Slashdot Mirror
Students Win Prize For Color-Changing Condoms That Detect STDs
New submitter PJ6 writes: Three students attending the Isaac Newton Academy in the UK won the Healthcare Category of the Teen Tech Awards, for their idea to use antibodies to create color-changing condoms to recognize STDs. They say the material, which is still in the concept stage, will turn green for chlamydia, yellow for herpes, purple for HPV, and blue for syphilis. The BBC reports: "The boys said they still have to test the science and feasibility of their idea. They want to work with a university on the science and say they've already been contacted by a condom company which is interested in working with them on developing the concept further."
Just to be clear, they haven't invented jack shit. It's just a "concept". These three kids made a presentation of "Wouldn't it be great if..." and won a prize. It isn't science, it's creative writing.
It's a bit of an odd prize, because all they did was suggest an idea. No working prototype or anything like that, just "wouldn't it be good if..."
In fact the idea might be a bit half-bakes because by the time the antibodies have reacted (and BTW how do you keep them alive for months or even years in the packet?) the condom will probably have been discarded. It's also rather anti-social and possibly illegal to perform medical tests on someone without their consent, which seems to be the point of this thing otherwise why not just provide a more traditional testing kit.
const int one = 65536; (Silvermoon, Texture.cs)
SJW, n: "Someone I don't like, and by the way I'm a fuckwit" - AC
I have an even better idea! How about a condom that kills all known STDs while you're doing the deed. That's a much better idea than one that just changes color. It can have enzymes in it. I predict the whole STD thing will be history within a decade.
Please send my prize to the usual address...
No sig today...