Friday, December 12, 2008

Dean Kaimen



Last August I drove out to Connecticut to visit Offspring #2. We signed on to a sailing voyage and went out for a three hour cruise. Unlike Gilligan and the Skipper too, we came back. As we sailed we went near an island. Our pilot told us the owner of the island was Dean Kamen, inventor of the Segway. This week I read more about Dean Kamen. He's been working on another project. He's been designing prosthetic limbs for Iraq war veterans. He heard from a Department of Defense official that 1600 veterans have lost an arm. Two dozen veterans lost both arms in Iraq. Dean has been working on something called a "Luke Arm." I'm not a Star Wars fan so I didn't know Luke Skywalker had a prosthetic arm. Kaimen would like to devise an arm that comes as close to a real arm as possible. Prosthetic arms are more complicated than legs. The hope is that the prosthetic arm will be able to be controlled from a body part that suits each consumer whether that be from a foot pad or elsewhere. The prosthesis would be attached to nerves so that the person wearing it would think about picking up a glass of water and the arms would comply. They're hoping to advance the artificial limb to the point where it can feel temperatures and grip strength. I have had the opportunity to know a couple of people in my life who have lost an arm and I know how much harder life was for them. I think it's awesome that Dean Kaimen is working to improve the lives of the service men and women who sacrificed for our country.

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