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
 |
BioSuit Space Suit Vs. Tentacle Monsters
The BioSuit is a radical (and fashionable) redesign of the traditional bulky, Michelin Man-style spacesuit could revolutionize long-term space travel. When I saw this story making the rounds this week, I thought to myself "I'm sure I've seen this before." Sure enough, I checked my NextFest 2006 photo gallery - and there it was.
(Dava Newman with Biosuit at NextFest 2006)
Dava Newman, along with colleague Jeff Hoffman, students and design firm Trotti and Associates, have been at this project for seven years. The prototypes are not yet ready for space travel, but their intent is to be ready for Mars missions in the next ten years.
Why a new space suit design?
Traditional bulky spacesuits "do not afford the mobility and locomotion capability that astronauts need for partial gravity exploration missions. We really must design for greater mobility and enhanced human and robotic capability," Newman says.
Rather than being inflated, the suit relies on mechanical counter-pressure, which involves wrapping layers of material tightly around the body. Skintight but stretches with the body for freedom of movement - that's the trick.
Astronauts are not complainers, but if they were, they'd tell you how exhausting it is to work in a space suit. About 80 percent of the energy they exert is against the suit - to bend it.
The BioSuit will be better at dealing with punctures - wrap them with a bandage. BioSuits could also be engineered to vary in their resistance to astronaut movement, allowing them to exercise while in space.
(Space suits work better, but are less fashionable)
Space suits are highly recommended when fighting it out with tentacled space monsters. In his 1947 story The Disc-Men of Jupiter, Manly Wade Wellman provides a very early use of the word "space-suit:"
In the first place the pressure is considerable and the density is greater than that of the most thoroughly water-saturated air. Then there is a whole chemistry shop full of other elements in with the oxygen and hydrogen, even including some metallic vapors. You'd need a space suit to make any kind of a successful trip outdoors.
Pride of place in first use of "space-suit" goes to John W. Campbell for his 1932 story The Electronic Siege. Update: I found an earlier reference; see the entry for space suit from Schachner and Zagat's 1931 story The Emperor of the Stars. End update.
Update: See also this description (and picture!) of space suit testing from The Shot Into Infinity (1929) by Otto Willi Gail. End update.
Read more about the biosuit at MIT. Also, take a look at the dozen or so NextFext 2006 devices, stories and pictures - since they're obviously still news! Also, Winchell Chung has a terrific collection of space suit pictures at Project Rho.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 7/17/2007)
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 ( 2 )
Related News Stories - (" Space Tech ")
Is China Mining Helium-3 On The Moon's Farside?
'...for months Grantline bores had dug into the cliff.' -
Solitary Black Hole Wanders In Space
'...the Hole is something like a vortex or a whirlpool?' - Frank K. Kelly, 1935.
Spaceplane From Virgin Atlantic
'ZARNAK, YOU'RE TO COMMAND A SCOUTING EXPEDITION --- FIND OUT WHAT THIS IS ALL ABOUT!'
Taikonauts Exercise In China's Tiangong Space Station
'Joe got out the gravity-simulator harnesses...' - Murray Leinster, 1953.
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
LLM 'Cognitive Core' Now Evolving
'Their only check on the growth and development of Vulcan 3 lay in two clues: the amount of rock thrown up to the surface... and the amount of the raw materials and tools and parts which the computer requested.'
Has Elon Musk Given Up On Mars?
'There ain't no such thing as a free lunch.'
Bacteria Turns Plastic Into Pain Relief? That Gives Me An Idea.
'I guess there's nobody round this table who doesn't have a Crosswell [tapeworm] working for him in the small intestine.'
When Your Child's Best Friend Is An AI
'Figments of his mind in one sense, of course, for he had shaped them...'
China's Drone Mothership Can Carry 100 Drones
'So the parent drone carries a spotter that it launches...'
Drones Recharge In Mid-Air Like Jets Refuel!
'...nurse drones that would cruise around dumping large amounts of power into randomly selected pods.'
Australian Authors Reject AI Training Of Llama
'It's done with a flip of the third joint of the tentacle on the down beat.'
Is China Mining Helium-3 On The Moon's Farside?
'...for months Grantline bores had dug into the cliff.'
Maybe It's Too Soon To Require Autonomous Mode
'I hope all those other cars are on automatic,' he said anxiously.
Is Agentic AI The Wrong Kind Of Smartness?
'It’s smart enough to go wrong in very complicated ways, but not smart enough to help us find out what’s wrong.'
Heat Waver - The First Ever Combo Solar Collector And Wind Turbine
'...like a spray of tulips mounted fanwise.'
Tesla 'Fleet Response Agents' Bolster FSD Autonomy
'You hate the whole idea that some bored drone pusher in a remote driving centre has got your life... in his hands.'
Mori3 Autonomous Shapeshifting Robot
'My homeland is being threatened by the Replicators. Thus far all attempts to stop them have failed.'
Tesla Seeks 'Tesla Robotaxi' And 'Robobus' Trademarks Ignoring Prior Art
'A robobus had just rolled up to the curb.'
Scary Grid Safety Robots
'The ultimate horror for our paranoid culture...'
Does AI Provide A Way Forward For Talk Therapy
'And there in the next room by the sofa sat a familiar suitcase, that of his psychiatrist Dr. Smile.'
