An increasing number of people are choosing to implant themselves with microchips. But conspiracy theories about the practice exploit fears surrounding body autonomy.
Unlike condoms, which need to be used every time with sex, or the pill, which must be taken every day, LARC doesn’t require any action after placement in the body and is immediately reversible.
A fern repeats its pattern at various scales.
Michael
Fractals are patterns that repeat at increasingly fine magnifications. They turn up in the natural world and in artists' work. Research suggests they contribute to making something aesthetically appealing.
Open-source code can be a literal lifesaver.
Christiaan Colen/flickr
A new community is experimenting on their own bodies with electronic implants, says the man who pioneered the idea nearly 20 years ago.
High-rise buildings amid shacks in Luanda. President Dos Santo has announced plans to retire amid growing unease among Angolans over deepening poverty despite a recent oil boom.
Reuters/Siphiwe Sibeko
Angola's Dos Santos is buying time. His promise to step down is an attempt to diffuse growing political tensions, as repression continues. He might relinquish his position, but not his power.
Silver can be an effective antibacterial when treated in special ways.
Silver image via www.shutterstock.com.
Joint replacement surgery comes with a big risk of infection. New implant technology that can release silver ions inside the body could help – and without increasing antibiotic resistance.
Ian Burkhart moves his paralysed hand using the thought-controlled Neurobridge brain implant.
Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center
Don’t be mesmerised by cool apps and flashy new gizmos – the top technology inventions of the year are ones that will have a lasting effect. Most are advances in fields that are already changing us. Some…
The floodgates are open, bring on the age of 3D printing.
S zillayali
The news that a man in Wales was able to have his face reconstructed after a serious motorbike accident has brought the wonder of 3D printing to the mainstream. It’s the result of changes in regulation…
A woman drinks using a robotic arm, something she hasn’t been able to do with her own arms for 15 years.
Nature
The world of brain-machine interfacing (BMI) has a new posterchild. A study on people with tetraplegia, published in Nature, has shown participants were able to control a robotic arm and hand over a broad…