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NASA's eNose Sniffs Out Brain Cancer
Posted by
ScuttleMonkey
on Fri May 01, 2009 04:51 PM
from the just-follow-your-nose dept.
from the just-follow-your-nose dept.
ScienceDaily is reporting that an electronic nose developed by NASA for monitoring potential leaks on the ISS may be able to sniff out brain cancer. "The electronic nose, which is to be installed on the International Space Station in order to automatically monitor the station's air, can detect contaminants within a range of one to approximately 10,000 parts per million. In a series of experiments, the Brain Mapping Foundation used NASA's electronic nose to sniff brain cancer cells and cells in other organs. Their data demonstrates that the electronic nose can sense differences in odor from normal versus cancerous cells. These experiments will help pave the way for more sophisticated biochemical analysis and experimentation."
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Re: (Score:2, Offtopic)
first post
I think someone should explain to you how this works.
what movies was that? (Score:4, Funny)
What movie was it that a guy pissed into a smart toilet every morning which could detect changes in diet and shit...we are one piss closer.
Richie Rich Quote (Score:1)
Richard Rich Sr.: [on Prof. Keenbean's Smellmaster 9000] Glasses, electronic aids and surgery help us see and hear better. Isn't it time we had something to help us SMELL better?
Regina Rich: We already do, dear. It's called Chanel.
Re: (Score:2)
Is it Ghostbusters II?
Re: (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
"What movie was it that a guy pissed into a smart toilet..."
Ah, you mean cancer of the small brain.
Re: (Score:2)
What's kinda of funny these days is what else THX's TV Chair did while he watched TV...
Re: (Score:2, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
THX1138 and/or The Island wasn't it?
I'm not sure of either of those, but since you didn't mention the Simpsons, you'll need to turn in your /. user id.
Rent "Sleeper" (Score:2)
For some reason, the nose-cloning scenes from "Sleeper" sprung immediately to mind when I read "NASA's Electronic Nose".
Better Yet, Monty Python and the Holy Grail (Score:2)
Really? The first thing that popped into my mind was the scene from Monty Python and the Holy Grail:
I fart in your general direction! Your mother was a hamster and your father smelt of elderberries!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9V7zbWNznbs [youtube.com]
NASA's eNose can sniff everything (Score:5, Funny)
I heard that NASA's eNose is so sensitive it could tell a homeopathic preparation from pure water.
Re:NASA's eNose can sniff everything (Score:4, Funny)
Homeopathic medicine humor, eh? I would have said something like it can tell american beer from water, but I guess that's a little low brow compared to yours.
Parent
Can it sniff out explosives? (Score:5, Insightful)
Could it sniff out explosives, so we could detect roadside bombs, and not have to squirt toothpaste into baggies at airports?
Re: (Score:3, Insightful)
What does the security theater at airports have to do with bombs?
No. Seriously!
Dogs already doing that years ago (Score:5, Informative)
Sure, it's great they've figured out how to do this artificially, but we've known for *years* that cancer smells differently, and we've even had dogs trained to do it:
http://www.google.com/search?q=dogs+sniff+cancer [google.com]
Cheers,
Re:Dogs as trained sniffers (Score:1)
They leak oil instead.
Re: (Score:1)
Where do people get the idea that robots need oil?
Robots will be powered by electric motors, meaning they won't need lubricants, at least not in the same way that cars do. Depending on what you build them out of, they might need some form of lubrication in the joints, but thats just a few sprays of WD40 on the assembly line.
They won't be guzzling quarts of Mobil 1 like they do in cartoons.
I'm not taking any chances... (Score:2)
According to Mom, anything that moves with a load for any time should be lubricated to improve efficiency and wear.
I'm going for the borscht! (Score:5, Funny)
Now we can finally put an end to all of the squabbling going on in the ISS.
With the NASA Nose, we will finally be able to prove once and for all whose farts smell the worse, and by how much!
10k/1000k (Score:3, Informative)
ten thousand parts per million is a lot easier to understand as 1 part per hundred. And a lot less impressive.
Re: (Score:3, Informative)
Re: (Score:2)
You don't get it, do you?
10k ppm = 1 in 100
1 ppm = 1 in 1,000,000
None of your 0.000001 parts per hundred nonsense.
The "one in" notation is much much clearer.
Re: (Score:2)
Heard that before - about 5 million times (Score:1)
Re: (Score:2)
If I had a nickel for every time someone proposed a hypothetical cure for cancer, why, I'd have enough to start my own research facility for creating hypothetical cures for cancer!
Just think of the unlimited profit opportunities!
Re: (Score:3, Funny)
If I had a nickel for every time I heard someone say "if I had a nickel", I'd have a lot of nickels.
It's been done (Score:1)
Re: (Score:1)
Re: (Score:1)
And then (Score:3, Funny)
we will be able to cure cancer with Febreeze.
Re: (Score:1)
Cures 99.9%* of Cancers!
Sniffing what? (Score:2, Interesting)
Smellable Cancer = Metastasized? (Score:2, Interesting)
really now (Score:3, Funny)
NASA's electronic nose to sniff brain cancer cells and cells in other organs
I don't want NASA's nose anywhere near my organ.