— When Non-Human Hands Solve Human Problems: Nerve & Muscle Implants for Bionic Arms — Parker Theatre Studio, North Building @ 3601 South State Street
Musician: OMG
Main Talk: When Non-Human Hands Solve Human Problems: Nerve & Muscle Implants for Bionic Arms
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Speaker: Dr. Gregory Clark
Speaker Bio: Greg Clark is a professor in the Department of Biomedical Engineering and the Director of the Center for Neural Interfaces at the University of Utah. His present research seeks to restore motor and sensory function after nervous system damage or disease, such as limb loss or spinal cord injury.
As now shown in several human participants, his group has begun to restore dexterous, intuitive real-time proportional movements of an advanced bionic arm, DEKA’s “LUKE” arm. One can also begin to restore a biologically realistic sense of touch after hand amputation, Luke-Skywalker style, by stimulating the remaining arm nerve sensory fibers. Nerve stimulation that mimics the body's natural firing patterns also improves the ability to explore and understand the world via tactile sensation. Additionally, the more natural the nerve activation patterns are, the better they work. His recent studies have moved outside the lab into the real world and home environments. Together with FDA experimental approvals, these advances provide encouraging progress toward clinical use.
When Greg’s not at his day job, he mouths off from time to time in the public domain on matters of STEM, education, religion, and occasionally social justice, as shown by his opinion pieces in The Salt Lake Tribune, Deseret News, USA Today, and other news outlets.
Find Salt Lake Oasis
Parker Theatre Studio
North Building
3601 South State Street
South Salt Lake, UT 84115