Tech Startup Unveils Futuristic Anti-Virus Bodysuit with Vaping Capabilities

Zach Harris, writing for MERRY JANE:

As quarantine continues with no end in sight, people are getting restless. But more than just going back to work or dining in a restaurant, companies are beginning to explore what our favorite pastimes might look like in a future marred by viral fear. For one California tech startup, that means festival-goers watching concerts through sealed super suits with built-in beverage and vape consumption modules.

According to Fast Company, Los Angeles-based tech startup Production Club is already knee-deep in the process of designing what they call the Micrashell — an airtight half-suit and helmet that would encase the wearer for the entirety of any given festival. To ensure that those wearing the suit can easily use the bathroom, or do other things that don’t involve pants (wink, wink…), the prototype only covers the top half of the body.

An antivirus bodysuit for festivalgoers that will enable them to vape, drink, and have sex in a world ravaged by contagious disease? Sign. Me. Up.

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Could Wearable Microdosing Technology Be a Thing One Day?

Russell Hausfeld, writing for Psymposia:

Could a liquid-delivery system meant to help maintain a personalized “scent bubble” quietly usher in the creation of wearable psychedelic microdosing technology? A U.S. patent for this system—just one among an increasing list of psychedelic-inspired intellectual properties—was awarded to Sensory Design & Technology LTD in 2019.

The bulk of the patent covers a product being developed for eScent—an “emotional” fashion company, which aims to redefine the way people use and wear perfumes. In short, the patent covers an AI-powered liquid-delivery device small enough to be integrated into “connected” jewellery and removable garment buttons for on-demand personalized perfumes or liquids. But, squeezed into a paragraph that lists other potential uses for the technology, the patent covers “microdosing psychedelic medicines (e.g. LSD, psilocybin) for therapeutic applications.”

So now there’s a patent for wearable microdoses. Again, this is more innovative psychedelic technology, but do we really need it? While some people would rather have microdoses prepared for them, is grinding up magic mushrooms or cutting up blotter paper really that difficult or inconvenient for the average person?

And will smell-able microdoses be as effective as when they are orally consumed or delivered via nasal spray? In fact, will they be effective at all? When it comes to microdosing, a ton of questions remain unanswered.

One cool thing about this patent is that it was inspired by Philip K Dick’s book Ubik:

The impetus for this technology was Philip K. Dick’s sci-fi thriller “UBIK.” The novel introduced eScent’s founder, Jenny Tillotson, to the notion of “reality-in-a-can”—a mystical substance of miracle properties (called UBIK) which is sprayed from a can and stabilizes reality. This appealed to her, as someone who has had to manage long-term bipolar and anxiety disorders, and she began developing eScent.

Through a “sensor-triggered, subscription-based” fragrance service, eScent’s wearable technology aims to dispense scents based on environmental and bodily triggers dictated by the user, according to their website.

Ubik is a great book by one of my favorite sci-fi writers. If you haven’t heard of it before then I highly recommend that you check it out.

There’s no final product yet and the system for microdosing smell-able psychedelics is still in its early exploratory phase. I’m simultaneously excited to see all of this exciting new innovation in the space and wondering if we’re perhaps unnecessarily complicating things.

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Speech Pattern Technology Can Now Detect if You’re High on MDMA

Randy Robinson, writing for MERRY JANE:

A group of neuroscientists, AI specialists, and psychologists at IBM developed a new method for detecting if someone is intoxicated on MDMA — simply by analyzing an individual’s speech patterns.

In a study published last week in Neuropsychopharmacology, researchers could pinpoint, with nearly 90 percent accuracy, whether someone was intoxicated on MDMA, the active ingredient of “molly” or “ecstasy,” based on certain types of words and emotions expressed in short segments of speech. This detection method could discern MDMA use from being dosed on oxytocin, the so-called “love hormone” that produces effects similar to, but still significantly different from, MDMA. […]

Subjects on MDMA showed markedly different speech patterns compared to when they were only on oxytocin or placebo, and the unique speech patterns were more pronounced at higher doses of MDMA. Basically, people on molly used more words relating to intimacy, rapport, and emotion. Furthermore, their speech showed more instances of jitteriness, as well as different vowel pronunciations and richer use of adjectives and nouns.

Leveraging speech pattern technology to detect drug use is an impressive use case, but color me doubtful that it will accurately detect drug use (or the absence of it) 100% of the time. Unfortunately it does seem like this will eventually be picked up by doctors, police, rehab centers, parents, schools, and more:

In other words, someday in the foreseeable future, doctors will be able to tell if you’re on MDMA — and possibly other drugs such as weed, alcohol, meth, cocaine, or heroin — simply by recording you talk and running it through a handheld device.

And if doctors can do it, that means cops may be able to do it, too. Australian authorities are currently testing infrared cameras to catch people on MDMA at festivals based on their body-heat signatures alone — no breathalyzers, blood draws, or urine or saliva samples necessary.

None of these techniques are infallible, but the people who use and sell them don’t like to mention that.

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Virtual Reality Is Better Underwater

Joan E. Solsman, writing for CNET:

Virtual reality on dry land is already tricking your brain. Studies have shown that VR can make you feel virtual pokes that aren't physically happening, and that your brain appears to thread together a mesh of neurons more like a real memory when you experience VR versus simply watching a video.

Underwater VR goes further.

Doing this underwater must be incredibly immersive. I’d love to try it sometime.

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Are Bioplastics Really Better for the Environment?

Troy Farah, writing for Ars Technica:

To put it plainly: not all bioplastics are created equal. So which ones may be key to a genuinely “greener” future? In 2020, five candidates seem to be rising to the eco-friendly top.

Until reading this article, the concept of transitioning to eco-friendly bioplastics were simply filed away in my brain as an obvious no-brainer, something that humanity must switch to as soon as possible if we want to avoid the climate catastrophes looming around the corner. But it turns out there’s more to the equation than just transitioning away from fossil fuel plastics and toward plant plastics. Farah does an excellent job of sharing some basic information about these plant-based materials before launching into the pros and cons of each one in this list.

Readers of this blog might not be surprised to learn that hemp is more viable than many of the other options (polylactic acid, polyhydroxybutyrate, and polybutylene succinate). But the winner might turn out to be lignin, “a blackish biodegradable byproduct of paper manufacturing”. This material can apparently be used to make just about anything. But bioplastics are struggling to compete with petroleum-based plastics on cost:

However, there is still a lack of investment in this market because it’s difficult or not worth the effort for companies to transition to using these materials. The cost of all bioplastics remains relatively high due to low oil prices.

There are still problems to solve before societies around the world can make the transition to eco-friendly plastics but it’s refreshing to see that they are being actively worked on.

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