Kick the SOCCKET for Light!

The SOCCKET

Energy cannot be destroyed, it can only be transferred. That was what I learned from my science classes back in school. Hence it is possible to convert kinetic energy into electrical energy. This knowledge is not new, but how a team of scientists applied this knowledge has given new meaning to 'the power of  play'.

As you might have guessed, the SOCCKET generates electricity whenever it is moved.  Unlike the dynamo on a bicycle, the SOCCKET has a pendulum inside it which swings and converts kinetic energy into electrical energy which is then stored in a rechargeable battery. Like a dynamo, it powers a light source - an LED in particular - when connected to the charger. It is estimated to be able to generate 3-hours of light from 30-minutes of play.

There is no need to worry about fragility. After all, it was designed to function like a regular soccer ball. It is actually more durable than the conventional soccer ball, in that it will not deflate, as it is made of a specialised foam.

The inventors, Jessica O. Matthews and Julia Silverman, founded a social enterprise called Uncharted Play in 2011, which mass produces the SOCKKET. However, the initial patent for the invention is held by Matthews and Silverman, along with Jessica Lin, Hemali Thakkar and Aviva Presser, who are alumni of Harvard University. The project has almost raised $100,000 on Kickstarter, a fundraiser.

I first came across the SOCCKET a few months ago when my Dad showed me a commercial for it on Youtube. I hope the SOCCKET becomes a more readily available especially in countries and places where children and people in general are poverty-stricken, or have limited access to electricity.

Cheers
zhusun

Further reading:
http://unchartedplay.com/
http://www.ecogeek.org/human-powered/3858
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soccket
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u5gqoYkL8To

Scientists Echo the Gecko Feet

The gecko feet have gripped scientists - and countless surfaces with ease - for a long time and is one of the animals scientists are trying to mimic. I hope you like lizards!

A gecko's foot and a sheet of Geckskin

The invention in mind is the Geckskin. Named as one of the top scientific breakthroughs of 2012 by CNN Money, it is a truly gripping piece of biomimetic innovation. (Biomimetic, biomimicry or bionics means mimicking nature to design and engineer new man-made materials. Put another way, Geckskin is a biologically inspired design.)

From left: Al Crosby, Dan King, Michael Bartlett and Duncan Irschick
Background: Geckskin

The team behind this innovation is from the University of Massachusetts (UMass) Amherst. The team comprises Al Crosby, Dan King, Michael Bratlett and Duncan Irschick. The interdisciplinary team was not the first of scientists to develop adhesives from mimicking gecko footpads. What makes Geckskin different from other innovations is that it tries to mimic a different structure under the gecko feet, particularly the tendons. As explained by UMass researcher Al Crosby, the tendons are directly connected to the skin and hairs (called setae) on the gecko's footpad. The product is a sheet of adhesiv covered in these structures.

The Geckskin successfully emulates the gecko's feet. A sheet of gecksking the size of an idex card can hold up to 700 pounds and can be removed with minimal effort. What makes it even more practicable is that it is reusable and does not leave any residue behind when peeled off. I especially like the last listed feature, because I find adhesives such as cellophane tape a pain sometimes.

The reason why it was listed as the top 5 breakthroughs by CNN Money is because it is seen as extremely marketable. The research was also partially endorsed by US Defense Research Projestcs Agency. So there is a lot of potential for the Geckskin in application in all sorts of areas.

I'm guessing that the Geckskin might be used in outer space where super strong adhesives are needed to hold parts together - you wouldn't want vital pieces of equipment floating aimlessly around in space. Also, maybe in heavy industries and movie productions. It would definitely aide Tom Cruise's character in Mission Impossible, Ethan Hunt, on missions where climbing buildings is involved. Households consumers like us might even find use in this. We might need smaller versions that can be used to hold TVs up, maybe even to stick vases to the table - especially in households with hyperactive children running around. The additional helpful feature is that it won't leave a mark on your expensive crystal-ware.

Anybody up for making a Gecko-man? He could become Spiderman's buddy.

Cheers
zhusun

Further reading:
http://www.umass.edu/umhome/feature/little-lizard-could
http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-57401164-1/the-holy-grail-of-adhesives/
http://www.umass.edu/loop/content/cnn-money-names-geckskin-top-science-breakthrough-2012
http://www.cns.umass.edu/about/newsletter/may-2012/inspired-by-gecko-feet-scientists-invent-super-adhesive-material
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2012/02/120216165500.htm

How to detect cervical cancer cheaply

In poor countries, women can't afford a pap smear which requires high-tech and expensive equipment and trained personnel that many clinics in these countries lack. This is why deaths by cervical cancer is higher in poor countries than in countries like America. But have no fear, a cheap solution has come underway. It is already being done in countries such as Thailand, India and Botswana.

Developed by the John Hopkins medical school, the colposcopy involves using a common household item - vinegar - to detect precancerous cells on the cervix. How ingenious is that? In this procedure, all you need is a nurse, some vinegar and some simple equipment. No laboratory tests are required and precancerous cells that are detected can be removed in a subsequent procedure called cryotherapy, all during the same appointment.

So how does it work? Firstly, the vinegar is applied on to the woman's cervix using a swab. The doctor, nurse of midwife then looks for whitish or yellowish spots on the cervix using a colposcope, a lighted binocular microscope. Some may even use a magnifying glass. These white tissues are abnormal cervical tissues and are potentially cancerous lesions that need to be removed. If there are no white or yellow spots then the patient is free from precancerous cells and the appointment is over.

As for the patients with whitish tissue, the health care personnel then carries out cryoptherapy which involves freezing these white tissues with carbon dioxide, nitrogen or nitrous oxide. Then the frozen layer can then be removed. The woman may feel a bit of pain during this procedure. However, this momentary pain is well worth to prevent the development of cervical cancer which can be a painful and undesirable death.

I found this procedure interesting because something as common as acetic acid in vinegar can be used to detect and thus prevent a potentially life-threatening disease. These sort of innovative and inexpensive procedures are what lower income countries need to improve the people's health. I would like to see a decline in the number of deaths from cervical cancer which is about 250,000 annually, of which about 85% are from low or middle-income countries.I think the hardworking health care personnel and the experts who developed this procedure deserve a big thank you from everyone.

Cheers
zhusun

Further reading:
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/27/health/27cancer.html?_r=0
http://womenshealth.about.com/cs/cevicalconditions/a/colposcopy.htm
http://womenshealth.about.com/cs/surgery/a/cryosurgtherapy.htm
http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2012/09/18/161264247/botswana-doctors-stop-cervical-cancer-with-a-vinegar-swab
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-20595131