Smart Ink

For me tattoos have to have a meaning which is why I like to design my own. Over the years I've designed several of the twenty plus tattoos on my body. In between recording the album I've been working on a new chest piece. It's incomplete because I haven't found all the elements it needs. The other day while searching all spectrums of the artistic field for elements to add, I came across some interesting news.  

Tattoo culture as a whole goes back thousands of years. In modern times tattooing in some cultures is still taboo. While in most western countries tattoos are considered decorative pieces of body art. In the past the most functional a tattoo could be was as a map or a compass. Now thanks to some innovative minds there's smart ink that allows tattoos to be used in a variety of life improving ways. Researchers at Harvard, MIT, Google, Microsoft and several other private sectors have created smart ink using Nanotechnology. 

Smart ink tattoos are being developed that allow users to interact and control electronic devices. Some smart ink tattoos are designed to change color when body temperature fluctuates. Other can be used to monitor heart rate, sugar levels in diabetics, and many other body functions. The goal of the MIT researchers is to combine art and medicine. They want tattoos to overcome some of the difficult hurtles that effect the biomedical field in regards to monitoring devices. In place of wearing some bulky monitoring device which requires batteries, straps and cables. You just get a tattoo that effectively does the exact same function. This is especially useful for people with chronic conditions who may require years of monitoring. 

In the near future researcher will have ink that can interact with the skin in ways that allow for increased durability, sight, and reflexes. Basically, they're developing smart ink that can be applied to the body to make bullet proof skin. Super soldiers. Imagine a world where soldiers no longer wore bulletproof vests. Instead they wear normal clothes concealing their cool tattoos and can stop a bullet with their hands. Or someone being able to control a drone with the tattoos on their head. It may sound like sci-fi out of a low budget Hollywood movie but the fact is...the truth is stranger than fiction. The next decade of smart ink development is going to be very interesting. 

Until Next We Speak, Be Well

Tha One an Only 

Science & Technology

Spring is in the air and summer is on the way. I wanted to snowboard one last time before all the snow melted so I went to Winterberg and returned a few days ago. The powder was fresh but the wi-fi where I stayed was prehistoric.  The only way to check email was by walking half a kilometer, down a hill, and pirating WiFi from the student hostel. This post is a mix of science and technology information that I couldn't share while traveling.

First is the "Heart on a chip." The "Heart on a chip," is literally, a functioning human heart the size of a micro-chip. Scientist at the University in Toronto grew heart tissue in a lab, attached the tissue to scaffolding and transplanted it into a rat. Inside the body it grew muscle and blood vessels that allowed blood to flow. Even after the tissue was removed from the rats body it continued to beat rhythmically like a normal organ. this is cutting edge technology that can change not only the rejection rate for transplants, but can also allow science to grow replacement organs for patients from their own tissue.



The next piece of tech is going to make some people wonder if science fiction has just become real. The creative minds at Microsoft have taken holographic technology to a whole new level. Their new "Holoportation" technology allows for interactive 3D holograms that don't use a screen and move in real-time. Don't take my word for it...watch the video.



The last piece of information is a bit weird...but in a good way. A company out the UK named Moley Robotics has invented the first robotic chef. The chef is a pair of robotic arms which move about a kitchen that consumers must purchase as well. The robotic chef will(in the future) be programmed with over 2000 recipes from four star chefs. To learn more about the robotic chef and what it's capable of ...check out the video below.

Holo-Tech

There is a quote by someone I can't remember that says. "If civilization was confronted with a technology so advanced that it baffled our imagination. That technology would be perceived as magic." To some people who have viewed Microsoft's new product HoloLens...magic is here.

HoloLens is a pair of goggles containing a Windows 10 operating system that generates holographic projections (in midair or on a surface) that can be manipulated by the user. This Holo-Tech (Holographic Technology) produces an interactive form of augmenting reality that's user friendly. It uses sensors, a high-definition 3D optical display, and spatial sound to allow users to manipulate augmented reality through gaze, voice, and hand gestures. 

The concept behind HoloLens was to take all the tasks done behind a computer screen and bring them off the screen. Blending the digital world with the real world where the users can interact with their projects in augmented reality. Who is this technology made for? Everyone. The diversity of how HoloLens can be is applied to everyday life depends on the user. Engineers, architects, designers, jewelry makers, and visual artists can make 3D scale models of their projects.

There's a similar gaming product about to hit the market this year named Oculus Rift which also offers augmented reality. The major difference between the two is, Oculus Rift was designed primary for gaming, while HoloLens was developed to be more project oriented and used in everyday life. HoloLens will be available this year. It's release will coincide with the launch of the new Window's 10 operating system.

Below I posted a video displaying HoloLens in action. It's the demo for the new product and shows how science fiction can be made real.