Taste of Bionics

This episode of Taste of Bionics brings together two leaders who represent both continuity and transformation at Ottobock: Georgia Näder, a fourth-generation member of the founding family, embodies innovation and modern leadership while staying true to the company’s core values; and Oliver Jakobi, who started as an apprentice and rose to become CEO, has steered Ottobock through decades of growth a...

Working in the field of nerve regeneration has a lot in common with being an electrician, says Dr. Jennifer Ernst. She is Head of Innovative Amputation Medicine, Department of Trauma Surgery, Medizinische Hochschule Hannover (MHH). A specialist in Plastic and Aesthetic Surgery, Jennifer has special knowledge in modern surgical techniques such as targeted muscle rein nervation (TMR), osseointegrati...

What happens when the boundary between humans and machines starts to dissolve? Dr. Connor Glass is the Founder and CEO of Phantom Neuro, a neurotechnology company building the next generation of human–machine interfaces. With a background in medicine and research at Johns Hopkins, Connor left clinical practice to tackle a deeper challenge: how humans can intuitively and seamlessly control the mach...

How do people react when they see someone running on blades fast – like really, really fast? Johannes Floors is a German Paralympic sprinter and double below-knee amputee who competes using high-performance prosthetic blades. He has won multiple gold medals at World Championships and Paralympic Games, including in Rio, Tokyo, and Paris. He is also a trained orthopaedic technician, works on his Mas...

Every guest is our host Ranga’s favourite guest, of course – but this conversation in particular has him on the edge of his seat: Hugh Herr is a professor at the MIT Media Lab, where he leads the Biomechatronics Group and co-directs the K. Lisa Yang Center for Bionics. But first of all, he is known for transferring the whole field: After losing both legs in a climbing accident in 1982, Hugh turned...

There are tears everyday due to a new spinal cord therapy, shed by everyone involved. But why is that? In this episode of Taste of Bionics, host Ranga Yogeshwar speaks with Dave Marver. He’s the CEO of ONWARD Medical, which is developing breakthrough therapies for people with spinal cord injury. Under Dave’s leadership, ONWARD has earned ten FDA Breakthrough Device Designations. Its first product...

Coming home from a hard day’s work and still feeling fresh? That is not just a far-out fantasy anymore. In this episode of Taste of Bionics, host Ranga Yogeshwar speaks with Minerva Pillai. She’s a B.S., M.S., and Ph. D. in Mechanical Engineering from the University of California, Berkeley, and is a Co-founders of SUITX – a startup spun out of UC Berkeley’s Human Engineering & Robotics Lab. Today...

What does it take to reinvent yourself after a life-changing accident? In this episode of Taste of Bionics, host Ranga Yogeshwar speaks with John McFall. A paralympic medalist, trauma and orthopedic surgeon and a member of ESA's astronaut reserve taking part in ESA’s “Fly! Project”. Fly! aims to explore whether an astronaut with a physical disability could embark on a long duration mission to the...

Taste of Bionics is a podcast hosted by renowned science journalist Ranga Yogeshwar, diving deep into the intersection of humans and technology. In each episode, guests will discuss cutting-edge topics at the interface between people and technology. They include the very latest prosthetics, exoskeletons, neural interfaces, human-machine interaction, artificial intelligence and innovations in medic...