NASA Performs Zero-G Robot Surgery for Mars, Iraq

An anonymous reader writes "With rapid-response surgery needed in Iraq and super-long-distance medicine a far-off necessity for a manned trip to Mars, NASA recently sent eight astronauts, roboticists and surgeons on its 'Vomit Comet,' pitting real doctors against new robotic ones. As if the prospect of a portable robo-OR deploying to Iraq by 2009 weren't enticing enough, one of the surgeons on board promised this in his flight blog: 'So far, surgery by hand is still the most efficient way to get the job done in a mobile, extreme environment. But robots are advancing rapidly... The solution that roboticists are working on now is to CAT scan a patient's entire body and beam the results back to Earth. Then a surgeon could program an operation and beam it back to upload into a robo-surgeon, which could carry out procedures like a player piano.'"

Comments

It will work like this:

[140Mandak262Jamuna]

sternum cut... done. Pericardium incision ... done. Heart stop ... done. ....buffering.....

Well Duh

[Wellington Grey]

the robot seemed to hold its own--until its compensation software was turned off. "The difference was huge," Kamler says. "It was virtually impossible [for it] to tie a knot."

Well, you try turning off some vital part of the human surgon and see how well he does.

The human surgon did very well until we removed his eyes. "The difference was huge," said the robotic overload. "Not only could he barely tie a knot, but he also couldn't stop screaming."

-Grey

Re:I'm sure

[Arthur B.]

A quick internet search will show there's no ground for your blame of capitalism. In the future we'll have robotic sex-slave with downloadable procedures. The day the bj.bite virus hits is going to be a very sad day.