All the technological advancements taking place in the 21st century are having both, a positive and negative impact on the humankind. While on the one hand, they're making our lives easier, on the other hand, they're screwing the quality of food that we take in. Adulterated foods has become such a common phenomenon that people are now trying their level best to either eat everything organic or make sure that everything that they put in their mouth has been grown in their own personal gardens.
In order to ensure the quality of the food we take in our day to day lives, an Israeli based start-up Consumer Physics has launched a pocket device called SCio which can analyse the composition of food, drink and medication we consume, anywhere at anytime.
The SCiO tool works by sending data on the chemical makeup of a particular substance to the user's smartphone, where a variety of applications need to be installed in order to present the final results.
According to Dror Sharon, co-founder of the firm based in Hod Hasharon, near Tel Aviv, the tool is "the first molecular sensor that fits in the palm of your hand."
Not only adulteration, the tool will also allow users to see the calories present in a particular food or drink or tell them if that jacket is really leather.
The tool which is already in the markets doesn't require any physical contact with the substance that needs to be tested because it makes use of a beam of light in what is known as Near Infrared Spectroscopy.
Each molecule present in the substance to be tested interacts with light to create a unique optical signature. This particular technique can reveal an object's chemical properties, such as moisture, fat or sugar content.
Using the system, one can for example determine how ripe the tomato, you just bought from the supermarket, is.
Consumer Physics is banking on the data gathered by its users to expand its information bank.
The website reads, "The bigger our community gets, the more data SCiO will have about different materials and this goes right back to our community of users."
This wonderful product was first launched on Kickstarter, a crowdfunding site. It received a wonderful response within a short time of its launch and has received 13,000 customers for the gadget at $250 dollars (220 euros) apiece so far. The first batch of gadgets will be out for delivery from December 2015.
The prototype of the gadget has been already been made but is being kept under guards as the makers strongly believe that within a few years the giants of the industry will realise the true potential of the product and come to see the gadget as an indispensable thing.
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