Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. Energy News .




ABOUT US
Amputee creates LEGO prosthetic
by Staff Writers
St. Louis (UPI) Jul 6, 2013


disclaimer: image is for illustration purposes only

A St. Louis amputee said she's had some fun with her situation, creating a prosthetic leg made of LEGO bricks -- and a video of it that has gone viral.

Christina Stephens' right leg amputated below the knee after a car she was working on slipped off the jack, crushing her foot. After doctors told her of the nerve damage suffered, Stephens said she researched the issue and opted to have her leg amputated.

Since the incident, Stephens -- who works at Washington University as a researcher helping people in wheelchairs gain functionality and operate their chairs without injuring their hands and arms -- has started an online campaign to help amputees adjust to their new lives. She started a Facebook page, Twitter account and YouTube channel for her "AmputeeOT" campaign.

NBC News said when a coworker made the off-handed suggestion she create a LEGO prosthetic, Stephens took up the challenge. Using tubs of the small bricks her mother collected for her as a child, Stephens said the leg took about 2 hours to build.

It isn't practically functional -- the foot falls off when she tries to walk -- but the symbolism has been a hit, with the video drawing 600,000 views and lots of praise.

"Most people get upset when they walk on a lego," one commenter wrote.

Stephens says she has plans for LEGO Leg 2.0, to reinforce the pylon portion with fiber glass and make it a fully functioning prosthetic.

"I'd probably have to stiffen the pylon part, reinforcing it with steel or carbon fiber or something," she said, adding that it would be "super fun" to wear it around town.

.


Related Links
All About Human Beings and How We Got To Be Here






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








ABOUT US
Dalai urges youth to build happier century on 78th birthday
Bangalore, India (AFP) July 06, 2013
Spiritual leader Dalai Lama on Saturday said he was counting on young people to create a "happier" century as he celebrated his 78th birthday in southern India with tens of thousands of fellow Tibetan exiles. "The present-day generation can create better conditions and build a world where everyone can live in harmony and in a spirit of coexistence," the Dalai Lama, who fled Tibet in 1959 aft ... read more


ABOUT US
French ex-minister blames energy lobbies for sacking

Remote Norway islands added to national electric grid after blackout

Outside View: Obama's climate action plan masks hidden agenda

Extreme Energy, Extreme Implications: Interview with Michael Klare

ABOUT US
Bhutan banks on 'white gold' hydropower

Analyzing the net energy of photoeletrochemical hydrogen production

Advance in creating a 'hydrogen economy'

Northrop Grumman Provides LCR-100 Attitude and Heading Reference System for Sikorsky Offshore Rig Approach Capability

ABOUT US
Mafia turning to wind farms to launder money

O2 sells third wind farm to IKEA

Next step on King Island wind power project welcomed

Chile expands wind power resources

ABOUT US
Panasonic closes Hungary solar plant, cuts 550 jobs

German solar company Conergy files for insolvency

China offers EU solar cell export quota: report

Standard Solar to Install Commercial Solar Micro-grid

ABOUT US
S. Korean nuclear reactor shuts down

Fukushima operator rebuked over nuclear restart plan

Westinghouse Completes First SMR Fuel Assemblies And Will Begin Testing

Two Japan nuclear reactors can stay online: watchdog

ABOUT US
WELTEC Biomethane Plant in Arneburg Feeds in Gas

Coal emissions to produce biofuel in Australian plant

High-octane bacteria could ease pain at the pump

Novel Enzyme from Tiny Gribble Could Prove a Boon for Biofuels Research

ABOUT US
China plans to launch Tiangong-2 space lab around 2015

Twilight for Tiangong

China calls for international cooperation in manned space program

Shenzhou 10 Returns Safely To Earth

ABOUT US
Climate change could mean business opportunities, Britain says

Identifying climate impact hotspots across sectors

Pakistan to miss out on climate change funding?

Researchers discover global warming may affect microbe survival




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement