TO READ THIS STORY - you must have a paid subscription to Technology Review OR you can purchase special archive reading credits here. Choose from these great offers below.

I'm a paid subscriber please
log me in

I want to purchase this article for
only $1.99
(requires login)

I want to purchase five articles for
only $7.99
(requires login)

I want to buy
1 Year TOTAL Access for
only $24.95
(requires login)

Please note: Click here if you are currently a Technology Review print or digital subscriber and do not have access to this article.

Click here if you are an MIT alum and do not have access to this article.

September 2001

Setting the Pace

Wilson Greatbatch's mistake sparked the medical-electronics industry.

By Technology Review

Every year, more than 250,000 people get a new lease on life when pacemakers begin tapping out a steady rhythm for their irregularly beating hearts. Doctors had long been searching for a way to help such patients when the implantable cardiac pacemaker was marketed in 1961; a simple mistake pointed the way.

Select from the choices above
to read the entire article.

Customer Service

Magazine Services

•	Subscription FAQ
•	Pay Your Bill
•	Renew Your Subscription
•	Change Your Address
•	Check Your Start/Expire Issue
•	Feedback
•	Buy a Back Issue
•	Permissions/Reprints
•	Cancel Your Subscription
•	Digital Subscription Customer Service