Architects have been experimenting with bone like materials to design bridges and buildings. The human skeleton combines lightness and strength to solve many problems faced by engineers.

'The skeleton is more efficient supporting loads and managing stress than many man-made structures', says Dr Chris Williams from the University of Bath. Dr Williams has developed an equation that shows how to create complex structures, such as bridges, without any of the weak points associated with traditional materials.

The smooth forms designed by Dr Williams are beautiful in themselves. The light weight roof enclosing the Great Court at the British Museum is an example of a simple structure modelled by Dr Williams.

For further information, visit:
http://www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk/greatcourt/roof.html
http://www.bath.ac.uk/~abscjkw/

Our body is able to heal quickly and resist infection. However this is not the only way to cope with injury. Some animals are able to re-grow entire limbs. Researchers are currently investigating whether regeneration may be possible in human tissue. It may be that our immune system is so efficient that regeneration does not have time to begin.

Dr. Ellen Herber-Katz discovered mice whose wounds healed by regenerating tissue rather than creating scar tissue. She looked to see if the same processes active in newts are present in mice, and discovered they are. Just like newts, the mice healed themselves by "making bone, cartilage, skin and hair".

As well as triggering regeneration, we also need to control what is made. Newts know whether to make a whole limb or just a single finger. For them, this process takes only a few weeks in the wild. How long would it take to grow a new human arm?

For further information, visit:
http://www.upenn.edu/gazette/0301/giresi.html

The US Military think so and they have invested $50 million into developing a wearable robot which will allow users to run faster, jump higher and lift more than a conventional soldier.

The robotic suit, known as an exoskeleton, will have benefits for workers in many hazardous industries such as mining and construction. It is made of metal and other light but strong materials. Normal motions of the limbs are detected and amplified by the frame, enabling great feats of endurance or strength.

The key technology to building exoskeletons is power supply. This must be light and portable which rules out batteries for the foreseeable future. The likely source of fuel for these 'superhuman' suits will be petrol. What affect that might have on the wearer if they enter a burning building or war zone has yet to be determined.

The future will be with us sooner than you think!

For further information, visit:
http://www.darpa.mil/dso/thrust/matdev/ehpa.htm

When nerves are damaged, otherwise healthy limbs lose their function. Our brain controls the movement of limbs through the central nervous system. This links the brain to the limb, translating our wish to pick up an object into a set of co-ordinated movements.

If we could control a robotic arm by thought, paralysed people would be able to communicate their thoughts using a keyboard to spell out messages. Ultimately we could restore function to damaged limbs or provide artificial alternatives.

Researchers at the California Institute of Technology (CALTECH) have experimented with implanted devices that can control the movement of a cursor on a computer screen. At the moment these are some way off translating into practical solutions for the disabled, but they are paving the way for a new generation of robotics powered by thought alone.

For further information, visit:
http://www.vis.caltech.edu

Within the bone marrow our body manufactures a remarkable cell with the ability to become any tissue in the body. This means a single cell can become muscle, bone or nerve tissue.

Scientists are very excited by this type of stem cell because of their ability to locate and repair damaged tissue. Usually, introducing cells from a healthy donor into a damaged body can trigger an immune reaction.

This means that the damaged body's natural defences assume the donor's cells are an infection and reject them. The stem cells found in the bone marrow are special because they are not rejected in this way.

When injected into the blood stream, the stem cells find their way to the bone marrow. From there they move to the damaged areas where they turn into muscle, blood vessels and bone.

Our body naturally produces these cells, but the number falls with age. It may be possible to grow the cells outside the body, in which case a single bone marrow donation would produce enough cells to treat 10,000 people.

For further information, visit:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/
health/newsid_1251000/1251876.stm
http://www.nhgri.nih.gov/