https://filmschoolrejects.com/ghost-in-the-shell-hong-kong-81115dafe35a
Cool/Exciting/Interesting things (probably videos)
toku
#471
OneEightZero
#477
Ha. Beat me to it.
I hope he releases a version that shows the build process without the time lapse.
Das
#478
Self Reflected is a project by a pair of artist/scientists that aims to visualize the inner workings of the human brain. Itâs important to emphasize that these images are not brain scans. They are artistic representations of neural pathways and other structures in the brain.
Das
#481
Preemie lambs successfully grown to term in artificial wombs
Researchers at The Childrenâs Hospital of Philadelphia have succeeded in gestating premature lambs in artificial wombs. The abstract from the paper in Nature Communications:
In the developed world, extreme prematurity is the leading cause of neonatal mortality and morbidity due to a combination of organ immaturity and iatrogenic injury. Until now, efforts to extend gestation using extracorporeal systems have achieved limited success. Here we report the development of a system that incorporates a pumpless oxygenator circuit connected to the fetus of a lamb via an umbilical cord interface that is maintained within a closed âamniotic fluidâ circuit that closely reproduces the environment of the womb. We show that fetal lambs that are developmentally equivalent to the extreme premature human infant can be physiologically supported in this extra-uterine device for up to 4 weeks. Lambs on support maintain stable haemodynamics, have normal blood gas and oxygenation parameters and maintain patency of the fetal circulation. With appropriate nutritional support, lambs on the system demonstrate normal somatic growth, lung maturation and brain growth and myelination.
The Atlanticâs Olga Khazan translates what might mean for human babies born prematurely.
One reason preterm birth is so dangerous is that, for an underweight baby, the first few breaths of air halt the development of the lungs. âInfants that are currently born and supported in a neonatal intensive care unit with gas-based ventilation demonstrate an arrest of lung development,â Partridge says, âwhich manifests in a long-term, severe restriction of lung function.â
With the artificial womb, the infant would continue âbreathingâ through the umbilical cord as its floats in amniotic fluid, which would flow into and out of the bag. Using its tiny heart, the fetus would pump its own blood through its umbilical cord and into an oxygenator, where the blood would pick up oxygen and return it to the fetus-much like with a normal placenta. In addition to boosting lung growth, the amniotic fluid would protect the baby from infections and support the development of the intestines.
If this does work for humans, thereâs a possibility that at some point using artificial wombs may be safer (or just preferable for some people) than women carrying babies to termâŚwhich would have an interesting effect on childbirth (to say the least). And as Khazan mentions, there are potential implications related to abortion rights:
If they ever materialize, artificial wombs may stir concerns among pro-choice advocates, since the devices could push the point of viability for human fetuses even lower. That might encourage even more states to curtail abortions after, say, 20 weeksâ gestation. But speaking with reporters Monday, the Philadelphia researchers emphasized they donât intend to expand the bounds of life before the 23rd gestational week. Before that point, fetuses are too fragile even for the artificial wombs.
Thereâs a short video clip of the lamb in the artificial womb as well: