Handheld breath sensor could help detect cancer

University of Oklahoma researchers are working on a high-tech breath test that could one day help detect cancer.
The team is using mid-infrared laser technology to measure suspected cancer biomarkers in the breath, such as ethane, formaldehyde, and acetaldehyde, and to establish the relationship between those gas molecules and the disease. Ultimately, they hope their work will lead to easy-to-use detection devices that don't emit radiation.

But it may take a while before doctors have such devices in hand. Patrick McCann, an OU professor of electrical and computer engineering who's leading the team, predicts that it will take five to 10 years for the gadgets to find their way into clinics.
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Tech lets tongue drive the PC, wheelchair

Theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking blinks an eye to control a computer and voice synthesizer. But with the use of a new technology, he could use his tongue instead.

Engineers at Georgia's Institute of Technology have developed technology that would allow people with severe disabilities, such as Hawking, to operate a wheelchair or computer by moving their tongue. They only need to get as hip as a tongue-pierced punk.

The technology, which was described in this month's issue of the Journal of Rehabilitation Research and Development, involves a small magnet the size of a grain of rice, which gets pierced into the person's tongue. A companion device embedded with magnetic sensors, such as an orthodontic brace or headset, can then trace the movement of the tongue and transmit those signals wirelessly to a nearby portable computer.

People can set six tongue motions, such as a right-click, and use their tongue like a joystick to direct movements of a cursor on a computer screen or power a wheelchair.
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Vocal Joystick controls PCs for those with hand injuries

For many Iraq war veterans who have returned home with debilitating injuries that, for example, make it impossible to use their hands, doing anything on a computer is a hopeless task.
But a research project under way in the University of Washington's electrical engineering, linguistics and computer science departments could be the latest tool at such veterans' disposal, as well as for anyone who lacks the full use of their hands.

The project, known as the Vocal Joystick, is designed to allow someone to control a computer cursor using nothing more than their voice.

University of Washington graduate student Jon Malkin, who spoke at the Gnomedex conference here Saturday, described it is an extension of speech recognition technology.

It works by having a user train the Vocal Joystick software with his or her voice.

"We can do a lot with that," Malkin said. "Speech is a very complex signal."
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Motion-powered phone charger sashays in

M2E Power, a company formed last year to charge electronic gadgets with human motion, has reported back that its system actually works.

Next year it expects to release a charger that can harvest enough motion from walking to replenish cell phones or other small gadgets, like GPS devices.

It says that 6 hours of cumulative motion can add 30 to 60 minutes of talktime to a cell phone.

The idea is to place the charger inside a purse or backpack and let it charge in the background, said Regan Rowe, director of business development at the company. When fully charged, M2E Power's device stores enough to recharge a phone at a speed comparable to an AC outlet.

Inside is a Lithium-ion battery and a series of coils and magnets. When it moves, an electromagnetic field forms around the coils to generate electricity.
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Laser weapons: A distant target

Laser technology may yet yield the weapons of the not-so-distant future, but the future is certainly not now.

For the moment, it's all R&D business as usual. Earlier this week, both Boeing and Northrop Grumman put out statements about their ongoing work on US Army's High Energy Laser Technology Demonstrator, or HEL TD. And for Boeing, it was also a chance to crow about a contract win: US$36 million to continue its work on a HEL TD design.

With that money, Boeing says it will first finish its design work, and then move on to building and testing a ruggedized beam control system on a heavy-duty truck (specifically, the Army's Heavy Expanded Mobility Tactical Truck). The defense contractor finished the preliminary design of the beam control system earlier this summer. Boeing also plans to develop the systems-engineering requirements for the complete HEL TD.
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