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One Small Step for the Bionic Man, One Giant Leap for Robotics

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From: The Incredible Bionic Man

One Small Step for the Bionic Man, One Giant Leap for Robotics

Short | 02:27

Hydraulic hips, computer controlled knees, the world's most lifelike bionic ankles, and a robotic exoskeleton propel the Bionic Man forward to take his very first steps.

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How close is today's technology to catching up with the human body? Two roboticists are on a quest to find out. Follow their mission as they collect the most sophisticated prosthetic parts available and combine them into one single functioning body, complete with an artificial heart, microchip brain, synthetic lungs, kidneys, and even a spleen. Their incredible bionic man reveals just how far science has come and demonstrates where this technology is headed, all the while posing the eternal question of what it means to be human.

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Bios

Richard Walker

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As the Managing Director of Shadow Robot, Richard Walker collaborates with universities, hospitals, and researchers worldwide. He studied mathematics at the University of Cambridge and helped to invent the world's most dexterous, commercial robotic hand.
Bertolt Meyer

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Bertolt Meyer was the human model for the bionic man. He is a psychology professor who has used a prosthetic limb since he was just three months old. Born with a congenitally missing lower left arm, he has seen the development of prosthetic technology firsthand, and in 2009 became Switzerland's first user of one of the most advanced kinds - the Touch Bionics iLimb.
Alexander Seifalian

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Professor Alexander Seifalian and his colleagues at University College London invented a method of creating artificial organs. Using a patient's stem cells and a scaffolding made of a new kind of nanomaterial, he has been able to implant synthetic body parts, including the first ever synthetic trachea, tear duct, nose, ear and coronary artery bypass graft.