Tip:
Highlight text to annotate it
X
A new super-stretchy polymer material from Stanford University can heal itself at room
temperature and could lead to self-healing electronic circuits as well as electronic
skin for prosthetics and robots.
And EPFL scientists have proposed a new model for understanding how the brain processes
information. Suggesting that stimulus is processed unconsciously and then perceived consciously
in 400 millisecond intervals called Time Slices.
Vsauce! Kevin here. This is Mind Blow.
Teslaphoresis causes nanowire to remotely assemble using a force field. A Tesla coil
designed by researchers from Rice University oscillates positive and negative charges in
each carbon nanotube which causes them to chain together. They created a functioning
circuit connecting two LEDs that is powered by the tesla coil field. It’s the first
time electric fields have been observed moving matter on a large scale and they believe this
could lead to breakthroughs in regenerative medicine, and artificial systems that can
self-assemble without physical contact.
SkinHaptics uses ultrasound to provide tactile feedback for interfaces on your hand. The
array emits ultrasound through the back of the hand to create sensation in a focused
point of the palm. The prototype is admittedly large but they’re already working on a significantly
smaller version - with the plan one day to implement this alongside flexible screen technology
to turn your hand into an interactive electronic device.
Which could pair quite nicely with ultraflexible organic photonic skin. The smart e-skin system,
developed at the University of Tokyo, allows for a two-color logo display as well as a
red seven-segment digital display. Along with being a display that’s one order magnitude
thinner than the epidermal layer of skin, the plan is for this to also monitor health
by measuring oxygen levels in the blood. Challenges to further development include protecting
the e-skin from being destroyed and finding a power source like flexible batteries or
the energy from harvesting your body heat.
A neural bypass is allowing a man to retrain his paralyzed hand. In 2014, researchers at
The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center implanted a chip in Ian Burkhart’s brain
- an algorithm then translates his thoughts into impulses for a sleeve on his arm, bypassing
his spinal cord. In less than two years of working with and training the system he’s
gone from picking up a spoon to playing Guitar Hero and swiping credit cards. And they’re
confident this system could help stroke victims as well as differently abled people in the
future.
We may be one step closer to functional smart-clothes. Researchers at Ohio State University were
able to embroider circuits into fabric with 0.1mm precision, a perfect size to incorporate
sensors and memory devices into clothes. Further development could see smart phone antennas
in shirts, performance-monitoring sports equipment, and even bandages that can tell your doctor
how tissue is healing. The best part is the embroidered wires feel the same as typical
thread.
Mind Blow #43 back in June 2012, featured Joggobot - a drone designed to accompany joggers
by using tracking markers on a special t-shirt. Well Skydio is a new drone that autonomously
follows bikers and joggers while avoiding obstacles without requiring special clothing.
It uses a multi-camera array and onboard computing to map and plan its navigation rather than
simply reacting to things it might crash into. While this is just a prototype - their goal
is to bring it to consumers and in their words create a “magical experience.”
Finally, check out this new augmented reality demo from Magic Leap - this video is shot
through the mixed reality technology.
I’m gonna leave you with an animation from NASA on the future of space exploration. And
as always - thanks for watching.
Fingertip shopping will be one of the many homemaker's conveniences. This video console
will be channeled into the store of her choice. There, a camera will scan a display of wares
she which will select by push button. What the wife selects on her console, will be paid
for by the husband at his counterpart console. All bills and transactions will be carried
out electronically. Also at his disposal, is an electronic correspondence machine or
home post office. Which allows for instant written communication between individuals
anywhere in the world.