USB prosthetic finger gives new meaning to thumbdrives

(Credit: Jerry Jalava)

This is a story about Jerry Jalava, a Finnish software developer who lost part of his finger in a motorcycle accident last July. According to his friend, Henri Bergius, when the surgeon assigned to work on Jalava's prosthetic finger discovered his hacking history, he made a clever suggestion: incorporate a USB key into the new digit.

The prosthetic finger contains a 2GB USB key, and Jalava also loaded it with Billix distribution, CouchDBX, and Ajatus to run off the drive, throwing even more geek cred into the mix.

When Jalava needs the drive, he simply pulls it off his left hand, plugs it in, and comes back to pick it up after the transfers are finished. That dispels any parallels to that scene in "Robocop" when he uses the giant spike that comes out of his hand to transfer data from the OCP criminal database to the computer in his head.

Check out more pictures of Jalava's cybernetic finger in the slideshow below, and be sure to listen to Thursday's episode of The 404 Podcast to hear 30 jokes in a row about what would happen if this were to go on another part of the body.

Jerry Jalava's USB key prosthetic finger

[gefitz]

I really could have done without reading that headline today.

[Seaspray0]

Agreed. Sick!

[Maccess]

Unsettling maybe, but not sick. It's really about someone who made the best of a disability. What's next? maybe an LED flashlight? or a contactless electronic key? But, don't go chopping off your fingers just yet.

[Dylan_Wisor]

Maccess, I was thinking of a flashlight, Phillips and flathead screwdrivers, a small pencil, and whatever else fits in there.<br /><br />Even if I don't do it myself, I have a great idea for a children's show now. Think Inspector Gadget, only horrifying.

[Sausagebiscuit]

Reminds me of Inspector Gadget.

[DigitalFrog]

Interesting. Someone who could give Windows the finger and have something happen...

[jsibelius]

So what happens when the drive craps out on him?

[Dylan_Wisor]

So the doctors in Finland offer to sew foreign objects into the body while they've got you open?<br /><br />I'd imagine his girlfriend wouldn't be too keen on... y'know, anymore.

[Hunnter2k3]

This made my day, sounds like the kind of guy i'd like to have as a friend.<br /><br />He really can give you the finger now... oh i couldn't resist.<br />This is the best finger ever!<br /><br />I just hope it is removable, from his finger, would suck if the drive died and it needs surgery to get it out / replace it.

[Sam Papelbon]

i don't see the point. i mean it could be a neat party trick, provided it wasn't obviously a usb device. (couldn't they make it a little more finger-like?). the way it looks now is pretty much pathetic, just a usb stick made out of latex.<br /><br />would be a pain at the airport.

[karpenterskids]

They put it in his finger?<br />Just an ordinary finger?<br /><br />What's the point of a thumbdrive in your hand if it's not in your...well, you get the point.<br /><br /><br /><br />And do you really want your hand to be unusable, plugged into your computer, while you're accessing the files? I think I'll pass on this one, thank you very much.

[mexic0]

I don't see the point. If I wanted a prosthetic finger, I'd like to be able to use it at all times, otherwise why spend the money? While my USB drive is engaged, for example, I'm also typing.

[DevonDe]

Nice one Justin! Ignore the previous commenters that obviously didn't read the post, look at the photos, or grasp the true awesomeness Robocop. The 404 discussion was genius. Reach-around? love it.

[justin.yu]

oh devon: dead or alive, you're coming with me

[Ikithme]

Is this news? Really? Some dude got a thumb drive put into a prosthetic finger and it gets posted here? Thats about as much news as me getting new contacts yesterday.

[Dylan_Wisor]

Crave is a blog. Not everything on CNET is specifically news.

[justin.yu]

did you get a usb key put into your eye? if not, then this news is newsier than yours.

[Fil0403]

Credits to him for making the best out of a disability, as someone else here put it.

[dougyeager]

2 gigs is all they could give him? You would think he would get the biggest space possible. I would have taken a bottle opener instead of 2 gigs.

[djnv]

seriously, this is described as "sick"...my my, man up a lot ok thanx!! honestly...

[yakumo-unr]

The article does actually state "When Jalava needs the drive, he simply pulls it off his left hand, plugs it in, and comes back to pick it up after the transfers are finished." and thus answers most of your comments. It's a prosthetic that just fits over the wound, like prosthetic legs, completely removable.

[mahdi haeri]

This is good to turn disability into an advantage which others doesn't have but honestly i don't like to see my friend put his finger into his laptop to feed data, reminds me of what i do with my girl friend :-( <br />But guess what computers doesn't sense that pleasure!

[mrgunny40]

What the hell!! Is that even legal?