For this week’s Flashforward Friday: Electronic Ink Tattoos
If there’s one thing I’ve hated about tattoos, it’s the permanent-ness of them. Not because I have an issue with something being on me forever, but more that I am fickle. I change my mind all the time and tattoos are no different.
One day I really want something Firefly related on me and the next, it’s Doctor Who. I have so many fandoms that I love that I’m hard pressed to limit what would go on my skin…if I ever got ink.
My husband and I have joked many times that we’re just waiting for electronic tattoos so that we can change what’s displayed daily via computer or app. So imagine my surprise when I stumbled across an article about this very topic.
Electronic Ink has created a “Bluetooth–connected, kinetic-battery-charged display that lives in your body.”
The ink can be changed rapidly or even removed as needed. No more covering up a tattoo for a job. Just remove it!
The article also talks about how dynamic the changes are so that you can display workout information (heart rate, play list, etc.) on your arm. No need to pull out your phone.
Of course, I have to wonder what the side effects are of having e-ink injected into your papillary dermis. I know tattoos basically inject ink into the skin as well, but this ink is new and different. How will it react in someone like me, with skin allergies off the charts?
Quite a number of folks on the Internet have said this is only a concept at this point and not actually realized yet, but the big word there is YET. This may or may not be a fake video on a possible concept, but either way, it’s a neat step forward, and my brain is already thinking of a million ways this can be used for good or evil. There’s a story waiting in this!
You can read more on the topic here: http://www.emergeinteractive.com/insights/detail/introducing-the-worlds-first-electronic-ink-tattoo
(Image of awesome Firefly tattoo has been flying around social media. If you know a source I can attribute, let me know!)
