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"Tokyo homeless people reiterate the whole nature of living in Tokyo in cardboard boxes, they're only slightly smaller than Tokyo apartments, and they have almost as many consumer goods. It's a nightmare of boxes within boxes."
- William Gibson

Gobathian  
  An alien medical technology that enables full body healing in the event of traumatic injury.  

In the novel, human beings "travel" mentally to distant planets, picking up bits of alien knowledge and technology to bring back.

The doctor reached the door. He stooped with his stethoscope placed against the mummy, then stepped back from the bed.

"He's dead," said Blaine. "His breathing stopped and it was a longtime --"

"Yes, he's dead. He never had a chance. Even with gobathian he didn't have a chance."

"Gobathian? That was what you used? That was why he was all wrapped up?"

"He was broken," said the doctor. "Like a toy someone had thrown on the floor and stepped on. What you do you know about gobathian?" he asked.

"I've heard of it," said Blaine.

"An alien drug," the doctor said. "Used by an insect race. A warring insect race. And it's done miracles. It can patch up a smashed and broken body. It can repair bones and organs. It can grow new tissue."

Technovelgy from Time is the Simplest Thing, by Clifford Simak.
Published by Doubleday in 1961
Additional resources -

For another view on remarkable healing techniques, see atlotl/gibiril regimen from The Godmakers by Frank Herbert.

Compare to the emergency treatment tank from Agent of Vega (1949) by James Schmitz, the regeneration tank from Contagion (1950) by Katherine MacLean, the surgical homeostatic unit from Now Wait For Last Year (1966) by Philip K. Dick, the autodoc from The Warriors (1966) by Larry Niven, the diagnostat from The Man in the Maze (1969) by Robert Silverberg, electronic body analyzer from The Andromeda Strain (1969) by Michael Crichton, the crechepod from The Godmakers (1972) by Frank Herbert and the autosurgeon from Altered Carbon (2003) by Richard Morgan.

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Additional resources:
  More Ideas and Technology from Time is the Simplest Thing
  More Ideas and Technology by Clifford Simak
  Tech news articles related to Time is the Simplest Thing
  Tech news articles related to works by Clifford Simak

Gobathian-related news articles:
  - Fracture Putty For Compound Fractures - DARPA
  - DARPA's Restorative Injury Repair Dream
  - Stem Cells From Fat May Heal Bones
  - Veti-Gel Closes Wounds, Starts Healing
  - XSTAT 30 - Plugs Wounds In 15 Seconds!
  - 'Living Bandage' For Knee Injuries
  - Bees Royal Jelly Helps Wounds Heal Faster
  - Bioreactor Helps Legless Frogs Get Their Jump Back

Articles related to Medical
ErythroMer Artificial Blood
MouthPad Supports Head And Tongue Tracking
Drug Induces Hibernation-Like State In Humans
Drug To Regenerate Teeth In Humans

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