ANBARASUASOKAN

Scientists at the University of Wisconsin-Madison have created a device known as a PoNS, that shows promise for the treatment of traumatic brain injuries, strokes, or the effects of diseases such as Parkinson’s and multiple sclerosis. Researchers at the U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command are now conducting a study on the device, which works by stimulating the patient’s tongue. The battery-operated PoNS consists of a control/power box, and a flat electrode-covered oral portion that the patient holds in their mouth, against their tongue. In a typical 20 to 30-minute PoNS session, the patient performs a set of physical, occupational, and cognitive exercises, tailored toward their disability. Each of those exercises are paired with specific patterns of electrodes being activated on the PoNS, which in turn stimulate individual nerve endings on the tongue – the stimulation process is referred to as cranial nerve non-invasive neuromodulation, or CN-NiNM. By learning to ...

If you spend much time outdoors in the summer, then you doubtless know how important it is to wear sunscreen. That said, you probably also know that just applying it once before you first go outside isn’t good enough – for sufficient protection from the sun’s ultraviolet rays, periodic  re applications are also necessary. The UVeBand is a new wearable device, that’s designed to let you know when it’s time for those reapplications. First of all, you might be thinking that you could just use the timer on your watch or phone as a reminder. Well, you could, although many people probably just wouldn’t bother. Additionally, the UVeBand isn’t simply a timer – it actually keeps track of the intensity of UVA and UVB rays, so its alert time will be recalculated if the sun goes behind the clouds, or if you move to a shadier area. The device itself is a silicone-coated water-resistant band, that the user simply slaps onto their wrist. The band’s capacitive switching technology turns the de...

An image has been released of what looks set to become Google's new California HQ. Named Bay View, the nine-building campus is designed to maximize the likelihood of innovation-friendly chance encounters between the workforce. "You can't schedule innovation," Google's David Radcliffe tells  Vanity Fair . "We want to create opportunities for people to have ideas and be able to turn to others right there and say, 'What do you think of this?'" This philosophy has fostered the design's angular office blocks, arranged back to back like nodding clergy. Despite the 1.1 million sq ft (102,000 sq m), employees will be a maximum of a 2.5-minute walk away from one another, Vanity Fair  reports. Perhaps most remarkable is that this is Google's first build. In its 15-year history, Google has only ever occupied buildings previously used by others. "We've been the world's best hermit crabs: we've found other people's shell...

As one of the most densely populated cities in China,  Shenzhen  has been dealing with a sudden population boom for years now, leaving urban planners scrambling for  innovative building designs  that manage resources and space more efficiently. There have been a few unusual proposals, but the latest design from French architectural firm, Vincent Callebaut Architects, probably takes the cake. The group recently revealed its concept for "Asian Cairns," a series of six sustainable buildings that resemble a stack of pebbles and produce their own food.VCA is no stranger to unconventional structures, having previously designed a  floating city modeled after a lilypad , and the architectural group's latest project is just as unusual. Tasked with creating an urban structure that addresses the growing population of Shenzhen while producing more energy than it consumes, VCA decided to model a set of six buildings after cairns – man-made stacks of small rocks typically...

The idea of living life on the road in an RV can be appealing. Unfortunately, most RV’s aren’t very environmentally friendly, nor are they self-sufficient. However, the Tricycle House isn’t like most RV’s, as it relies on pedal power to move between destinations, and boasts several pieces of clever folding furniture to provide those much-needed home comforts. Conceived by architectural firm People’s Industrial Design Office (PIDO) for 2012’s “Get It Louder” Exhibition in Beijing, the Tricycle House addresses the fact that private ownership of land is not permitted in China. The pedal-powered RV envisions a future in which individual Chinese people are able to more fully connect with their land, while living simply and sustainably, on their own terms. The Tardis-like house structure is affixed to a tricycle and constructed from polypropylene (a thermoplastic polymer). The polypropylene is cut with a CNC router, before being folded and welded into shape, retaining its strength but ga...