From: utzoo!decvax!harpo!ihnp4!ihuxe!aark
Newsgroups: net.sf-lovers
Title: Luke's Mechanical Hand and the Other
Article-I.D.: ihuxe.178
Posted: Mon Dec 20 09:34:03 1982
Received: Tue Dec 21 03:29:43 1982


At the end of The Empire Strikes Back, we saw the innards of Luke's
new prosthetic hand.  It had springs and levers, made a clacking
sound, and was obviously electromagnetic -- signals from Luke's
nerves are amplified and drive solenoids which pull wires which
move the fingers, etc.

Surely a civilization that could produce hyperspace drives, blasters,
and light sabers could develop a better prosthetic hand -- based
on polymer muscles that directly respond to nerve signals, just like
organic muscles.

So why an electromagnetic, mechanical hand?  Obviously -- Luke's new
hand is the "other hope!"  Or more precisely, Murphy's law in
connection with the hand is the other hope.  Relays, solenoids, and
all things mechanical are notoriously unreliable.  In the final,
apocalyptic battle between Luke and Darth Vader, perhaps because of
some freak effect of the Force, or maybe because of electromagnetic
interference from the light sabers, just as Vader is about to chop Luke's
head off (no messing around with just a hand this time!), one of the coils
in Luke's hand will short out, causing it to jerk unexpectedly, thus
sending Luke's light saber's beam neatly through Vader's body in a way
Luke, with his imperfect mastery of the Force, could never have done
consciously.

I can't wait!

Alan R. Kaminsky
Bell Laboratories, Naperville, IL
...ihps3!ihuxe!aark


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