What if someone hacked into medical system and sent his blood sugar levels plummeting?

Scientists Work to Keep Hackers Out of Implanted Medical Devices

Researchers are developing ways to prevent hackers from accessing and remotely controlling medical devices that emit wireless signals. For example, Oak Ridge National Laboratory's Nathanael Paul is designing a more secure insulin pump that cuts some of the wireless connections between parts of the system. Other researchers are looking for security solutions for pacemakers and cardiac defibrillators.

Some researchers have suggested protecting the devices with passwords, but doctors and nurses would have to be able to control the devices in the case of an emergency. "If you have a patient that's unconscious on the ground, you really don't want the medical staff to have to figure out what security system they're using," said University of Washington's Tamara Denning at the recent CHI 2010 conference.

The passwords could be tattooed in the form of a barcode on the patient's skin, either with visible ink or ink that can only be seen under ultraviolet light, Denning said. Security issues for medical devices will increase when these devices are connected to phones, the Internet, and other computers, notes University of Massachusetts at Amherst professor Kevin Fu.

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Accident Ahead? New Software Will Enable Cars To warn Drivers?

'Intelligent Car' Able to Learn From Owner's Driving and Warn in Case of Accident Hazard

Scientists from six European countries have designed a new automatic driving assistance program called DRIVSCO. The program studies the car owner's driving pattern over time and if the car moves unusually when approaching a curve, intersection, person, or other vehicle at night, DRIVSCO issues a warning alarm. DRIVSCO, which features a night vision system, assumes that a night-time driver cannot see the road well due to poor lighting and the limited range of low beams. According to the European Union Car Council, 42 percent of car accidents occur at night. DRIVSCO project leaders say that cars installed with night vision and a sophisticated driving assistance system will reduce the number of night-time accidents on the road. Initial tests of the system were successful.

The DRIVSCO system features an electronic chip with artificial vision developed by University of Grenada researchers. The chip's system interprets images' outlines, depth, and movement. Because its hardware is reconfigurable, the chip could be used for other types of cars as well as other applications.

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