Digital contacts will keep an eye on your vital signs

http://i2.cdn.turner.com/cnn/2009/TE...acts.wired.jpg

Digital contacts will keep an eye on your vital signs
September 11, 2009

" Forget about 20/20. "Perfect" vision could be redefined by gadgets that give you the eyes of a cyborg.

The tech industry calls the digital enrichment of the physical world "augmented reality." Such technology is already appearing in smartphones and toys, and enthusiasts dream of a pair of glasses we could don to enhance our everyday perception. But why stop there?

Scientists, eye surgeons, professors and students at the University of Washington have been developing a contact lens containing one built-in LED, powered wirelessly with radio frequency waves.

Eventually, more advanced versions of the lens could be used to provide a wealth of information, such as virtual captions scrolling beneath every person or object you see. Significantly, it could also be used to monitor your own vital signs, such as body temperature and blood glucose level.

Why a contact lens? The surface of the eye contains enough data about the body to perform personal health monitoring, according to Babak Parvis, a University of Washington professor of bionanotechnology, who is working on the project. "

:source: Source: http://www.cnn.com/2009/TECH/ptech/0...cts/index.html:view: Homepage: CNN

I think the radio waves would mess with your eyes.

That's what I was thinking too. Everyone was voicing concerns over having waves for cordless electricity, what would happen if they're right next to your eyes =/

Just a guess on the radio waves concern... I imagine that a device would be extremely low powered. As the article mentions, most of the processing/communicating is done through a nearby cell phone-type gadget.

My concerns would be:

1) Eye strain. How many flashing messages and emails would we want directly in our eyes. Would these things shut off when we were driving? I don't want the 18 year old driver next to me looking at porn while he is merging onto the freeway. Actually, I don't want to see ANYONE when they are looking at porn. Ewwwww!

2)I'm sure advertisers and spammers would love to have messages sent directly to people's eyes. Can we ever escape?

3)People walking around (grocery stores, malls, everywhere in the public)COMPLETELY oblivious to EVERYTHING that is going on around them. Look how bad people are on their (damn) cell phones. Talking like they are the only ones in the grocery store. Now imagine the same idiots doing their grocery shopping and talking to people on Myspace.

Anyway, I would be interested in the possibilities. Just though I would throw out some things that would irritate the heck out of me if I had to deal with OTHER people using/spamming/driving with the devices .