Bionic brilliance

This is Zübeyde Nisa Karabacak and her bionic arm, which she’s nicknamed ‘Revo’. It’s an i-Limb Ultra Revolution, an electric prosthesis that she controls with signals from her muscles. Delicate electrodes in the wrist pick up electrical impulses created as the muscles on her residual arm contract, which are then passed as commands to a tiny computer that activates the hand. It’s also the first prosthesis that can be controlled by smartphone app.

There are 24 pre-programmed commands, such as ‘handshake’ and ‘grasp computer mouse’, but she can also create her own. Individual motors in each of the digits provide her with precise control.

At first, she was only able to complete simple housework tasks. Now, Revo is a big part of her daily life and she can play the violin, paint and even apply nail varnish.

Karabacak, who lost part of her arm in a traffic accident back in 2016, says, “life begins now”.