Actually, there have been rumors for some time that we do have a “TRICORDER” that can assess medical conditions much as that unit in Star Trek.
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I am certain I’ve seen articles on the diagnostic version of the Tricorder. There are apps for iPhone that dx diabetes, for example. I think more and more parameters are being included, meaning more and more conditions can be assessed digitally w/o invasive tests.
I think it is basically coding standard differential diagnosis for accessible stats: blood sats, blood sugar, standard vitals & whatever else can be determined w/external sensors.
It’s the treatment modality that is still elusive. I think some devices using various colored lasers are an attempt in that direction.Here’s an article from MassGeneral on nanosuturing with lasers
http://www.massgeneral.org/News/newsarticle.aspx?id=1870
Now, I’m seeing more and more reports of quantum entanglement experiments (I do not pretend to understand this stuff)that hint at eventual object transport, but are now limited to particles. Other reports seems to indicate some form of time travel may be possible, also at the moment limited to particles. Ditto thought transference.
The further we progress, the faster the progressions seem to come. Once humans know something is possible, they make it happen. Then they make it portable. Then they make it happen faster. Etc.
One upon a time slow computers took up city blocks and ate enough power to supply a city. Now, very fast computers fit in our hands, are recharged off regular electric sources and cost $1k or less.
What was science fiction twenty years ago is reality, today. It becomes more and more difficult to state what is or isn’t possible. Physics is zooming off into realms everyone thought were nutty. Maybe it is nutty. Maybe not.
I much agree.
This is exactly wrong, or unless everyone does not include good scientists and engineers who only think that things are nutty if the concept violates well settled physical principles (of which there have been none since the last revolution in physics - the development of quantum mechanics into 1930s).
The book Microcosm speaks of this in relation to quantum physics where the rules can be different. As computer chips run faster they run cooler, the limits are the transmission lines (copper wire heats up as more electrons pass through at faster speeds). Transmission lines are the limiter (might be why cell phones can overheat).
This is why last weeks announcements concerning Graphene sheets is so important, if graphene can transmit energy, electricity, data, it does not have the heat issues of current materials.