Is Smaller Better? Minimally Invasive Oncologic Surgery Options Discussed

Cutting-edge surgery with less cutting is appealing for many, but how do minimally invasive surgical offerings rate in terms of outcomes for people with cancer? At the National Comprehensive Cancer Network's (NCCN) 14th Annual Conference, Dr. Thomas D'Amico, MD, of Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center discussed the pros and the cons of minimally invasive oncologic surgery alternatives.

D'Amico acknowledges the tremendous technological advances that have resulted in minimally invasive offerings, but emphasized three guidelines that physicians need to be aware of when presenting the option to patients; the minimally invasive option must be oncologically equivalent or superior to the open procedure, the procedure should offer quality of life outcome advantages, and cost effectiveness needs to be considered, according to a statement from the NCCN, a not-for-profit alliance of 21 of the world's leading cancer centers.

Five minimally invasive procedures for oncologic surgery including robotic prostatectomy, laparoscopic colectomy, laparoscopic adrenalectory, minimally invasive esophagectomy, and thoracoscopic lobectomy were presented by D'Amico. In each procedure, he provided a comparison of the minimally invasive option versus the traditional open approach to surgery noting operating time, cost, recovery rates, length of stay, and oncologic outcomes.

Overall, the benefits to the minimally invasive options were a shorter hospital stay, faster recovery, and less pain. However, except for the thoracoscopic lobectomy, there is no data from randomized controlled clinical trials on minimally invasive options to provide any insight into oncologic outcomes or survival rates.

"The lack of evidence-based data for the majority of minimally invasive surgical options is one of the current shortcomings in the field," says D'Amico.

Another cause of debate includes the training and credentialing of physicians who perform minimally invasive procedures. D'Amico says that the learning curve for physicians being trained needs to be addressed. Lastly, D'Amico touched upon the controversy of using minimally invasive surgery as a marketing tool particularly in the field of robotics, which can lend itself to eye-catching publicity.

The future of minimally invasive surgery will likely see an expanded use of robotics as well as an increased interest in a new technique called natural orifice surgery. D'Amico explains that natural orifice surgery is when surgeons conduct surgery through the natural orifices in the body such as the mouth, nose, or rectum. Since there are no incisions made on the body, the benefits are a reduced risk of infection and a quicker recovery, says D'Amico.

In conclusion, D'Amico emphasizes that improved outcomes should drive the utilization of minimally invasive procedures and that oncologic principles must be preserved.

"There is continued progress of minimally invasive oncology surgery," says D'Amico, "but also the need for further evolution to optimize morbidity and oncologic outcomes. The question we need to ask ourselves is not 'what can be done', but 'what should be done'."

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Interactive Report Maps Landscape of Technology for the Aging

The Center for Aging Services Technologies (CAST) today released an interactive version of their "State of Technology in Aging Services Report" that lays out the categories of technologies that exist and are under development to meet the needs of aging consumers and highlights what companies are doing to serve this growing market segment.

This version, which can be found online at http://www.agingtech.org/, builds on the March 2008 publication, "The State of Technology in Aging Services," and includes links to the numerous corporations, universities and aging-services providers who are advancing technologies that can help older people stay healthy and independent longer.

The types of technology include:

Sensors which can detect and notify a caregiver if a person is potentially unsafe (e.g. have fallen, did not get out of his chair or turn off the stove).

Health technologies that monitor blood pressure, respiration and other conditions in real time while the person is at home. This reduces the need for doctor's visits and notifying caregivers immediately of significant changes.

Medication dispensers that provide the appropriate medicines at the appropriate time and remind a person to take them.

Computer games that provide social networking, promote brain stimulation and even use diagnostic games to monitor a person's cognitive abilities.

The report also includes interviews with expert researchers, who conclude that factors ranging from interconnectivity between different systems to usability, affordability and the availability of technical support and training will determine how widespread these technologies will become.

"Older consumers are becoming increasingly more interested in technology and small and large corporations are working to meet this demand," says Majd Alwan, director of CAST. "Our study shows that we can create a network of technology-driven services to help people stay at home and achieve better outcomes at the same time.

"Aging-services providers are partnering with technology companies to provide comprehensive service packages," Alwan adds. "Consumers should be as aware of these options as they are aware of their cell phone plans or cable television offerings."

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The Science of Biometrics, Now For Your Home

The technology of computerized identification of individuals based on distinguishing characteristics was once belonged to the world of science fiction. Remember the Starfleet computer recognizing Captain Kirk by an iris scan in the film Wrath of Khan, for instance?

No longer. In fact, biometrics as an area exploded following the 9/11 attacks as homeland security concerns drove the need for new, more efficient ways to authenticate people. Well, that homeland security technology is now finding its way into commercialized -- even consumer -- applications today.

That's what's behind the concept of the keyless lock. Imagine securing access to home simply by use of your fingerprint. What keyless entry systems did for convenience and security for our personal vehicles, the keyless lock system will do for our homes.

Consider that with a keyless lock you and your family need not be locked outside for want of a misplaced house key. Indeed, your home biometric system can be programmed for temporary, conditional access by others -- such as a petsitter or a neighbor coming to check your mail while you are away.

It's amazing to me that when you stop to think about it, we have relied on basically the same ancient physical key-entry technology for our homes for hundreds of years, with no advance -- until now. I just wonder why it took until the 21st century to move this concept and this old tech forward.

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Spinoff 2008 Highlights NASA Innovations in Everyday Life

The 2008 edition of NASA's annual Spinoff publication celebrates the agency's 50th anniversary and highlights 50 new examples of how NASA technology is being put to use in everyday life. This anniversary edition features a 50-year timeline of NASA-derived technologies from historical programs and projects, and a summary of award-winning NASA technologies included in Spinoff over the years.

Spinoff 2008 lists many of the latest NASA innovations now in the commercial marketplace. These innovations have resulted in healthcare advances, transportation breakthroughs, public safety benefits, new consumer goods, environmental protection, computer technology and industrial productivity, the space agency says.

"The results of NASA research and technology are all around us, providing benefits to many aspects of our daily lives and well-being," says NASA Deputy Administrator Shana Dale.

Several examples of these benefits are described in Spinoff 2008, including:

- Advanced polymer coatings for implantable devices to help avert heart failure
- Robotic technology used for minimally invasive knee surgery
- Space suit-derived textiles to help protect firefighters and race car drivers
- Drag reduction research applied to record-breaking swimsuit development
- Astronaut food supplements in worldwide use to improve baby formula
- Carbon nanomesh technology applied to filtering safe drinking water
- Rocket engine valve technology reducing emissions for power generation.

Spinoff 2008 also profiles NASA research and development activities, education efforts, and partnership successes. The publication provides reference information and resources available through the agency's Innovative Partnerships Program.

NASA's Innovative Partnerships Program produces the NASA Spinoff series. The program fosters technology partnerships, commercialization and innovation in support of NASA's overall mission and national priorities, NASA says.

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Lack of Technological Innovators Threatens Michigan

A sharp decline in engineering-school enrollments in Michigan will have an adverse effect on the state's economy and also threatens the long-term recovery of the US domestic auto industry.

"In the past six years new engineering enrollments at Michigan universities have plummeted by more than 13 percent compared to a nine percent increase nationally," says Leo Hanifin, dean of the University of Detroit's College of Engineering and Science. "In Michigan, this precipitous drop is clearly linked to layoffs and poor performance within the domestic auto industry."

Hanifin says that the United States is facing a crisis in the development of engineering talent.

"Forty-five percent or more of all Chinese college students currently study engineering compared to just 4.5 percent in the United States," he says. "Nationally, low enrollments at engineering schools are tied to poor high-school preparation and low interest levels, especially among women and minorities."

Speaking at a major automotive conference in Traverse City on Monday, Aug. 11, Hanifin says that studies indicate that 80 percent or more of the nation's gross domestic product (GDP) comes from the introduction of new technologies, adding that "engineers are essential for
technological innovation."

He says factors that will contribute to the nation's shrinking pool of engineering talent include:

-- Massive retirements among "baby boomer" engineers,
-- A general drop in the number of college-age students,
-- Fewer foreign engineering students studying in the United States,
-- Fewer foreign students choosing to remain here after graduation, and
-- Increased global competition for technical talent.

"More and better-educated engineers are needed if our nation and its auto industry are to thrive or even survive," he says. "The problem of low engineering enrollments can only be solved by decisive action that includes changes in public policy and national programs, as well as increased collaboration within the educational community, government and the private sector."

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Robotic Moon Excavation Teams Compete For NASA Prize

NASA's Regolith Excavation Challenge is scheduled for Aug. 2-3, 2008, on the campus of the California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo. The competition requires teams to build a roving excavator that can autonomously navigate, excavate, and transfer approximately 330 pounds of simulated lunar regolith, or lunar soil, into a collector bin within 30 minutes. The total prize purse is $750,000 with a first prize of $500,000.

NASA is looking for new ideas for excavation techniques that do not require excessively heavy machines or large amounts of power. Excavating lunar regolith will be an important part of any construction projects or processing of natural resources on the moon. The California Space Education and Workforce Institute in Santa Maria, Calif., manages the challenge.

Twenty-five teams have registered for the 2008 event. Most of the teams are from the private sector, including some from the toy and information technology industries. Four of the teams are affiliated with universities.

The prize program, known as Centennial Challenges, began in 2005 in recognition of the centennial of powered flight. In keeping with the spirit of the Wright brothers and other American innovators, the Centennial Challenge prizes are offered to independent inventors who work without government support, including small businesses, student groups and
individuals.

The Regolith Excavation Challenge is one of seven current NASA technology prize competitions. NASA provides the prize money for the competitions, while each is managed by an independent organization. The competitions are targeted at a range of technical challenges that support
NASA's missions in aeronautics and space. The goal is to encourage novel solutions from non-traditional sources. NASA's Innovative Partnerships Program Office in Washington manages the program.

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NASA Selects 9 Small Business Technology Transfer Projects

NASA has selected nine proposals for negotiation of Phase 2 contract awards in the Small Business Technology Transfer (STTR) program. The selected projects have a total value of approximately $5.4 million. The contracts will be awarded to nine high-tech firms partnered with nine universities in 12 states.

The STTR program is a highly competitive, three-phase award system. It provides qualified small businesses -- including women-owned and disadvantaged firms -- with opportunities to propose innovative ideas that meet specific research and development needs of the federal government. In addition, the STTR program requires a collaborative research effort between small business and research institutions, NASA says.

The Small Business Administration (SBA) manages the STTR program for the federal government. NASA is one of the federal agencies required by the STTR program to reserve a portion of its research and development funds for awards to small business and works closely with SBA to ensure compliance with federal regulations, NASA says.

NASA's Innovative Partnerships Program (IPP) manages the STTR program as part of its focus on emerging technologies and efforts to advance technological innovation for NASA purposes. NASA also partners with U.S. industry to introduce pioneering technologies into NASA missions and transition them into commercially available products and services.

As an investment opportunity, STTR innovations address specific technology gaps in agency mission programs, provide a foundation for future technology needs, and are complementary to other NASA research investments.

Participating firms and research institutions submitted 25 Phase 2 proposals. The criteria used to select the winning proposals included technical merit and innovation, Phase 1 results, value to NASA, commercial potential, and company capabilities, NASA says.

Phase 1 was feasibility study to evaluate the scientific and technical merit of an idea. Awards are for up to twelve months in amounts up to $100,000. Phase 2 expands on the results of the development in Phase 1. Awards are for up to two years in amounts up to $600,000. Phase 3 is for the commercialization of the results of Phase 2 and requires the use of private sector or non-STTR federal funding. These NASA awards are for the second-phase in this competitive process.
Some examples of STTR technologies being pursued in current selected proposals include:

• New photovoltaic power systems capable of operating in harsh environments with high temperature and extreme radiation exposures. These systems use materials developed for short optical wavelength and high radio frequency power applications. The new systems could be used in power systems for exploratory spacecraft.
• Optically-based sensors for making temperature and other complex measurements in propulsion systems in ground and flight test environments. The sensors could be used in both new and retrofit commercial aircraft as control sensors for propulsion systems.

NASA's STTR program is managed at NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field, Calif., with executive oversight from NASA headquarters in Washington. Individual projects are managed by NASA's field centers.

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Report Calls for More Research on Health Effects of Wireless Technologies

A stronger research effort on the potential health effects of exposure to radio frequency energy tied to the global explosion in wireless technology like cell phones, laptops and hand-held Web-surfing gadgets.

That's according to a new National Research Council report chaired by University of Colorado at Boulder researcher Frank Barnes.

Requested by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration from the National Research Council last year, the report was released Jan 16. The authors did not evaluate potential human health effects of radio frequency, or RF, exposure from wireless devices, but rather made recommendations on how to meet research needs regarding the technology, says Barnes, a distinguished professor in the electrical and computer engineering department.

"This is a very, very complex issue," says Barnes. "Obviously we are not seeing immediate short-term effects of such exposure, like people dropping dead on their cell phones. But in the long term -- 10, 20 and 30 years out -- we have a lot less information about potential effects from these types of wireless devices."

The NRC committee chaired by Barnes hosted a three-day conference on the topic last August in Washington, D.C., reviewing scores of studies and hosting testimony by more than a dozen scientists from nine countries. Barnes briefed the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy in Washington, D.C., on the 66-page report earlier this week. The NRC is the main operating agency of the National Academy of Sciences and the National Academy of Engineering.
Barnes says the committee recommended that future studies pay special attention to the effects of RF energy on children, adolescents, pregnant women and fetuses from exposure to hand-held devices as well as base-station antennas that transmit such signals. Although it is not known whether children are more susceptible, they could conceivably be at greater risk because of their developing tissue and organ systems, the report says.

Barnes says a large-scale epidemiological research effort involving 13 countries in Europe known as the Interphone Study is nearing completion and is providing researchers with a large amount of new data. "There clearly have been large changes in the use of personal wireless technology," says Barnes, who was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2004.

The report authors recommend new studies on the changing designs of antennas used for hand-held wireless communication devices. While studies targeting RF energy radiation on the human head from cell phone antennas held against the ear have been conducted, some newer cell phones and Web-surfing devices have antennas in proximity to other body regions like the waist, requiring more study, Barnes said.

A number of studies also have shown a steep increase in mobile phone use by children, ensuring that younger generations will experience much longer periods of RF exposure, Barnes said. "The fact that some cancers have a 10-to-20-year latency period make these broad, long-term studies potentially important," he said.

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Aeronautics Associate Administrator Departs NASA for Intelligence R&D Post

Lisa Porter, NASA's associate administrator of the Aeronautics Research Mission Directorate, announced Wednesday her decision to leave the agency, effective Feb. 1.
Porter is leaving NASA to become the first director of the Intelligence
Advanced Research Projects Activity.

NASA Administrator Michael Griffin expressed his appreciation for
Porter's service since she was selected to head the aeronautics directorate
in October 2005.

"While I am very excited about this new opportunity, I am of course saddened by the thought of having to say goodbye to each of you," Porter said. "I am confident that you will all continue to excel and make the nation and the world stand up and take notice of the first 'A' in 'NASA.'"

As the associate administrator for the Aeronautics Mission Directorate, Porter managed the agency's aeronautics research portfolio and guided its strategic direction, which includes research in the fundamental aeronautics of flight, aviation safety and the nation's airspace system.

Porter co-chairs the White House National Science & Technology Council's Aeronautics, Science and Technology Subcommittee. Comprised of federal departments and agencies that fund aeronautics-related research, the subcommittee wrote the nation's first presidential policy for aeronautics research and development.

Porter came to NASA following her service as a senior scientist in the Advanced Technology Office of the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. While there, she created and managed programs in diverse technical areas ranging from fundamental scientific research to multi-disciplinary systems-level development and integration efforts.

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Iowa State Researchers Develop Technology for Early Detection of Viruses

Iowa State University researchers have developed a technology that detects a single molecule of the virus associated with cervical cancer in women.

That's a significant improvement over the current test for the human papillomavirus, said Edward Yeung, an Iowa State distinguished professor and the Robert Allen Wright Chair in Chemistry who led the research team that developed the new test. The current test, the Nobel Prize-winning polymerase chain reaction technique, requires 10 to 50 virus molecules for detection.

"We are always interested in detecting smaller and smaller amounts of material at lower and lower concentrations," Yeung says. "Detecting lower levels means earlier diagnosis."

The discovery by Yeung, who's also a senior chemist and deputy program director for the U.S. Department of Energy's Ames Laboratory at Iowa State; Jiangwei Li, an Iowa State doctoral student; and Ji-Young Lee, a former Iowa State doctoral student; will be published in the Nov. 1 issue of the journal Analytical Chemistry.
Their work was funded by a five-year, $950,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health with additional support from The Robert Allen Wright Endowment for Excellence at Iowa State.

The project advanced just as human papillomavirus made national headlines. In June of 2006, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved a vaccine developed to prevent cervical cancer, precancerous lesions and genital warts caused by four types of the virus. The vaccine has been approved for females ages 9 to 26.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports the human papillomavirus is the most common sexually transmitted infection in the U.S. The agency estimates about 6.2 million Americans are infected every year and over half of all sexually active Americans are infected at some time in their lives.

Yeung says single molecule detection of the virus could help women and families decide to get vaccinated. He said vaccines administered after such early detection could still have time to stop the virus.

The new detection technology improves current technology by eliminating a step to amplify DNA samples for testing. Although the current test is efficient and well understood, the amplification can cause small contaminants to create test errors.

Yeung's single molecule spectroscopy technique involves creating chemical reagents that recognize and fluorescently tag the genetic sequence of the human papillomavirus. Test samples pass through a laser beam that lights the tags. Cameras capture the images for computer analysis.

The research team tested the technique using samples from normal Pap smears. They also spiked some of those samples with the virus to make sure the tests picked up known amounts of the virus.

Although this test concentrated on detecting the human papillomavirus, Yeung said it should detect HIV, avian flu and other viruses as well.

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Video: Watch a New Robo-servant

Feroz Siddiki has spent two years developing the IRobo and hopes it will eventually rival more expensive robots, like the Asimo made by Honda.

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Innovation: More than Science and Technology

As global economic competition intensifies, more countries are deliberately using public policy to shape national systems that allow firms to access innovations that can give them a leg up, according to a special section on global innovation policy in the fall edition of Issues in Science and Technology.

The section focuses on national innovation systems in Mexico, Belgium, India, Korea, Japan, and the United States, and includes articles by R. Chidambaram, the principal scientific adviser to the government of India, Sungchul Chung, president of Korea's Science and Technology Policy
Institute, and Fientje Moerman, vice-minister-president of Flanders and minister for economy, enterprise, science, innovation, and foreign trade.

Managing a national innovation system is a constant challenge -- and struggle, according to Charles Wessner, deputy director of the National Research Council's Board on Science, Technology, and Economic Policy.

"What works in one context will not necessarily work in another," Wessner writes. "What works in one decade will not necessarily work in the next. And with the global economic system in flux, every country must be ready to reexamine and revise its policies.

"These articles contain no easy answers," Wessner continues. "They offer something much more useful: candid and perceptive discussion of the successes and failures that are slowly leading all of us to a better understanding of how innovation can be tapped and directed to achieve human goals."

In the United States, substantial changes in the national innovation system will be needed, argues Christopher Hill of George Mason University. In his article, The Post-Scientific Society, Hill writes that although science and technology will continue to play a vital role in innovation,
the critical ingredients for continued U.S. economic success are likely to come from other disciplines.

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Video: Digital Innovations Unveiled

Ads turned into interactive sports. Flying Robots. Your spare tire thinned with the touch of a button. These are among the inventions that WSJ.com's Andy Jordan finds at the Digital Life show.

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Video: Open Source Closed to You

Personal Technology columnist Walt Mossberg reviews a new Linux operating system that's advanced but challenging for the average consumer.

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U.K. Study Finds No Health Effects of Cell Phone Use

Mobile phones have not been found to be associated with any biological or adverse health effects, according to the UK's largest investigation into the possible health risks from mobile telephone technology.

The Mobile Telecommunications and Health Research (MTHR) Program published its conclusions on September 12 as part of its 2007 Report.

The six-year research programme, chaired by Lawrie Challis, emeritus professor of physics at the University of Nottingham, has found no association between short term mobile phone use and brain cancer. Studies on volunteers also showed no evidence that brain function was affected by mobile phone signals or the signals used by the emergency services (TETRA).

The MTHR program management committee believes there is no need to support further work in this area.

The research programme also included the largest and most robust studies of electrical hypersensitivity undertaken anywhere in the world. These studies have found no evidence that the unpleasant symptoms experienced by sufferers are the result of exposure to signals from mobile phones or base stations.

The situation for longer-term exposure is less clear as studies have so far only included a limited number of participants who have used their phones for ten years or more. The committee recommends more research be conducted in this area.

The MTHR program also investigated whether mobile phones might affect cells and tissue beyond simply heating them. The results so far show no evidence for this and the committee believes there is no need to support further work in this area.

Challis says: “This is a very substantial report from a large research programme. The work reported today has all been published in respected peer-reviewed scientific or medical journals.

“The results are so far reassuring but there is still a need for more research, especially to check that no effects emerge from longer-term phone use from adults and from use by children.”

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Developing Space 'Tow Truck' Technology For Satellite Operations

The Naval Research Laboratory's Naval Center for Space Technology has achieved a key milestone toward the development of autonomous servicing of unaided spacecraft.

Working with the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), NRL has developed, tested and ground-demonstrated guidance and control algorithms to allow a robotic servicing vehicle to autonomously rendezvous and dock with customer satellites not pre-designed for docking.

This demonstration coupled three significant accomplishments into one milestone, program managers say. The necessary robotic control algorithms are proven to be capable of operating reliably within a realistic spaceflight-processing environment and are now flight traceable.

A simulation of a realistic geostationary communications satellite with no visual aids or docking aids was grappled reliably in realistic on-orbit lighting conditions.

The demonstration was completed under full autonomy with no human-in-the-loop assistance.
NRL and DARPA are developing the key technologies and reducing the technological risk to allow autonomous spacecraft rendezvous and docking to become a reliable reality. As part of the Front-end Robotics Enabling Near-term Demonstration (FREND) effort, the DARPA/NRL team is advancing the state-of-the-art in spacecraft autonomous rendezvous and grappling, offering "tow-truck" service to nearly every satellite currently, or soon to be, in space. This service offers potential for satellites to operate longer, to be salvaged if they are in an inoperable orbit, to be transferred to a new orbital position if they are unable to make that transit on their own, and has a capability for making certain orbital regimes safer by transferring derelict spacecraft or space debris into graveyard orbits.

Full-scale laboratory demonstrations have now been successfully completed, proving that reliable autonomous grapple of spacecraft hardware is feasible. The NRL team has accomplished autonomous grapples using a one-meter-long research grade robot arm, custom developed flight traceable control algorithms, research grade machine vision cameras, prototype grappling mechanisms, and flight traceable processors. These grapples have been of simulated spacecraft hardware, grappling at the launch vehicle interfaces (Marman ring, separation bolt hole) commonly flown to geosynchronous orbit, and with simulated in-space lighting conditions.

By accomplishing these technology demonstrations, the autonomous control algorithms advance from a spaceflight Technology Readiness Level (TRL) of 4 to a TRL of 5, by having been tested in a variety of relevant environments. The DARPA/NRL team will further improve the TRL by integrating flight-ready robotics, electronics and software with evolving algorithms for grapple demonstrations in the laboratory environment. Laboratory demonstrations with fully flight-ready components will be another major milestone toward the ultimate goal of reaching the highest TRL of 9, which is reserved for systems that have been proven through successful operations in space.

DARPA and NRL have contracted the expertise of Alliance Spacesystems, LLC of Pasadena, CA, to design and build the robotics that would allow a servicing spacecraft to dock with satellites not originally designed for servicing. Alliance is best known for designing and building the robot arms that are successfully exploring Mars on both Mars Exploration Rovers, Spirit and Opportunity. Alliance is presently designing, fabricating and testing of the first two robot arms for the FREND program. An engineering development unit (EDU) robotic arm was scheduled for delivery to NRL in August, with a second flight prototype unit (FPU) built to space flight requirements being delivered in July 2008. Both arms will be built to meet the performance and test requirements set forth by NRL, which emphasize operability in both Earth's gravity for laboratory testing and the zero-gravity environment of space.

Once the FREND technology prototype is fully demonstrated over the next year, it will have reached a spaceflight TRL of 6 and will be ready for an on-orbit demonstration mission. DARPA is presently involved in a search to identify a spacecraft mission partner for the on-orbit demonstration phase of this technology. Any interested government; private or other entities should contact the DARPA Tactical Technology Office. Parties interested in the FREND spacecraft technology should contact NRL's Naval Center for Space Technology.

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Sandia Researchers Help To Make Cars Smarter

Cars already automatically lock doors when they sense motion and turn on warning lights if they detect potential engine problems.

But they are about to get smarter.

The augmented cognition research team at Sandia National Laboratories is designing cars capable of analyzing human behavior.

The car of the future they are developing may, for example, deduce from your driving that you’re become tired, or during critical situations, tell your cell phone to hold an incoming call so you won’t be distracted.

The project started about five years ago with funding by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA). Four years ago Sandia partnered with a major commercial automobile manufacturer, and three years ago did actual experiments on European roadways.

“We utilized data that already existed on the car’s computer to collect a wide range of physical data such as brake pedal force, acceleration, steering wheel angle, and turn signaling,” says Kevin Dixon, principal investigator. “And specialized sensors including a pressure sensitive chair and an ultrasonic six-degree-of freedom head tracking system measured driver posture.”

Five drivers were fitted with caps connected to electroencephalogram (EEG) (brainwave) electrodes to gauge electrical activity of the brain as they performed driving functions.

The researchers collected several hours of data in unstructured driving conditions that were imputed into Sandia software, referred to as “classifiers,” that categorized driving behavior. These classifiers could detect certain driving situations such as approaching a slow-moving vehicle or changing lanes in preparation to pass another vehicle.

The system detects the difficulty and stress of the task the driver is attempting. It then tries to modify the tasks and/or environment to lower the stress and improved specified performance parameters.

Similar experiments were conducted for off-road driving where conditions were much less structured than typical roadways.

“The beauty of this is that we aren’t doing anything new or different to the car,” Dixon says. “All the software that can make the determination of ‘dangerous’ or ‘safe’ driving situations would all be placed in the computer that already exists in the car. It’s almost like there is another human in the car.”

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Video: How ATMs Work

We use them everyday. ATMs. These cash machines were once luxuries but now today we rely on automatic teller machines for both convenience and cash in emergencies.

But have you ever stopped to think how they work? Wonder what the inside of an ATM looks like? Find out answers to all of your questions in this video from HowStuffWorks.com.

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Tech Buzz: Video on iPhone Batteries, Hackers

Apple has rolled out its new iPhone device to much fanfare.

The company clearly hopes it will become the next iPod in terms of popularity and sales.

Now a consumer advocacy group is expressing outrage over Apple's iPhone battery replacement program. Meanwhile developers and hackers are looking to extend new functionality for the device.

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Video: School District Pioneers Unique Technology Partnership to Enhance Learning

A rural school district in Iowa is demonstrating that schools anywhere in the country are capable of arming students with the technology tools to succeed at the university-level, and in the challenging, ever-changing job market.

Tri-Center Community Schools has used a unique business model to partner with technology leaders HP, Microsoft and LSI to create an advanced computer network featuring new Serial Attached SCSI generation technology.

Working with a local provider, the school offers student intern programs, parent access to grades and attendance 24 hours a day, seven days a week remote access for teachers, and a special e-mail program for students and staff. The technology model shows that it's possible to move a school system forward even with limited budget.

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