Skip to main content

Surgeons successfully perform a double hand transplant on an 8-year-old boy

We can stop daydreaming about futuristic and advanced technology because, without a doubt, the future of civilization is right now. Want some proof? Well just this week, doctors at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia successfully completed a double hand transplant on an 8-year-old boy named Zion Harvey — the youngest person in the world to undergo such a surgery. Prosthetics are one thing, but a full-blown transplant of a real human hand? That’s nuts.

Over the course of an incredibly complicated 10-hour operation, a group of 40 doctors (ranging from plastic, reconstructive, and orthopedic surgeons to anesthesiologists and radiologists) helped pull off the tricky surgery. After first securing the bone of the transplant to the boy, the surgeons then attached the veins to allow blood to begin circulating through the hand. Once blood began flowing, each muscle, nerve, and tendon was then meticulously attached.

Recommended Videos

It was an amazing procedure, but arguably the the most amazing part of the surgery was how stoic Harvey remained the entire time. “I’ve never seen a tear, never an untoward face, never a complaint,” Dr. L. Scott Levin told NBC News. “He was always positive. And that, in and of itself, is remarkable.”

As a toddler, Harvey had to have his hands and feet amputated — and also required a kidney transplant — as the result of a life-threatening disease called sepsis. After receiving prosthetics for his legs, he soon learned how to feed himself and play video games without the use of his hands. But despite how resilient and courageous Harvey was after overcoming sepsis, he still longed for a day when he could swing on monkey bars and hold his younger sister with his very own hands. Due to the fact he remained on a steady schedule of taking immunosuppressant drugs (which help his body avoid rejection of the new kidney) the doctors felt Harvey was a prime candidate to undergo the risky hand transplant.

“The issue with children is they have areas of bone called growth plates,” says Levin. “We had had to be very careful when we attached the donor hands to Zion that we did not violate or injure the growth plates because we want his hands to grow and lengthen.”

Because of the success of Harvey’s surgery, Levin feels confident this success story provides incredible progress towards helping kids of all ages who currently live without hands. The process of training, preparing, and actually performing the surgery has created an incredible foundation for doctors planning this kind of operation in the future, with Levin calling it “the end of the beginning, not the beginning of the end.”

For Harvey, this is the beginning of an experience he’s waited two long years for. Now he won’t have to wonder what it’s like to pick up his little sister, climb a set of monkey bars, or use his fingers to play video games. Though there’s still a long road ahead for him (several weeks of hand therapy and a lifetime of medication), it seems certain Harvey will keep handling everything with the same fearlessness, courage, and ear-to-ear grin he’s always had.

Rick Stella
Former Associate Editor, Outdoor
Rick became enamored with technology the moment his parents got him an original NES for Christmas in 1991. And as they say…
Sebastian Stan lays out Bucky’s future after Thunderbolts
Sebastian Stan in Thunderbolts.

There are some spoilers ahead for the ending of Marvel's Thunderbolts. Stop reading now if you don't want to be spoiled.

Earlier this year, Captain America: Brave New World briefly introduced a new direction for James "Bucky" Barnes, a character Sebastian Stan has been playing since 2011 in Captain America: The First Avenger. In Brave New World, the former Winter Soldier apparently retired from being a reformed hero and went into politics by running for Congress. Thunderbolts reveals that Bucky won his election to the House of Representatives. But his stay in Congress was short.

Read more
Jeep Compass EV breaks cover—but will it come to the U.S.?
jeep compass ev us newjeepcompassfirsteditionhawaii  4

Jeep just pulled the wraps off the all-new Compass EV, and while it’s an exciting leap into the electric future, there's a catch—it might not make it to the U.S. anytime soon.
This is a brand new electric version of the Jeep Compass, and being built on Stellantis' STLA platform—the same architecture underpinning models like the Peugeot E-3008 and E-5008—it looks much slicker and packs a lot more inside than previous versions of the Compass.
Let’s start with what’s cool: the new Compass EV is packing up to 404 miles of range on a single charge, a 74 kWh battery, and fast-charging that gets you from 20% to 80% in about 30 minutes. Not bad for a compact SUV with Jeep's badge on the nose.
There are two versions: a front-wheel-drive model with 213 horsepower and a beefier all-wheel-drive version with 375 horsepower. That AWD setup isn’t just for looks—it can handle 20% inclines even without front traction, and comes with extra ground clearance and better off-road angles. In short, it’s still a Jeep.
The design's been refreshed too, and inside you’ll find the kind of tech and comfort you’d expect in a modern EV—sleek, smart, and ready for both city streets and dirt trails.
But here’s the thing: even though production starts soon in Italy, Jeep hasn’t said whether the Compass EV is coming to America. And the signs aren’t promising.
Plans to build it in Canada were recently put on hold, with production now delayed until at least early 2026. Some of that might have to do with possible U.S. tariffs on Canadian and Mexican vehicles—adding a layer of uncertainty to the whole rollout.
According to Kelley Blue Book, a Stellantis spokesperson confirmed that the company has “temporarily paused work on the next-generation Jeep Compass, including activities at” the Canadian plant that was originally meant to build the model. They added that Stellantis is “reassessing its product strategy in North America” to better match customer needs and demand for different powertrain options.
So while Europe and other markets are gearing up to get the Compass EV soon, American drivers might be left waiting—or miss out entirely.
That’s a shame, because on paper, this electric Jeep hits a lot of sweet spots. Let’s just hope it finds a way over here.

Read more
Charlie Cox singles out his least favorite Daredevil: Born Again episode
Charlie Cox in Daredevil: Born Again.

Daredevil: Born Again season 1 was largely reconceived after the 2023 actor and writer strikes. Dario Scardapane -- a veteran of The Punisher series on Netflix -- was brought in to be the new showrunner and he made a lot of changes to the series that were well-received. However, there's one episode that Scardapane didn't really change at all, and it happens to be the least favorite episode of Daredevil: Born Again's leading man, Charlie Cox.

During an appearance on The Playlist, Cox noted that he wasn't very fond of the season's fifth episode, "With Interest," which was a largely standalone episode that featured his character, Matt Murdock, in a bank during a hostage crisis.

Read more