Latest By
Category:
Armor
Artificial
Intelligence
Biology
Clothing
Communication
Computers
Culture
Data Storage
Displays
Engineering
Entertainment
Food
Input Devices
Lifestyle
Living Space
Manufacturing
Material
Media
Medical
Miscellaneous
Robotics
Security
Space Tech
Spacecraft
Surveillance
Transportation
Travel
Vehicle
Virtual
Person
Warfare
Weapon
Work
"I realized there was a heavy-duty change coming in biology, and I could write a really compelling novel about catastrophic evolution, punctuated equilibrium."
- Greg Bear
 |
| Short-Wave Surgical Knife | ||
| A means of performing an internal cut without breaking the skin. |
The perfect companion device to the X-ray.
| "The entire scheme has its origin in Valenski's research on the short-wave surgical knife. Possibly you are familiar with that device. It severs flesh and seals the capillaries as it goes through..."
"...Valenski tried to develop an adjustable focus sufficient in length, accuracy, and sensitivity to permit interior surgery without surface penetration. Such an instrument seemed the natural adjunct to a three-dimensional X-ray apparatus..." "...After some years Valenski achieved his aim with a device that projected two converging ultra-short-wave beams. Each was innocuous in itself, but when the two were projected simultaneously and out of phase they cut at their mutual focal point, which had a diameter as fine as point two millimeters. |
| From Boomerang,
by Eric Frank Russell. Published by King-Size Publications in 1953 Additional resources -
|
I'm not aware of any device that purports to make internal cuts without breaking the skin. Lasers have been in use in medical research and practice since the 1970's, but they are used externally (as in LASIK eye surgery).
Comment/Join this discussion ( 3 ) | RSS/XML | Blog This |
Additional
resources:
More Ideas
and Technology from Boomerang
More Ideas
and Technology by Eric Frank Russell
Tech news articles related to Boomerang
Tech news articles related to works by Eric Frank Russell
| Organaut! Russians 3D Print Living Tissue In Space |
| MIT Scientists Create 'Peek-a-Boo Prober' From Jetsons |
| Wound Healing With Wearable Nanogenerators |
| EXPLORER, The First Total-Body Scanner |
Want to Contribute an
Item?
It's easy:
Get the name of the item, a
quote, the book's name and the author's name, and Add
it here.
| <Previous | Next> |
|
|
|
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
|
'Palenkis can identify random line patterns better than any other species in the universe.'
'The big car was slowing down, its computer brain sensing an exit ahead.'
'They're lovely! - titanalloy struts as light and strong as bird-bones...'
'For a while your colonists will have to come up [to orbit] to the Hospital...'
'Yes, strangely enough there was still sufficient water beneath the surface of Vesta.'
