Hi ho,
I originally developed this for "traveller done right". It's a
reasonable foundation for a discussion of how medicine will evolve
along the established Traveller TL lines. It certainly doesn't
have any official sanction from GDW, on the other hand, IMO,
it is the most reasoned application of what we know and what
we can expect.
for those of you who have this all ready, have an extra copy.
TL Theory Diagnostics Treatment
0 Gods, none- no Binding of wounds,
Unbalanced basis for assess- simple (unproven)
humors ment of patient herbal remedies
1 Some simple History taking, Trephination,
understanding Some physical Proven (through
anatomy, but not assessment without empirical use)
of function standards herbalism, leeching,
Battlefield surgery
2 Detailed macro- Physical assess- Improved surgery,
scopic anatomy ment, assessment of some pharmaceuticals,
Physiology arises body fluids, e.g. e.g.digitalis from
as a science urine foxglove, leeching,
preventative medicine
based on empirisism
3 Microscopic Stethoscope allows Early vaccination,
anatomy, listening to organs cataloging of pharma-
Crude physiology copoeia
describes function
of major organs,
Epidemiology
4 Cell theory, Heart arrhythmias, Anesthesia, antisepsis,
Germ theory, lung sounds defined public sanitation,
Blood typing Volume replacement
using blood products
5 Increased under- X-ray, early EKGs, Mass vaccinations,
standing of Blood work, Pharmacology based
physiology at organ system response,
organ level, crystalloid volume
biochemistry expanders
6 Viral process EKGs,Viral and Primitive Prostheses,
deduced, cellular Bacterial labwork, Open heart surgery,
biology, DNA
helix described
7 Electron micro- Portable EKG, External defib,
scopy, organelle CAT scan, gas Cardiac Bypass
functions chromatography "Heart-Lung" machine
8 Retroviruses MRI and PET scans, Clot busting drugs,
described, Ultrasound imaging, Antipsychotics,
Genomes mapped, Lab tests made Laser in surgery,
easy by tracers Blood subsitutes
9 Cellular and Chemical tracing, Cryogenic suspension,
Organism aging Dynamic spatial Limb protheses,
understood image construction Gene therapy,
Diagnosis expert Artificial organs
systems (e.g. heart, lung)
10 Neurophysiology "Feinberg Machine"- Antiviral vaccinations,
truly understood, portable 3Dimaging, Artificial and enhanced
Cellular re- portable expert vision,
generation and systems Targeted tumor meds,
mutation control Growth enhancing drugs
11 Comprehensive combined, portable, major neural refusion
understanding of imaging, ekg, and for spinal lesions,
comparative vital signs monitor primitive nanocytes
homoxenobiology limb regeneration
12 Submolecular monitor combined enhanced healing
physiology with portable through magnetic field
system and drug therapy,
smart antitoxin,
cloning of body parts
13 nanocyte imaging, enhanced smart cells,
monitor/expert partial brain
system truly reconstruction
portable possible
14 gene tracers in vivo controlled
mutation,
controlled brain
erasure
15 "tricorder"-like enhanced biological
imager systems protheses
"enhanced" protheses = increased strength and endurance
"nanocytes" = cell sized biomechanical imaging or treatment systems
passed into the patient.
Note that many items occur earlier in my time line than in MT or
traveller. This is due largely to their predecesors appearing at our current
tech level e.g. primitive artificial vision is occurring _now_, we have
artificial (albeit extremely large) artificial organs, and have experimental
gene therapy. Real good binocular vision is happening now (only it takes
a mini-computer to run it), either we're in TL 9 and TL 10 will make it
portable, or...well, anyway things are changing quicker than they have
any right to.
ttfn,
eric sergienko
[email removed]
uniformed services university of the health sciences
[phone removed]
"There is no body cavity that can't be reached with a 14 gauge
needle and a strong arm."
- 4th rule of the House of God