Assignment 1: Information Literacy

David Fleming

Emerging Technology Article:

Prosthetic hand tells the brain what it is touching
By Carina Storrs on CNN.com
Over the years our prosthetic technology has slowly grown. It may
have recently taken a huge leap with the development of a prosthetic limb
that tells the brain what it is touching. We have been able to plant an array
of electrodes in the brain to tell the limb what to do and how to move; so
why not reverse that feature? Researchers conducted an experiment with a
28-year old paralyzed man. They planted an array in his motor and sensory
cortex and connected it to a prosthetic hand. The man was able to identify
which fingertips were being touched with almost 100% accuracy while being
blindfolded. This could lead to the use of fake limbs without the need to
watch them. Later advancements could also lead to temperature and texture
sensations.
Search Engine
Google
Keywords Used
Prosthetic hand tells brain what it is
touching
Article Used
Neurotechnology Provides NearNatural Sense of Touch

Search Engine
Bing
Keywords Used
Prosthetic hand tells brain what it is
touching
Article Used
Researchers reveal new prosthetic
hand that senses touch

When running the two search engines with the same key words similar
results appeared. The Bing search engine, however, seemed to be the most
effective and organizationally pleasing. Bing not only provided me with
search results, but also related photos and videos all on the same page.
Google only provided the search results, splitting the related photos and
videos into sections that needed to be accessed separately. Bing also
provided me with the most recent articles at the top of the page, while
Google had articles of varying age scattered among the list of results.

Assignment 1: Information Literacy

David Fleming

TRRAAPing My Sources:
Neurotechnology Provides Near-Natural Sense of Touch
TIME: The article was written on September 11th 2015 and has no previous
updates.
RELEVANCE: It relates to emerging technology because of the newfound
ability to feel with a prosthetic limb.
RELIABILITY: The information comes from the Defense Advanced Research
Projects Agency (DARPA); a research branch of the U.S. military. The
researchers used experiments in order to prove their hypothesis of feeling
through a prosthetic hand.
AUTHORITY: The author of the article is the DARPA agency. They are qualified
to write about the subject because they are the military branch that
conducted the experiment in the first place.
ACCURACY: The information is trustworthy because it is a government project
backed by a successful experiment. The test was concluded with the man in
the test identifying the correct finger with almost 100% accuracy.
PURPOSE: The article was written in order to inform the population of a soon
possible technology available to those with prosthetic limbs. There is no bias
in the article.

Scholarly Journals:
Database Used
CCBC Smart Search
Justify Database
Provided a wide range search for my
unique topic
Keywords Used
prosthetic hand touch
Result Used
Biomimetic approaches to bionic
touch through a peripheral nerve
interface

Database Used
CCBC Smart Search
Justify Database
Provided a wide range search for my
unique topic
Keywords Used
prosthetic hand touch
Result Used
Clinical Neuroscience: First-in-man
demonstration of a fully implanted
myoelectric sensors system to
control an advanced
electromechanical prosthetic hand

Assignment 1: Information Literacy

David Fleming

Web vs. Journal

When comparing Prosthetic hand tells the brain what it is touching
and Biomimetic approaches to bionic touch through a peripheral nerve
interface, both have their benefits and drawbacks. The web article is by far
easier to reach, requiring only a simple search in the search engine, while
the journal requires the user to navigate through the maze that is the CCBC
library in order to reach it. Both the article and the journal are fairly recent as
they were both published in 2015. The web article, however, is slightly newer
by a few months. The journal would seem to have the advantage in
authority, as the articles found on the CCBC site are all confirmed to be true.
While the web article is most likely true, as it has been published by a
military operation, there is always a risk it may contain false information
without further investigation and confirmation.

Works Cited (MLA)

Storrs, Carina. "Prosthetic Hand 'tells' the Brain What It Is Touching - CNN.com." CNN. Cable News
Network, 15 Sept. 2015. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
Moore, Alison. "Researchers Reveal New Prosthetic Hand That Senses Touch." PBS. PBS, 14 Sept.
2015. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
"Neurotechnology Provides Near-Natural Sense of Touch." Darpa.mil. DARPA, 11 Sept. 2015. Web.
21 Sept. 2015.
Saal, Hannes P., and Sliman J. Bensmaia. "Biomimetic Approaches to Bionic Touch through a
Peripheral Nerve Interface." Ccbc.edu. CCBC, Mar. 2015. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.
Pasquina, Paul F., Melissa Evangelista, A.J. Carvalho, Joseph Lockhart, Sarah Griffin, George
Nanos, Patricia McKay, Morten Hansen, Derek Ipsen, James Vandersea, Josef Butkus, Matthew
Miller, Ian Murphy, and David Hankin. "Clinical Neuroscience: First-in-man Demonstration of a Fully
Implanted Myoelectric Sensors System to Control an Advanced Electromechanical Prosthetic
Hand." Ccbc.edu. CCBC, 15 Apr. 2015. Web. 21 Sept. 2015.