Just in time for the summer bug season comes this news about a patch you may one day wear to shield your identity – from mosquitoes! The Kite Patch was developed by Olfactor Laboratories, and works like DEET — blocking mosquitoes’ carbon dioxide receptors. Researchers say the chemicals used are so safe they are considered “food grade flavors” by the Food and Drug Administration.
Mosquito defense may have a new secret weapon.It looks like a nicotine patch, but the little diamond-shaped Kite Patch is laced with a very special sauce that its developers claim can protect whomever wears it from mosquito bites for up to 48 hours.
For many, mosquitoes are merely annoying, but in many parts of the world they spread malaria, a deadly disease that is far more dangerous than many health authorities had previously guessed.
The average mosquito has long-range sensors that can sense the carbon dioxide humans emit through their breath from up to a half-mile away. The mosquito’s sensing organ, the maxillary palp, contains a neuron called the cpA neuron that pings the mosquito’s brain when it senses CO2.
The active ingredient and most effective commercially available mosquito repellent is DEET, which works by confusing these
Via Olfactor Laboratory
sensors. But some research suggests it can be toxic, especially to children. It is also a bit too expensive for everyday use, especially in the poorer countries stricken with mosquito-borne diseases. Oh yeah, and it melts plastic. Yikes.
I can’t tell you how many loops and swirls I practiced as a youngster, but I do still use cursive handwriting even in this digital age. I have to admit though, I use penmanship less and less. But for many kids, cursive is something that they may no longer be taught. You see, handwriting is…
The International Vision Expo kicked off today in New York City, focusing on the most innovative eyewear technology of this year. I’m among the nearly 150 million adults who wear glasses, and 50 million Americans carry multiple pairs – perhaps for reading, working, driving, or just watching TV. But soon you’ll need just one pair.Today…
It’s been a couple of months now since Starbucks launched its instant coffee, after spending years developing it and months preparing its employees to pitch the granules. The product is called Via, and comes in three-packs that go for $2.95. So has Via been an idea that will work? I haven’t had a chance to…
Reuters has released its Reuters Top 100 list of most innovative universities in the world. Based on academic papers and patent filings, and compiled by the Intellectual Property & Science business of Thomson Reuters, you may be pleasantly surprised by some on the list. Not surprisingly is the leader of the Top 100: Stanford University,…
Although we have yet to discover the whole story of the underlying causes of the unintended acceleration of Toyota vehicles, I suspect that we may be seeing more of these dangerous types of incidents in the future. A growing culprit will be the complex computer software and hardware systems that run the machines that we…
Here’s an interesting article I saw in Business Week some time ago, but the content still poses intriguing questions for innovators today: Does innovation need a parent or two? Or three? Notice that innovation teams are working through three stages of innovation. I would agree that this type of idea parenting needs to be a…
