Wednesday, September 08, 2010
Johns Hopkins Neuroscientist’s Goal: A Prosthetic Limb with Feeling
From Johns Hopkins University
Johns Hopkins neuroscientist Steven Hsiao isn’t satisfied that a prosthetic limb simply allows its user to grasp or move something. He wants to provide the user the ability to feel what the artificial limb is touching, such as the texture and shape of a quarter, or experience the comforting perception of holding hands.
Hsiao is leading a team that is working to decode how the brain processes the multitude of sensations that come in daily through our fingers and hands, , which could lead to the development of truly “bionic” hands and arms that use sensitive electronics to activate neurons in the touch centers of the cerebral cortex.
In recent studies, Hsiao’s team found that neurons in the area of the brain that respond to touch are able to “code for” (understand) the orientation of bars pressed against the skin, the speed and direction of motion, and curved edges of objects.
Hsiao’s team’s investigations are among the 451 stimulus-funded research grants and supplements totaling more than $214.3 million that Johns Hopkins has won since Congress passed the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
Read the full article here.
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