Nanotechnology: Babak Parviz at TEDxUChicago 2012
## Speaker Context - Speaker role: Academic researcher/expert presenting research findings. - Audience: Assumed scientific or technical audience, given the depth of the technical material. - Framing: Establishes personal background as a new assistant professor in late 2003, and the initial research focus on miniature devices and integrating them onto unconventional places like paper or glass. ## People - None. ## Organizations - University of Washington: Where the speaker's research group works and is focused. ## Places - Oldtown in Leon: Location mentioned for a picture used as an example for AR. - Michigan: Location where the speaker went to school and where a picture used as an example was taken. ## Tools, Tech & Products - Contact lenses: The primary platform being investigated for both sensing and display; wearability is a key focus. - Wireless link: Technology enabling data transmission between the contact lens and a cell phone. - Cell phone: Device capable of connecting to a cell phone tower and communicating with the contact lens. - Display: Functionality to put an image on a retina. - Micro-Optics: Components being incorporated onto contact lenses to improve display capability. - Solar cells: Incorporated onto contact lenses to collect ambient light for power. - Radio (Radio waves): Used for powering and data transmission from the contact lens. - Transmitter: Device used to receive and process results from the contact lens. - Antennas: Component included in the contact lens for wireless communication. ## Concepts & Definitions - Miniature devices: Small electronics, small sensors. - Integrating small devices: The process of putting these devices onto unconventional places. - Wireless sensing: Using contact lenses to monitor bodily chemistry wirelessly. - Information display: Using contact lenses to display images or data. - Chemical interface: A necessary point of connection between a tool and the body for chemical monitoring. - Augmented Reality (AR): A field in computer science about putting an extra layer of digital information onto what is normally seen. - Universal Display: The concept of a single device (like a contact lens) capable of replacing all current electronic displays. ## Numbers & Data - 5:00 a.m. or 6:00 a.m.: Times associated with the speaker waking up. - 125 million people: Number of people who wear contact lenses on a daily basis. - Three microwatts: The amount of power the experimental system works with. ## Claims & Theses - Claim: The research group's focus is on two possibilities for turning contact lenses into systems: wireless sensing and information display. - Assertion: The body always reacts to implants, making it difficult to maintain a chemical interface for internal monitoring. - Assertion: The surface of the eye is a very promising interface for monitoring the body. - Assertion: Many things that show up in our bloodstreams also show up in the tear fluid, meaning they are present on the surface of the eye. - Assertion: If a contact lens could monitor the surface of the eye and do basic chemical analysis, it could provide fundamentally new types of medical information. - Assertion: The display concept could enable a single Universal Display that could replace all other current displays (car dashboards, billboards, smartphones, laptops, desktops, TVs). - Disclaimer: The speaker notes that the list of requirements for these sophisticated systems appears daunting (miniaturization, low power, wireless, safety, image creation). - Assertion: The progress of the semiconductor industry has enabled making extremely small circuitry and radios. - Assertion: Advances in nanotechnology have enabled sensors smaller than a single cell. - Assertion: The semiconductor industry progress allows for operating systems with minuscule amounts of power (e.g., 3 microwatts). - Assertion: Solar cells can be incorporated onto contact lenses to collect ambient energy. - Assertion: Incorporating more optical elements onto contact lenses is necessary for a display on the surface of the eye. - Assertion: All testing conducted on rabbits has been completely safe, and no animal has been harmed. - Prediction: The era of solo star scientists is probably over, and future advances will result from groups working together. ## Mechanisms & Processes - Process for Monitoring Chemistry: Physical parameter measurement (looking at face, pulse, temperature) $\rightarrow$ Blood test (chemistry of the body). - Process for Sensing: Monitoring continuously and non-invasively by accessing the tear fluid on the surface of the eye. - Process for Display Integration: Incorporating different types of micro-optics onto the contact lens surface. - Process for Powering: Using incoming radio waves to power the system, or using solar cells to collect ambient light to power the sensors, radios, and electronics. - Process for AR: Putting an extra layer of digital information onto what is normally seen by partially altering vision. ## Timeline & Events - Late 2003: Speaker was a new assistant professor. - Past few decades: Period of semiconductor industry progress enabling smaller circuitry. - Past 10 years: Period of progress in nanotechnology enabling tiny sensors. ## Examples & Cases - Diabetic Monitoring: Known condition requiring continuous glucose level monitoring, suggesting a need for improved tools. - Initial Personal Example: Speaker staring at a piece of plastic (contact lens) at the tip of the finger, leading to the idea of putting tiny devices on a contact lens. - Physical Exam Example: Physician checking face color, taking pulse, taking temperature. - Lab Bench Demonstration: The glucose sensor contact lens demonstration, showing it can be powered up, measure glucose, and radio out results. - Mockup Example: Contact lenses shown with electrical connections for circuits, demonstrating potential capability. - Rabbit Test: Testing conducted on rabbits to demonstrate display capability, where everything tested was completely safe. ## Trade-offs & Alternatives - Tool Limitation: Tools can either be outside the body (lacking chemical interface) or inside (body reacts to implants). - Display Utility Comparison: Current displays (car dashboards, billboards, smartphones, etc.) all fundamentally put an image on the retina; the alternative is one Universal Display worn as a contact lens. ## Counterarguments & Caveats - Caveat on Monitoring: For most parameters, the exact correlations (bloodstream vs. tear fluid) are unknown. - Caveat on Technology: The development required to enable sophisticated systems (miniaturization, low power, etc.) is currently daunting. - Disclaimer: The speaker notes that the research group has not been able to completely solve the problems, though progress has been made. - Caveat on Application: The system demonstration on the lab bench is not confirmed to work on an animal. - Caveat on Vision Improvement: A display on the eye requires incorporating more Optical elements; it is not just a simple display anymore. ## Methodology - Analysis: Observing that tear fluid contains many substances found in the bloodstream. - Development: Utilizing semiconductor industry progress to build tiny radios and circuits. - Fabrication: Developing techniques using self-assembly to place tiny components onto flexible plastic and substrates. - Testing: Testing on rabbits, where all procedures were reported as completely safe. - Simulation: Conducting computer simulations of how images might look from a display contact lens. ## References Cited - None explicitly cited (other than implied academic literature in general field of research). ## Conclusions & Recommendations - Primary Hope: Building these tools and using this information to expand medical knowledge, potentially resulting in new therapies. - Action/Goal for Monitoring: Creating a tool that can continuously and non-invasively monitor what happens inside the body. - Action/Goal for Displays: Developing a Universal Display that can be worn as a contact lens. - Final Message: The era of solo star scientists is probably over; future advances will be the result of groups working together. ## Implications & Consequences - If successful: Could lead to fundamentally new types of medical information and new therapies. - If implemented: Could significantly shrink the size of electronics and mobile devices by unifying all displays into one retinal device. - If ignored: Continuing current limitations in continuous, non-invasive bodily monitoring will persist. ## Open Questions - The exact correlations between blood parameters and tear fluid parameters for most measured parameters are unknown. - The long-term viability and safety of highly complex, active electronic devices on the eye surface in a natural environment remain to be proven. ## Verbatim Moments - "I would Hazard a guess that the era of solo star scientists is probably over." - "it's not entirely actually altering what you see but we partially alter what you see to give you extra information about your environment or just tweak it." - "if you take a step back and see what those displays do basically what they do is that they put an image on your retina." - "we can power this completely wirelessly from incoming radio waves and control that light source and turn it on and off."