Friday, April 20, 2007

Waldos for brain surgery

Pic:Dr. Garnette Sutherland, a neurosurgeon at the University of Calgary faculty of medicine, demonstrates how a new robot arm will do brain surgery in Calgary, Alberta April 17, 2007. REUTERS/Todd Korol

A Waldo, from Heinlein's short story of that name, is: "a device which, through electronic, hydraulic, or mechanical linkages, allows a hand-like mechanism to be controlled by a human operator in a different location. " I think I still have this story around, and it's definitely worth reading.
"Canadian scientists and engineers have developed a robot with a keen sense of touch that will let doctors perform microscopic operations on the brain using the most vivid visuals yet...A melding of brain surgery and rocket science, the neuroArm allows neurosurgeons to do their riskiest work on patients within a magnetic resonance imaging machine, or MRI, giving a clear 3-D picture of even the smallest nerves."

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