E-Nabling the Future is a volunteer organization dedicated to creating inexpensive 3D printable prosthetic hands and arms for children around the globe who are missing limbs. The movement has grown from an informal collaboration to a veritable movement, and they are now producing functional and inexpensive prosthetic limbs. Traditionally designed arm and hand prostheses can cost up to $40,000. According to 3Dprint.com, it is now possible to create an entire functional my electric arm for $350. Their most recent innovation uses electrical impulses from the bicep muscle to open and close the hand. This enabled a six-year-old boy named Alex who is missing his right arm to give his mother a big hug.

The picture of Alex's myoelectric prosthetic right hand gave me a sense of déjà vu -- I swear I had seen something like this before. Then it hit me. The prosthetic is eerily similar to Luke's prosthetic hand in The Empire Strikes Back. Thanks to the volunteers at E-Nabling the Future, science fiction is becoming science fact, and children are the beneficiaries of this amazing movement.

Please check out the E-Nabling the Future website, and if you are so inclined give a donation to this worthy cause.

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Select images by Kt Crabb Photography