Can a prosthesis be moved only with thought?

There are already three people in the world – two Americans and one European – who can operate their robotic arms with their minds . The latest to enjoy this fabulous prosthesis is Christian Kandlbauer, a 20-year-old Austrian mechanic who lost both of his upper limbs in a high-stress accident, one from the shoulder and the other from the elbow. Because Kandlbauer kept the nerves that controlled his limbs almost intact, doctors were able to divert these nerve endings to the chest muscles in a delicate operation that lasted for six hours. In this way, the signals from the brain are received by the electrodes of the bionic device and electronically transformed into movements. The contraption, developed by the German company Otto Bock in collaboration with North American scientists, has seven joints and , unlike other previous prostheses, can be operated at the same time . After months of training to strengthen the pectoral muscles involved, the young Austrian assures that he hardly misses his old arm and his hands of bones and muscles; in fact, he plans to go back to work.