Our irrational fears are both very real and are also figments of our imagination. By manipulating what we think of as reality, researchers at Stanford University are working to understand the source of our anxieties and how to alleviate them. In order to do so, they built a virtual reality chamber where one’s fears can...
Category: <span>Devices</span>
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How Eye Tracking is Driving the Next Generation of AR and VR
AR and VR are gearing up for a giant leap forward thanks to advancements in eye-tracking technology. The industry has been experiencing a boom in recent years with hundreds of startups and heavy investment from tech giants including Google, Apple, Samsung, and Facebook. Despite all the activity, AR/VR hardware remains relatively crude. Most interfaces take...
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Fitbit’s Ionic to offer glucose monitoring for diabetics
The Fitbit Ionic starts shipping in October Launched late last month, Fitbit’s Ionic is the company’s attempt at claiming some territory from smartwatch heavyweights like Apple and Garmin. Now the feature-packed wearable is set to gain a handy new piece of functionality, with the ability to display glucose levels on the user’s wrist. Glucose monitoring has long shaped as a...
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A tiny device offers insights to how cancer spreads
Researchers develop a fluidic device to track over time which cancer cells lead the invasive march Cancer cells move through a microfluidic chamber. As cancer grows, it evolves. Individual cells become more aggressive and break away to flow through the body and spread to distant areas. What if there were a way to find those...
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Smartphone app scans pupils to detect concussions
The PupilScreen app uses the phone’s flash to stimulate the eye and the camera than captures a three-second video, looking for signs of concussion Severe concussions where a person is visibly shaken or knocked unconscious are obviously cause for concern, but milder ones that go undetected can also lead to dangerous health impacts down the track....
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Researchers develop 3-D-printed biomaterials that degrade on demand
The temporary structures, which can be degraded away with a biocompatible chemical trigger, could be useful in fabricating microfluidic devices, creating biomaterials that respond dynamically to stimuli and in patterning artificial tissue. PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — Brown University engineers have demonstrated a technique for making 3-D-printed biomaterials that can degrade on demand, which can be...
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How heating one ear to 42C while cooling the other to 17C could help to prevent migraines
Retro-style headphones that heat one ear while cooling the other could help to prevent migraines. Patients who wore them for just 30 minutes a day over a three-month period suffered half their usual number of attacks, and were also able to cut down their use of preventive drugs, according to a new study. Researchers believe...
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New app replaces ultrasound with smartphone camera to measure heart health
Human heart. Want to know how healthy your heart is? Now there’s an app for that. In a proof-of-concept clinical trial, engineers at Caltech, Huntington Medical Research Institute, and USC have demonstrated that the camera on your smartphone can noninvasively provide detailed information about your heart’s health. What used to require a 45-minute scan...
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Learning to improve foot control in cerebral palsy
A device to measure foot control is being trialled to improve walking ability for adolescents and young adults with cerebral palsy. Shari O’Brien, a researcher from The University of Queensland’s School of Human Movement and Nutrition Sciences is assessing if the device combined with ankle training will reduce tripping and injuries caused from poor muscle control...
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Google Glass is back — as a tool to coach autistic children, train doctors, and more
OAKLAND, Calif. — Google Glass, not long ago a laughing stock of the tech world, has been reinvented as a hot new accessory for doctors and patients. The pricey, web-connected eyewear computer, sold to consumers on a limited basis by the Silicon Valley titan from 2013 through early 2015, briefly seemed to be the next big...