Detecting Concussions Using a Headset and Other Science Tech

Continuing our trend for science and technology news this week, here’s another mashup for today.

Detecting Concussions Using a Headset

Concussions are very common in contact sports such as rugby and ice hockey, with over 1 million athletes being diagnosed with a concussion yearly in the United States. It is the most common diagnosis for a traumatic brain injury and symptoms reveal themselves hours or days after the concussion.

Now, a doctor presented a research study at the American Academy of Neurology (AAN) 68th Annual Meeting that portrays a Transcranial Doppler (TCD) headset used to diagnose concussions. Developed by Dr. Robert Hamilton and his colleagues, the TCD headset measures the speed and blood flow anomalies in the arteries of the brain using ultrasound.

Currently, an MRI (Magnetic Resonance Imaging) tests are required to diagnose brain injuries. The TCD headset could provide a much better alternative to MRI scans, as recent test results on 235 athletes have shown an accuracy of 83% in diagnosing concussions.

Fighting Forest Fires with Sound Drones

This Earth Day, we dedicate a section to forest fires. Forest fires are devastating, especially to the environment, with humans being the cause of 90% of all forest fires. However, one inventor believes he has the perfect environmental solution – a drone that fights forest fires using sound waves.

"In national parks around the world, we have people who start campfires and then leave in the morning without putting out the fire properly. These drones could be used by park officials to inspect each site and make sure that all the campfires have been extinguished," says Charles Bombardier, designer of the Firesound.

The drone works by using low frequency sound waves (30-60 Hz) that starve the fires of oxygen. Bombardier came up with the idea by reading a previous research by Viet Tran and Seth Robertson of George Mason University, for which they hold a patent as well, and combining it with modern drone technology to come up with the Firesound.

Singapore to Get Self-Driving Public Transport by 2017

Singapore public transportation giant SMRT Services is getting into a partnership with 2 Getthere Holding to build and supply public transportation services that are driverless in nature by 2017. The vehicles will be fully-electric and driverless, with each vehicle accommodating upto 24 passengers (8000 passengers per hour) at a maximum speed of 40 kmph.

"There is a growing national push to implement future mobility solutions that can meet our first and last-mile connectivity needs in Singapore. The Automated Vehicles will complement our existing multi-modal transport operations to bring about seamless connectivity for commuters," says Colin Lim, Managing Director of SMRT Services.

Read more at www.bit.ly/q3newsblog. Q3 Technologies is a large diversified technology company which develops custom software products for the healthcare industry including cloud applications, enterprise applications across all platforms and Rich Internet Applications (RIA).