ApplySci – Deep Tech Health + Neurotech

Scientist-led conferences at Harvard, Stanford and MIT

  • fMRI and machine learning identify emotions

    http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0066032 Carnegie Mellon researchers have developed “a new method with the potential to identify emotions without relying on people’s ability to self-report” using a combination of fMRI and machine learning. They recruited 10 actors from the university’s drama school to act out emotions including anger, happiness, pride and shame, while inside an fMRI scanner,  multiple times in…

  • Insulin pump detects overnight hypoglycemia, shuts off automatically

    http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-06-22/medtronic-insulin-pump-cuts-deadly-night-blood-sugar-lows.html Medtronic has designed an insulin pump that temporarily shuts off when blood sugar levels fall too low—a key advance in the effort to fully automate the delivery of insulin in diabetes patients.  Current technology allows people who use insulin pumps to wear a sensor that measures the amount of blood sugar in the body, which…

  • Crowdfunded, 3D printed “Robohands” provide dexterity to children with out fingers

    http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2013/06/18/191279201/3-d-printer-brings-dexterity-to-children-with-no-fingers A Robohand is a customized, fitted set of mechanical fingers that open and close to grasp things based on the motion of the wrist.  When the wrist folds and contracts, the cables attaching the fingers to the base structure cause the fingers to curl.  Nearly all the parts of a Robohand are 3D printed…

  • Artificial spleen-on-a-chip to treat sepsis

    http://wyss.harvard.edu/viewpressrelease/108/ Harvard researchers are developing a device that could be used to rapidly remove pathogens from the blood of patients with sepsis.  The dialysis-like machine acts as an artificial spleen, filtering the blood using injectable magnetic nanobeads engineered to stick to microorganisms and toxins.  After the beads are injected, blood is removed and run through a…

  • Highly detailed 3-D brain image unveiled

    http://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/biomedical/imaging/bigbrain-project-makes-terabyte-map-of-a-human-brain Canadian and German neuroscientists have unveiled the most detailed 3-D image of the human brain to date.  It reveals structures as tiny as 20 microns, 50 times smaller than those created using the best MRI technology.  The image, created as part of a project called the BigBrain, is part of a larger effort to…

  • Low cost GPU based neural network simulates the brain

    http://stanford.edu/~acoates/papers/CoatesHuvalWangWuNgCatanzaro_icml2013.pdf In a new paper, Stanford’s Andrew Ng describes how to use graphics microprocessors to build a $20,000 computerized brain that is similar to the cat-detector he developed with Google last year for $1M. To test his hypothesis about GPU-driven Deep Learning, he also built a larger version of the platform for $100,000.  It utilized…

  • Sensor based fall detector for seniors

    http://www.theengineer.co.uk/medical-and-healthcare/news/fall-sensor-for-elderly-receives-2m-to-improve-technology/1016542.article Vigi’Fall detects falls using multidimensional contextual analysis.  It is a miniature accelerometric box attached to the chest with an adhesive patch.  Motion sensors are placed in several rooms of the home and doubt-removal software is placed in a home box.  The system is linked to a remote call center which contacts rescue teams in the…

  • Sports sensors warn of head injury

    http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/16/business/a-wearable-alert-to-head-injuries-in-sports.html?_r=0 The New York Times reports on the growing trend of sensor based protection/early warning systems for athletes. The devices, packed with sensors and microprocessors, register a blow to a player’s skull and immediately signal the news by blinking brightly, or by sending a wireless alert.  Algorithms evaluate the impact and determine severity.  

  • Brain imaging technique for early movement disorder diagnosis

    http://news.ufl.edu/2013/06/13/brain-imaging/ Professor David Vaillancourt of the University of Florida believes that a diffusion tensor imaging technique could allow clinicians to assess movement disorders earlier, leading to improved treatment interventions and therapies. Movement disorders such as Parkinson’s disease, essential tremor, multiple system atrophy and progressive supranuclear palsy exhibit similar symptoms in the early stages, which can make…

  • Brain scans and depression treatment outcomes

    http://archpsyc.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1696349 In an NIH funded clinical trial, researchers at Emory University have discovered that specific patterns of brain activity may indicate whether a depressed patient will or will not respond to treatment with medication or psychotherapy. Professor Helen Mayberg, MD and colleagues used PET scans to measure brain glucose metabolism, an important index of brain functioning…

  • Nanotube sensor detects skin cancer

    http://www.monell.org/news/news_releases/monell_led_research_identifies_scent_of_melanoma A study from the Monell Center and the University of Pennsylvania suggests that non-invasive odor analysis may be a valuable technique in the detection and early diagnosis of human melanoma.  The researchers used sophisticated sampling and analytical techniques to identify VOCs from melanoma cells at three stages of the disease, as well as from normal…

  • Nanotube sensor detects Lyme disease

    http://www.upenn.edu/pennnews/news/penn-researchers-attach-lyme-disease-antibodies-nanotubes-paving-way-diagnostic-device A team led by Professor A. T. Charlie Johnson of the University of Pennsylvania has developed a biosensor from carbon-nanotube transistors that can rapidly detect the antigens of Lyme disease. The device can detect the biomarkers at concentrations as low as 1 ng/ml. The group’s work is a continuation of similar strategies to detect prostate cancer…

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