Osmo — a startup founded by a former Google researcher and backed by Google Ventures — thinks that scent is the next frontier for our computers. more
Wait… What do we need this for, other than the obvious applications in the fragrance industry, and medical uses, like detecting cancer. Perhaps the technology could also have electronic eavesdropping detection uses, like sniffing our covert surveillance devices.
Kevin's analysis...
Specially trained dogs have been used to sniff out covert electronic items, like cell phones in prisons, for quite a while now. The secret to detection is the device's electronic circuit boards. They contain these compounds: triphenylphosphine oxide (TPPO) and hydroxycyclohexyl phenyl ketone (HPK). This second compound is also found on CDs, DVDs, Blu-Rays, the old tech floppy disks.
FutureWatch: Technical Surveillance Countermeasures (TSCM) professionals have many types of technologies at their disposal for detecting illegal electronic surveillance devices. To name a few... Non-Linear Junction Detection, Infrared Thermography, and Radio-frequency Spectrum Analysis. We are now well on our way to adding EDN to our kit.
