The Invention of Thermometer

A thermometer (from the Greek θερμός (thermo) meaning "warm" and meter, "to measure") is a device that measures temperature or temperature gradient using a variety of different principles. In medical instrumentation, medical thermometers are used for measuring human body temperature. Thermometer is a very important tool in medicine because many early symptoms of a disease can be easily detected by measuring body temperature. But, how it was invented ?

In 1603, the Italian scientist Galileo showed that a closed glass tube inserted in a container of a water could be arranged so that the height of the water sucked into the tube by a partial vacuum varied with the temperature. In 1625, Santorio Santonio, a Slavic physician, constructed a similar device, which he used to measure the temperature in the human body. The problem with the instrument (Figure a) was that the height of the water was also affected by the atmospheric pressure. This problem was solved a quarter century later when Ferdinand II, Grand Duke of Tuscany, sealed the water in a closed vessel to eliminate the effect of atmospheric pressure. The essentially modern thermometer shown in (Figure b) was introduced by the Dutch instrument maker Gabriel D. Fahrenheit, who in eighteenth century replaced the water with mercury and improved the instrument's accuracy. This thermometer is still widely used, although more recently crystal thermometer have been adopted for special applications.

Today, as a result of developments in biomedical engineering field, there are various kinds of modern thermometers used to measure body temperature. This modern thermometers are no longer using mercury or liquid crystal. The other techniques of thermal measurement are adopted, for example ear thermometer that use infrared emitted from the inner ear to measure body temperature. -aw-

Source:
1. Principles of Biomedical Instrumentation and Measurement - Ricard Ashton
2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermometer
3. http://hyperphysics.phy-astr.gsu.edu/hbase/thermo/eartherm.html

Biomedical Engineering

Biomedical engineering is the application of engineering principles and techniques to the medical field. This field seeks to close the gap between engineering and medicine. It combines the design and problem solving skills of engineering with medical and biological sciences to improve health care diagnosis and treatment.

Biomedical engineering is a highly interdisciplinary field, influenced by (and overlapping with) various other engineering and medical fields. This often happens with newer disciplines, as they gradually emerge in their own right after evolving from special applications of extant disciplines. Due to this diversity, it is typical for a biomedical engineer to focus on a particular subfield or group of related subfields. There are many different taxonomic breakdowns within BME, as well as varying views about how best to organize them and manage any internal overlap; the main U.S. organization devoted to BME divides the major specialty areas as follows:

• Mechatronic
  
• Bioinstrumentation
• Biomaterials
• Biomechanics
• Cellular, Tissue, and Genetic Engineering
• Clinical Engineering
• Medical Imaging
  
• Orthopaedic Bioengineering
• Rahabilitation engineering
  
• Systems Physiology
• Bionanotechnology

Biomedical engineering has a huge impact on the world we live in today. There are now a variety of medical devices and machines that can both improve health and save lives, thanks to biomedical engineering. Biomedical engineering is the fusion of engineering expertise with the world of clinical medicine, developing technologies such as laser systems used in corrective eye surgery and systems for analysing blood. Biomedical engineering is key in the development and recreation of artificial organs, limbs and skin.

Biomedical engineers play an exciting and critical role at the frontier of technological advances to improve healthcare. They apply engineering expertise and ingenuity to design systems to help prevent, diagnose and treat all types of diseases, injuries and disabilities. The biomedical engineer will work with healthcare professionals including physicians, doctors, nurses, therapistsand technicians.

Biomedical engineering offers a whole host of career opportunities working for the benefit of the health of all mankind. As a biomedical engineer, technologist or technician you can work for:

• Industry: innovating and creating designs for new technologies or testing of new technologies for safety and performance.
• Government: product testing and establishing safety standards for medical devices.
• Hospitals: providing advice on the selection and application of medical equipment, as well as supervising its performance testing and maintenance, building customised devices for special health care or research needs.
• Consultancy: providing technical advise for marketing departments of companies.
• Research Centres: supervising laboratories and equipment, and participating in direct research activities in collaboration with other researchers with such backgrounds as medicine, physiology, and nursing.

As a biomedical engineering graduate you can:

• Design and develop medical instruments and equipment.
• Research the engineering aspects of biological systems.
• Research new materials for medical products.
• Adapt or design computer hardware and software for medical uses.
• Design technology to assist people with disabilities.

For more information about biomedical engineering:
www.bmes.org
www.whitaker.org
www.biomedical-engineering-online.com

source:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Biomedical_engineering
www.steps.ie

Preface

This blog is dedicated to all biomedical engineers and everyone who want to learn and share in biomedical engineering. I just have started this blog, so give me a comment or if you want to request about any topic in biomedical engineering, please leave a comment. I will try to post something to answer your request. But if you have some information, please share the information with me. Because i believe that sharing is the best way to accelerate our learning process. That all for my first post, i will try to post some good information as soon as possible. -aw-