by some specialists. These systems also may not require staff to have extensive training to properly operate them. Many of these systems are very user-friendly.

How business is conducted is constantly changing. There was a time when a small business was run more on emotion with little analysis. Today, the trend of collecting big data is being done by the smallest businesses. It is a trend that is expected to only increase in the future.

By  Mark Palmer	Embed
Author Bio - Mark Palmer is a small business expert and has a passion for helping entrepreneurs make the most out of their company. As a freelance writer, Mark hopes to influence others so they can have a positive business experience.

Wearable Tech  

Researchers have developed a prototype of a wireless sensor patch that can monitor your hydration levels and send data to your phone, and it gets all the power it needs from your own body heat.

Wearable technology is becoming more of a reality everyday.  One of the big limitations remains how to power these tiny devices efficiently and for extended periods of use. At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) recently a prototype of a wireless sensor patch that can monitor your body's hydration levels and send data to your phone was shown off.  The device gets all the power it needs just from body heat.

Any kind of energy gradient can potentially be used as a power source, and typically your body provides its own energy gradient by being warmer than the ambient air. Thermoelectric materials can leverage this, turning the temperature difference directly into useful amounts of electricity.

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Researchers at North Carolina State University’s Center for Advanced Self-Powered Systems of Integrated Sensors (ASSIST) have been developing flexible thermoelectric generator (TEG) power-harvesting wearables, like the sensor.

The small, flexible sticker can produce between 40 and 50 microwatts of electricity per square centimeter as long as it's stuck to your skin. This is due to the array of flexible TEGs wired in series. The amount of power is based on the temperature difference between your skin and the air; the 40-50 microwatt per cm2 output range comes from a difference of just 3 degrees Celsius—with no heatsink or airflow across the generator. If you add airflow into the mix (say, if you're walking or jogging), the generator is much more efficient, producing around three times as much power.

Such a wearable patch is never going to produce enough energy to run a display or power a smart phone or anything like that, however it is capable of running a low power processor along with sensors such as accelerometers, an EKG monitor, temperature sensors, pressure sensors, or hydration monitors.

The researchers are developing an ultra low-power Bluetooth standard for data communication, allowing the patch to talk to your phone. This kind of feature is what differentiates ASSIST's wearable sensors from some of the other wearable sensors we saw at CES. Because the sensor has all the power it needs, it can provide data without you having to interact with it at all.

The developers aim to create small self-powered wearable sensors that can last for up to a year. They are also looking for an industry partner to license the tech for mass production.

SOURCE  IEEE Spectrum

By 33rd Square

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 Interfaces  

Google's Project Soli is a new interaction technology that uses radar sensors that can accurately track sub-millimeter motions at high speed. It fits onto a chip, can be produced at scale and built into small devices and everyday objects.

Google’s Project Soli could make touching your Gorilla Glass wrapped device seem like using a rotary dial telephone does to us today. With the ability to track minute hand and and finger movements, all in a tiny sensor, Soli seems ideal for interacting with the plethora of ever-smaller devices and screens.

"The hand can both embody a virtual tool, and it can also be acting on that virtual tool at the same time."

Based on the video below, from Google Advanced Technologies Products (ATAP) group, the technology could be even more accurate and minutely precise than Leap Motion's system.

"The hand can both embody a virtual tool, and it can also be acting on that virtual tool at the same time," says Project Soli Design Lead, Carsten Schwesig.

Soli allows users to control devices using natural hand motions, including incredibly fine motions accurately and precisely.  Because it is a radar device, the sensor can even work through materials like a table or cloth.

Haptic feedback is also part of the interaction, with your hand naturally touching itself. Soli uses your hand as its own user interface for gesture like turning a knob, or scrolling between your thumb and forefinger on an invisible, virtual device.

"Radar gas some unique properties when compared to cameras for example," says Emre Karagozler, a hardware engineer with Project Soli. "It has very high positional accuracy, which means that you can sense the tiniest motions."

Soli may be ideal for small devices, like smartwatches and other wearables, especially since it works through surfaces and at a distance.

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A key development of making Soli was the push to make the hardware smaller and faster

The tiny interaction sensor runs at 60GHz and can capture motions of your fingers at resolutions and speeds that haven’t been possible before—up to 10,000 frames per second. To get there, the team had to reinterpret traditional radar, which bounces a signal from an object and provides a single return ping.

To capture the complexity of hand movements at close range, Soli illuminates the whole hand with a broad radar beam, and estimates the hand configuration by analyzing changes in the returned signal over time.

Soli is being targeted for broad availability soon, in a form factor suitable for incorporation into wearable devices like smartwatches. By the end of this year your next smartphone could have this new interface technology.




SOURCE  TechCrunch

By 33rd Square

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 Nanotechnology  

A new simple tool developed by nanoengineers is opening the door to an era when anyone will be able to build sensors, anywhere, including physicians in the clinic, patients in their home and soldiers in the field. They filled off-the-shelf ballpoint pens with special inks and were able to draw sensors to measure glucose directly on the skin and sensors to measure pollution on leaves.

Using a new simple tool, nanoengineers at the University of California, San Diego, are opening the door to an era when anyone will be able to build sensors, anywhere, including physicians in the clinic, patients in their home and soldiers in the field. The team from the UCSD, developed high-tech bio-inks that react with several chemicals, including glucose. They filled off-the-shelf ballpoint pens with the inks and were able to draw sensors to measure glucose directly on the skin and sensors to measure pollution on leaves.

Skin and leaves aren't the only media on which the pens could be used. Researchers envision sensors drawn directly on smart phones for personalized and inexpensive health monitoring or on external building walls for monitoring of toxic gas pollutants. The sensors also could be used on the battlefield to detect explosives and nerve agents.

The team, led by Joseph Wang, the chairman of the Department of NanoEngineering at the University of California, San Diego, published their findings in Advanced Healthcare Materials. Wang also directs the Center for Wearable Sensors at UC San Diego.

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"Our new biocatalytic pen technology, based on novel enzymatic inks, holds considerable promise for a broad range of applications on site and in the field," Wang said.

The biggest challenge the researchers faced was making inks from chemicals and biochemicals that aren't harmful to humans or plants; could function as the sensors' electrodes; and retain their properties over long periods in storage and in various conditions. Researchers turned to biocompatible polyethylene glycol, which is used in several drug delivery applications, as a binder. To make the inks conductive to electric current they used graphite powder. They also added chitosan, an antibacterial agent which is used in bandages to reduce bleeding, to make sure the ink adhered to any surfaces it was used on. The inks' recipe also includes xylitol, a sugar substitute, which helps stabilize enzymes that react with several chemicals the do-it-yourself sensors are designed to monitor.

"Our new biocatalytic pen technology, based on novel enzymatic inks, holds considerable promise for a broad range of applications on site and in the field."

Wang's team has been investigating how to make glucose testing for diabetics easier for several years. The same team of engineers recently developed non-invasive glucose sensors in the form of temporary tattoos. In this study, they used pens, loaded with an ink that reacts to glucose, to draw reusable glucose-measuring sensors on a pattern printed on a transparent, flexible material which includes an electrode. Researchers then pricked a subject's finger and put the blood sample on the sensor. The enzymatic ink reacted with glucose and the electrode recorded the measurement, which was transmitted to a glucose-measuring device. Researchers then wiped the pattern clean and drew on it again to take another measurement after the subject had eaten.

Researchers estimate that one pen contains enough ink to draw the equivalent of 500 high-fidelity glucose sensor strips. Nanoengineers also demonstrated that the sensors could be drawn directly on the skin and that they could communicate with a Bluetooth-enabled electronic device that controls electrodes called a potentiostat, to gather data.

The pens would also allow users to draw sensors that detect pollutants and potentially harmful chemicals sensors on the spot. Researchers demonstrated that this was possible by drawing a sensor on a leaf with an ink loaded with enzymes that react with phenol, an industrial chemical, which can also be found in cosmetics, including sunscreen. The leaf was then dipped in a solution of water and phenol and the sensor was connected to a pollution detector. The sensors could be modified to react with many pollutants, including heavy metals or pesticides.

Next steps include connecting the sensors wirelessly to monitoring devices and investigating how the sensors perform in difficult conditions, including extreme temperatures, varying humidity and extended exposure to sunlight.




SOURCE  UCSD via EurekAlert

By 33rd Square

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 Nanotechnology  

A new method called laser shock imprinting creates large-area patterns of 3D nanoshapes from metal sheets represents a potential manufacturing system to inexpensively mass produce innovations such as 'plasmonic metamaterials' for advanced technologies.

A new method that creates large-area patterns of three-dimensional nanoshapes from metal sheets represents a potential manufacturing system to inexpensively mass produce innovations such as "plasmonic metamaterials" for advanced technologies.

The metamaterials have engineered surfaces that contain features, patterns or elements on the scale of nanometers that enable unprecedented control of light and could bring innovations such as high-speed electronics, advanced sensors and solar cells.

The study has been published in the journal Science.

The new method, called laser shock imprinting, creates shapes out of the crystalline forms of metals, potentially giving them ideal mechanical and optical properties using a bench-top system capable of mass producing the shapes inexpensively

The paper is authored by researchers from Purdue University, Harvard University, Madrid Institute for Advanced Studies, and the University of California, San Diego. The research is led by Gary Cheng, an associate professor of industrial engineering at Purdue.

 The shapes, which include nanopyramids, gears, bars, grooves and a fishnet pattern, are too small to be seen without specialized imaging instruments and are thousands of times thinner than the width of a human hair. The researchers used their technique to stamp nanoshapes out of titanium, aluminum, copper, gold and silver.

A key benefit of the shock-induced forming is sharply defined corners and vertical features, or high-fidelity structures.

"These nanoshapes also have extremely smooth surfaces, which is potentially very advantageous for commercial applications," Cheng said. "Traditionally it has been really difficult to deform a crystalline material into a nanomold much smaller than the grain size of starting materials, and due to the size effects the materials are super-strong when grain size has to be reduced to very small sizes. Therefore, it is very challenging to generate metal flow into nanomolds with high-fidelity 3D shaping."

The researchers also created hybrid structures that combine metal with graphene, an ultra-thin sheet of carbon promising for various technologies. Such a hybrid material could enhance the plasmonic effect and bring "metamaterial perfect absorbers," or MPAs, which have potential applications in optoelectronics and wireless communications.

"We can generate nanopatterns on metal-graphene hybrid materials, which opens new ways to pattern 2D crystals," Cheng said.

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The technique works by using a pulsed laser to generate "high strain rate" imprinting of metals into the nanomold.

"We start with a metal thin film, and we can deform it into 3D nanoshapes patterned over large areas," Cheng said. "What is more interesting is that the resulting 3D nanostructures are still crystalline after the imprinting process, which provides good electromagnetic and optical properties."

Whereas other researchers have created nanoshapes out of relatively soft or amorphous materials, the new research shows how to create nanoshapes out of hard and crystalline metals.

"These nanoshapes also have extremely smooth surfaces, which is potentially very advantageous for commercial applications."

The silicon nanomolds were fabricated at the Birck Nanotechnology Center in Purdue's Discovery Park by a research group led by Minghao Qi, an associate professor of electrical and computer engineering.

"It is counter-intuitive to use silicon for molds because it is a pretty brittle material compared to metals," Qi said. "However, after we deposit an ultrathin layer of aluminum oxide on the nanomolds, it performs extremely well for this purpose. The nanomolds could be reused many times without obvious damage. Part of the reason is that although the strain rate is very high, the shock pressure applied is only about 1-2 gigapascals."

The shapes were shown to have an "aspect ratio" as high as 5, meaning the height is five times greater than the width, an important feature for the performance of plasmonic metamaterials.

"It is a very challenging task from a fabrication point of view to create ultra-smooth, high-fidelity nanostructures," Qi says. "Normally when metals recrystallize they form grains and that makes them more or less rough. Previous trials to form metal nanostructures have had to resort to very high pressure imprinting of crystalline metals or imprinting amorphous metal, which either yields high roughness in crystalline metals or smooth surfaces in amorphous metals but very high electrical resistance. For potential applications in nanoelectronics, optoelectronics and plasmonics you want properties such as high precision, low electromagnetic loss, high electrical and thermal conductivity. You also want it to be very high fidelity in terms of the pattern, sharp corners, vertical sidewalls, and those are very difficult to obtain. Before Gary's breakthrough, I thought it unlikely to achieve all of the good qualities together."

Future research may focus on using the technique to create a roll-to-roll manufacturing system, which is used in many industries including paper and sheet-metal production and may be important for new applications such as flexible electronics and solar cells.


SOURCE  Purdue University

By 33rd Square

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 Medicine  

Technology has allowed doctors and patients alike to get more answers and have better access to health care. Here are just a few examples technology is making medicine better.

The world of health care has greatly benefited from technological advancements over the years. From X-rays and surgical devices to medical apps, we can all enjoy better health care at the hands of technology. Here are just a few ways improved health care is possible from modern advancements:

1. Sensors Save Lives

Sensors and wearable technology have life-saving potential. Medical alert pendants are one example. Electronic sensors detect falls in progress, and trigger the dispatch of medical responders. With the touch of a button, a person in an emergent state can summon immediate assistance.

The Sproutling baby monitor eliminates worry about SIDS, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and is an example of how sensors are impacting the medical field. It's a wearable device that straps onto a baby's ankle and interfaces with a base communication device and mobile app.

The system monitors a baby's heartbeat, body temperature, movement, and the noise level in a room. It also tracks a baby's sleep patterns and behaviors. There are many wearable sensors that can help with almost any health condition you may have.

2. Smartphones Monitor Health

Smartphone apps for health are cousins with wearable technology. Medical professionals use mobile apps to access diagnostic and treatment information. Their patients use apps to monitor body functions of food intake, calorie burn, and heart rate. Apple HealthKit and Google Fit can transmit this data directly to doctors.

The BRisk app, developed by a surgeon, includes values, formulas and tables to evaluate a woman's risk for breast cancer. The GI Monitor app logs symptoms of digestive disorders, such as ulcerative colitis, which can be used to tailor treatment.

Medical devices attached to smartphones have revolutionized health care. IBGStar is a blood glucose meter that plugs into an iPhone. It tracks carbohydrate intake, blood glucose, and insulin doses. The Withings Blood Pressure Monitor uses a cuff device that attaches to an iPhone. It records blood pressure, dates readings and stores results.

3. Less-Invasive Scanners Detect Pathology

Melanoma is the most deadly type of skin cancer. Until recently, the only way to accurately assess a mole for malignancy was by invasive surgical biopsy. The MelaFind Optical Scanner takes the guesswork out of cancer diagnosis, without surgery. Approved by the FDA, it is a hand-held tool that analyzes skin tissue. MelaFind uses technology initially developed for missile navigation to scan the surface of a suspicious lesion. The signals collected are then processed and compared with a photo registry of images.

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4. Technology Tracks Pregnancies

Physicians use ultrasound to track conditions of pregnancy. Obstetrical 4D ultrasound achieves the highest imaging quality. Ultrasounds are used to assess fetal growth, birth defects, amniotic fluid level, chromosome abnormalities, placental location and umbilical cord malformation. Pregnancy is also monitored with fetal heart rate machines. With the help of technology, doctors can track pregnancy milestones more easily and detect any health concerns.

5. Portal Technology Streamlines Healthcare

A patient portal is an online website that provides a point-of-contact between patients and doctors. With a username and password, you have 24-hour access to your personal health information. You can track lab results, medications and immunizations. You can download and complete forms to expedite office visits. Payments can be made. Many portals enable you to obtain prescription refills and referrals. You can schedule appointments. Some clinicians provide the opportunity to communicate via e-mail.

Even from home with the internet and smartphone apps, anyone can get more involved in their health care. Technology has allowed doctors and patients alike to get more answers and have better access to health care.


SOURCE  Dr. Gilbert Webb at Mercy.net

By Anita Ginsburg

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Author Bio - Anita Ginsburg is a freelance writer from Denver, CO and often writes about business, finance, education and home. She graduated from Colorado State University in 2004. A mother of two, she enjoys traveling with her family when she isn’t writing.

 Graphene  

A graphene, one-atom-thick microelectrode now solves a major problem for investigators looking at brain circuitry. Pinning down the details of how individual neural circuits operate in epilepsy and other brain disorders requires real-time observation of their locations, firing patterns, and other factors.

Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine and School of Engineering at the University of Pennsylvania and The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia have used graphene -- a two-dimensional form of carbon only one atom thick -- to fabricate a new type of microelectrode that solves a major problem for investigators looking to understand the intricate circuitry of the brain.

Pinning down the details of how individual neural circuits operate in epilepsy and other neurological disorders requires real-time observation of their locations, firing patterns, and other factors, using high-resolution optical imaging and electrophysiological recording. But traditional metallic microelectrodes are opaque and block the clinician's view and create shadows that can obscure important details. In the past, researchers could obtain either high-resolution optical images or electrophysiological data, but not both at the same time.

"We can [] look at other neurological disorders and try to understand the correlation between different neural circuits using this technique."

The Center for NeuroEngineering and Therapeutics (CNT), under the leadership of senior author Brian Litt, PhD, has solved this problem with the development of a completely transparent graphene microelectrode that allows for simultaneous optical imaging and electrophysiological recordings of neural circuits. Their work was published this week in Nature Communications.

"There are technologies that can give very high spatial resolution such as calcium imaging; there are technologies that can give high temporal resolution, such as electrophysiology, but there's no single technology that can provide both," says study co-first-author Duygu Kuzum, PhD. Along with co-author Hajime Takano, PhD, and their colleagues, Kuzum notes that the team developed a neuroelectrode technology based on graphene to achieve high spatial and temporal resolution simultaneously.

Aside from the obvious benefits of its transparency, graphene offers other advantages: "It can act as an anti-corrosive for metal surfaces to eliminate all corrosive electrochemical reactions in tissues," Kuzum says. "It's also inherently a low-noise material, which is important in neural recording because we try to get a high signal-to-noise ratio."

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While previous efforts have been made to construct transparent electrodes using indium tin oxide, they are expensive and highly brittle, making that substance ill-suited for microelectrode arrays. "Another advantage of graphene is that it's flexible, so we can make very thin, flexible electrodes that can hug the neural tissue," Kuzum notes.

In the study, Litt, Kuzum, and their colleagues performed calcium imaging of hippocampal slices in a rat model with both confocal and two-photon microscopy, while also conducting electrophysiological recordings. On an individual cell level, they were able to observe temporal details of seizures and seizure-like activity with very high resolution. The team also notes that the single-electrode techniques used in the Nature Communications study could be easily adapted to study other larger areas of the brain with more expansive arrays.

The graphene microelectrodes developed could have wider application. "They can be used in any application that we need to record electrical signals, such as cardiac pacemakers or peripheral nervous system stimulators," says Kuzum. Because of graphene's nonmagnetic and anti-corrosive properties, these probes "can also be a very promising technology to increase the longevity of neural implants." Graphene's nonmagnetic characteristics also allow for safe, artifact-free MRI reading, unlike metallic implants.

Kuzum emphasizes that the transparent graphene microelectrode technology was achieved through an interdisciplinary effort of CNT and the departments of Neuroscience, Pediatrics, and Materials Science at Penn and the division of Neurology at CHOP.

As the technology is further developed and used, Kuzum and her colleagues expect to gain greater insight into how the physiology of the brain can go awry. "It can provide information on neural circuits, which wasn't available before, because we didn't have the technology to probe them," she says. That information may include the identification of specific marker waveforms of brain electrical activity that can be mapped spatially and temporally to individual neural circuits. "We can also look at other neurological disorders and try to understand the correlation between different neural circuits using this technique," she says.




SOURCE  Penn Medicine

By 33rd Square

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 Medicine  

Technology is changing how people view and treat mental health disorders. With new sensors and data management tools, Silicon Valley is changing the face of mental health diagnostics.

D
iagnosing mental health disorders used to be gut-level. Clinicians shoveled deep into the minds of patients, and then filtered the responses through the most recent edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM). The accuracy of diagnoses was often proportional to the experience of the clinician, so pay for the best!

"Just as software bugs are often the cause of our computer problems, our mental motherboards can be done in by our psychological processing."

Now, Silicon Valley is changing the face of mental health diagnostics. Complex disorders are being reduced, diagnosed and treated as chemical imbalances and mechanical maladjustments. Kirsten Weir, writing for the June 2012 Monitor of Psychology, says, “Just as software bugs are often the cause of our computer problems, our mental motherboards can be done in by our psychological processing.” More and more, technology is changing how people view and treat mental health disorders.

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Skin Conductance Wristbands – Autism, Depression

The human wrist is a synopsis of the body’s internal cogworks. Wristband monitors can check heart rate, body temperature, macro-movement and skin conductance, sort of like mood rings. Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology wound wristbands on autistic children and discovered that a child’s outer actions may not accurately reflect his internal state. Scientists hope that these wristbands, or even sensor-equipped smartphones, will help explain autistic behavior, identify depression triggers, and report anxiety attacks.

Brain Positron Emission Tomography (PET) – Alzheimer’s, Schizophrenia

The PET process is simple: A glucose doppelganger, called a radiotracer, is injected into the bloodstream. As it travels, it emits positrons, like the beeps of a pager, which are picked up by a computer. The computer generates a 2D image of neurological metabolic activity. Currently, PET is used to diagnose and distinguish between Alzheimer’s disease and other forms of dementia. Physicians hope that PET will one day explore changes in neural activity in patients afflicted by schizophrenia.

Self-Learning MRI Database – Behavioral Development

During 2001 through 2007, the National Institute of Health (NIH) collected MRI data on more than 500 children at physiological milestones in their lives. The NIH released the data goldmine to qualified pediatricians under the simple idea: If physicians can see a good brain, they can recognize a bad brain. Judith Ramsey of the National Institute of Mental Health says, “Differences between boys and girls and relationships to cognitive and behavioral development can be used to understand individual differences or normal variability.”

Our mental health is becoming a hot button issue with the emergency of understanding of the human mind. The age of the pen and paper questionnaire is passing. Mental health will be much less mental; intuition will be replaced by sensors, ECUs – and maybe even wristbands. Progression in science and technology will help us unlock the secrets of the mind and with help from these sources we can have a better understanding of what our minds can do.

Information Credit: Mindset Consulting Group

By Meghan Belnap

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 Graphene  

Scientists have discovered a way to create a highly sensitive chemical sensor based on the crystalline flaws in graphene sheets. The imperfections have unique electronic properties that the researchers were able to exploit to increase sensitivity to absorbed gas molecules by 300 times.

Researchers have discovered a way to create a highly sensitive chemical sensor based on the crystalline flaws in graphene sheets. The imperfections have unique electronic properties that the researchers were able to exploit to increase sensitivity to absorbed gas molecules by 300 times.

The study is available online in advance of print in Nature Communications.

In many applications, grain boundaries are considered faults because they scatter electrons and may weaken the lattice. But Amin Salehi-Khojin and his colleagues showed that these imperfections are important to the working of graphene-based gas sensors.

The team created a micron-sized, individual graphene grain boundary in order to probe its electronic properties and study its role in gas sensing.

Their first discovery was that gas molecules are attracted to the grain boundary and accumulate there, rather than on the graphene crystal, making it the ideal spot for sensing gas molecules. A grain boundary’s electrical properties attract molecules to its surface.

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A theoretical chemistry group at UIC, led by Petr Kral, was able to explain this attraction and additional electronic properties of the grain boundary. The irregular nature of the grain boundary produces hundreds of electron-transport gaps with different sensitivities.

"We can easily fabricate chip-scale sensor arrays using these grain boundaries for real-world use.”

“It’s as though we have multiple switches in parallel,” said graduate student Poya Yasaei, first author on the paper. “Gas molecules accumulate on the grain boundary; there is a charge transfer; and, because these channels are all paralleled together, all the channels abruptly open or close. We see a very sharp response.”

Researchers have been trying to develop a highly sensitive and robust sensor for decades, said UIC postdoctoral fellow Bijandra Kumar, a co-author on the paper.

“We can synthesize these grain boundaries on a micrometer scale in a controlled way,” Kumar said. “We can easily fabricate chip-scale sensor arrays using these grain boundaries for real-world use.”
Salehi-Khojin said it should be possible to “tune” the electronic properties of graphene grain-boundary arrays using controlled doping to obtain a fingerprint response — thus creating a reliable and stable “electronic nose.”

With the grain boundary’s strong attraction for gas molecules and the extraordinarily sharp response to any charge transfer, such an electronic nose might be able to detect even a single gas molecule, Salehi-Khojin believes, and would make an ideal sensor.


SOURCE  University of Illinois at Chicago

By 33rd Square

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 Driving  

According to reports,  General Motors may soon be including a system in their vehicles that monitor drivers and prevent distracted driving. The safety system uses a series of cameras, motion sensors, and face recognition software, that allows the device to detect signs of distraction.

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n addition to various government agencies and road safety organizations, many car makers have actively joined the battle against distracted driving lately, after becoming aware of the disastrous impact it has on society. There is somewhat of a consensus among transportation authorities, law enforcement, and the auto industry, that technology can help fight distracted driving, and automakers have been urged by the Department of Transportation to try and develop high-tech solutions and strategies to deter drivers from engaging into activities that can take their attention away from driving and focus on the road.

One of the most promising in-car technology solutions unveiled lately is a system that can detect distracted driving behavior, developed by General Motors. As the Financial Times reports, the American car maker has developed an eye- and hand-tracking technology, which is supposed to be implemented in 500,000 vehicles that are set to be rolled out within the next three to five years.

Cameras will track the driver's head movements and facial expressions, and determine whether he/she has turned his/her eyes off the road for more than a couple of seconds, which could lead to a collision.

According to the report, Takata, a company that supplies GM with safety components, has signed a contract with Seeing Machines, an Australian manufacturer of sensing technologies and analytics, to supply the tracking devices that will be installed in various GM models. The solution developed by Seeing Machines involves a series of cameras, motion sensors, and face recognition software, that allows the device to detect signs of distraction. The cameras will track the driver's head movements and facial expressions, and determine whether he/she has turned his/her eyes off the road for more than a couple of seconds, which could lead to a collision.

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Than, if the sensors and the cameras detect some of these potentially dangerous eye and hand movements, the device will alert the driver and remind them that they need to keep their eyes on the road.

On top of the detecting distracted driving feature, the device will also be able to protect cars from theft, with a feature that can determine whether the person sitting behind the wheel is the car's owner, or another authorized user of the car. What's more, it will allow drivers to access mobile apps through eye movements, which will surely help eliminate a lot of potential distractions.

However, while technology is being touted as the ideal solution to distracted driving by some, others argue that it might deteriorate the problem even further. Some traffic safety experts are of the opinion that fitting vehicles with this kind of devices will only encourage drivers to do tasks that are not related to driving, thinking that the sensors and cameras will keep them safe, which does not help raise awareness of the consequences of distracted driving at all.

Be that as it may, in a time when there is no shortage of things that can distract a driver, these types of solutions are a good addition to the campaigns against this risky behavior, and with the introduction of these devices, General Motors wishes to demonstrate its commitment to contribute to the eradication of this epidemic on U.S. roads.

By Jordan Perch

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Author Bio - Jordan Perch is an automotive fanatic and “safe driving” specialist. He is a writer for DMV.com, which is a collaborative community designed to help ease the stress and annoyance of “dealing with the DMV.”