“Fashionable and functional: UW researchers develop new smart earrings that track body temperature” By Cassie Diamond
Developing from the University of Washington, researchers found a way to create an earring “thermometer”. The contraption can accurately identify the wearer’s internal body temperature changes. It can indicate the shift through bodily triggers, like eating or exercising. They found that an earring is better able to track body temperature due to its closer proximity to the head, unlike a watch. Shirley Xue, a fifth-year Ph.D. student in the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering, is the co-lead author of the research and formulated the idea for this fashionable device when considering how common such jewelry is. She recognizes its potential benefit for humans in more ways than just as accessories. The researcher’s goal is to create a second prototype that can include more physiological trackers such as heart rate, exercise, and maybe blood pressure sensors. Some troubles faced by those involved were the size of a typical earring compared to a thermometer, the battery life of a tiny device, and Bluetooth accessibility to transmit information. Xue hopes these devices improve the lives of people through the convenience of such health detectors.
