- "Human-on-a-chip" Microfluidics-based devices for simulating physiology of individual organs or organ systems. Pick one organ or system (e.g., lung, kidney) and report on the current state-of-the-art in replicating this system using microfluidics technology.
- Hybrid artificial pancreas (also referred to as "bioartificial" pancreas)
- Cochlear implants
For analyzing technologies which are intended to reproduce normal physiological functions, the appropriate questions to ask include:
- What aspects of the native organ function are replicated, and which are not? (this should include a quantitative analysis of function, for example filtration rates in artificial kidney compared to natural kidney)
- What are the limitations of the device/implant?
- What could be done to improve the performance to match the native organ?
- How does the device/implant interfere with normal physiology?