Essay #4 – Touch

Daniel Burkhardt

Professor Harrison

College Writing – 101

8 October 2008

The Synthesis of Feeling

Imagine, for one second, that the sense of touch existed no more. Suddenly, the body’s synaptic translations of the physical world to the sensational ceased to function and everything became textureless and questionable. This is a reality for people all over the world who are victims of a spinal injury or a neurodegenerative disease like “ALS”<!–[if supportFields]> CITATION Dru08 \l 1033 <![endif]–>(Dyess)<!–[if supportFields]><![endif]–>, which leave people paralyzed or unable to feel parts of their body. In the past, these conditions made life unbelievably difficult or even potentially deadly for sufferers. In some parts of the world this is still the case, however, in developed countries like the U.S. or England there is finally hope. Modern medical research has proven an ability to reverse some types of nerve damage by manipulating systems of the body. Surgery and transplants are making the dream of living a normal life tangible for some patients.

In November 2007, The UK Times Online reported that for the first time in history, two patients who had lost limbs were able to feel once again after surgeons installed prosthetics and “rerouted the nerves from their injured arms to the skin on the chest”. While not exactly the same as having those amputated body parts returned, the patients report “when they touch things or are touched they can now feel quite detailed sensations, as if they had come from their phantom limbs” <!–[if supportFields]> CITATION Hen07 \l 1033 <![endif]–>(Henderson)<!–[if supportFields]><![endif]–>. Through research and determination, scientists are turning the dreams amputees and paralysis victims into reality.

An article from Science Daily written in 2002, described the first transatlantic communication of the sense of touch by researchers at MIT: “the demonstration of long-distance touch involves a computer and a small robotic arm that takes the place of a mouse. A user can manipulate the arm by clasping its end, which resembles a thick stylus. The overall system creates the sensation of touch by exerting a precisely controlled force on the user’s fingers”<!–[if supportFields]> CITATION Sci02 \n \l 1033 <![endif]–>(ScienceDaily)<!–[if supportFields]><![endif]–>. These advancements will eventually allow doctors to feel through their fingertips very delicate human tissue that needs to be operated on or removed. By utilizing such techniques, it will become easier for patients to interact with more specialized physicians for treatment. Furthermore, for the first time ever, the sense of touch can interpreted, coded and packaged into data which can be sent across the Internet.

Most people will never need remote surgery or have to experience the pain of losing a limb, so how could this technology be useful to the broader portion of society? “Haptic technology, or Haptics, refers to the technology that connects the user to a computerized system via the sense of touch by applying forces, vibrations and/or motions to the user”<!–[if supportFields]> CITATION Sci07 \l 1033 <![endif]–>(ScienceDaily, Using Computerized Sense Of Touch Over Long Distances: Haptics For Industrial Applications)<!–[if supportFields]><![endif]–>. The ability to interact visually or audibly has been possible for years in the form of telephones and video chat, but humans have yet to master feeling in this way.

The sense of touch is much like the sense of taste, although less complex. The body has to make physical contact with a surface or object to make sense of it so there is no simple way to convey the sense of touch without advanced devices. A method that may someday be employed to experience a synthesized feeling would be to provide an interpreting barrier to the skin. Specially designed textile material worn like a glove might be able to apply pressure and heat sensations to the skin of the wearer and stimulate nerves under the surface. Another way is much like the method used to restore sensations paralysis victims using sugery. Doctors and Scientists may someday be able to identify the exact pathways to the brain that certain sensations communicate through and tap in to them.

Looking into the future, it is expected that everyday people will have the ability to interface with haptic technology in the form of virtual reality or other non-medical uses. Gabriel Robles-De-La-Torre from the International Society for Haptics believes that a virtual reality simulator “would include an interface, as well as related software and hardware entities” <!–[if supportFields]> CITATION Gab06 \l 1033 <![endif]–>(Robles-De-La-Torre)<!–[if supportFields]><![endif]–>. The object of this technology is to provide and immersive experience by synthesizing as many senses as possible. A lot of research is being done in the field of haptic technology and companies around the world are developing new products and techniques that will change lives. Some inventors would even like to develop a full body suit that can convey sensations of touch on the wearer’s skin. An obvious implementation for such technology, would be to enhance the experience of video gaming, however, the possibilities are limitless.

What if a textile covering was placed over the wound of a paralysis or burn victim and through a connection to the brain, the sense of touch could be restored to that area of the body? Imagine if soldiers on battle fields around the globe were wearing paper thin layers of material under their uniforms so that, if wounded, a medic would be able to connect a diagnostic device to the outer layer and know in seconds exactly where the wounds are and how severe. While these technologies are not far fetched anymore, they have to be refined. The future looks promising for haptic technology, but it could be a long and expensive process before average people and medical patients are able to transmit and synthesize the sense of touch regularly.

Goals

For this blog entry I would like to write in a journalistic form. I will compose this essay as if I am writing an article for a publication about the sense of touch. I would like to narrow my focus of this topic to how medicine and inventors are going to be able to synthesize this feeling in the future and improve the quality of life patients and average citizens. I would like to speak to the audience directly and cause the reader to think about situations from a first person perspective that anyone could relate to.

I achieved my goals by adopting the style of a reporter in the way that I worded my ideas. I used various sources to back up those ideas and provide substance. I also used my own personal knowledge of the topic at hand because it is one that I have done some research about in the past. I used my own ideas to invoke thought in the reader to imagine what future technologies would look like. I think that my audience would be able to follow the information and learn some information about a field of research that is not widely known.

Focus Question

What could I have improved to make your reading experience easier or more enjoyable?

Works Cited

 

<!–[if supportFields]> BIBLIOGRAPHY \l 1033 <![endif]–>Dyess, Drucilla. “Health News.” 2 August 2008. Health News. 19 October 2008 <http://www.healthnews.com/disease-illness/stem-cell-breakthrough-lou-gehrigs-disease-als-1516.html&gt;.

Henderson, Mark. Timesonline. 27 November 2007. 08 October 2008 <http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article2950776.ece&gt;.

Robles-De-La-Torre, Gabriel. “roblesdelatorre.com.” 2006. roblesdelatorre.com. 08 October 2008 <http://www.roblesdelatorre.com/gabriel/GR-IEEE-MM-2006.pdf&gt;.

ScienceDaily. Science Daily. 22 June 2007. 08 October 2008 <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/06/070620085254.htm&gt;.

—. ScienceDaily. 29 October 2002. 19 October 2008 <http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2002/10/021029070503.htm&gt;.

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