(picture taken from Pink Tentacle)
You know, the funny thing is that I’ve never heard about this at all. I had no clue something like this exists, but apparently it has been around for a while – or, at least people are playing around with this idea for a while but it never really worked. Until now, that is. Pink Tentacle posted an entry on pencils whose lead is infused with tiny bubbles that hold a scent that is supposed to enhance your mental ability.
Unlike previous types of fragrant lead, which use weak aromatic surface coatings that tend to lose their smell quickly, Ain supplio relies on fragrant ingredients trapped in nanocapsules, or tiny air bubbles, which are infused into the lead itself. The microscopic size of the nanocapsules gives them extra strength to hold their fragrance for long periods of time — about 3 years if kept in the unopened package, 2 years if kept in their plastic case, and more than 3 months out in the open air.
The pencils come in three flavors – Positive, Refresh, and Healing – and cost under $2 a pop. Plus, it won the Stationary of the Year Award in 2007, which is apparently a big deal. Now, I’m suspicious of nanotechnology, but I guess that is most likely due to an early indoctrination in 80s Sci-Fi horror stories about grey goo.
Filed under: Science, Technology , medicine, writing
