A Hand that Feels From: Science Illustrated - Sep/Oct 2010 - page 20 Prosthetic limbs that restore sensation to amputees are on the horizon Researchers at the Sant'Anna School of Advanced Studies in Pisa, Italy, are getting closer to creating a prsothetic hand that the wearer can sense moving and touching objects. The prosthetic's two-way connection to the nervous system receives motor commands from the wearer's body and sends tactile sensations back to the brain. In 2008, researchers at the Bio-Medico campus of the University of Rome tested the robotic limb, called LifeHand, on Pierpaolo Petruzziello, a then 26-year-old who lost his left hand in a car accident. Four electrodes, each just 10 millionths of a millimeter thick, connected nerves in Petruzziello's arm to the limbs wires. Using his thoughts, Petruzziello was able to perform three types of movements with the hand - a fist, a pinch grip, and a flexed finger - with 85 percent accuracy. He also felt the hand making the motions, a step forward for prosthetics. The team is no gearing up to test a higher-performing hand on more patients. They're also developing a version that weighs just a pound and has improved tactile sensitivity. But a fully functioning, wearable prosthetic hand is at least five years away, says Stefan Tognoli, a researchers at the University. Links: Luke Skywalker's Robotic Hand Comes Even Closer to Reality http://io9.com/5418294/luke-skywalkers-robotic-hand-comes-even-closer-to-reality Evolutionary Touch: Articulated European Hands Could Restore Both Control and Sensation http://www.oandp.com/articles/2010-04_02.asp Experts: Man controlled robotic hand with thoughts http://www.blnz.com/news/2009/12/02/Experts_controlled_robotic_hand_with_3190.html Man Controls Cybernetic Hand with Thought Alone http://www.escapistmagazine.com/news/view/96585-Man-Controls-Cybernetic-Hand-With-Thought-Alone Controlling an Artificial Hand with Your Thoughts (Video) http://singularityhub.com/2009/12/10/controlling-an-artificial-hand-with-your-thoughts-video/#more-9904 Scientists in Italy say amputee controlled robotic hand connected to nerves, felt sensation http://health.mytelus.com/channel_health_news_details.asp?news_id=20090&news_channel_id=1044&channel_id=1044&relation_id=55448 Amputee successfully uses robotic hand http://www.sfexaminer.com/economy/ap/scientists-in-italy-say-amputee-controlled-robotic-hand-connected-to-nerves-felt-sensation-78322122.html