By Lisa Hix — Like the soldiers who fought in World War II, most of the men and women who served in the U.S. military during the Vietnam War in the ’60s and ’70s were remarkably young, between the ages of 18 and 25. Those who volunteered to man the primary aircraft of the war, the helicopter, put their lives at a risk every day they were on tour. As a result, their commanding officers were often willing to look the other way when the pilots, gunners, and other crew members had their helmets painted in...

War and Prosthetics: How Veterans Fought for the Perfect Artificial Limb

By Hunter Oatman-Stanford — There's something undeniably beautiful about prosthetic limbs, designed to echo the physical grace and mechanical engineering of the human body. For most people, these objects elicit some combination of squeamish discomfort and utmost respect. But far fewer of us connect those feelings to the untold generations of battle-scarred amputees whose sacrifices made prosthetics a public priority. "Patients even have doctors sign non-disclosure forms to protect potential patents." “You hate to...