Category Archives: Moving

Non-invasive neuroprosthetics

October 4, 2005 – 8:30 am

Nature reports that by simply recording the brain’s electrical signals from electrodes on the scalp, researchers have enabled trained participants to reliably control computer equipment, a feat normally associated with physical implants in the brain. This is part of the growing science of neuroprosthetics, that aims to create technology that directly interfaces with the brain. […]

By vaughanbell | Comments (1)

Getting to grips with grasping

August 25, 2005 – 10:37 am

Reach and grasp a willing colleague by the arm, now let them go, and pick up a pen or pencil instead. The first movement requires a power grip, flexing all the fingers together towards the palm, the second movement uses a precision grip involving the thumb and forefinger. Easy to do? Apparently yes, but the […]

By christianjarrett | Leave a Comment

Scott Adams and focal dystonia

May 29, 2005 – 1:06 pm

Scott Adams, the artist behind the comic Dilbert, has a movement disorder called focal dystonia that prevents him from drawing in the regular way. It, and his response to it, are discussed in an article in the Washington Post. Focal dystonia, which can affect the hand (where it’s commonly called “writer’s cramp” when it affects […]

By Matt W | Comments (4)

Tyrannosaurus reflex

March 30, 2005 – 8:00 am

In a wonderful comic strip, dinosaurs explain the neural mechanism of why locking the hands together can release the knee jerk reflex. It’s not often the finer points of neurological examination are explained by cartoon dinosaurs, but may this be the first in a long line of comic book / neuroscience fusion spectaculars. Link to […]

By vaughanbell | Comments (1)

Size and selection times: Fitts’s Law

January 20, 2005 – 5:11 pm

Oo Oo – Just when I thought I was settling down to do some of the work i’m actually paid to do, I discovered a bit of psychology that is relevant to interaction design:- Did you know that the time it takes you to point your mouse, or your finger, at something is predictable from […]

By tomstafford | Comments (4)

Waving, not designing

January 5, 2005 – 1:30 pm

I got a wave messaging power-up cover for my Nokia 3220 phone. It’s got a line of LEDs along the back of the phone, and when you wave it, you can spell out messages in the air. Check this out: (That’s me, by the way. I posted more about this to my other weblog, if […]

By Matt W | Comments (3)

Sinister Research

December 8, 2004 – 12:16 pm

A couple of interesting bits of research on handedness in the news today. Chimps brains are asymmetrical in similar ways to human brains, and this is reflected in whether they’re left or right handed too. Why we have a preferred hand is still being debated, but this research shows handedness isn’t a consequence of the […]

By Matt W | Comments (1)
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.

Join 1,622 other followers