From human organ printing to hologram TV, here are 10 technologies that come straight from the future.
10. Printing Human Organs: 3D Bio printer already capable of growing
arteries, hearts, teeth and bones possible within 10 years. Dying
patients could someday receive a 3D-printed organ made from their own
cells rather than wait on long lists for the short supply of organ
transplants. Such a futuristic dream remains far from reality, but
university labs and private companies have already taken the first
careful steps by using 3D-printing technology to build tiny chunks of
organs. Regenerative medicine has already implanted lab-grown skin,
tracheas and bladders into patients — body parts grown slowly through a
combination of artificial scaffolds and living human cells. By
comparison, 3D-printing technology offers both greater speed and
computer-guided precision in printing living cells layer by layer to
make replacement skin, body parts and perhaps eventually organs such as
hearts, livers and kidneys. Tiny kidneys are world's first 3D printed
living organs. Two years ago, Anthony Atala took to the stage at TED and
showed the world that human organs could be 3D printed. Now, a team
from eastern China has successfully printed a series of living kidneys.
This is a huge step forward in the quest for 3D printed replacement
organs.
9. Big Dog: Dynamically Stable quadruped robot was created in 2005 by
Boston Dynamics, NASA and Harvard. BigDog is a rough-terrain robot that
walks, runs, climbs and carries heavy loads. BigDog is powered by an
engine that drives a hydraulic actuation system. BigDog has four legs
that are articulated like an animal’s, with compliant elements to absorb
shock and recycle energy from one step to the next. BigDog is the size
of a large dog or small mule; about 3 feet long, 2.5 feet tall and
weighs 240 lbs. BigDog runs at 4 mph, climbs slopes up to 35 degrees,
walks across rubble, climbs muddy hiking trails, walks in snow and
water, and carries 340 lb load.
8. Thought Controlled Prosthetics: Research Organisation is US is
currently testing robotics limbs to be controlled by brain via an
implanted chip. A team of scientists are getting closer to the holy
grail of brain-powered prosthetics by developing the first
advanced-movement prosthetic leg that communicates with the wearer’s
mind. The first Mind-Controlled Bionic Leg used by Zac Vawter and now
he’s the “test pilot” for the first bionic leg that can complete tasks
like going up stairs or down slopes, all controlled by Vawter’s mind.
7. Wireless Power: Systems that can deliver Electricity to devices
without the need for wires were showcased back in 2008. Wireless power
or wireless energy transmission is the transmission of electrical energy
from a power source to an electrical load without man-made conductors.
Wireless transmission is useful in cases where interconnecting wires are
inconvenient, hazardous, or impossible. The problem of wireless power
transmission differs from that of wireless telecommunications, such as
radio. In the latter, the proportion of energy received becomes critical
only if it is too low for the signal to be distinguished from the
background noise. With wireless power, efficiency is the more
significant parameter. A large part of the energy sent out by the
generating plant must arrive at the receiver or receivers to make the
system economical.
6. Retinal Implants: Researchers at Germany's Tuebingen University
successfully tested implants allowed blind peoples to see shapes and
objects. Retinal implant restores partial sight to blind people. Some
previously blind patients fitted with retinal implant could read signs,
tell the time and distinguish white wine from red Blind people have
described smiles on friendly faces, the food on their plates, and
household objects from telephones to dustbins, after surgeons fitted
them with electronic chips to partially restore their vision.
5. Hologram TV: With Prototypes unveiled back in 2006, Japanese
Broadcaster NHK plans household hologram TVs in 2017. New methods for
producing color holographic video are here, and they could lead to
cheaper, higher res and more energy efficient TVs. Daniel Smalley, a
researcher at MIT, built a holographic display with about the same
resolution as a standard-definition TV, which is able to depict motion
because it updates its image 30 times a second. The display is run by an
optical chip that Smalley made in his lab for about $10. If the process
can be perfected, it will be much more efficient than LCD technology
and has the potential to change how TVs are made.
4. Cloaking Devices: Using crystals and metamaterials, scientists in the
UK successfully managed to make a paperclip 'invisible'. A cloaking
device is a theoretical or fictional stealth technology that can cause
objects, such as spaceships or individuals, to be partially or wholly
invisible to parts of the electromagnetic (EM) spectrum. However over
the entire spectrum, cloaking device scatters more than the uncloaked
object. Metamaterials are used to make objects with refractive indices
between zero and 1. The team used metamaterials to make their cloaking
device have gradually varying refractive indices -- from 1 on the
outside of the device, decreasing to zero in the center. The result is
that microwave light subtly bends around the device and is able to
reform on the other side, albeit with some detectable distortion.
3. Hover Cars: Israeli company currently testing unmanned aerial vehicle
for battlefield evacuations. A flying car is a hypothetical personal
aircraft that provides door-to-door aerial transportation (e.g., from
home to work or to the supermarket) as conveniently as a car and without
the requirement for roads, runways or other specially-prepared
operating areas. Such aircraft lack any visible means of propulsion
(unlike fixed-wing aircraft or helicopters) so they can be operated at
urban areas, close to buildings, people and other obstructions. Urban
Aeronautics X-Hawk, Moller Skycar M400, Terrafugia TF-X are some already
tested.
2. Exoskeleton: Exoskeletons that can enhance human ability to run, jump
and carry heavy loads are into their final testing stages. Definition
an exoskeleton is a skeleton on the outside of the body. One example of
an exoskeleton is the hard outer covering that makes up the skeleton of
many insects. However, today there is a new invention that claims the
name of "exoskeleton". Exoskeletons for human performance augmentation
is a new type of body army being developed for soldiers that will
significantly increase their capacity. An exoskeleton will allow you to
carry more without feeling the weight, and move faster too.
1. Force Fields: The UK Military has successfully tested 'force fields'
(Effectively electro-magnetic pulses) to protect military vehicles.
While EMP weapons are generally considered non-lethal, they could easily
kill people if they were directed towards particular targets. If an EMP
knocked out a hospital's electricity, for example, any patient on life
support would die immediately. An EMP weapon could also neutralize
vehicles, including aircraft, causing catastrophic accidents. In the
end, the most far-reaching effect of an e-bomb could be psychological. A
full-scale EMP attack in a developed country would instantly bring
modern life to a screeching halt. There would be plenty of survivors,
but they would find themselves in a very different world.
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