Category Science & Technology

WHAT WAS THE EARLIEST OPERATION?

Archaeologists have found skulls, dating from at least 10,000 years ago, that have holes drilled into them. Because bone has begun to grow around the holes, they were clearly made while the person was still alive. It is believed that this technique, called trepanning, was the first operation. It was probably done to relieve headaches or to let out evil spirits that were thought to be trapped inside the patient’s head.

The history of dental and surgical procedures reaches back to the Neolithic and pre-Classical ages. The first evidence of a surgical procedure is that of trephining, or cutting a small hole in the head. This procedure was practiced as early as 3000 BC and continued through the middle Ages and even into the Renaissance.  The initial purpose of trephining in ancient cultures is unknown; although some hypothesize it may have been used to rid the body of spirits. The practice was widespread throughout Europe, Africa, and South America. Evidence of healed skulls suggests some patients survived the procedure. Trephining continued in Ancient Egypt as a method of treating migraines. In South America, ancient Mayans practiced dental surgery by filling cavities with precious stones including jadeite, turquoise, quartz, and hematite, among others. It is supposed that these procedures were for ritual or religious purposes, rather than health or cosmetic reasons.

Ancient Greeks also performed some surgical procedures including setting broken bones, bloodletting, draining lungs of patients with pneumonia, and amputations. The Greeks had new, iron tools at their disposal, yet the risk of infection or death was still high. Hippocrates’ theory of four humors influenced medicine for hundreds of years. He claimed that the humors (black bile, yellow bile, phlegm, and blood which coincided with the elements earth, fire, water, and air, respectively) exist in the body, and bloodletting (or the draining of blood), among other procedures, balanced them. Ancient Roman physician Galen was heavily influenced by the Greeks. He served for three years as doctor to Roman gladiators and as the Emperor’s surgeon, gaining hands-on surgical experience. Romans continued with trephining, amputations, and eye surgery. Beginning in 900 AD, Al-Zahrawi, a famous Islamic surgeon, wrote books focused on orthopedics, military surgery, and ear, nose, and throat surgery, further influencing Islamic and Western medical practitioners.

Picture Credit : Google

WHO WAS HIPPOCRATES?

Hippocrates is often described as “the father of modern medicine”. He was a Greek doctor, living in the fourth and fifth centuries BC , who taught that a doctor’s first duty is to his or her patient and that the aim must at all times be to try to do good rather than harm. When they qualify, many modern doctors take the Hippocratic Oath, promising to follow these principles throughout their careers.

Hippocrates was born around 460 BC on the island of Kos, Greece. He became known as the founder of medicine and was regarded as the greatest physician of his time.

He based his medical practice on observations and on the study of the human body. He held the belief that illness had a physical and a rational explanation. He rejected the views of his time that considered illness to be caused by superstitions and by possession of evil spirits and disfavor of the gods.

Hippocrates teaching Hippocrates held the belief that the body must be treated as a whole and not just a series of parts. He accurately described disease symptoms and was the first physician to accurately describe the symptoms of pneumonia, as well as epilepsy in children. He believed in the natural healing process of rest, a good diet, fresh air and cleanliness. He noted that there were individual differences in the severity of disease symptoms and that some individuals were better able to cope with their disease and illness than others. He was also the first physician that held the belief that thoughts, ideas, and feelings come from the brain and not the heart as others of his time believed.

Hippocrates traveled throughout Greece practicing his medicine. He founded a medical school on the island of Kos, Greece and began teaching his ideas. He soon developed an Oath of Medical Ethics for physicians to follow. This Oath is taken by physicians today as they begin their medical practice. He died in 377 BC. Today Hippocrates is known as the “Father of Medicine”.

Picture Credit : Google

WHAT IS A ROBOT?

A robot is a machine—especially one programmable by a computer— capable of carrying out a complex series of actions automatically. Robots can be guided by an external control device or the control may be embedded within. Robots may be constructed on the lines of human form, but most robots are machines designed to perform a task with no regard to their aesthetics.

Robots that resemble humans are known as androids; however, many robots aren’t built on the human model. Industrial robots, for example, are often designed to perform repetitive tasks that aren’t facilitated by a human-like construction. A robot can be remotely controlled by a human operator, sometimes from a great distance. A telechir is a complex robot that is remotely controlled by a human operator for a telepresence system, which gives that individual the sense of being on location in a remote, dangerous or alien environment and the ability to interact with it. Telepresence robots, which simulate the experience and some of the capabilities of being physically present, can enable remote business consultations, healthcare, home monitoring and childcare, among many other possibilities.

An autonomous robot acts as a stand-alone system, complete with its own computer (called the controller). The most advanced example is the smart robot, which has a built-in artificial intelligence (Al) system that can learn from its environment and its experience and build on its capabilities based on that knowledge.

Swarm robots, sometimes referred to as insect robots, work in fleets ranging in number from a few to thousands, with all fleet members under the supervision of a single controller. The term arises from the similarity of the system to a colony of insects, where the individuals and behaviors are simple but the fleet as a whole can be sophisticated.

Robots are sometimes grouped according to the time frame in which they were first widely used. First-generation robots date from the 1970s and consist of stationary, nonprogrammable, electromechanical devices without sensors. Second-generation robots were developed in the 1980s and can contain sensors and programmable controllers. Third-generation robots were developed between approximately 1990 and the present. These machines can be stationary or mobile, autonomous or insect type, with sophisticated programming, speech recognition and/or synthesis, and other advanced features. Fourth-generation robots are in the research-and-development phase, and include features such as artificial intelligence, self-replication, self-assembly, and nanoscale size (physical dimensions on the order of nanometers, or units of 10- meter).

Some advanced robots are called androids because of their superficial resemblance to human beings. Androids are mobile, usually moving around on wheels or a track drive (robots legs are unstable and difficult to engineer). The android is not necessarily the end point of robot evolution. Some of the most esoteric and powerful robots do not look or behave anything like humans. The ultimate in robotic intelligence and sophistication might take on forms yet to be imagined.

Picture Credit : Google

HOW ARE ROBOTS USED FOR DANGEROUS JOBS?

There are many situations in which human beings can operate safely only by wearing bulky protective clothing and working for short periods at a time. Sometimes even that is not enough to protect them. If it is suspected that a booby-trapped bomb has been left in an abandoned vehicle, for example, a controlled explosion may be the only way of deactivating it. No matter how much protection a bomb disposal expert has, the explosion could be fatal if he or she is nearby. The answer is to use a robot carrying an explosive charge. The robot can be sent into the danger zone while experts remain at a safe distance. Although no one wants to destroy an expensive machine, the alternative is much worse.

Dirty jobs are often unsanitary or hazardous work that can impact human health. Even though these jobs are unfavorable, someone has to do them. They include waste management, livestock nurturing, and mine exploration. The robot can take away the risk from humans and keep them safe from harm.

One example is the need for sewer scrapers. When there is a problem with a sewer pipe, a crew shuts it off, digs to access the pipe, then fixes the infrastructure. But a robot can clean, map, and inspect pipes before the problems arise. Robots can also collect data like distance, pressure, temperature, and composition to get visibility of pollutants, infectious diseases, and drug use.

Dangerous jobs put humans in harmful situations. To prevent the loss of human life, robots can be used. They are able to measure and detect variables beyond human perception. Robots can defuse bombs, traverse distant planets, and inspect unstable structures. Robots are being used to inspect bridges. A high degree of expertise, risk, and cost is associated with manned bridge inspections. Multirotor drones are able to completely remove humans from dangerous situations. They inspect hard-to-access areas with advanced speed and maneuverability.

Picture Credit : Google

DO ALL SCIENTISTS WORK IN LABORATORIES?

Some scientists do wear white coats and work with test tubes, but many do most of their work in the world outside. A geologist, gist, for example, may have to clamber a cliff face to obtain samples of rock. Not all scientists wear white coats and work in labs. There are a wide variety of jobs and careers that require knowledge and application of science, from research to business and from regulation to teaching.

The Business Scientist underpins excellent management and business skills with scientific knowledge, supporting evidence-led decision-making within companies and other enterprises. This type of scientist has the scientific and technical knowledge to be credible with colleagues and competitors, as well as confidence in a business environment. They are found in science and technology companies in a wide variety of roles, from R&D or marketing, and to the C-suite itself.

The Developer, or translational, Scientist uses the knowledge generated by others and transforms it into something that society can use. They might be developing products or services, ideas that change behaviour, improvements in health care and medicines, or the application of existing technology in new settings.

They are found in research environments and may be working with Entrepreneur and Business scientists to help bring their ideas to market.

The Entrepreneur Scientist makes innovation happen. Their scientific knowledge and connections are deep enough to be able to see opportunities for innovation – not just in business, but also in the public sector and other sectors of society.

They blend their science knowledge and credibility with people management skills, entrepreneurial flair and a strong understanding of business and finance, to start their own businesses or help grow existing companies.

The Explorer Scientist is someone who, like the crew of the Enterprise, is on a journey of discovery “to boldly go where no one has gone before”. They rarely focus on a specific outcome or impact; rather they want to know the next piece of the jigsaw of scientific understanding and knowledge. They are likely to be found in a university or research centre or in Research & Development (R&D) at an organisation, and are likely to be working alone.

The Regulator Scientist is there to reassure the public that systems and technology are reliable and safe, through monitoring and regulation. They will have a mix of skills and while they may not get involved in things like lab work, they will have a thorough understanding of the science and the processes involved in monitoring its use or application. They are found in regulatory bodies, such as the Food Standards Agency, and in a wide range of testing and measurement services.

The Technician Scientist provides operational scientific services in a wide range of ways. These are the scientists we have come to depend on within the health service, forensic science, food science, health and safety, materials analysis and testing, education and many other areas. Rarely visible, this type of scientist is found in laboratories and other support service environments across a wide variety of sectors.

The Investigator Scientist digs into the unknown observing, mapping, understanding and piecing together in-depth knowledge and data, setting out the landscape for others to translate and develop. They are likely to be found in a university or research centre or in Research & Development (R&D) at an organisation, working in a team and likely in a multi-disciplinary environment.

Picture Credit : Google

HOW IS SCIENTIFIC KNOWLEDGE PASSED ON?

It is incredible to us now that five hundred years ago it was possible for a person to have a good understanding of every branch of science then known. Today there is so much information available that no one person can be informed about every area of science, and even specialists has difficulty in keeping up with new developments. There is a long established tradition that scientists who have made a new discovery publish a “paper” or article on the subject in scientific journals. People working in the same field can then read this to keep up to date with their subject. Some discoveries are so important or amazing that they reach the general public, through radio, television, books and newspapers.

Until the past decade, scientists, research institutions, and government agencies relied solely on a system of self-regulation based on shared ethical principles and generally accepted research practices to ensure integrity in the research process. Among the very basic principles that guide scientists, as well as many other scholars, are those expressed as respect for the integrity of knowledge, collegiality, honesty, objectivity, and openness. These principles are at work in the fundamental elements of the scientific method, such as formulating a hypothesis, designing an experiment to test the hypothesis, and collecting and interpreting data. In addition, more particular principles characteristic of specific scientific disciplines influence the methods of observation; the acquisition, storage, management, and sharing of data; the communication of scientific knowledge and information; and the training of younger scientists.1 How these principles are applied varies considerably among the several scientific disciplines, different research organizations, and individual investigators.

The basic and particular principles that guide scientific research practices exist primarily in an unwritten code of ethics. Although some have proposed that these principles should be written down and formalized, the principles and traditions of science are, for the most part, conveyed to successive generations of scientists through example, discussion, and informal education. As was pointed out in an early Academy report on responsible conduct of research in the health sciences, “a variety of informal and formal practices and procedures currently exist in the academic research environment to assure and maintain the high quality of research conduct”.

Physicist Richard Feynman invoked the informal approach to communicating the basic principles of science in his 1974 commencement address at the California Institute of Technology:

[There is an] idea that we all hope you have learned in studying science in school—we never explicitly say what this is, but just hope that you catch on by all the examples of scientific investigation. It’s a kind of scientific integrity, a principle of scientific thought that corresponds to a kind of utter honesty—a kind of leaning over backwards. For example, if you’re doing an experiment, you should report everything that you think might make it invalid—not only what you think is right about it; other causes that could possibly explain your results; and things you thought of that you’ve eliminated by some other experiment, and how they worked—to make sure the other fellow can tell they have been eliminated.

Details that could throw doubt on your interpretation must be given, if you know them. You must do the best you can—if you know anything at all wrong, or possibly wrong—to explain it. If you make a theory, for example, and advertise it, or put it out, then you must also put down all the facts that disagree with it, as well as those that agree with it. In summary, the idea is to try to give all the information to help others to judge the value of your contribution, not just the information that leads to judgment in one particular direction or another.

Picture Credit : Google