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Book Cover
E-book
Author Chase, Victor D., 1942-

Title Shattered nerves : how science is solving modern medicine's most perplexing problem / Victor D. Chase
Published Baltimore, Md. : Johns Hopkins University Press, 2006

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Description 1 online resource (xiii, 289 pages)
Contents 1. Learning to listen all over again -- 2. The body electric -- 3. Of frogs' legs and transistors -- 4. The grandfather of neural prostheses -- 5. Accidental pioneers -- 6. Giving a hand -- 7. Looking back at an empty wheelchair -- 8. The dirty little secret -- 9. Sound in the brain -- 10. In the eye of the beholder -- 11. Nerves of platinum and iridium -- 12. Pins and needles in the brain -- 13. From the inside out -- 14. Reaching the depth of depression -- 15. A hole in the center of the brain -- 16. The ethics -- 17. Biomimetic and superhuman
Summary "A study of advancements in neural technology, what they can do, and where they could lead us. Once the stuff of science fiction, neural prosthetics are now a reality. Research and technology are creating implants that enable the deaf to hear, the blind to see, and the paralyzed to move. Shattered Nerves leads us into a new medical frontier, where sophisticated, state-of-the-art medical devices repair and restore failed sensory and motor systems. In a compelling narrative that reveals the intimate relationship between technology and the physicians, scientists, and patients who bring it to life, Victor D. Chase explores groundbreaking developments in neural technology. Through personal interviews and extensive research, Chase introduces us to the people and devices that are restoring shattered lives -- from implants that enable the paralyzed to stand, walk, feed, and groom themselves, to those that restore bladder and bowel control, and even sexual function. Signals from the brains of paralyzed people are captured and transformed to allow them to operate computers. Brain implants hold the potential to resolve psychiatric illnesses and to restore the ability to form memories in damaged brains. Chase also explores troubling boundaries between restoration and enhancement, where implants could conceivably endow the able-bodied with superhuman capabilities. He concludes with a provocative question: Just because we can, does that mean we should? "Chase has looked into the future of broken nervous systems and how we might fix them?with all of the corresponding hopes and perils ... A fascinating book, both stimulating and exciting, and makes you think about what it means to be human."--Michael S. Gazzaniga, author of The Ethical Brain"-- Provided by Freading
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references (pages 279-280) and index
Notes Print version record
Subject Neural stimulation.
Myoelectric prosthesis.
Implants, Artificial.
Electric stimulation.
Nervous System Diseases -- rehabilitation
Electric Stimulation
Electrodes, Implanted
Prostheses and Implants
HEALTH & FITNESS -- Diseases -- Nervous System (incl. Brain)
MEDICAL -- Neurology.
Electric stimulation
Implants, Artificial
Myoelectric prosthesis
Neural stimulation
Form Electronic book
ISBN 9781435692145
1435692144
9780801892134
0801892139