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Smart Holograms Used as Biosensors

Roland Piquepaille writes "In this short article, eWEEK writes that the next generation of biosensors will consist of small holograms costing only fractions of a cent. Prototypes developed by a U.K. company, aptly named Smart Holograms, include contact lenses that monitor glucose levels or thin badges that detect alcohol levels. Not only these holograms used as sensors will be cheap to produce, they'll also require less training for nurses or police officers. This is because these holograms can be designed to show results graphically, such as morphing into an image of a green car if someone subjected to breath analysis is sober and can drive. Read this overview for other details and an illustration showing how to create a sensor hologram."

126 comments

  1. Hum... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    So what does it do exactly?

    1. Re:Hum... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      It makes Roland lots and lots of money.

    2. Re:Hum... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You breathe onto it and if you're drunk then other people can see the pink elephants too. If you're sober then they see a green car; not sure I get that bit.

    3. Re:Hum... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Wizards

  2. Big Brother by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful
    Great! More ways for the authorities to keep tab on our drinking and other habits...

    I wonder when they'll come up with a hologram that tells whether you've been handling a weapon (gasp!) recently or what's your religious affiliation.

    1. Re:Big Brother by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      So, you don't think there is a need to be able to tell if someone is too drun to drive? Or has recently fired a gun? And you put these in the same "boat" as a religious test? I don't want to live anywhere near you.

    2. Re:Big Brother by Agent__Smith · · Score: 1, Funny

      I for one welcome our new smart-hologram overlords!

      --
      "It seems that we are at the age where life stops giving us things, and starts taking them away..." Indiana Jones
  3. Yeah, just what we need... by bjwest · · Score: 5, Insightful

    "they'll also require less training for nurses or police officers."

    Less training for those that need more as it is.

    --

    --- Keep the choice with the user..
    1. Re:Yeah, just what we need... by temojen · · Score: 1

      If it leaves police cadets more time to learn the difference between a political opponent and a rioter, I'm all for it.

    2. Re:Yeah, just what we need... by MagicDude · · Score: 1

      The idea being that you can spend the time used training a policeman how to take and interpret a BAC on some other aspect of training that is glossed over or otherwise left out.

    3. Re:Yeah, just what we need... by the.aham · · Score: 1

      Your argument definitely makes sense... though, in the case of determining whether someone has a high BAC, I'd rather have the police officer et al still know what are the characteristics.

      Even though it's a hologram, I still think the concept is analogous to the scratch-and-sniff sticker; after a few hundred scratches, all you're left with is a sticker you can scratch. Holograms, whethre protected in a sheath of plastic, can still wear out. Put some element that'll really warp it next to it.

    4. Re:Yeah, just what we need... by Mitijea · · Score: 1

      Well, since they are supposedly only a fraction of a cent to produce, I don't think we need to worry about them wearing out. I'm sure they will be disposable just to cover their ass - one time only. That way no one can use the argument that their test was tainted by a prior one.

    5. Re:Yeah, just what we need... by the.aham · · Score: 1

      True. Though I can just see the argument now...

      Officer: Your SmartHolograph badge expired a month ago.
      Person: Really? Oh gosh ::faking stupidity::, I didn't know this had an expiration date.

      If this badge has the capability to tattle, wouldn't the drinkers in the audience most likely 'conveniently' forget to get a new badge - and these are the drinking-driving folks that this item was meant to stop in the first place?

      I would probably be a little less skeptical if there was another element to the badge than simply reading it... though I should probably go RTA again before I put my foot in my mouth :).

    6. Re:Yeah, just what we need... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Because it takes a great deal of time to teach someone how to look at a neumerical digital readout (that's where a number appears on the screen...) and tell them that anything above a certain number is bad.

      Actually, if we can assume that they learned how to tell if one number was bigger than another from watching Sesime Street in their spare time, it's pretty safe to assume that it will take no time at all.

  4. /awaits by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    the predicatable Roland Piquepaille bashing in 5

    4

    3 .....

  5. EMH by inertia187 · · Score: 5, Funny

    "Please state the nature of the medical emergency."

    --
    A programmer is a machine for converting coffee into code.
    1. Re:EMH by ScrewMaster · · Score: 3, Funny

      Actually, it usually went "Please state the na .. oh, it's you."

      --
      The higher the technology, the sharper that two-edged sword.
    2. Re:EMH by metlin · · Score: 1

      You owe me a new keyboard...not to mention a cup of coffee :-)

    3. Re:EMH by Bloodlent · · Score: 1

      "Uh huh.. Uh huh.. Yeah.. It's in the window this time."

    4. Re:EMH by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      you beat me at it!

      Let's at least explain this for both the non Star Trek fans out there.
      In the Star Trek Voyager TV series the Emergency Medical Hologram (EMH), in my opinion the funniest Trek character ever, wonderfully played by Robert Picardo, becomes the ship's doctor after the flesh&blood one dies in the first episode. When the hologram is activated he always appears asking "Please state the nature of the medical emergency".

  6. Good and Bad... by raydobbs · · Score: 3, Interesting

    In a way, it's opened up the field of diagnostic medicine - as many of these functions require complex tests now. if technology can boil down the plethora of tests into a stick-it-on-and-read type instrument, then the standard level of healthcare will rise.

    Will it lower costs? Only time, and the health insurance companies will be able to answer that one...

    1. Re:Good and Bad... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      If your asking Health Care companies, I can tell you what the answer is right now.

    2. Re:Good and Bad... by Egonis · · Score: 1

      Not to mention social health care systems like here in Canada -- this will ultimately aid in lowering diagnostic costs involved with serving patients

  7. Article Moderation by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Insightful

    -1, Roland

    1. Re:Article Moderation by clean_stoner · · Score: 1

      Hey, at least he linked to the actual site and not his blog-thing.

      --

      Sigs are for the weak.

  8. Let's boycott Roland's submissions by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    We really should stop reading and posting in these threads.

    1. Re:Let's boycott Roland's submissions by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      I agree with the fact that Roland agrees that we should stop reading his articles. However, by making this post I suppose I disagree that we should stop posting...

  9. Green Screen by Doc+Ruby · · Score: 1

    I want a hologram that shows me whether I have bad breath, and another that shows my blood-alcohol content - privately.

    --

    --
    make install -not war

    1. Re:Green Screen by Rosco+P.+Coltrane · · Score: 4, Funny

      I want a hologram that shows me whether I have bad breath

      That's called a "girlfriend" and the display consists of her face pulling back with a funny face when you kiss her.

      and another that shows my blood-alcohol content - privately

      The "girlfriend" device above can detect that too. You may not count upon the privacy of the display though...

      --
      "A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
    2. Re:Green Screen by Doc+Ruby · · Score: 2, Funny

      No, my girlfriend wants to outsource those tasks to a hologram.

      --

      --
      make install -not war

    3. Re:Green Screen by SpookyFish · · Score: 1


      Hey, I like the bad breath one -- what a great way to sell products.. imagine a "breathe here to test" sticker on every bottle of Listerene, etc.

      Of course, then it would need an antiseptic wipe attached to get all the crap off from people who breathed (i.e. spit) on it..

      Oh, then some government regulations on what level of smelly-ness is proper so companies can't cheat with false-positives..

      Ok, scratch that. Forget this idea. Please.

    4. Re:Green Screen by NanoGator · · Score: 1

      "I want a hologram that shows me whether I have bad breath,"

      I want a hologram of a chick that doesn't care about my bad breath.

      --
      "Derp de derp."
  10. Rather than reading Roland's poor description by nuntius · · Score: 4, Informative

    Get the pictures and facts straight from the source.
    http://www.smartholograms.com/site/sections/techno logy/creating_sensors.htm

    1. Re:Rather than reading Roland's poor description by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Thanks man. Note to slashdot editors: If I wanted to read Roland's advertisments/articles every fucking day, I would. It's not like he's a journalist or writer. Just post the link to whatever he's talking about, and cut out the middleman.

    2. Re:Rather than reading Roland's poor description by LiquidCoooled · · Score: 1

      The link you gave is the same page as in the article text above.
      no need to go to Rolands blog at all.

      Mods are smoking crack by modding the bleeding obvious up.

      --
      liqbase :: faster than paper
    3. Re:Rather than reading Roland's poor description by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      He's linking it directly. The article goes to the smart hologram main page, where you have to find the description yourself.

  11. Obvious Question by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    If smart holograms are used as biosensors then what are dumb holograms used as? Holographic trash cans?

  12. It's all in the cards by Solder+Fumes · · Score: 2, Funny

    We'll go to tarot readers to find out we have low blood sugar, high cholesterol, trace amounts of lead, and are pregnant.

    1. Re:It's all in the cards by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      We'll go to tarot readers to find out we have low blood sugar, high cholesterol, trace amounts of lead, and are pregnant.

      A very bad combination, especially for a man.

  13. This kind of stuff is dangerous by yog · · Score: 4, Interesting

    Humans are the best biosensors yet made, with dogs perhaps a close second. Intelligent, intuitive, experienced humans can scan someone's face, question them, trip them up in inconsistent statements, and otherwise sniff out intruders and frauds. Dogs can literally smell or otherwise somehow sense nervousness in people and make excellent guards. They ID people by scent and they don't forget scents quickly.

    If we focussed on human intelligence we would perhaps be able to avert more catastrophes, such as the series of missteps that allowed the 9/11 hijackers to get on board their planes despite some rather suspicious behavior.

    Computers are always going to be only as good as the programs that control them, and there are always going to be workarounds for people clever enough to find them. Insiders will create back doors in biosensor systems, or they will sell passwords to outsiders. A team of Japanese researchers already cracked a fingerprint biosensor a couple of years ago, so where's the security in using one? I would imagine even a DNA sample can be faked; just get someone's DNA, replicate it in a test tube using E. coli, and coat your hands with it. Standard laboratory biology.

    No one can steal your identity at the low-tech neighborhood store where you shop once a week and the clerks know you (if only this were always the case). The humans at the store will look at your credit card, then at the face that does not match yours, and they'll go in the back and call the police. A machine will simply pass the buck, leaving the owner to dispute the theft with the credit card company.

    The Israelis for decades have relied on human intelligence and it has stood them in good stead, with zero airline hijackings. They have very smart people who look at everyone before they board. We in the U.S. are just beginning to wake up to this level of need and we have a lot to learn.

    --
    it's = "it is"; its = possessive. E.g., it's flapping its wings.
    1. Re:This kind of stuff is dangerous by Solder+Fumes · · Score: 4, Interesting

      These aren't computers, they're basically a glorified version of litmus paper. A chemical response changes the size of molecules, which in these prototypes causes the sensor itself to become the display. You're not going to create a backdoor unless you actually make a door out of this stuff.

    2. Re:This kind of stuff is dangerous by Rosco+P.+Coltrane · · Score: 2, Interesting

      If we focussed on human intelligence we would perhaps be able to avert more catastrophes, such as the series of missteps that allowed the 9/11 hijackers to get on board their planes despite some rather suspicious behavior.

      Well, the whole point is to avoid using humans. If I may remind you, 9/11 terrorists boarded the planes under the nose of the "watchful" security guys, some of them were even scanned and let go. Besides, biosensing machines don't have vested interests in the persian gulf or whatever, to slant their judgement on what needs to be done to whom.

      What I mean is, the point of this is to eliminate the human factor from the loop. Whenever someone tries to achieve this, it's to prevent unpredictability from human behaviours.

      --
      "A door is what a dog is perpetually on the wrong side of" - Ogden Nash
    3. Re:This kind of stuff is dangerous by clean_stoner · · Score: 1

      Um, you realise that that has absolutely nothing to do with either the article or the blurb submitted, right? The article talks about things like alcohol tests for cops that pull over somebody, or for nurses to do tests much more quickly and easily. Maybe next time you should read more than just the headline before freaking out about "biometrics."

      --

      Sigs are for the weak.

    4. Re:This kind of stuff is dangerous by RyuuzakiTetsuya · · Score: 1

      Humans are the best biosensors yet made

      So why is it that cops need trained dogs to find drugs in the trunk of a car?

      --
      Non impediti ratione cogitationus.
    5. Re:This kind of stuff is dangerous by TGK · · Score: 1

      Because, while you have no expectation of privacy for the contents of your vehicle's cab, you do have that expectation for the trunk.

      Without probable cause, the police officer can't search your car's trunk. (Interesting, refusing his request to search your trunk suffices for probable cause).

      This is neatly circumvented by having a dog trained to smell drugs indicate that there are drugs in the trunk. Now the cop has his probable cause and doesn't need to risk his career to search your trunk.

      --
      Killfile(TGK)
      No trees were killed in the creation of this post. However, many electrons were inconvenienced.
    6. Re:This kind of stuff is dangerous by RyuuzakiTetsuya · · Score: 1

      That's the point. The police officer can't smell my boot and smell pot. the dog in the car can.

      therefore the dog is a better odor sensor than man is.

      --
      Non impediti ratione cogitationus.
    7. Re:This kind of stuff is dangerous by TGK · · Score: 1

      I was about to comment that it's also not desireable (from the point of view of a law enforcement agency) to have cops on their hands a knees sniffing people's shoes.

      Then I realized that you're probably British of some varity.

      Mmmmm.... need coffee......

      --
      Killfile(TGK)
      No trees were killed in the creation of this post. However, many electrons were inconvenienced.
    8. Re:This kind of stuff is dangerous by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Yes, but we are still better overall biosensors, because we can use the dog as a subroutine. ;-)

  14. MOD PARENT UP by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    +5, Truth

    Roland sucks.

  15. NOW HEAR THIS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Informative

    Roland Piquepaille and Slashdot: Is there a connection?

    I think most of you are aware of the controversy surrounding regular Slashdot article submitter Roland Piquepaille. For those of you who don't know, please allow me to bring forth all the facts. Roland Piquepaille has an online journal (I refuse to use the word "blog") located at www.primidi.com [primidi.com]. It is titled "Roland Piquepaille's Technology Trends". It consists almost entirely of content, both text and pictures, taken from reputable news websites and online technical journals. He does give credit to the other websites, but it wasn't always so. Only after many complaints were raised by the Slashdot readership did he start giving credit where credit was due. However, this is not what the controversy is about.

    Roland Piquepaille's Technology Trends serves online advertisements through a service called Blogads, located at www.blogads.com. Blogads is not your traditional online advertiser; rather than base payments on click-throughs, Blogads pays a flat fee based on the level of traffic your online journal generates. This way Blogads can guarantee that an advertisement on a particular online journal will reach a particular number of users. So advertisements on high traffic online journals are appropriately more expensive to buy, but the advertisement is guaranteed to be seen by a large amount of people. This, in turn, encourages people like Roland Piquepaille to try their best to increase traffic to their journals in order to increase the going rates for advertisements on their web pages. But advertisers do have some flexibility. Blogads serves two classes of advertisements. The premium ad space that is seen at the top of the web page by all viewers is reserved for "Special Advertisers"; it holds only one advertisement. The secondary ad space is located near the bottom half of the page, so that the user must scroll down the window to see it. This space can contain up to four advertisements and is reserved for regular advertisers, or just "Advertisers". Visit Roland Piquepaille's Technology Trends (www.primidi.com [primidi.com]) to see it for yourself.

    Before we talk about money, let's talk about the service that Roland Piquepaille provides in his journal. He goes out and looks for interesting articles about new and emerging technologies. He provides a very brief overview of the articles, then copies a few choice paragraphs and the occasional picture from each article and puts them up on his web page. Finally, he adds a minimal amount of original content between the copied-and-pasted text in an effort to make the journal entry coherent and appear to add value to the original articles. Nothing more, nothing less.

    Now let's talk about money. Visit http://www.blogads.com/order_html?adstrip_category =tech&politics= [blogads.com] to check the following facts for yourself. As of today, December XX 2004, the going rate for the premium advertisement space on Roland Piquepaille's Technology Trends is $375 for one month. One of the four standard advertisements costs $150 for one month. So, the maximum advertising space brings in $375 x 1 + $150 x 4 = $975 for one month. Obviously not all $975 will go directly to Roland Piquepaille, as Blogads gets a portion of that as a service fee, but he will receive the majority of it. According to the FAQ [blogads.com], Blogads takes 20%. So Roland Piquepaille gets 80% of $975, a maximum of $780 each month. www.primidi.com is hosted by clara.net (look it up at http://www.networksolutions.com/en_US/whois/index. jhtml [networksolutions.com] [networksolutions.com]). Browsing clara.net's hosting solutions, the most expensive hosting service is their Clarahost Advanced (http://www.uk.clara.net/clarahost/advanced.php [clara.net]) priced at £69.99 GBP. This is roughly, at the time of this writing, $130 USD. Assuming Roland Piquepaille pays for the Clarahost Advanced hosting service, he is out $130 leaving him with a maximum net profit of $650 each month. K

    1. Re:NOW HEAR THIS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      found this signature line hopefully auto-generated by slashdot, at the end of your posting:
      "poverty, n.: An unfortunate state that persists as long as anyone lacks anything he would like to have."

      hth

      *

    2. Re:NOW HEAR THIS by tod_miller · · Score: 3, Interesting

      I LOVE YOU! I also hate the word blogs. Your comment is... amazing.

      My new (and first) sig

      #update your host file now.
      #ultra-fucktard
      127.0.0.1 www.primidi.com

      I am in the process (ok, it hits his traffic, but, hey gotta do it) of emailing links to his sotries to the copyright owners, so that they can rape his ass for copy/pasting this content (even if it is promotional etc). Quoting sources is notok when you paste so much.

      If I paste a dvd into this site, with some funky cool javascript DeCSS, is it ok just to source it?

      no. ipipiapquiettee... how the fuck you say it... you are killfiled. thanks.

      --
      #hostfile 0.0.0.0 primidi.com 0.0.0.0 www.primidi.com 0.0.0.0 radio.weblogs.com
    3. Re:NOW HEAR THIS by matts-reign · · Score: 1

      Sounds like a good idea.

      I should really start doing that :)

      --
      Waffles rock.
    4. Re:NOW HEAR THIS by lexiconographolologi · · Score: 1

      How is that any different from slashdot?

    5. Re:NOW HEAR THIS by Lord_Dweomer · · Score: 4, Interesting
      What I want to know is why Slashdot editors accept Roland's site for the story, yet ignore links to the original site which must undoubtably get submitted as well. What is the incentive for them?

      --
      Buy Steampunk Clothing Online!
    6. Re:NOW HEAR THIS by A+beautiful+mind · · Score: 2, Informative

      Instead of redirecting it to 127.0.0.1 just nullroute it ( 0.0.0.0 ). Saves you from the hassle if you're running any webservice on localhost.

      --
      It takes a man to suffer ignorance and smile
      Be yourself no matter what they say
    7. Re:NOW HEAR THIS by ardu · · Score: 3, Funny

      ha!
      Are you one of those who think Slashdot's editors RTFA?

    8. Re:NOW HEAR THIS by abulafia · · Score: 1
      As of today, it is clear that ten articles were accepted in October, six in November, and four in December (so far).

      I don't like opportunists, but I dislike reposters even more.This is clearly an old article, perhaps not even the reposter's; if this had been written in Feb, 2005 (or if the karma whore had actually read it), this statement would not have been made.

      As an aside, I'm not surprised that people don't read articles, but moderating without reading what you're moderating? Why even bother? This isn't a presidential election, you know.

      --
      I forget what 8 was for.
    9. Re:NOW HEAR THIS by Hypr · · Score: 2

      I'm fairly certain I've read this before, but it is by no means any less true. I had forgotten the guy's name and stupidly clicked the link. I detest those making money in illegitimate ways. Of course, it is business. But it does brush far too close to plagiarism.

      --
      Maturity will come when it's good and ready.
    10. Re:NOW HEAR THIS by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      MOD PARENT OFFTOPIC!!!!!

    11. Re:NOW HEAR THIS by _ph1ux_ · · Score: 1

      You know what else is interesting that you should point out if you are writing to the original authors:

      © Copyright 2005 Roland Piquepaille.
      Last update: 20/02/2005; 19:13:58.


      He is claiming that his stories are copyright even though the majority of the article is not his own.

  16. Roland by Lord_Dweomer · · Score: 5, Insightful
    Make sure you don't click on any of the links in the story. It was submitted by Roland, and by doing so you would just be contributing to his ad revenue and encouraging him to keep posting on Slashdot.

    God I wish we could have an option to not display Roland stories.

    --
    Buy Steampunk Clothing Online!
    1. Re:Roland by LiquidCoooled · · Score: 1

      Do not click on the link to eWeek.com, nor click on the source link (http://www.smartholograms.com/) either.
      You sit here on a commercial site which also exists to display adverts and make Taco rich, and bitch about someone else doing it.
      You are a hypocrite.

      --
      liqbase :: faster than paper
    2. Re:Roland by Lord_Dweomer · · Score: 1
      I don't mind supporting a site that has the original story on it. I DO mind supporting a site run by a leech who simply submits links to his website which in turn has links to the original story. I just want to cut out the middleman.

      --
      Buy Steampunk Clothing Online!
    3. Re:Roland by Com2Kid · · Score: 1
      • I DO mind supporting a site run by a leech who simply submits links to his website which in turn has links to the original story.


      *BASH BASH BASH*

      What the hell do you think slashdot is?
    4. Re:Roland by Lord_Dweomer · · Score: 2
      You don't understand. This is like Slashdot linking to another Slashdot which in turn links to a story. What should happen is that Slashdot just links to the story.

      --
      Buy Steampunk Clothing Online!
    5. Re:Roland by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      One fix :-

      Run your own DNS and add *.blogads.com pointing to
      127.0.0.2 (a blank web server I run).

      Then see the ads dissapear :-)

      This si what I do - I just wish I had the time to
      configure a ad blocking proxy...

      Jacqui

      p.s. I do add manual routes for those ads servers
      that insist upon ip addresses :-)

    6. Re:Roland by NanoGator · · Score: 1

      "Make sure you don't click on any of the links in the story. It was submitted by Roland, and by doing so you would just be contributing to his ad revenue and encouraging him to keep posting on Slashdot."

      If his stories are generating comments, even if they're "Roland is an ass!" comments, Slashdot will keep him. Haven't you noticed that every reply is fed with a banner ad?

      Frankly, you'd also be doing a favor for those of us who don't give a flying fuck.

      --
      "Derp de derp."
    7. Re:Roland by TGK · · Score: 1

      Haven't you noticed that every reply is fed with a banner ad?

      --Turns off Adblock in Firefox--

      Oh.... yea... I guess it is.

      --
      Killfile(TGK)
      No trees were killed in the creation of this post. However, many electrons were inconvenienced.
    8. Re:Roland by tod_miller · · Score: 1

      True, in this world of blogs, I read the same sotry linked AD INFINITUM with exactly the same text.

      You know, if someone did an RSS agg. of 10 random RSS feeds, then 80% of the headlines would be common across all ten feeds.

      One day it was be less about can we, and more about should we.

      Bloggers can go and take a flying fuck. of trackback or whatever the poncey self indulgent whacko terminology they are cooking up.

      gah. Yes, rule 1: slashdot should ONLY link to news sites.

      rule 2: WHY NOT have a url field which is the link to the story, which you can verify as meeting this parameter,

      rule 3: never let people advertise thier own news.

      Like, I like Java, but if that Jcore-thingy gets another 1.1.111111.069.5 release announcement with a cut and paste of what he said last time, I will be so pissed off, and that is me who thinks Java is under-represented on /.

      Why? 2 words, FRESH-MEAT. they have a fuckign RSS feed for software announcements.

      Oh and pipipipipiququqiulalieileie. stop spamming /. (yes, it is spam dressed up as mutton, hahahahahahahahah get it?) if people want a runnign commentary on your daily bowel movements we can sign up for your rss. OK.

      bitch,

      sorry, this is such a trollish post, I know, but read deeper, it makes sense.

      In the event of emergency, break >> here

      --
      #hostfile 0.0.0.0 primidi.com 0.0.0.0 www.primidi.com 0.0.0.0 radio.weblogs.com
  17. Wait a second... by yotto · · Score: 3, Funny

    ...they'll also require less training for nurses or police officers. This is because these holograms can be designed to show results graphically, such as morphing into an image of a green car if someone subjected to breath analysis is sober and can drive.

    So I have to be able to say the alphabet backwards while standing on one leg and touching my nose, but the cop who pulled me over doesn't need to be capable of knowing if the number on his digital readout is greater than 0.08?

    1. Re:Wait a second... by gardyloo · · Score: 1

      So I have to be able to say the alphabet backwards while standing on one leg and touching my nose[...]

      Actually, you could just do what this guy does: http://www.big-boys.com/articles/topdui.html

    2. Re:Wait a second... by xsupergr0verx · · Score: 1

      Actually, you could just do what this guy does: http://www.big-boys.com/articles/topdui.html

      That's from the Comedy Central show Reno 911. I doubt they have permission to use it and put their URL on it.

      --

      Click here for a free picture of an iPod!
  18. breath tests by Muhammar · · Score: 1

    "Breathalyzer" alcohol tests are notoriously unreliable. Judges often do not realise this - and will side with the officer who nailed you through the "scientific" method. (One should refuse submit himself to this balooney and insist on a regular blood sample test.)

    Developing new cheap alcohol tests is step in a very wrong directions.

    --
    I doubt that we will ever figure out - and I suspect that even if we did figure out we couldn't do much about it
    1. Re:breath tests by Quantum+Fizz · · Score: 1
      "Breathalyzer" alcohol tests are notoriously unreliable.

      Any links to support this? In most US states (if not all), refusal to take a breahalyzer test automatically implies failing it, which will obviously work against you in court.

    2. Re:breath tests by lexiconographolologi · · Score: 1

      Here in louisiana you don't have to take a blood test or breathalyzer. What could you get? Obstruction of justice? Yeeeaaaaaah right. You want your license taken away? http://www.la-legal.com/drinking.htm

    3. Re:breath tests by casuist99 · · Score: 1

      In all the states I have lived in, refusing to take the breathalyzer test in the field necessitates an arrest on suspicion of DUI to be determined by a blood alcohol test (if you've requested it).

      General refusal to submit to any sobriety test would require the arresting officer to make a sworn statement that you were drunk based upon the physical indicators he observed (slurred speech, slow reflexes, alcohol on breath, etc). Failure to complete a test is NOT evidence you are drunk. It doesn't help you out, though.

      So sure, by all means, go down to the station and request the blood test. But refusing to take the breathalyzer DOES NOT by default imply failure of the test. *Evidence* is required by our judicial system, remember?

    4. Re:breath tests by Quantum+Fizz · · Score: 1
      But refusing to take the breathalyzer DOES NOT by default imply failure of the test. *Evidence* is required by our judicial system, remember?

      It does imply failure of the test in NJ, at least according to the state driver's manual from about 10 years ago. Or at least that's how I understood it back then, with our driver's ed teacher being very insistent upon it.

      I do remember the driver's education teacher saying there was only one case in NJ history where someone refused the test and was found not guilty. That was after he wrecked his car, with enough witnesses to testify, that it wasn't his fault. But right after seeing him lose his car one of the bystanders said "hey, that's a horrible loss, here have a drink" and gave him some sips from a flask. Not the smartest thing the driver could have done, but the witnesses were able to testify for him.

      (Actually, there was a stupid email joke going around a few years ago loosely based on this story).

    5. Re:breath tests by lexiconographolologi · · Score: 1

      You and that teacher could be a victim of spin control.

    6. Re:breath tests by Bill+Walker · · Score: 1
      Yeah, well my driver's ed teacher told us that people who take LSD will cook babies. He wasn't the brightest bulb... I mean if you're going to scare us at least make it plausible.

      The 'sips from a flask' thing happens all the time, and is the best way to get out of a DUI if it's a single-car accident. You just abandon the car, and stumble to the nearest place with alcohol. I guy I knew did this in college- he was close enough to home that he just walked back. When the cops knocked on his door he had a drink in his hand. He was 'shaken up' by the accident, so needed a drink. The cops have seen this tons of times before, so they'll get pissed, but you won't get worse than reckless driving.

      Not that I'm recommending drinking and driving, but the limits are ridiculously low in some states (like Virginia), so I think there is a gray area.

      --
      Please, for the love of God, no more car analogies.
    7. Re:breath tests by Agent__Smith · · Score: 0

      "So sure, by all means, go down to the station and request the blood test. But refusing to take the breathalyzer DOES NOT by default imply failure of the test. *Evidence* is required by our judicial system, remember?"

      In Arizona, failure to take the breatalyzer may not prove your guilt, but it results in a 1 year suspension of your license regardless of whether you are found guilty or not.

      --
      "It seems that we are at the age where life stops giving us things, and starts taking them away..." Indiana Jones
  19. Second in Two Days... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Well, this IS the second Roland submission in TWO days, and the FOURTH this month...

  20. Smart holograms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    You mean they can see through things to measure things? Sort of like, this? Troy has invented several other far-out things, that end up working somehow. He's a genius, IMHO.

  21. That green plastic stuff... by Saeed+al-Sahaf · · Score: 1
    ...and encouraging him to keep posting on Slashdot.

    No it's "astroturfing".

    --
    "Who are in control, they are not in control of anything - they don't even control themselves!" - Glen Beck
  22. Just Say No by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Just say no to Roland.

    1. Re:Just Say No by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      and if you say Yes - and i know you will - take a half dosage first.

  23. Nobody will like smart holograms by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Interesting

    These researchers have obviously never seen Red Dwarf. They would know the whole concept was doomed to failure.

    1. Re:Nobody will like smart holograms by NanoGator · · Score: 1

      "These researchers have obviously never seen Red Dwarf. They would know the whole concept was doomed to failure."

      (Score:1, Interesting) !?

      Umm...

      --
      "Derp de derp."
  24. Suprise! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Ooooo, Timothy posted this "story". Suprise!

  25. How it works. by NEOtaku17 · · Score: 1

    "The image is stored in a thin polymer film that is chemically sensitised to react with a specific substance in, for example, a bioassay or a sample of body fluid. During the test, the target substance reacts with the polymer leading to an alteration in the image displayed by the hologram. The test result is a change in the optical: brightness, image, wavelength or position." -SmartHolograms

    So in other words this new tech could have big implications in the development of diagnostic and medical devices.

  26. Just to clarify by lexiconographolologi · · Score: 0, Troll

    You probably won't have to take the hologram test, unless driving drunk is now terrorism? Oh Good Fucking Lordy, I'm about to ram my car into the WTC2. Good fucking God! Allah/Aladdin/Yebus please save my drunk ass! Also never under any circumstances take the breathalizer test. Unless you don't need a license. Sure you'll get interrogated for a few hours and have to sit in jail for a day, but who cares? That's nothing compared to DWI.

  27. Rather than read rolland pippipiquettepipqi... by tod_miller · · Score: 1

    Here is a direct link to where he whored his info.

    I mean, isn't copying swathes of content without permission STEALING (well no it isn't but I just rented a DVD where it said it was...)

    I think I hate this guy, but at least he adds to my argument that blogs are worse than showering in fetid pureed pigs innards.

    --
    #hostfile 0.0.0.0 primidi.com 0.0.0.0 www.primidi.com 0.0.0.0 radio.weblogs.com
  28. My personal favorate... by Conspiracy_Of_Doves · · Score: 1

    "Please state the nature of the medical... What the hell are you doing here?!"

  29. Slashdot feature request by britneys+9th+husband · · Score: 1

    Roland, like other submitters, has a Slashdot account. There should be an option to "hide stories submitted by Foes." That way those of us who don't want to see Roland's stories anymore could add him to our foes list, and his stories would go away.

    --
    Hear recorded Slashdot headlines on your phone! New service beta testing. Just call (248) 434-5508
  30. Roland by clean_stoner · · Score: 1

    I've seen several posts about the evils of Roland in this thread. Did no one read the URL's of those links? Only the last one was to his blog/journal/whatever-you-want-to-call-it, the other two were to legitimate sources (eWeek and the company developing these things). I personally don't like the setup Roland seems to have going, but I see no reason to not discuss something just because he posted it, just don't click the last link.

    --

    Sigs are for the weak.

  31. Kinda OT by lexiconographolologi · · Score: 1

    Nothing at all is way better than a crappy breathalyzer. I know of cops who've driven drunk while on duty. There definitely are bad cops, and as society further erodes over time there will be more than ever.

  32. Better Morphing Through Chemistry by handy_vandal · · Score: 1
    I want a hologram that shows me whether I have bad breath, and another that shows my blood-alcohol content - privately.

    I want a hologram with programmable morphing feature. From the original post:
    ... these holograms can be designed to show results graphically, such as morphing into an image of a green car if someone subjected to breath analysis is sober and can drive.
    A better morph would be a cute chick icon if I'm drunk enough to think the cop is a cute chick. If I'm not drunk, the cop icon is just a cop.

    -kgj
    --
    -kgj
    1. Re:Better Morphing Through Chemistry by Everleet · · Score: 1
      A better morph would be a cute chick icon if I'm drunk enough to think the cop is a cute chick. If I'm not drunk, the cop icon is just a cop.

      So...it's identical to just looking at the cop?

      --
      It's tragic. Laugh.
    2. Re:Better Morphing Through Chemistry by Doc+Ruby · · Score: 1

      I think that's just a clueless reporter saying "morph" when they mean change. These holograms aren't animated; even changing color switched by a biochem state is quite a revolution. So you're looking for a red or blue cop hologram - and hoping your drunk ass can tell the difference between the unsympathetic one with a gun, and the cute one you've been carrying around all night.

      --

      --
      make install -not war

    3. Re:Better Morphing Through Chemistry by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0
      ...just karma-whoring for a +Funny mod.
      No, that was just you being exceptionally clueless.
  33. Complex Tests by buckhead_buddy · · Score: 3, Insightful
    raydobbs said:
    In a way, it's opened up the field of diagnostic medicine - as many of these functions require complex tests now. if technology can boil down the plethora of tests into a stick-it-on-and-read type instrument, then the standard level of healthcare will rise.
    A complex test has more than the two positive and negative outcomes. Though I don't drink alcohol, I have a problem with a seizure-like condition that can confuse my coordination and reaction time like an inebriated person. In this condition, I'll pass all chemical tests for alcohol and drugs even though I shouldn't be driving. Now these tools will go ahead and render the verdict whether I can or can't drive? At least now with a result absurdly low (0%) it indicates that there's something else going on that is misleading the tests. With these tools obscuring the data the technician may just assume that I'm a "just squeaked under the borderline" case.

    I dislike "wizards" in my software development tools that tell me what kind of mentality I should use to start my development; I don't want "wizards" to bug the emt's, police, or nurses that have very tight and constrained opportunities to help people. These tools may very well cover up some sort of useful data that would have indicated some other problem or more complex outcome.

    Beyond just the annoyance and delay factor, we can also get into a Brazil or Philip K. Dick like realities where we no longer know what these results are showing us. Perhaps the CEO of the hologram company gets the DUI tests to check for a white list of genetic signatures and to always show them as passing the test no matter what the actual results. Perhaps a religiously obsessed development manager surreptitiously adds additional constraints that will cause certain pregnancy tests to fail until the fetus can't be aborted.

    These tools are not developed under security and strong testing now because they don't render the judgement. If these tools can in any way cloud or mislead the judgement of those using them then they are a bad idea.

    1. Re:Complex Tests by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      You dumb fuck. Its no different than a standard breathalizer test is now. Except that is uses a hologram.

      A breathalizer test tells the officer if your drunk or not. When it says your sober and your stumbling around like an idiot the cop isn't just going to say your fine and walk away. Its not like they become mindless now that they have holograms. Clearly the cop will see you not in your right mind at the time. Hopefully he will give you a bullet so you won't be able to post ill-concieved pompus rants like this one.

      Its not a wizard, it just makes it faster and easier to read. Cops will still have common sense.

    2. Re:Complex Tests by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

      Cops will still have common sense.

      You must be kidding, cops and common sense are an obvious contradiction!

      Judging by your insultive behaviour ... you aren't a cop by any chance?

    3. Re:Complex Tests by buckhead_buddy · · Score: 1
      The Anonymous troll said:
      Its no different than a standard breathalizer test is now. Except that is uses a hologram. A breathalizer test tells the officer if your drunk or not.
      Is there really a correlation between low breath alcohol content and the ability to drive a car? I'll grant the converse (high alcohol correlates with inability to drive) but if there's not, then the "green car" hologram is deceptive.

      The simple (unrealistic) example is that showing "Green Car" doesn't mean a sober 8-year-old has the knowledge and physical ability to reach the pedals and steer.

      More complex is that alcohol has different effects on different people based on their tolerance and age. A licensed, sixteen-year-old driver having his first drink could still be under the legal limit of alcohol and see a "Green Car" on his test strip yet not be able to drive: a dangerous false positive.

      What about a shipment of these hologram strips that gets mixed up and sent to state with a more lenient level of alcohol allowed. The test might show a "red handcuffs" picture to someone who isn't legally over the state's limit (just the test strip's limit for the wrong state): a false negative that adds unnecessary delay, testing, or other consequences.

      Add these sorts of holograms to down syndrome tests, HIV tests, cancer tests, and you quickly get into very confusing areas where false results are more dangerous, emotional, and paranoia-inducing than a test result that's simply hard to interpret.

      A post-it note on a breathalyzer is easy and inexpensive to update if the laws change. Tests with real numbers may be vague, but getting a feel for the uncertainty level of the results is itself a good thing.

  34. !!THE TRUTH ABOUT ROLAND!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Interesting

    The simple fact is that Roland doesn't exist. It's a damn front for the slashdot editors to pocket a few more bucks each month with more ad-driven pages. Think about it: fake name, obviously fake pictures on the journal site, next to no participation in the comments.

    It's clever but sad that the salshdot crew are so greedy as to go after table scraps like this.

    1. Re:!!THE TRUTH ABOUT ROLAND!! by NanoGator · · Score: 1

      "It's clever but sad that the salshdot crew are so greedy as to go after table scraps like this."

      Who gives a flying fuck? Are you seriously trying to tell me this story isn't news for nerds?

      This whole obsession with Roland is really tiring. If you really want him gone, don't post comments in his related stories. Why? If this a form of advertisement, what could be more damaging than to have it shoo people away?

      All this modded up blabbering about Roland is giving Slashdot every interest in keeping him (or it?) around. More comments == more measurable hits == better sales pitch to those who buy banner space. D-fucking-duh.

      --
      "Derp de derp."
  35. Investors alert by RM6f9 · · Score: 1

    If/when this company ever goes to a publicly-traded stock available status, I'll be buying..

    --
    Take the 90-Day Challenge! http://rwmurker.bodybyvi.com/
  36. innocent until proven guilty? by way2trivial · · Score: 1

    morphing into an image of a green car if someone subjected to breath analysis is sober and can drive

    Hmm.. if it doesn't work on an one individual-salinity, recent hair removal via electrolysis, scar tissue, whatever makes it work- fails to connect, and the car STAYS 'failed'

    I think it should start out green, and develop to identify 'drunken state' not the other way round..

    --
    every day http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Special:Random
  37. Yeah, that's what we need... by Winkhorst · · Score: 1

    ...More police officers and nurses who need a little picture of a green car to tell them what the equipment says. Does anyone here seriously think people who can't interpret a simple readout should be carrying guns and interfacing between patients and the poor excuse for doctors we already have to deal with today? I'm all in favor of hiring the handicapped, but folks whose IQ is lower than their shoe size should most assuredly be excluded from certain life critical functions.

    --
    "Is this Winkhorst a nova criminal?" "No just a technical sergeant wanted for interrogation."
  38. Better Morphing Through Chemistry by handy_vandal · · Score: 1

    I think that's just a clueless reporter saying "morph" when they mean change. These holograms aren't animated; even changing color switched by a biochem state is quite a revolution. So you're looking for a red or blue cop hologram - and hoping your drunk ass can tell the difference between the unsympathetic one with a gun, and the cute one you've been carrying around all night.

    Aww, c'mon Doc -- I wasn't being literal -- just karma-whoring for a +Funny mod.

    -kgj

    --
    -kgj
  39. 1st principlas suggest hype by cinnamon+colbert · · Score: 1

    Non invasive detection of blood glucose, by some sort of optical/spectral means, has been the subject of intense research in both the academic and commerical sectors (lotta money/nobel prize here) The problem is, that any optical signal you can obtain has a LOT of noise, and not much info on glucose levels. That is, you have a very noisy signal that varys (in every way - amplitude, magnitude, ) a LOT with time, and in this signal is some *very small, varying component tht is glucose levels (u can increase the signal to noise with certain tricks, but they dont relate to holograms, for instance using a wavelength of light that glucose interacts with strongly). I don't see how adding a hologram to the system helps.

    1. Re:1st principlas suggest hype by famebait · · Score: 1

      I don't see how adding a hologram to the system helps.

      That's becasuse you didn't read the article.

      The sensing isn't done optically, it's works by a chemical reactionwnith a polymer. Only the readout is optical: holographic effects enable a direct path from molecule-scale chemically induced displacements into clearly visible display, without electronics and stuff in between.

      --
      sudo ergo sum
    2. Re:1st principlas suggest hype by cinnamon+colbert · · Score: 1

      Precisely, you agree with me.
      the issue is not the optical detector, it is the specificity ofthe chemistry - how do you detect glucose in a sea of other molecules.
      simply saying chemical reactionw ith polymers is to recapitulate a lot of failed work.
      I suggest you get a few copies of Analytical Chemistry, published by the American Chemical Society, and read about glucose sensors

  40. too geeky for words : ) by Scrameustache · · Score: 2, Funny
    I want a hologram
    That's called a "girlfriend"

    Barcley? Reginald Barcley? Is that you?
    --

    You can't take the sky from me...

  41. Alternative private sector usage would dominate by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    It is my view that the biggest benefit of these is not so much the ability to make it easier on the police/nurses, but instead to make it more reliable for those outside.

    To use an example let us assume that a blood alcohol level sensor is made. Obviously this has some use in law enforcement, etc. But there is another purpose. Armed with a large bowl of such devices, placed strategically next to the exit door a nightclub/bar/anywhere else that serves alcohol could discourage drunk driving simply through allowing individuals to find their own BAC. At a few cents a unit this would be an economical method of encouraging this. Such a bowl would likely have $100/night go through it. With cover charges often nearing $50 per person management is not likely to notice any real effect.

    The biggest question in my mind is whether or not this would amount to the nightclub admitting guilt in DUI. Not being a lawyer all I can do is decide that I'd need to ask a lawyer about that one.

  42. Obvious Answer..... by hajihill · · Score: 1

    Entertainment...

    The same concept applies to people.

    --
    Of blankness, I know nothing.
  43. USE ROLAND P*QUEPAILLE BLOCKER firefox extension!! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Informative
    USE ROLAND P*QUEPAILLE BLOCKER firefox extension!!

    http://rolandblocker.50megs.com

  44. Oh yes they do by dbIII · · Score: 1
    "Breathalyzer" alcohol tests are notoriously unreliable. Judges often do not realise this
    Oh yes they do - that is why in my country two blood samples are taken if you fail a breath test, one of the samples is tested by a more accurate measure, and it is taken very seriously if the samples go missing.

    However, I don't have a clue how it is treated as evidence in those areas where even polygraph tests are admissable evidence. I suppose all bets are off in that case, and what a machine says will be taken as always correct by the clueless.

  45. Comment History by SkunkPussy · · Score: 1

    Brilliant - I just had a look at Piquepaille's posting history and about 80% of his comments are moderated -1. slashdot moderation in action! now if only we could moderate stories or authors. permanently.

    Perhaps Piquepaille should have his own slashdot section so I can just remove his stories from the front page.

    --
    SURELY NOT!!!!!
  46. It will be interesting to see... by famebait · · Score: 1

    -in which way porn will be the first business to make money out of this.

    --
    sudo ergo sum
  47. Re:This kind of stuff is what I want by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 0

    Yeah yeah the paranoids come out as soon as "sensor" flashes across the screen. I've been diabetic for 10 years now and this is *just* what I want - instead of piercing my finger tip and let blood to pour it on a clumsy meter about 10 times per day which isn't *anywhere* near as accurate as the organ doing it itself I just put that lense in my eye and have the interpreter in a wristwatch or similar. Constantly 24 per day. Even when I'm asleep. No conspiracy, no android backstabbing me on the porch. Welcome to reality, Mulder.