Where do you stand on becoming part person, part machine? This week we hook up with three pioneers in the field of cybernetics including walking cyborg Kevin Warwick, who volunteered his own nervous system to test out a new way to connect up with the machine world, Markus Groppe, who is trialling an implantable chip to restore vision to the blind, and Andrew Schwartz who's developing neural interfaces to couple the brain's motor circuits to a robot. Plus, news of an H5N1 'flu furore as scientists create the most dangerous virus imaginable, and a voyage to the deepest subsea vents ever discovered...
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What is cybernetics? Does it include things like pacemakers and cochlear implants? How is it being used to treat Parkinson's, Depression and Tourette's Syndrome? Kevin Warwick discusses what we can learn about ourselves by mixing man with machine...
How implanting a new chip which contains light sensors and an amplifier could be a treatment for impaired vision for patients with retinitis pigmentosa...
Should we publish details of how to make viruses with pandemic potential? We explore the controversy and meet one of the scientists whose work is under question...
Scientists have discovered the deepest and possibly the hottest undersea volcanic vents ever found, and they are encrusted in extraordinary deep sea life.
Why nicotine replacement may not be the key to kicking the habit, how most stars in our solar system have planets accompanying them, How Fungi could hold the key to tackling lead pollution and a new plants which makes a meal out of worms!
Solar storms can disrupt satellites, communications and power supplies and so scientists have now produced the first ever map that shows which regions of the UK power grid are most at risk...
Scientists are moving closer to developing ways to interface with the brain and to decode what nerve cells are saying to each other, and can use this neural chatter to connect the brain to artificial limbs...
Could you add a ahard drive to your brain to increase memory storage?
Could we target pain management with cybernetics?
We’ve been enhancing our abilities beyond our natural capacities through tool use since we first picked up rocks and merging our tools has always been the logical next step. This isn't going too far. It’s simply evolution.
How do people feel about having an electronic chip implanted? Do they respond negatively to becoming a sort of cyborg?
What the chances of us developing the ability to sense other fields like magnetic fields? Has anyone done anything on that, literally tapping into the Earth’s magnetic fields around us and allowing us to navigate and see our way around in a different way?
Could you provide a macrofocusing lens to help us read the small print without having to buy arm extensions?
Hi Chris,
I made several batches of caramels over the holidays, using a recipe that combines corn syrup, brown sugar, condensed sweetened milk and butter in a sauce pan. The mixture is heated over a medium heat for about 40 minutes until it reaches a final temperature of 244 d...
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