The Mighty Mouse

Not a true medical gadget, but a public safety device for sure. The M2 robot, dubbed the “Mighty Mouse,” has demonstrated a unique ability to withstand gamma radiation from a cobalt-60 source that got stuck at the the White Sands’ Gamma Irradiation Facility in New Mexico. The cobalt cylinder, the size of a restaurant salt shaker, could easily fry not only any human within its range of action, but any electronic device previously tested. Normally, such a gamma cylinder is moved by a stream of air. Accidentally, the cylinder got stuck and even 1000 psi of air pressure, instead of the usual 20 psi, would not move it. The Mighty Mouse was called in, and survived, beautifully freeing the gamma hotcake. It was an exceedingly difficult operation to perform, reports the Sandia National Laboratory.