innerspace
Latest
'Viva Ex Vivo' brings the microscopic world to your PS4
Are Fantastic Voyage and Innerspace some of your favorite movies? Do you rewatch Cosmos just to see the microbiology segments? If so, we have the game for you. Truant Pixel has unveiled Viva Ex Vivo, an exploration/survival hybrid for the PlayStation 4 that has you guiding a tiny probe through microscopic worlds like a glop of mud or a tissue sample. It's effectively a biology class writ large. You live or die based on your ability to find organic particles, and innocuous organisms like immune systems and tardigrades are suddenly massive threats. The game even generates mini ecosystems on the fly, so your success may hinge on your ability to understand where you're likely to find sustenance.
Video of protein movement within a neuron shows how our brains renew themselves
If, like us, you spend most of your time wondering exactly what's going on in other people's heads, then this video is for you. Okay, so it might not reveal the reason why that jerk cut you off at the junction, or why that co-worker didn't show up to your date exactly, rather, it's a little more literal than that. This is video footage of proteins moving within a single neuron. The USC researchers were able to capture this video by using bioluminescent proteins from a jellyfish to visually track their movement. Not only is this mind-boggling to the layperson (just think how small these things are) it's also mind-revealing. By that, we mean it gives scientists an opportunity to observe how these tiny, yet vital, cerebral elements restore themselves. Which, when you're constantly worried about the amount of grey matter you were blessed with in the first place, can only be a good thing.
World's tiniest video camera helps doctors see inside of you
The thought of an endoscope entering any orifice is an unpleasant one, even if it's so your doctor can diagnose what ails you. Good thing Medigus made the world's smallest video camera so those medical probes are a little less painful. It's .99mm in diameter -- making it a smidge smaller than previous peewee endoscopes -- and packs a .66mm x .66mm CMOS sensor to deliver video of your insides at 45,000 pixels worth of resolution. Best of all, the devices are disposable, so clean-up's a breeze. A reusable version is also available, but given where these things go, we're just fine with them being one use only. PR's after the break.
Researchers create microscopic disposable camera to see up in your guts
It's true, a team of researchers have created a one-cubic-millimeter throwaway camera, and if they have their way, it could be peeking inside you in the next year. The new tiny shooters, which sport a 250 x 250 pixel resolution, are created using a streamlined process in which the lens and sensor wafers are affixed before being cut into a series of 28,000 little cameras -- eliminating the need to mount and wire each one individually. This new mode of production cuts back on cost significantly, allowing physicians to throw away the little guys after routing around in your intestines. According to the camera's creators, their diminutive invention could make its way into your doctor's office as early as 2012.
'Spider pill' bowel scanner will be ready within a year
Endoscopy, or the examination of a person's bowels via a tube-mounted camera, is not exactly the most pleasant medical procedure one could undergo. In 2004, we noted the early stages of a project to alleviate the (literal) pain of the procedure with a spider pill, which -- once swallowed by the hopefully willing patient -- can be remotely controlled and positioned inside the human body. Yes, it's a tiny, wirelessly communicating robot with a camera for a head crawling inside you. Hit the read link for the full BBC report, it really is worth seeing, and start your Innerspace jokes ... now!
