Friday, September 16, 2011

Five most incredible animal prosthetics

 Singh:

Molly, the Pony With A Prosthetic Leg
Molly, the Pony With A Prosthetic LegMolly walked out of the clinic under her own steam with the help of her artificial limb, and is now an inspiration for children… and horses around the world.

Medical science has advanced to the heights, which no one would have ever imagined in previous decades. For instance, prosthetic limbs have given an opportunity of living a normal life to those people who have lost their body parts because of accidents or diseases. Not only humans, even animals were able to get a new life because of these artificial limbs. Here is a list of five most incredible animal prosthetics.

1. Dolphin having a rubber tail

Fuji, the Dolphin with a Rubber Tail
Fuji, the Dolphin with a Rubber TailWith the help of her rubber tail fin, Fuji is now able to swim almost as well as an intact dolphin.

This dolphin named Fuji, living in an aquarium in Okinawa, has been the center of attraction for decades. Especially, the children visiting this aquarium have been very much enthusiastic about seeing Fuji. Fuji has been delighting everyone until recently when a mysterious disease started deteriorating away her tail fin. To save her life and further damage from this disease, doctors had to cut off her tail completely by a surgical operation. Tail is one of the most important part of a dolphin's body, it acts as its engine without which it cannot swim or jump or dive. That is why engineers from the Bridgestone Tire Company were contacted to design a new rubber tail for Fuji. However, the initial designs did not worked properly because of some drawbacks. Finally, the third tail design, which was made of silicon rubber with foam padding, was accepted by Fuji. Now she is able to swim almost as well as any other normal dolphin.

2. Turtle with a set of toy wheels

Tonka, the Turtle on Wheels
Tonka, the Turtle on WheelsTonka makes up for her missing leg with the help of toy wheels provided to her.

Tonka lost her ability to move when her legs were bitten by a dog. She was left with only three legs, which made it practically impossible for her to move from one place to another. To remedy this problem, the workers at the Peninsula Humane Society came out with an excellent idea. They suggested that Tonka would be able gain her mobility if a set of toy wheels is provided to her. Therefore, they fitted this three-legged tortoise with a set of toy wheel and Tonka was off a rolling in no time. Although, she is bit slow in comparison to the other turtles, still this achievement cannot be doubted. When her pictures with this set of toy wheel were published in the morning newspapers, she was adopted almost immediately in the next couple of days.

3. Elephant with a wooden leg

Motala, the elephant with a bag of woods
Motala, the elephant with a bag of woodsThe prosthetic leg given to her is a bag filled with wood shavings, which makes her damaged leg as long as the others.

Motala is one of those unfortunate and innocent animals who have suffered terribly because of the disputes between humans. She stepped on a land mine near the Thailand-Burma border in the year 1999 because of which she sustained some serious injuries on her front leg. Although, the veterinarians were able to tackle the injuries, but her front leg was left much shorter than the others. This made it very difficult for her to walk, as she was unable to make balance because of her short front leg. To help her out, doctors at the Friends of the Asian Elephant's hospital gave her a prosthetic leg in 2005. This prosthetic leg is nothing but a bag, which is filled with wood shavings and is attached to her short leg. This bag makes her short leg as long as the other legs. Initially she faced some difficulties in adjusting with this leg, but soon she was able to accept this attachment. Motala is still using the same kind of bag as her prosthetic leg.

4. Kangaroo with a prosthetic limb

Stumpy, the kangaroo with a Prosthetic Limb
Stumpy, the kangaroo with a Prosthetic LimbThe artificial limb attached to Stumpy includes a spring to replicate the natural movement of a kangaroo.

Stumpy, which is a red kangaroo, is a resident of the International Kangaroo Society's Sanctuary in Ohio. She has only one leg and was, therefore, needed a prosthetic limb. Therefore, an artificial limb was created for her by the veterinarians at the Ohio State University. This responsibility was given to two people, Richard Nitsch who is a licensed prosthesis orthotist and Dr. David E. Anderson who is an Associate Professor of Surgery at the College of Veterinary Medicine. The task of creating an artificial limb for a kangaroo is not that much simple as it appears. The limb had to be designed keeping in mind that Stumpy will be able to replicate the natural movement of a kangaroo with the help of this prosthetic limb. Unlike other animals, kangaroo usually hop rather than walking from one place to another, so the limb should actually provide this flexibility to her. Hence, springs were included in the prosthetic limb.

5. Pony with a prosthetic leg

Molly, the Pony With A Prosthetic Leg
Molly, the Pony With A Prosthetic LegMolly walked out of the clinic under her own steam with the help of her artificial limb, and is now an inspiration for children… and horses around the world.

The owners of this gray speckled pony abandoned her when the Hurricane Katrina hit southern Louisiana. Somehow, Molly survived the catastrophe and was taken to a farm where all the abandoned animals of that region were kept. She escaped a near death when she was attacked by a pit bull terrier in that farm. However, she was terribly wounded and her right leg was damaged and later became infected. It was quite sure that eventually, she would be on her way to the knacker's yard. However, when surgeon Rustin Moore met her, he decided to remove her leg below the knee and replace it with a temporary artificial limb. Soon a prosthetic leg was designed for her, which gave her a new life. Now, she is an inspiration for many.

Five creative steampunk keyboard mods

Dattatreya Mandal:

The Sojourner Keyboard
The Sojourner KeyboardCrafted in polished brass and then adroitly given a worn-out look

Over the years artists, writers (and modders) have painstakingly tried to emulate that by-gone, quaint epoch where brass studded contraptions jingled with steam powered devices. And now some of the ingenious people among us have tried to channel all those quaint yet appealing 19th century idiosyncrasies into the domain of our ever trusty computers and their related peripherals. Have they succeeded? Certainly so in our book. So without further ado, let us check out the 5 amazingly creative steampunk keyboard mods ever designed by such innovative individuals.

1. Paradox Keyboard

Paradox Keyboard
Paradox KeyboardThe designer's very first Steampunk keyboard project.

According to sources, creator Paradox Tentacles is fond of two things - mini keyboards (without the right extending numpad) and the antique furniture that adorns his dwelling. So, in a natural way he has combined both these influences to contrive his first Steampunk keyboard project. Utilizing an USB keyboard that comes at a size of 12.5″ x 6″, the whole frame has been made from polished wood, with three dainty LED lights replacing (and denoting) the Caps Lock, Number Lock, and Scroll Lock. The original keys were replaced by authentic keys salvaged from two vintage typewriters. Finally to accentuate upon its retro essence, the designer replaced the whole plastic Space Bar button with solid carved wood.

2. The Streamline Keyboard

The Streamline Keyboard
The Streamline KeyboardInspired by the 'Machine Age' styling of the 1920's

Supposedly inspired by the 'Machine Age' styling of the 1920's, this classy keyboard designed by renowned Steampunk artist Datamancer trades all the ubiquitously brass related finishing with an ultra-sober aluminum embellishment. The typewriter like reflective silver keys in a conspicuous Art Deco format is complimented by a glossy acrylic faceplate. Even the stepped layers of highly polished metal at the two flanks of the keyboard allude to that romanticized retro era with cabarets and cocktail parties.

3. Keyboard from The Steampunk Workshop

Keyboard from The Steampunk Workshop
Keyboard from The Steampunk WorkshopModder utilized an original 1989 M "Clicky" keyboard from IBM

In order to create an antediluvian conception, designer and Streampunk enthusiast Jake von Slatt actually utilized a keyboard which in itself can be considered as pretty old going by the present timeline. This is because he used a standard 1989 M "Clicky" keyboard from IBM whose key caps are removable, and also exhibits a rather plain under-key surface (that can be conducive to laying of a newer key top). So, after cleaning up of all the old plastic paraphernalia, he applied a roughish felt background along with a brass cradle for outer support. Old typewriter keys were taken and glued according to the cuttings made on the felt. Finally, he embarked upon a detailed paint job and thus came the fervently enticing end product.

4. Impressive Steampunk Keyboard

Impressive Steampunk Keyboard
Impressive Steampunk KeyboardThe conception was actually created without any gluing technique

Built around a Das Keyboard, this amazing conception was actually created without any gluing technique being used on the surface. The rudimentary form of the original keyboard (after stripping off the plastic) was enclosed in a bit of plywood, while hand tooled leather was fixed to the front surface. But the fascinating feature of this creation is the construction of the retro keys in a novel fashion. Each key was crafted from brass tubing, with the hollow space being inserted with wooden dowels and then draped with the appropriate key label. The designer has also given a midas touch to the whole product by actually manually engraving the conspicuous nameplate with the tip of a screwdriver.

5. The Sojourner Keyboard

The Sojourner Keyboard
The Sojourner KeyboardCrafted in polished brass and then adroitly given a worn-out look

Another magnificent creation from the great Datamancer, and this time he has stuck to conventionally Steampunk glistening brass covers. The whole embodiment is actually crafted in polished brass and then adroitly given a worn-out look. The antique keys have also been tarnished and fixed along an aged leather faceplate to emanate that overall authentic feel. Certainly if Indiana Jones had ever carried a PC in his backpack, its keyboard would have surely looked liked this!