Paralyzed man first to move his arm by thinking about it

Helping paralyzed people move on their own has been a lot tougher than 1970s TV shows led us to believe it would be. For what they believe is the first time, researchers used tech to bypass a quadriplegic patient's severed spinal cord, helping him move his own hand with his mind and feed himself without aid. The work could lead to "a new generation of neurotechnologies that we all hope will one day restore mobility and independence for people with paralysis," says research lead Leigh Hocherg. The trial was done by Case Western Reserve University researchers and the Cleveland Functional Electrical Stimulation (FES) center. "For somebody who's been injured eight years and couldn't move, being able to move just that little bit is awesome to me," said the 56-year-old patient, Bill Kochevar, who became paralyzed from the shoulders down following a bicycle accident.