Surgical Black Box
A new data-recording system could pinpoint the causes of botched medical procedures. The system-modeled after a cockpit data recorder-records numerous aspects of a surgery for later review: patients’ vital signs, spoken conversations and staff comings and goings. Sensors in the surgeon’s gloves document his or her hand motions. The data recorder will help prevent future medical errors, says inventor Ara Darzi, professor of surgery at Imperial College in London. Darzi expects to transfer his patented prototype (photo) into an operating room next year and eventually to start a company to sell the system. Darzi admits his fellow doctors are “concerned about a recording of what they say during surgery-how many bad words they can use.”
Keep Reading
Most Popular
Large language models can do jaw-dropping things. But nobody knows exactly why.
And that's a problem. Figuring it out is one of the biggest scientific puzzles of our time and a crucial step towards controlling more powerful future models.
How scientists traced a mysterious covid case back to six toilets
When wastewater surveillance turns into a hunt for a single infected individual, the ethics get tricky.
The problem with plug-in hybrids? Their drivers.
Plug-in hybrids are often sold as a transition to EVs, but new data from Europe shows we’re still underestimating the emissions they produce.
Stay connected
Get the latest updates from
MIT Technology Review
Discover special offers, top stories, upcoming events, and more.