Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Raydiance USP Laser Attacks Unwanted Cells
The Raydiance ultrashort pulse laser (USP) system uses light to vaporize matter. The device has a variety of medical uses, including making eye surgery more precise, remove tooth decay without drilling and to suppress metabolic activity in cancer cells.
(Raydiance desktop USP laser)
USP lasers ablate (vaporize matter) by using a multi-photon ionization, a non-linear process unlike standard lasers. The energy concentrated in an ultrashort pulse produces a peak power large enough to disrupt the atomic bonds of the target material, expelling it from the surface. No heat is transferred into the surrounding area.
The very short duration of the pulses (a trillionth of a second) enables precise spatial resolution that can be used with modern imaging and diagnostic applications. USP can be used in association with time-resolved optical tomography, laser image detection and ranging (LIDAR), laser detection and ranging (LADAR), and multi-photon fluorescence spectroscopy.
Canadian science fiction writer Robert J. Sawyer wrote about something similar in his 2003 novel Hybrids (Neanderthal Parallax). Going between worlds, it's a good idea to make sure that the microorganisms of one world do not contaminate another:
Mary Stripped naked...and went through the tuned-laser decontamination process, coherent beams at precise wave-lengths passing through her flesh to zap foreign molecules within her body.
(Read more about tuned-laser decontamination)
This technology also has other uses in creating new materials; see Femtosecond Laser Pulse Turns Metals Pitch Black.
Story via San Francisco Chronicle; see also the Raydiance company website. Thanks to CyberStrike for contributing the story and the quote.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 6/22/2007)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 1 )
Related News Stories - (" Medical ")
MIT Computerized Bionic Leg Is Part Of The User
'The leg was to function, in a way, as a servo-mechanism operated by Larry’s brain, through the mediation of the electronic brain in the leg.' - Charles Recour, 1949.
Bone-Building Drug Evenity Approved
'Compounds devised by the biochemists for the rapid building of bone...' - Edmond Hamilton, 1932.
BrainBridge Concept Transplant Of Human Head Proposed
'Briquet’s head seemed to think that to find and attach a new body to her head was as easy as to fit and sew a new dress.' - Alexander Belaev (1925)
Natural Gait With Prosthetic Connected To Nervous System
'The leg was to function, in a way, as a servo-mechanism operated by Larry’s brain...' - Charles Recour, 1949.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
Japan's AI Buddharoid Automonks
'...each of them is a neural mapping of the mind of a Tibetan monk who actually lived.'
The New Habitable Zones Include Asimov's Ribbon Worlds
'...there's a narrow belt where the climate is moderate.'
MIT Computerized Bionic Leg Is Part Of The User
'The leg was to function, in a way, as a servo-mechanism operated by Larry’s brain, through the mediation of the electronic brain in the leg.'
California Governor Candidate Calls For Voting By Phone
'... every veephone on the continent would display, over and over, two propositions.'
Robots For Hire En Masse
'...small investors profited, too.'
China's Handheld Electromagnetic Gun
'Completely silent, accurate up to about twenty meters. No recoil...'
3D Printing A 12-Meter Boat Hull
'It makes drawings in the air...'
China Still Working On Rescue Robot That Eats People
Firefighter Rescue Robot Eats Humans - again!
Lawyer AIs Create Chaos In Our Legal System
'I want my lawyer program.'
Chinese Hospital Tries Vonnegut's 'Harrison Bergeron' Cosplay
'He wore spectacles with thick wavy lenses. The spectacles were intended to make him not only half
blind, but to give him whanging headaches besides.'
Robot Clerks Become A Reality In China
'The robot clerk in the waiting-room checked her number...'
Can One Robot Do Many Tasks?
'... with the Master-operator all you have to do is push one! A remarkable achievement!'
Atlas Robot Makes Uncomfortable Movements
'Not like me. A T-1000, advanced prototype. A mimetic poly-alloy. Liquid metal.'
Boring Company Drills Asimov's Single Vehicle Tunnels
'It was riddled with holes that were the mouths of tunnels.'
Humanoid Robots Tickle The Ivories
'The massive feet working the pedals, arms and hands flashing and glinting...'
A Remarkable Coincidence
'There is a philosophical problem of some difficulty here...'
