"Even though they're missing their hand, (amputees) still have muscle activity from their forearm usually," said Akhtar, who has a PhD in neuroscience as well as a master's degree in electrical and computer engineering, both from U. of I. "If they were trying to make a pinch versus a fist, they'll have different muscle activity going on, and that's enough for us to decipher what they would have wanted to do if their hand was actually there."