Cutline Speaks

Not Your Average Tattoo

posted by LizM on December 2, 2009

When I came across this article by Charlie Sorrel explaining LED tattoos I was amazed as well as impressed by the ways in which technology continues to move forward, creating new and innovative ways to improve our lives as well as shake things up a bit. 

The LED Tattoo, currently under development by the University of Pennsylvania, consists of tiny chips that are inserted under the skin allowing messages and images to flash across the body, essentially converting you into a walking video screen. The chips are minuscule in size (about the same as a grain of rice), and are held in place by a silk material that eventually dissolves away. Besides the obvious aesthetics and the shock of seeing someone walking down the street with an advertisement flashing across their skin, the LED tattoo comes with several possible medical benefits as well; it is mentioned that anything from visibly displaying a patient’s blood sugar level on their skin, to hooking up the chips to certain nerves in the body to control prosthetic limbs is possible. 

The product is still in the process of development so there is no talk yet on when we will witness our first walking advertisement; however, it will be interesting to see how this project pans out, and the ways in which companies as well as scientists will put these chips to use.

Tags for this post: tech