Stanford Creates Tricorder-Like Devices For Detecting Cancer and Explosives (stanford.edu) 34
An anonymous reader writes: A new technology has promise to safely find buried plastic explosives and maybe even spot fast-growing tumors. The technique involves the clever interplay of microwaves and ultrasound to develop a detector like the Star Trek tricorder. The careful manipulation of two scientific principles drives both the military and medical applications of the Stanford work. First, all materials expand and contract when stimulated with electromagnetic energy, such as light or microwaves. Second, this expansion and contraction produces ultrasound waves that travel to the surface and can be detected remotely.
In a potential battlefield application, the microwaves would heat the suspect area, causing the muddy ground to expand and thus squeeze the plastic (abstract). Pulsing the microwaves would generate a series of ultrasound pressure waves that could be detected and interpreted to disclose the presence of buried plastic explosives. Solving the technical challenges of detecting ultrasound after it left the ground gave the Stanford researchers the experience to take aim at their ultimate goal – using the device in medical applications without touching the skin.
In a potential battlefield application, the microwaves would heat the suspect area, causing the muddy ground to expand and thus squeeze the plastic (abstract). Pulsing the microwaves would generate a series of ultrasound pressure waves that could be detected and interpreted to disclose the presence of buried plastic explosives. Solving the technical challenges of detecting ultrasound after it left the ground gave the Stanford researchers the experience to take aim at their ultimate goal – using the device in medical applications without touching the skin.
And cancerous explosives! (Score:2)
...also explosive cancers!
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It would certainly detect the presence of old people carrying cardiac pills.
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Warning: this explosive is known to the state of California to cause cancer.
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You forgot the "fight for you Bitcoins" link.
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Chipotle? [wikia.com]
Fight for your bitcoins! [coinbrawl.com]
Rife (Score:3)
This story reminds me of the work of Rife.
The short story is that Rife invented a hetrodyning optical microscope that mixed UV light incident on the subject of interest,such as cancer cells, where the mixing difference would reproduce visible light but allow the study of cells while still alive. He then used modulated RF sources to find the resonant point of these cancer cells to mechanically destroy them. The conspiracy theory goes that the established medical community destroyed his work/equipment as his results were too effective.
We've found TNT, but worse (Score:2)
It's metastasised.
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Induction? (Score:2)
Because microwaves inducing currents in unknown explosive devices is a wonderful idea?
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Actually, yes.
Why would it not be a good idea?
If an unknown bomb gets rigged to explode with scanning, all it will do is destroy the immediate area.
Given that a robot would be doing this anyway, it just means that a robot gets blown to bits.
That'll be a million dollars plus tip.
Of course, terrorists would be stupid enough to think this would even matter in the grand scheme of the World Polices funds.
technological dowsing rod (Score:2)
Hmmm (Score:2)
So that's how the Tricorder worked. Thank you /., I learn something new every day!
Tricorder "Like" device? (Score:2)
Really? A Tricorder "like" device? Isn't an MRI, a CT, Ultrasound and X-ray a Tricorder LIKE device? Heck, add to that EEG and EKG devices, as are metal detectors, video recorders and cell phones.
So why do we insist on coupling some new reordering of existing technology with the public persona of Star Trek? Easy, it's an attempt to garner PR brownie points by leveraging something that's already popular in some circles. Frankly I'm growing tired of this ploy... Can't we just call them what they are, porta
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Isn't an MRI, a CT, Ultrasound and X-ray a Tricorder LIKE device?
Not really. If it's not handheld and portable, it's not tricorder-like.
Tricorder-like (Score:5, Insightful)
I believe the tricorder's main attributes were:
1) it can scan, analyze, or detect anything
2) it doesn't exist
I wonder which of these attributes they implemented?
"We've been working on this for a little over two years," Khuri-Yakub said. "We're still at an early stage but we're confident that in five to ten to fifteen years, this will become practical and widely available."
Star Trek Sensors (Score:5, Funny)
That sounds way cool (Score:2)
I am taking a signals class right now, and we are learning about filtering noise.
This sounds like a way noisy signal. It is super cool that they think they can still gain useful information
Vaporware (Score:1)
Furthermore the amount of RF-generated heath needed to make the tumor visible would exceed the safety levels of EM exposure for humans.
Concerning the possibility of detecting buried explosives, I must say that I have more than 20 years of experience in R&D work in related fields, and I would be very surprised to see this gadget to detect anything useful in real ground.