Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Disappearing Ink On Self-Blanking Paper
Self-blanking paper with complementary disappearing ink is the latest idea from those merry researchers at the Palo Alto Research Center (PARC). The basic invention consists of a special printer with unique ink that you could use to print a copy of your latest document; however, 16-24 hours later, the paper would again be re-usably blank.
The paper is coated with photosensitive chemicals that turn dark when hit with UV light. If you're in a hurry, you can just use paper with printing that has not yet faded; the printer will "blank" the paper, and then print on it.
I'd like to direct your attention to one of the most remarkable photographs it has ever been my pleasure to present on technovelgy.com.
(Self-Blanking Paper upon which Disappearing Ink had been printed)
This is not just a blank sheet of paper; it is a blanked sheet of paper. About eight hours ago, it said "Reusable Paper. Xerox Parc Inside Innovation at Xerox" in block purple letters.
The thing that really fascinates me about this printer is the question of what you are going to print out with it. I know that most of us who blog will never craft words for the ages - but words for only sixteen hours? Printing on this paper is like announcing "this information will no longer be relevant tomorrow."
I think it would be helpful to have a version of this printer that has a dial that would let you choose how long the print lasted. An hour, a day, a month - you pick.
It seems to me that, once you've been able to have adjustable self-blanking, you now have the perfect print analogy to digital rights management schemes that have been implemented with digital content. When you buy a sealed book, you may only have one day to finish reading it after you open the cover. After that, it's a pad of paper.
For this technology to be truly mindblowing, it should be available on a traditional manual typewriter. You spend a few hours typing up your latest idea, poem, or section of a novel. When you come back the next day, everything is comfortably blank. It sounds like a great punishment for old-style Soviet dissidents in a gulag.
I can't decide whether or not this is an exceptionally phildickian idea or perhaps an Orwellian idea. Readers are invited to contribute sfnal sources.
Via New way to save energy: Disappearing ink; thanks to Winchell Chung for the tip.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 4/29/2008)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 4 )
Related News Stories - (" Communication ")
Huawei Pura X Folding Phattie Phone
Why can't we get more innovative phone configurations?
Positioned Cybertrucks With Free Starlinks WiFi In LA
'Several thousand of them formed the positioning grid on the rubble pile.' Vernor Vinge, 1999.
Will Whales Be Our First Contact?
'He had piloted the Adastra to its first contact with the civilization of another solar system.' - Murray Leinster, 1935.
NYC/Dublin Portal Fails To Meet 'Guardian Of Forever' Standards
I am the Guardian of Forever.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
Golf Ball Test Robot Wears Them Out
"The robot solemnly hit a ball against the wall, picked it up and teed it, hit it again, over and again...'
Boring Company Vegas Loop Like Asimov Said
'There was a wall ahead... It was riddled with holes that were the mouths of tunnels.'
Rigid Metallic Clothing From Science Fiction To You
'...support the interior human structure against Jupiter’s pull.'
Is The Seattle Ultrasonics C-200 A Heinlein Vibroblade?
'It ain't a vibroblade. It's steel. Messy.'
Roborock Saros Z70 Is A Robot Vacuum With An Arm
'Anything larger than a BB shot it picked up and placed in a tray...'
A Beautiful Visualization Of Compact Food
'The German chemists have discovered how to supply the needed elements in compact, undiluted form...'
Bone-Building Drug Evenity Approved
'Compounds devised by the biochemists for the rapid building of bone...'
Secret Kill Switch Found In Yutong Buses
'The car faltered as the external command came to brake...'
Inmotion Electric Unicycle In Combat
'It is about the size and shape of a kitchen stool, gyro-stabilized...'
Grok Scores Best In Psychological Tests
'Try to find out how he ticks...'
PaXini Supersensitive Robot Fingers
'My fingers are not that sensitive...'
Congress Considers Automatic Emergency Braking, One Hundred Years Too Late
'The greatest problem of all was the elimination of the human element of braking together with its inevitable time lag.'
The Desert Ship Sailed In Imagination
'Across the ancient sea floor a dozen tall, blue-sailed Martian sand ships floated, like blue smoke.'
The Zapata Air Scooter Would Be Great In A Science Fiction Story
'Betty's slapdash style.'
Thermostabilized Wet Meat Product (NASA Prototype)
There are no orbiting Michelin stars. Yet.
Could Crystal Batteries Generate Power For Centuries?
'Power could be compressed thus into an inch-square cube of what looked like blue-white ice'
