Brown, MIT, VA collaborate to make PowerFoot for vets-09.12.07

Boston, Massachusetts—Garth Stewart lost his left leg below the knee two years ago in an explosion in Iraq, where he was stationed in the Army. Now, he jokes that he's fulfilled a childhood dream by becoming part-robot, with a new form of motorized prosthetic limb developed by researchers at Brown and elsewhere.

"C'mon, everyone wanted to be a cyborg," said Stewart, now a sophomore at Columbia University.

He's the second person to use the PowerFoot One, which was unveiled July 23 by the Center for Restorative and Regenerative Medicine, a partnership of Brown, the Providence Veterans Affairs Medical Center and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

The project was funded by a $7.2 million grant in 2004 from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and the Pentagon.

The center is directed by Professor of Orthopaedics Roy Aaron, who also helped develop the limb. The center will soon move into a new, $6.9 million building at the Providence VA hospital, according to a Department of Veterans Affairs press release.

The researchers are seeking to develop advanced replacement limbs and conduct research in the field of "bio-hybrid" prosthetics at a time when many soldiers like Stewart are returning from overseas with amputated limbs.

Hugh Herr, one of the PowerFoot's inventors and an associate professor of media arts and sciences at MIT, was the first person to test the device - he is a double-amputee. The PowerFoot has a mix of sensors and specialized control algorithms that ensure the user stays balanced while walking, he said.

Herr and Stewart demonstrated walking with the artificial foot at the device's public unveiling in July.

Stewart said the most noticeable difference in the prosthetic, which responds to pressures from the remaining section of the leg, versus other, less advanced models was that the PowerFoot allowed the person wearing it to stand straight while walking and that it did not put so much pressure on the hip.

"It's kind of like having your leg back," Stewart said of the project's eventual goal: Linking the motorized prosthetic limbs directly to the brain using the BrainGate technology developed by Professor of Neuroscience John Donoghue PhD'79 P'09.

After the public unveiling of the foot, iWalk - a company co-founded by Herr and a self-described "leader in wearable devices for human augmentation," according to its Web site - decided to mass-produce the device, starting next summer.

The Brown Daily Herald

At One Day U., Brown profs cater to older students

Hartford, Conneticut—Less than a week into the academic year, some students are already complaining about classes - but there are plenty of people who would love to take their place, if only for a day.

Three years ago, Steven Schragis was able to sit in on a college course while visiting his daughter, a freshman at the time, at Bard College.

"I remember thinking, 'I wish I could be going to college, instead of paying for it,' " he said.

That's what led him to co-found One Day University with his business partner, John Galvin. One Day is a day-long program that allows fee-paying adults to attend some of the most popular lectures by professors from several big-name universities.

For $219, the "students" listen to four lectures throughout the day, covering a wide range of topics, such as depression in the United States and school shootings.

The professors hail from several Ivy League institutions and other prestigious schools, such as the University of Oxford and New York University.

This month marks a year since the program officially began, and already One Day University has recruited multiple Brown professors, including Senior Lecturer in Economics Rachel Friedberg, Associate Professor of Political Science Wendy Schiller, Lecturer in Neuroscience John Stein, Associate Professor of Political Science John Tomasi, Assistant Professor of Political Science and Public Policy Jennifer Lawless, Professor of Political Science James Morone, and Adjunct Lecturer in Public Policy Christine Heenan, according to Educational Media Group, the company that runs the program. The company declined to divulge how much professors are paid for giving the lectures.

Lawless, a widely quoted scholar on issues involving women in politics and a former congressional candidate, said teaching at the program "is very fulfilling because I am able to speak to a completely different audience."

Lawless said she was contacted by Schragis and Galvin after they heard her speak at another venue.

One major difference from Lawless' usual audience - the average age is between 55 and 75, Galvin said.

"(The students) are hungry for it. For most of them, it's been a good 30 years or so since they attended college, and they find it fascinating to hear what their grandchildren are learning about at college," Galvin said.

After giving two lectures through the program, one in the winter and the other in spring, Lawless said she's signed up for another this fall.

Galvin and Schragis said the program is growing and that they have already seen some eager participants come back for more.

"We offer a discount if you sign up at the end of the day, and a lot of them take it," Schragis said.

Sara Sadin P'03 and her husband, Robert P'03, are three-time participants, and they say they are looking forward to registering for additional sessions.

"We've had a great experience hearing professors talk about topics that really pique your interest," Sara Sadin said.

But, she said, the topics themselves aren't why the program is enjoyable. "It's that (the professors) are great teachers and are truly engaging," she said.

The Sadins are the parents of Meredith Sadin '03, and they said the program - and its Brown-based lecturers - has offered them a "real connection" to Brown.

"We're really envious of the environment of the University - that whole feeling of community, independence and a prestigious education that Brown provides its students," she said.

© Copyright 2007 Brown Daily Herald