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New bionics let us run, climb and dance - Hugh Herr

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Hugh Herr is building the next generation of bionic limbs, robotic prosthetics inspired by nature's own designs. Herr lost both legs in a climbing accident 30 years ago; now, as the head of the MIT Media Lab's Biomechatronics group, he shows his incredible technology with the help of ballroom dancer Adrianne Haslet-Davis, who lost her left leg in the 2013 Boston Marathon bombing.

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Additional references


A blank canvas to create smart limbs - The New York Times

The New York Times spoke with Dr. Hugh Herr at the annual meeting of theAmerican Association for the Advancement of Science in Boston (before the attack on the marathon that resulted in at least 16 amputations), and then later by telephone. Here is an edited and condensed version of the conversations.

Biomechatronics at the MIT Media Lab

The Biomechatronics Group seeks to advance the science of biomechanics and biological movement control, and to apply that knowledge to the design of human rehabilitation and augmentation technology


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