Tech

Researchers add sense of touch to robotic arm via brain implant

Enlarge (credit: University of Pittsburgh Medical Center) One of the most astonishing examples of the promise of brain implants is shown in a video in which a paralyzed person controls a robotic arm with nothing but her thoughts. The technology alone is impressive, but the joy on the participant’s face as she grabs herself a drink […]

COVID 19 Tech

Researchers show neutralizing antibodies correlate with COVID protection

Enlarge / Illustration of antibodies (red and blue) responding to an infection with the new coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 (purple). (credit: Getty Images) From the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, many of researchers’ nagging questions involved trying to understand what constitutes immunity to future infections. People who had been infected by the virus produced varying amounts of […]

COVID 19 Tech

CDC lifts most mask restrictions for those vaccinated against COVID-19

Enlarge / If you’ve been vaccinated, the CDC now says you can skip the mask and spacing. (credit: Luis Alvarez/Getty Images) As part of an ongoing press conference, the Centers for Disease Control responded to recent data on the effectiveness of vaccines and updated its guidance on mask use and physical distancing. Under the new […]

COVID 19 Tech

CDC advisory committee recommends COVID vaccine for 12- to 15-year-olds

Enlarge / With new data, we’re able to expand vaccinations to ever-younger populations. (credit: Roberto Jimenez Mejias / Getty Images) On Wednesday, the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices recommended that the CDC approve the use of the Pfizer/BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine for the 12- to 15-year age group. The decision comes two days after the […]

Tech

Neural implant lets paralyzed person type by imagining writing

Enlarge / An artist’s schematic of the system. (credit: Nature) Elon Musk’s Neuralink has been making waves on the technology side of neural implants, but it hasn’t yet shown how we might actually use implants. For now, demonstrating the promise of implants remains in the hands of the academic community. This week, the academic community […]

Sport

Model Rachel Bush espouses ill-informed anti-vaxx stance because she wants to watch Bills hubby play live

Rachel Bush wants to watch her husband, Bills safety Jordan Poyer, play football this season. She does not, however, want to get a COVID-19 vaccine. This is a problem for her, because Erie County, N.Y., is planning to require proof of vaccination to attend Bills and Sabres games this fall. Read more…

COVID 19 Tech

J&J COVID vaccine use paused due to one-in-a-million complication

Enlarge / A nurse practitioner named Heidi Johnson administers a vaccine from Johnson & Johnson. (credit: Tom Williams / Getty Images) On Tuesday morning, the US Centers for Disease Control and Food and Drug Administration issued a release acknowledging an extremely rare clotting disorder was associated with the use of the Johnson & Johnson COVID […]