Archive for the ‘cyborgs’ category: Page 126
Sep 5, 2015
Controversial Philosopher Says Man And Machine Will Fuse Into One Being
Posted by Scott Davis in categories: biotech/medical, cyborgs, engineering, genetics, singularity
The human being — especially in so-called “advanced civilizations” — is the animal that molds itself into its own pet.
Peter Sloterdijk is Germany’s most controversial thinker and media theorist. He has dared to challenge long-established divisions in traditional philosophy of body and soul, subject and object, culture and nature. His 1999 lecture on “Regulations for the Human Park,” in which he argued that genetic engineering was a continuation of human striving for self-creation, stirred up a tempest in a country known for Nazi eugenics. At the same time, he himself has concluded that “the taming of man has failed” as civilization’s potential for barbarism has grown ever greater. His seminal books include “Critique of Cynical Reason” and his trilogy, “Spheres.”
At a recent Berggruen Center on Philosophy and Culture symposium on humans and technology at Cambridge University’s St. John’s School of Divinity, The WorldPost discussed with Sloterdijk the end of borders between humans and technology, the cloud, singularity and identity in the age of globalization.
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Sep 3, 2015
Completely paralyzed man voluntarily moves his legs, UCLA scientists report
Posted by Sean Brazell in categories: biotech/medical, cyborgs, robotics/AI
Mark Pollock and trainer Simon O’Donnell (credit: Mark Pollock)
A 39-year-old man who had been completely paralyzed for four years was able to voluntarily control his leg muscles and take thousands of steps in a “robotic exoskeleton” device during five days of training, and for two weeks afterward, UCLA scientists report.
This is the first time that a person with chronic, complete paralysis has regained enough voluntary control to actively work with a robotic device designed to enhance mobility.
Aug 21, 2015
Passive exoskeleton to lighten the load for soldiers
Posted by Shailesh Prasad in category: cyborgs
Soldiers often have to carry over 100 lb (45 kg) of gear in a backpack, for several hours at a time. That’s why engineers at the Australia’s Department of Defence have developed a new exoskeleton, that diverts two thirds of pack weight directly to the ground.
Aug 21, 2015
Kid Gets Awesome New Bionic Hand, Reminds Us Not Everything is Garbage
Posted by Albert Sanchez in categories: cyborgs, transhumanism
https://youtube.com/watch?v=fAq7n2k5FkA
The stock market is tanking, North and South Korea are on the brink of war, and a cartoon character from a dystopian future is the most popular candidate for US President at the moment. But don’t despair. While most things are garbage, there are some things in the world that aren’t. Like this adorable kid who just got his own high-tech bionic hand.
Nine-year-old Josh Cathcart was often bullied in school for having just one hand. But he’s about to become the coolest kid in school, thanks to his new i-limb, developed by a company called Touch Bionics. The hand can be programmed via an iPad app.
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Aug 20, 2015
Here’s A Book That Adds a Fascinating New Dimension to Posthuman Space Opera
Posted by Sean Brazell in categories: cyborgs, entertainment, space
By now, the stories of humans transcending their limitations in space have become pretty much ubiquitous. We’ve had space cyborgs, space immortals, and tons of other posthumans in space. But the new novel Edge of Dark by Brenda Cooper still represents a fascinating new approach. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00?tag=lifeboatfound-20…
Aug 16, 2015
Body-hackers: The People Who Turn Themselves into Cyborgs
Posted by Bryan Gatton in category: cyborgs
Biohackers are installing USB drives in their fingertips and growing third ears on their arms. Welcome to the world of DIY cyborgs.
Aug 13, 2015
Brain-to-brain communication has arrived. How we did it
Posted by Shailesh Prasad in categories: biotech/medical, cyborgs, neuroscience
You may remember neuroscientist Miguel Nicolelis — he built the brain-controlled exoskeleton that allowed a paralyzed man to kick the first ball of the 2014 World Cup. What’s he working on now? Building ways for two minds (rats and monkeys, for now) to send messages brain to brain. Watch to the end for an experiment that, as he says, will go to “the limit of your imagination.”
Aug 10, 2015
Meet the designer behind these incredibly lifelike prosthetics
Posted by Albert Sanchez in categories: biotech/medical, cyborgs
Aug 9, 2015
WATCH: The dawn of the bionic man
Posted by Bryan Gatton in categories: biotech/medical, cyborgs, robotics/AI, transhumanism
Hugh Herr is building the next generation of bionic limbs, robotic prosthetics inspired by nature’s own designs. Herr lost both legs in a climbing accident 30 years ago; now, as the head of the MIT Media Lab’s Biomechatronics group, he shows his incredible technology in a talk that’s both technical and deeply personal — with the help of ballroom dancer Adrianne Haslet-Davis, who lost her left leg in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing, and performs again for the first time on the TED stage.