Mike Booen, vice president of Raytheon’s advanced security and directed energy systems, has “a vision”: “We want to get to the point where it’s a hand-held device.” “It” is the assault intervention device. Development in that direction is underway. More »
Good lord that looks painful—but the folks behind the R.E.M Spring hair removal tool claim that it can remove unwanted hair by the root without irritation.
This device certainly isn’t new, but it’s one of those obscure, scary looking medical contraptions that make you feel uncomfortable just looking at it.
If you’ve ever been afraid that you’ve already popped one too many advils, but the pain still hasn’t gone away, an Israeli medical company is offering a less medicated version of relief in the form of ultrasound. NanoVibronix’ PainShield MD, which just received FDA clearance to be marketed in the U.S., uses therapeutic ultrasound waves to treat pain and encourage soft tissue healing.
Adam Hammond, a former member of the U.S. Army’s “Golden Knights” Parachute Team, has become the first recipient of the Eon Mini—the world’s smallest spinal cord stimulator. After suffering a broken femur, a shattered pelvis and a severed spine in an epic parachute fail a few years ago, it seemed that Hammond would be condemned to a life of severe chronic pain. Doctors hoped that implanting the new Eon Mini would offer a solution by delivering repeated mild electrical impulses to the spinal cord. So far, Hammond claims that the device offers “significant pain relief” and that he was able to “walk twice as far” as he could previously.
The Accupal won’t make your next root canal painless, but it will lessen the sting of the needle. Essentially an ultrasonic toothbrush with a hole in it, when coupled with minor amounts of topical anesthetic, you can apparently poke and prod someone’s mouth all day without pain. It seems to work through a combination of loosening/stretching the tissue (so the needle goes in easier) and slightly numbing the tissue (we assume by overloading those nerves with all the vibration). Regardless, we hope our flossing regimen pays off to the point that we never discover if this thing really works. [Accupal via Medgadget]
The final project of a team from Cornell University, this electronic hogu, modelled above by a lantern-jawed mannequin called Bob, uses piezoelectric sensors and a microcontroller to measure the kicks and punches between contestants in a Tae Kwan Do bout. Piezoelectric sensors and a microcontroller are implanted in the transmitter side, while the receiver side has wireless receiver circuitry, another microcontroller, and a monitor to display the score. As that great black belt of martial arts would say, “Haiiiii-YAAAAAAA!” Yes, I’m talking Miss Piggy. [Cornell via GEARFUSE and HacknMod]
Because getting maced just doesn’t suck enough, there’s now mace pepper spray gel. This shit will coat your face with pure, burning stickiness, turning your misinterpreted flirting into a blind search for water or anything else that’ll provide relief for your painful, painful face. The benefit to the sprayer is that there’s no mist, so all of the painful chemicals will end up in your assailant’s eyes, nose and mouth rather than in the air around you. It “sticks to the face like glue,” according to the marketing materials. Holy shit. Only US$15! How can you say no?! [Product Page via Gadget Lab via Book of Joe]
