At last your head can rule your heart
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.HAVING A heart-to-heart with your heart will soon become reality as doctors prepare to develop the first voice-activated pacemaker.
Medical scientists believe it will be possible to tell an intelligent pacemaker when to speed up the pumping rate of a heart, with simple vocal commands warning of an impending bout of exercise.
Richard Vincent, professor of medical science and consultant cardiologist at the University of Sussex, told the science festival that the improvements in pacemaker technology over the past 30 years were leading to the complete rewiring of the heart's electrical system.
Originally, pacemakers controlled one of the two larger chambers of the heart - the ventricles - but newer versions are also controlling the other chambers, enabling doctors to improve pumping efficiency as well as preventing arrhythmic contractions.
Although some pacemakers can respond to vibrations to boost pumping rates during exercise, Professor Vincent said the next stage was to incorporate a voice-activated chip that would respond to a patient's vocal signature. Telling the heart to speed up before climbing a flight of stairs or going for a jog would also enable the pacemaker to learn to associate that particular activity with a certain level of physical stress, he said.
"We are trying to tailor a pacemaker's performance to a person's level of exercise to get an improved quality of exercise. Pacemakers will be able to mimic the spontaneous pacemaking ability of the heart like nothing before."
It is already possible to interrogate some types of pacemaker by placing a device over the chest that emits radio- frequency signals. A voice- activated pacemaker is a logical development, which should be possible to make with existing technology.
When pacemakers were first used in 1965 they weighed up to 150g (about 5oz), were 2cm (about 1in) thick and emitted a constant pulse rate of 70 beats a minute, with a battery life of three years. Now they are as thin as a biscuit, weigh 25g and can last 15 years, emitting up to 100,000 pulses a day.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments