Keyhole Surgery is Operation reinvented for lockpick enthusiasts. You view a 3D schematic of the lock on the computer, then try to guide the key through the maze of tumblers without striking the walls. He who has the least mistakes wins. He who has the most mistakes will require a good lawyer.

A concept for now, if you really like the device, we're sure some perceptive, agile manufacturer will come around to borrow the idea soon enough. [Moritz Waldemeyer via bbGadgets]

The boffins are confident the robot will be able to aid in general laparoscopic surgery, but the researchers are intending its use to be specially designed for heart bypass operations. The benefits of such procedures against traditional surgery are numerous; patients have a reduced recovery time and incisions are rarely sizable. Given the miniscule scale in which the i-Snake needs to function, it will be quite a feat to have a working model that packs in all the desired features, but if anyone can do it, a team of leading researchers with $4.2 million are probably the best chaps for the challenge. [BBC News]