It's true they have double the number of bones in their neck compared with us - 14 versus seven cervical vertebrae.

BBC: How owls swivel their heads

Dr Weber hopes that the robots will be capable of performing operations on the cervical vertebrae in the neck - some of which are currently impossible.

BBC: Robot reduces spinal surgery risk

Time and again I try to imagine that a celestial bonesetter is pinching me through a miraculous grip on my cervical vertebrae, a grip that will put life right once and for all.

NEWYORKER: The House of Headache