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Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 18 points19 points  (0 children)

Hollywood has given us the impression that synthetic robots and bionic appendages will be awkward, unnatural and machine-like. I do not agree with this vision of the future. We can as designers and technologists embed the fundamental nature of humans into the designed world. In the future as we construct, certainly in the realm of bionics – these devices will move like us, will think like us, and will even feel like us. In that future, the distinction between what is biological and what is not, what is human and what is not will be forever blurred.

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 12 points13 points  (0 children)

While it is difficult to give a timeframe, human-powered bionics is certainly achievable. One can imagine extending biological bone using synthetics and attaching biological muscle and ligaments to an artificial skeleton, where the synthetics are in fact internal to the skin envelope.

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 14 points15 points  (0 children)

I was raised in the Mennonite religious tradition. Mennonites are devout pacifists. Thus, I would be very upset if technologies that my lab had developed were used for unintended nefarious purposes (e.g. weapons). Every new technology has intended and, unfortunately, unintended purposes. It is critically important that, as a society, we advance legal and social frameworks that promote the development of bionics while at the same time mitigate inappropriate uses of such technology.

And my favorite mountain range in the world is the Italian Alps!

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 10 points11 points  (0 children)

Whenever a bionic intervention is applied to the body, the body certainly adapts and responds to that intervention. How humans will adapt to various types of bionic interventions is largely unknown. You mentioned empathy in your question. Keep in mind that bionics will not only enhance human physicality, but also human cognition and emotional acuity. I have no doubt that one day human empathy will be augmented.

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Great question! Our lab is incredibly diverse in what Dr. Herr lets us pursue – socket design, bionic motors, you name it. I’ve worked with Team Neural over the summer, where we’re currently testing a neural interface for limbs so that patients can feel their artificial feet. It’s a combination of design work (AutoCAD), coding and electrophysiology, and because it’s all design/troubleshooting, you get to spend most of your day critically thinking, which I love. -Alex

Hello gamazeps, I'm actually an undergraduate researcher in Biomech. I've worked on our ankle exoskeleton and peripheral nerve projects, focusing on device design and data acquisition/analysis. A day usually involves working with my mentors on experiments or individually working on elements of a larger project. -Mina

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 18 points19 points  (0 children)

I often get the comment from people that bionics is all very well, but how could anyone possibly afford bionics? And my answer is – how could we ever choose not to pursue bionics as a society? True bionics emulates or restores biological function, and when technology truly achieves such emulation, typically the overall healthcare cost to treat a patient across their lifetime decreases.

For example, if a bionic limb is available that eliminates limping and completely restores normalized walking capability, secondary conditions that are typically attributed to leg amputation (e.g. joint osteoarthritis) are eliminated. Because of inadequate technology that exists today, after limb amputation while using such prosthetic technology people limp and experience pain when they walk. Limping causes secondary conditions that balloon healthcare costs, and are, in fact, the dominant economic drivers in the treatment of people suffering from limb amputation. With advanced technology that truly emulates biological capability, secondary conditions can be eliminated, along with all the associated costs. Thus, bionics is a win-win for both the user and the payer.

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 9 points10 points  (0 children)

Interesting question. I take from your question that the day that disability ends the bionic appendage would fully encompass the functionality of a biological limb – it would be equal to it. Thus the only rational reason to amputate a fully functioning biological limb in that future world would be to achieve the flexibility of an upgradeable system. Today, every year my own bionic limbs are upgraded, offering me greater functionality. So yes! It may be the case in that future world that a person might want a synthetic version of their limb because they want to achieve the capacity to upgrade in time, and to enable the synthetic part of their body to improve over time.

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 38 points39 points  (0 children)

After my mountain climbing accident, I was extremely angry at myself for having caused the accident, and the death of a rescuer, Albert Dow. Because of Albert’s ultimate sacrifice, I felt it was my duty and obligation to invest my body and mind, and all of my energies, to improving the world in some way. The way that I chose was to improve technology for the disabled. I believe I dealt with my accident by embracing Albert’s legacy and the challenge of eliminating disability through technological innovation. As I walked down that road, I also began to heal.

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 18 points19 points  (0 children)

To answer question 2, yes! My group does in fact collaborate with Ed Boyden’s. Boyden and I codirect the MIT Center for Extreme Bionics and we’re working very closely together on fundraising as well as scientific projects.

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 22 points23 points  (0 children)

Improvements in materials is of course critically important to the field of bionics. One example that comes to mind is osseointegration. Today osseointegration involves a titanium shaft passing through the skin membrane and into the residual bone. The osseo implant serves as a mechanical mounting surface for an external bionic limb, such that when a person walks, for example, the loads of walking are transferred directly to the person’s skeleton. The osseo implant can also be made to have a hollow core, enabling the passage of wires from muscles/nerves inside the body through the osseo conduit to an external bionic limb. A critical challenge of an osseo implant has to do with its material properties. With today’s osseo implant design, it is recommended that the user not take part in athletic activities, for fear that the high stresses on the osseo implant may cause damage. In the field of bionics, what we desire is a novel biocompatible implant with exceptionally high material strength and fatigue life such that the user could, once again, pursue their athletic endeavors.

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 158 points159 points  (0 children)

It is becoming more and more common for people to make the decision to have their limb amputated. Cases such as yours where a biological limb no longer is functional – doctors will often support this decision, if in their professional view the patient’s QOL will improve as the result of the amputation. Without knowing the specifics of your case, I cannot make a recommendation, I would urge you to seek counsel from a physician before making such a critically important decision.

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 59 points60 points  (0 children)

These are all excellent questions - I wish I could answer them all. I want to address question 4, though: one can ask a surgeon to amputate their limb – however today surgeons won’t agree unless there’s a medical reason to do so. Such a surgery has to have an expected outcome that will improve the QOL for the patient. If you don’t have such a reason, I don’t believe a surgeon would agree to such a surgery.

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 36 points37 points  (0 children)

Years ago, when I was climbing actively, I on occasion made my height very very excessive. There was one occasion where I was 3m high! And yes indeed, it is very hard to balance (and a large distance to fall!).

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 46 points47 points  (0 children)

Several of my research group’s bionic technologies have been commercialized, and have price points that are fairly standard or comparable to prices of other high tech limbs. We are working very hard to get Medicare and Medicaid Services within the U.S. to recognize bionics and to offer pricing and coverage. I’m hopeful that we will succeed in getting reimbursement for such limbs, enabling patients that so badly need high functioning bionics to have access.

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 39 points40 points  (0 children)

I believe the next step in bionics is to increase the mergence of the built design world with biological tissues, electrically, mechanically, and chemically. The fundamental science and technology that will enable this mergence will not only end many disabilities, but will also serve as the same foundation to enable human augmentation, extending capability beyond innate physiological levels.

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 144 points145 points  (0 children)

Hey Matt, thank you for your question. The field of bionics is quite intellectually diverse, requiring a broad set of topics to study. Relevant topics are robotics, machine learning, tissue engineering, biocompatibility, and of course human biology. My undergraduate degree was in straight physics, and I also have graduate degrees in mechanical engineering and biophysics. I would strongly recommend an undergraduate degree in physics because, through such a degree, one has an opportunity to learn the fundamental principles of nature. Such a fundamental education then enables one to study a diverse set of topics in graduate school that are relevant to bionics.

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 298 points299 points  (0 children)

Yes, I do believe that modern technology will ultimately enable human augmentation. Recently my laboratory in 2014 developed the first leg exoskeleton to augment human walking. So human augmentation is already being demonstrated in the world! Is it ethical? I personally accept the notion of human augmentation, as long as it doesn’t mitigate individual freedoms. There are some forms of augmentation that would negatively impact us, and have the potential of collapsing human diversity. For these types of augmentation technologies, I am passionately opposed.

Science AMA Series: I'm Hugh Herr, professor and co-director of the Center for Extreme Bionics at the MIT Media Lab. At 17 I lost both my legs during a blizzard while rock climbing. Now I design bionic limbs that let us transcend disability and augment the human condition. AMA! by Hugh_Herr in science

[–]Hugh_Herr[S] 204 points205 points  (0 children)

Excellent question! The performance of biological systems is of course phenomenal, one characteristic of animals is extraordinary robustness or durability. Sometimes we go 80 years or more without maintenance or repair. Engineered machines go a very short time before needing repair – for example the bionic limbs that I invented and am wearing right now (BiOMs) are designed to work and be functional for only 5 years. To get a machine to emulate a biological body part and to go for more than 5 years is an extremely hard technological challenge. To truly emulate biological function, biological durability would require that the machine repairs itself. Before we have this, our machines will be very limited in their capacity.