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Researchers Create Vomiting Robot To Analyze Contagions
iComp points out an interesting project in Derbyshire, northern England. "Bioboffins at the Health and Safety Laboratory in Derbyshire, UK, have developed a robot that can projectile vomit on command as a tool for studying the spread of the highly infectious norovirus. Reuters reports that the hyperemetic droid has been dubbed 'Vomiting Larry' by its creator, researcher Catherine Makison, who describes it as a 'humanoid simulated vomiting system.' The goal of said vomiting system is to study the reach and dispersion of human vomitus, which is one of the primary ways that diseases such as norovirus can spread. Norovirus is a fairly common viral infection that is sometimes known as the 'winter vomiting bug' due to its increased prevalence in the colder months. Outbreaks are generally triggered when humans ingest contaminated food or water, but can continue when subsequent people come in contact with surfaces that have been contaminated by the initial patient's effluvium."
"Two bots and a cup."
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We already have a vomiting robot. Every time my buddy mixes beer and wine, he turns into the ReTardis. We call him that because, based on production, he has to be larger inside than outside.
I've calculated my velocity with such exquisite precision that I have no idea where I am.
I bet this will be one of the winner in IG Nobel Prize for this year.
And definitely not in front of.
subject says it.
Nobodies Prefect
Tidbits for Techs Technology Blog
I suggest you brush up on your grammar. "projectile" is being used as an adverb, not a verb. However, "projectile" and "vomit" together form a compound verb. No different to "nose dive" or "duck walk".
Bill - aka taniwha
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Leave others their otherness. -- Aratak
It's only a matter of time before this ends up in Spencer's Gifts.
The Internet King? I wonder if he could provide faster nudity.
Yes.
We had this hit after my sister's wedding a few years ago. It is an insanely bad 12-36 hours; I personally lost more than 10 lbs over the course of 24 hours (most of it water weight, but still). It's vomiting and diarrhea the like of which only exists in horror movies and it is insanely communicable. If someone around you has a case you will get it yourself. Hand sanitizers don't kill it effectively, it survives 12 hours on solid rock and 12 days on fabrics, and the shear force of the vomiting ensures that every surface in the bathroom will have trace quantities of the virus. Fewer than 20 virus particles can cause infection and infected people will be shedding detectable amounts of the virus for weeks after their symptoms disappear. While making a vomiting robot may be funny, it was probably thought up in response to anecdotes like this:
126 people were dining at six tables in December 1998; one woman vomited. Staff quickly cleaned up, and people continued eating. Three days later others started falling ill; 52 people reported a range of symptoms, from fever and nausea to vomiting and diarrhoea. The cause was not immediately identified. Researchers plotted the seating arrangement: more than 90% of the people on the same table as the sick woman later reported food poisoning. There was a direct correlation between the risk of infection of people at other tables and how close they were to the sick woman. More than 70% of the diners on an adjacent table fell ill; at a table on the other side of the restaurant, the rate was still 25%.
Knowing how vomiting aerosols virus particles and how/how far they travel could be extremely important to providing new recommendations of how to handle situations where people vomit. Do you scrub the entire bathroom down, bleach all the towels and clothes, and take a shower after someone in your household vomits? Because according to this research, if you want to prevent the spread that is what you would have to do.