Prosthetic Research Presentation Overview: Final Graded Posting

     On Friday, December 11th, of 2009, I presented the results of my research in emerging prosthetic technologies in front of my COM 435 class.  The experience was actually pretty awesome.  The way that the whole thing is supposed to work is that half of the class is composed of presenters while the other half walks around and learns about the research while tweeting for all to see.  The posters and presenters were organized into rows of posters on both sides, like walking down grocery store aisles of poster boards.  The coolest part about this whole thing was the fact that very few of the presentations were similar and all of them were very exciting new ideas.  They were also mostly practical as well, meaning that things like Google Voice, a Power Mat, virtual realities for video games, and wireless computer-brained dung beetles were all things that I could take home and make a useful in my life.  Maybe the last one on that list would be a stretch but at least it would be entertaining.

     My presentation was over prosthetic technologies, especially in areas that I have been focusing on for my senior design project.  I was able to blend multiple forms of media by showing a poster which looked like this:

I also was able to borrow my senior design group's prosthetic leg for display.  I actually ended up wearing the prosthetic leg during the presentation because people were not quite making it to our row due to the fact that a presenter near our row brought a solar powered go-cart that everyone just rushed to without taking a glance down our row of posters.  I thought that if I put on the leg and started hobbling around, at the very least someone would come over to investigate the odd-looking device.  This strategy seemed to work and I finally got to talk to some people about new technologies in the world of prosthetics.  The leg looked like this:

So it is easy to see why this got significant attention even in the face of a really cool go-cart.  I also managed to fit in a video, that I have previously blogged about.  The whole presentation was about the social, communications impact of devices like this one that are changing the way we think about people that have disabilities.  The concept was that legs like this one have the ability to allow people to jump higher than normal and lower the metabolic output of the body by decreasing effort expelled during activities.  These improvements would not just return the normal ability of the body, but actually improve upon it.  That means that losing a limb would no longer be a detriment, but an opportunity to have a piece of cyborg technology enhance the physical abilities of the body.  Some day, mental abilities will be added to that list as well.  If you wish to know more about my project technically then take a look at my previous postings, as I am have covered this topic throughout the semester.

Favorite Android App of the Day

Where's My Droid:  There are some pretty cool applications that come along with Android phones, but is is somewhat safe to say that this application knocks most of them out of the water.  So the question that you should ask yourself before you rush out and install this app is, "do I lose my phone often or am I very fearful of losing my phone?".  If the answer is 'yes', which it should be regardless because everyone knows that it sucks to lose your phone, then this is the application for you.
                Say, for example, that I lose my phone.  Using this application, I can txt my cell phone a special code word that the cell phone is wired to detect.  If the word matches that of the phone then, regardless of whether the phone is on vibrate or silent, the phone starts to ring so that anyone can hear where the phone is located.  This is useful if a person has just misplaced the phone, it saves on battery power, but it does not help solve larger phone loss problems.
                Do not be worried though, because I can also text the phone a different code word.  This code word will activate the private GPS locator in my phone and send the txting cell phone the coordinates of my phone.  It will also send a web link to my e-mail that will connect me with Google Maps and a pinpointed location of my phone.  There is absolutely no way that I can lose my phone now, unless the battery power dies before I can get to it, or someone is literally on the run with my kidnapped phone.  I know that this sounds unreal, but I have tested this function out to its fullest and let me tell you, this works on an almost scary level.

Favorite Android App of the Day

GTasks - Beta:  This is a really new application that is being tested on the general population right now, and so far it is working great.  The concept here is that everything else on Android phones seems to synchronize automatically with everything Google.  Your calendars are loaded, your e-mails are loaded, your blogs are loaded, and so on and so forth.  Well, for the avid users of Google Tasks, such as myself, this is the first application that syncs with it.
      Just in case anyone does not know, Google Tasks is a simple tasks list that people can use to keep track of the things that they have to do in a day, a week, a year, etc. on a list-by-list basis.  It is a simple application and so is the program Google Tasks, so the two blend very well.  The program does have a very import use though for people who constantly are asking themselves, "so what did I have to do today?" or "I know that I came in here for something, but what was it?".  My day runs smoother anyway because of this program.
       I do not usually recommend betas of software, nor the first models of any products because these are all things that still possess the ability to explode, literally or figuratively.  Most of the time it is just not worth the risk, but in this simplistic case, you are safe.

Intelligent Prosthesis Design Demonstration

        So today, as a group, Team Kid Kangaroo, had to perform its final design demonstration.  This is where we get to show off all the things that we have done during the semester.  Some are shiny and some are dull.  Some function and some... 'dysfunction'.  Good for everyone reading this, ours was recorded.  You will notice that in this video yours truly has three legs.  The only way that we could simulate a transtibial amputation (a cut right through the tibia or shin) was to design a device that would cock my real leg back in order to let the artificial prosthesis take over.  The leg cocked back is not actually touching the ground with only a few exceptions throughout the entire video.
       We do several tests all during the course of the same video, so make sure to pay attention.  This is really just something fun that I would like to bring to everyone's attention.  The final presentation of this prosthetic will actually take place on Thursday, 17th of November, from 3 to 6 PM in the Martin Jishke Biomedical Engineering Building.  This is the crescent shaped glass building on the East side of Martin Jishke Rd. south of State St.  Some tests to look forward to are the 'c-walk' test, shown after the first initial walking and the maximum load testing at the very end.  Enjoy!

Favorite Android App of the Day

Gmote:  This application allows your cell phone to browse any folder in your computer's library and play the contents of any folders either through your computer or, now, through your phone.  This application also has a touch pad that you can use to impress your friends by moving the mouse around by simply moving your finger on your cell phone screen.  The gmote is based on proximity, so you can't be a mile away and expect this application to work.  Also the computer or device of choice has to be activated or on when in use or the gmote will not be able to connect.  There is also a way to connect your cell phone to your television using this technology, but that is for another day when I have more time on my hands.

2009 Nobel Peace Prize Causes Ironic Unrest

This maybe just a little bit more of a passing thought that is incredibly out of date, but I just think it is noteworthy to take the time and examine the cause and effect of the Nobel Peace Prize (NPP) selection.  This is a group that takes it upon themselves to analyze the overarching contributors to peace, over long periods of time, and decide who has made the largest strides.  Atleast that was the initial pupose behind the NPP.  In the last century there have been several occasions where the NPP committee has selected a recipient whom the council has placed confidence of future strides towards peace.  This is not to say that this is a bad thing, for if anything, the award is being used to create peace in the world through motivation.  I think that this is what the committee was trying to do in the case of electing President Obama as the NPP recipient.  The reason that this could possibly cause turmoil is the fact that President Obama was certainly not the one on the list of potentials that had completed the most work towards peace.  For people that believe the NPP is to be used to recognized works of the past, this represents a problem.
       In terms of communication advancement, I believe that what the NPP Council is doing is actually a good thing.  They have taken a form of communication (recognition) in its simplest form (an award) and turned it into a method of world wide motivation.  Single-handedly the council instilled a sense of purpose and determination in the Obama peace campaign, while at the same time focusing the efforts and confidences of people, ordinarty citizens, looking to work towards peace.  Not all emerging communication modes need to brand spanking new.

Favorite Android App of the Day

       BarCode Scanner:   This is an incredibly fun and lively application for shopping, searching for bargains, and just plain impressing your friends.  What is fun about this application is that there is not a single barcode that the scanner can't compute.  There may be several that take the phone a little longer than others to find, and the choices of alternate products may sometimes be limited, but if you can even one item that is cheaper somewhere else that you already visit, then this app just bought itself.  This is because all of the best barcode scanners are free. It does take a tad bit of finness and talent to get the phone to recognize the barcode, so before showing off make sure to practice on difficult things like cans of Sprite.  Other than that, a few more applications and you are on your way to being the greatest multi-media bargain shopper on the planet.