Tag: Featured

  • “Cognitive Dress” colors reflect observer emotions

    “Cognitive Dress” colors reflect observer emotions

    At the Met Gala, New York’s most sought-after invitation, Karolina Kurkova wore a Marchesa dress that was powered by IBM Watson to react to social media sentiment in real-time. The “Cognitive Dress” was covered in LED embedded fabric flowers that lit in colors to reflect joy, passion, excitement, encouragement and curiosity, as expressed on twitter.…

  • Lung function analyzed via phone, from anywhere

    Lung function analyzed via phone, from anywhere

    Mayank Goel and University of Washington colleagues have developed SpiroCall, a system that measures lung function by analyzing a caller’s voice via smartphone, landline or payphone microphone. An algorithm uses the phone microphone as an uncalibrated pressure sensor.  Captured audio is converted into an estimate of the flow-rate of air exiting from a patient’s mouth.…

  • Vision enhancing, injectable smart lens

    Vision enhancing, injectable smart lens

    Google has filed a patent for a vision enhancing, injectable smart lens. The “intraocular device” is meant to replace one’s natural lens, and focus light onto the eye’s retina. It is injected into the eye in a solution that congeals and attaches to the lens capsule.   It will contain its own storage, and tiny radio components that…

  • Non-invasive electric field treatment for glioblastoma

    Non-invasive electric field treatment for glioblastoma

    Optune by Novocure  uses targeted electric fields to disrupt cancer cell division and cause cancer cell death.  500 hospitals globally can prescribe the FDA approved treatment to glioblastoma patients. “Tumor Treating Fields” are low intensity, alternating electric fields within the intermediate frequency range. TTFields disrupt cell division through physical interactions with key molecules during mitosis.…

  • Anxiety reducing VR game

    Anxiety reducing VR game

    Deep VR teaches breathing techniques meant to reduce the anxiety of users during a game. Its developers believe that the skills learned can also help manage stress during daily life. It is the basis of a Radboud University study, in the lab of Isabela Granic, that aims to alleviate anxiety in children.  100 children have…

  • Semantic brain atlas created with fMRI

    Semantic brain atlas created with fMRI

    Jack Gallant and Berkeley colleagues have used fMRI to understand how language-related information is represented and processed in the human brain.  Brain blood flow changes were measured once every second, as subjects listened to natural narrative stories. Mathematical models and big data analysis were used to create detailed maps, showing how different aspects of language…

  • Sports camera collects, overlays health data

    Sports camera collects, overlays health data

    As part of its new developer program, GoPro has partnered with Polar to overlay health data on videos. Similar to video games, sports videos will be able to display heart rate, speed, distance, and altitude.  This has been presented as a fun feature, but could also provide physicians with a better understanding of one’s health in various…

  • Heart monitoring patch tracks patients post-discharge

    BeVITAL by Vital Connect, in partnership with BePatient, is a clinical grade, continuous, heart monitoring wearable, and data sharing system, for the early detection of abnormalities post-discharge. The thin, disposable patch adheres to the chest, and tracks heart activity, breathing, temperature, movement, posture, and falls. It can be used for 4 days, and transmits data to a…

  • “Mixed Reality” headset could support surgery, rehab, learning

    “Mixed Reality” headset could support surgery, rehab, learning

    Magic Leap has unveiled its “mixed reality” headset, where  virtual objects are integrated into the real world.  In addition to obvious gaming and entertainment applications, the system could be used in healthcare (including in surgery, surgery preparation, and orthopedic rehabilitation) and education. The company remains vague in its description of its technology, but head and…

  • EEG “password” uses stimulus response to confirm identity

    EEG “password” uses stimulus response to confirm identity

    Binghamton researchers have developed an EEG “brainprint” system that can identify people with 100 per cent accuracy, according to a recent study. A brain-password is recorded when a user’s stimulus response activity is recorded via EEG. Identity is then confirmed by exposing the user to the same stimulus,  recording their response, and using a pattern…

  • Ultraflexible OLED “skin” can monitor pulse, blood oxygen

    Ultraflexible OLED “skin” can monitor pulse, blood oxygen

    Takao Someya  has developed OLED-embedded electronic “skin” for health monitoring applications –particularly pulse monitoring and blood oxygen sensing — at the University of Tokyo. It is thin, and can move with the skin and body, eliminating the need for rigid glass or plastic substrates, and potentially replacing health monitoring devices. Previous attempts at skin-display tech could only…

  • Avatar and robot based games to treat social anxiety

    Avatar and robot based games to treat social anxiety

    AlterEgo is  an interdisciplinary collaboration that is investigating  a “new robotic-based clinical method” to help people suffering from social anxiety.  The scientists believe that lookalike avatars and robots can be a more comfortable interaction for patients, facilitating a more effective therapeutic experience. According to project lead Krasimira Tsaneve-Atanasova: “This resemblance can be morphological (form of a…