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Surprising Science — November 7, 2013

Coming Soon: A Thermometer Attached To A Smartphone

In more creative mobile tech news: Kinsa consists of the thermometer — which attaches to the headphone jack — and an app that tells a user the local “health weather” as well as their temperature.

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What’s the Latest Development?

Inspired in part by what he felt was a lack of access to real-time illness data online, Inder Singh has developed Kinsa, a smartphone app that comes with its own thermometer. The latter plugs into the headphone jack and works as expected, displaying the temperature on the screen against a soothing animation of bubbles. According to the Kinsa Web site, the app can track health data for more than one person, which makes it especially useful for families with children, and it also provides information about the “health weather’ in the area based on data from other users.

What’s the Big Idea?

Kinsa joins a growing number of devices and applications designed to give users more control over their personal health while at the same time providing medical professionals and health officials with a wealth of potentially valuable data. Singh, a former executive vice president for the Clinton Health Access Initiative, says that a device such as Kinsa “ought to be giving you information so you can respond. And it should be reassuring.”

Photo Credit: Kinsa

Read it at FastCompany/Co.Design

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