If you're planning on shooting someone in the spine.....think again!

[Warped]

Paralyzed man can stand and walk again, thanks to spinal implant​

Here's an amazing story to end your week on a high note: a 25-year-old paraplegic is now walking again, thanks to a groundbreaking procedure developed by neuroscientists at the University of Louisville, UCLA and Cal Tech. The Oregon man, Rob Summers, was paralyzed below the chest in 2006, after getting hit by a speeding car. This week, however, doctors announced that Summers can now stand up on his own and remain standing for up to four minutes. With the help of a special harness, he can even take steps on a treadmill and can move his lower extremities for the first time in years. It was all made possible by a spinal implant that emits small pulses of electricity, designed to replicate signals that the brain usually sends to coordinate movement. Prior to receiving the implant in 2009, Summers underwent two years of training on a treadmill, with a harness supporting his weight and researchers moving his legs. This week's breakthrough comes after 30 years of research, though scientists acknowledge that this brand of epidural stimulation still needs to be tested on a broader sample of subjects before any definitive conclusions can be drawn. Summers, meanwhile, seems understandably elated. "This procedure has completely changed my life," the former baseball player said. "To be able to pick up my foot and step down again was unbelievable, but beyond all of that my sense of well-being has changed." We can only imagine.

http://www.engadget.com/2011/05/20/paralyzed-man-can-stand-and-walk-again-thanks-to-spinal-implant/

we live in an amazing time. In the past 10 years it seems like everything is going light speed when it comes to tech and science. but yeah really cool stuff. I can't wait to see my uncle get something like this. he broke his spine twice and his health is suffering greatly now

 

[YROC]

Good thing we people are a gentle species and don't try to kill each other.

 

[MuToiD_MaN]

Spinal implant?

 

[Raziaar]

Would this give more people incentive to shoot others in the spine? It can be a recoverable injury so what's the big deal.

 

[15357]

Somehow I doubt that if I indeed did had plans to shoot someone in the spine, this new knowledge would deter me from doing so.


Brb, shooting someone in spine.

 

[Shift]

What a fantastic modern age we live in.

 

[Warped]

What a fantastic modern age we live in.

yup! and if I hear one more old person complain about not having flying cars by now I'm going to scream. people can't drive on the road properly what makes them think up in the air is any safer. You got airplanes, telephone poles, security issues (jails would be obsolete) and thousands of other reasons why we don't fly around to where we want to go