Royal College of Art graduate Dani Clode has created what she calls a Third Thumb. And while most prosthetics are meant for medical purposes, that's not what Clode is going for. She doesn't want to replace any of your current thumbs, but rather add one on next to your pinkie finger. Clode tells Deezen:

"I came across the origin of the word prosthesis and found that it meant 'in addition to,'" "This inspired me to reframe prosthetics as extensions, rather than anything that 'fixes' or 'replaces.'"

A more artistic take on the Third Thumb. Dani Clode

The Third Thumb fits on a hand like a glove. It's driven by two small motors—one activates the third thumb through the feet. Push on sensors attached to your toes and, via Bluetooth, it tells the thumb to expand or contract. The thumb itself is 3D-printed and made out of the flexible plastic filament Ninjaflex. "These parts are all connected via a bowden cable system," Cole says on her website, "similar to a bike brake, made of teflon tubing and wire."

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Cole shows off the thumb dealing cards, playing guitar, building blocks, using an iPad, running through a head of hair. Nobody is seen shaking hands with a third thumb, because that might feel creepy. Cole sees two general paths for her extra thumb. There are utilitarian purposes, making it like a watch or power tool. But there are also aesthetic uses, as Cole demonstrates in a spindly minimalist thumb, making it more like a tattoo.

"The value of the Third Thumb," Cole says on her website, "is to create a catalyst for society to consider human extension, framed in an approachable, accessible design. It is a tool, an experience, and a form of self-expression. When we start to extend our abilities, and when we reframe prosthetics as extensions, then we start to shift the focus from 'fixing' disability, to extending ability."

Source: Deezen via FastCo

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