The BBC reports that:
A contraceptive computer chip that can be controlled by remote control has been developed in Massachusetts.
The chip is implanted under a woman's skin, releasing a small dose of levonorgestrel, a hormone.
This will happen every day for 16 years, but can be stopped at any time by using a wireless remote control.
The project has been backed by Bill Gates, and will be submitted for pre-clinical testing in the US next year - and possibly go on sale by 2018.
The 20mm×20mm×7mm device releases daily 30µg doses, so it isn't a general solution for administering medication. However, people are questioning what happens if the device crashes. Others question the motives of a billionaire who advocates population reduction.
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Remote Control Contraceptive Chip Available by 2018?
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(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 08 2014, @01:51PM
Linking to an infowars article is the best way to discredit a position.
Cue the dullards who don't realize that even a broken clock is right twice a day.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 08 2014, @01:55PM
Clicking on that link gives me just a 404. Maybe the page got a victim of web page population reduction? :-)
(Score: 1) by My Silly Name on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:39PM
Seems to me that the need to reduce population is self-evident, regardless of the personal wealth of anybody who suggests it. Sure, there are other ways to prevent pregnancies than to diddle with women's hormones, but (1) persuading some men to be responsible is like pissing into the wind, and (2) it is inevitably women who (literally) get left with the baby.
(Score: 3, Informative) by hoochiecoochieman on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:57PM
Why all of a sudden this becomes a rant about how men are all so bad and it's all their fault? I have nothing against equal rights for and and women, but this Fascist-Feminist anti-men bullshit makes me sick.
Please invent a masculine pill and I'll take it. Until then, stop preaching and trying to make me feel bad for being a man.
(Score: 1) by My Silly Name on Tuesday July 08 2014, @03:09PM
(Score: 3, Interesting) by edIII on Tuesday July 08 2014, @05:10PM
It's also foolish to deny the existence of other very male centric cultures that would benefit from population control. It's very much a macho ego deal to impregnate a woman, and that culture plays a role in downplaying contraception.
These are just facts, and there exists a large population of men where it truly is pissing into the wind to even educate them about AIDS. Men in Africa still believe myths about HIV/AIDS and that some trinkets on their necks can stop bad things happening to their dingalings when they rape a woman (not hyperbole, that's from an article).
Women are ultimately the ones saddled with all the consequences. Giving them something that lasts 16 years in silence with a remote control they can hide someplace to turn it off and on, or go to a doctor to get it turned off, is vastly preferable to the inevitable discussions about birth control.
Even in the US, I know of men (really boys) that still have an idea that they can "pull out".
You're dead on about how this is not an elite billionaire issue. We really could deal with about 6.5 billion less people on this planet. It's worthy to note that not all populations are increasing equally either...
Give women the choice and effective technology to turn their reproductive cycles on and off. That's just a no-brainer.
Technically, lunchtime is at any moment. It's just a wave function.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 08 2014, @03:31PM
> I have nothing against equal rights for and and women, but this Fascist-Feminist anti-men bullshit makes me sick.
Wow. Your level of over-reaction suggests that in fact you do have something against equal rights. Kind of like when people say, "I'm not racist, but ..."
(Score: 2) by frojack on Tuesday July 08 2014, @06:06PM
In general:
Men behave the way women want them to behave. (and vise versa).
Mr. Tattooed Harley rider will turn ever female head in the bar, Mr. clean cut will turn one in ten, maybe.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 08 2014, @08:04PM
Who's cookie jar is it? Only the owner of the cookie jar can best control what goes in it and what comes out of it.
(Score: 2) by cafebabe on Tuesday July 08 2014, @08:14PM
That's really odd. Try http://www.infowars.com/bill-gates-calls-for-population-reduction/ [infowars.com] which is a similar page but with the embedded video towards the end.
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(Score: 3, Informative) by LoRdTAW on Tuesday July 08 2014, @03:54PM
Seriously, infowars is a crack pot conspiracy website ran by https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_Jones_(radio_host) [wikipedia.org]. Best part is the link does not even work, I get a 404.
AGAIN: Hey Soylent editors, check the damn links and stop posting tabloid trash. If someone makes an outrageous claim about something, do a bit of sleuthing yourselves and see if you can find some credible sources.
Sigh...And yet again I have to do the editors footwork for them:
From this http://www.forbes.com/sites/matthewherper/2011/11/02/the-second-coming-of-bill-gates/4/ [forbes.com] Forbes article:
Gates began consuming data that startled him. In society after society, he saw, when the mortality rate falls—specifically, below 10 deaths per 1,000 people-the birth rate follows, and population growth stabilizes. "It goes against common sense," Gates says. Most parents don't choose to have eight children because they want to have big families, it turns out, but because they know many of their children will die.
So what Gates is saying is if you look at any healthy, first world nation, you will see stable birth rates. The reason being is a family does not need to have 8 kids because half of them might die. The idea is to help poor countries achieve those stable birth rates by eliminating the mortality uncertainty that is brought about by easily preventable yet deadly disease. If you make the people healthy, the birth rate drops naturally. The asinine crackpots (more like crackheads) on sites like infowars twist his words into Nazi like Eugenics and Illuminati world control conspiracy crap.
And this ties into the topic as birth control is another concept that is not taught in many 3rd world countries. People want to have sex, it's natural for ALL humans no matter where they are from. But many are ignorant of the concept and few have access to birth control itself. The chip is something that can help as it's a one time implant that lasts 16 years. So vaccines plus birth control equals a happy and healthy population with stable growth rates.
(Score: 1, Interesting) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 08 2014, @01:53PM
How secure is the remote control protocol? Could another person, without access to the associated remote control, switch the chip off using a different, possibly hacked remote control?
(Score: 4, Insightful) by VLM on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:00PM
Presumably nothing can survive a short burst of intense microwave radiation; I could see a hospital in need of funds sticking a war surplus radar magnetron on the hood of an ambulance and just driving around town until the financials improve about nine months later.
Someone will set up a black market to extract chips, replace the BC hormones with fun stuff like LSD, and reimplant. Trip on command using your iphone... the implant is free, and each dose is a simple in-app $5 purchase. Or 'roids, maybe. The exact dosage at the exact time to fit your biometrically monitored workout, for a fee...
Also the app to turn the thing on or off is probably cheesily going to have facebook integration so it can show up on your timeline. "Start knitting little blue or pink booties, girls, she's shut down her implant!" or "Shields Up! Come and get her, boys!"
(Score: 1) by My Silly Name on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:29PM
That aside, my concern would be how anybody could plan on keeping a hormonal substance usable for 16 years at body temperature. It doesn't seem feasible to me when a contraceptive in a comparatively stable tablet form has a typical "use-by" of about 2 years,
(Score: 3, Insightful) by VLM on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:40PM
"Informative"
I estimate within 5 minutes of product release we'll see women forwarding chain mail email to "everyone you know" to warn about the dangers of microwave motion sensing grocery store automatic doors, and the dangers of using a microwave oven, blah blah blah.
"Scary"
And for scary, if this thing takes off, just have a terror group report issue a press release that they had a magnetron beaming 500 watts and passers by at the ball game, or fair, or fest, or whatever. Doesn't even have to be true. Oh and make the press release like a week later. Not two months, that won't cause a panic, or an hour later, because the women will just duct tape their legs together till they get tested. But a week or so of fun, followed by the terror group press release would be absolutely epic.
Get your James Bond villain hide away set up, then contact the mfgr a week after the superbowel or whatever and demand "one billllllion dollahs in bitcoin by tomorrow, or else my minion catwoman will email my press release" or whatever while petting your purebred white cat and cackling manically. Unfortunately, I've seen worse hollywood movie plots than this.
(Score: 4, Insightful) by Sir Garlon on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:06PM
If it's like most other medical devices, there is NO security on the remote control protocol. The manufacturers have their heads in the sand, and assume "no one would do that" because assuming otherwise would cut into the profit margin. The FDA has published "voluntary guidance" [ihealthbeat.org] on security for medical devices -- meaning, the FDA has a idea what the right thing to do is, but doesn't actually hold anyone accountable for doing it.
So the appropriate response, they felt, was to publish a draft voluntary recommendation. That'll fix it!
[Sir Garlon] is the marvellest knight that is now living, for he destroyeth many good knights, for he goeth invisible.
(Score: 4, Funny) by VLM on Tuesday July 08 2014, @01:54PM
"Hi, welcome to the sequel to '19 kids and counting', sponsored by Apple Computers(tm). The new family for our series only two kids until Mom switched her birth control option to the New Windows 10.0 (tm) implantable birth control pill by Microsoft(tm), resulting in 19 kids, four sons three daughters and twelve credit card skimmers and spam sending boxes controlled by Russian criminal gangs due to an internet exploder security hole."
There's probably a joke along the likes of public admission of fondness for Windows 8 is pretty good birth control by itself.
(Score: 2) by egcagrac0 on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:12PM
This technique is markedly more effective as male birth control than female birth control.
(Score: 2) by VLM on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:19PM
I donno man, just talking man to man, like, we're all brogrammers here, and I'd warn you if you were about to stick your USB connector into crazy, no guy should ever do that, and being a windows box, that things full of viruses and I saw on the internet that she had four other guys root it at the same time last night. Kinda a reputation problem, yeah. Let me introduce you to this nice chick I know from work, she's got a really huge pair of curvy iDevices she loves to show off, you'll like her.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by Atatsu on Tuesday July 08 2014, @01:55PM
It's 2014 and we're still heavily targeting women. How about some options for men? Plug mah sack tubes rather than fucking with a woman's hormones.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:00PM
there's already an age old birth control measure for men... it's called marriage (involuntary abstinence)
(Score: 4, Funny) by VLM on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:04PM
Microsoft already sells numerous mens birth control product, their whole consumer division. The Zune, their joke of a phone, the list goes on and on.
"Hey ladies, my oh my you girls have a nice pair of iphones... but I got somethin better, wanna see my Zune squirt?"
Unlike some mens birth control options, Microsoft(tm) sterilization is easily reversible once the phone contract runs out in two years. Just wait two years then buy a real phone.
(Score: 4, Funny) by melikamp on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:17PM
ftfy
(Score: 3, Informative) by VLM on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:24PM
Yeah yeah, I know, stereotypical console gamer. But, so far, no xbox products offer a "squirt" like the Zune used to, can't turn down a humor opportunity like that.
(Score: 1) by My Silly Name on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:45PM
Heh. Since the Zune was never marketed outside the US, and the phone might as well follow suit, I wonder if that was all part of a cunning plan to control the population of Americans.
*ducks*
(Score: 4, Funny) by VLM on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:57PM
"control the population of Americans."
We have high fructose corn syrup for population reduction already implemented.
(Score: 2) by Tork on Tuesday July 08 2014, @05:14PM
🏳️🌈 Proud Ally 🏳️🌈
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 08 2014, @08:10PM
uh, the options for men came first, moron. ever hear of condoms? how about vasectomy? maybe 'pulling out'? birth-control for women is the Latest Thing(TM).
I'll say it again: Who does the cookie jar belong to? The owner of the cookie jar can best control what goes in it or comes out of it.
(Score: 2) by EvilJim on Wednesday July 09 2014, @12:43AM
oh, did no one mention this to you? there's an easy male contraceptive... just stuff your knob-hole with as much playdough as you can get in there and you're golden, or whatever colour you choose.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by GreatAuntAnesthesia on Tuesday July 08 2014, @01:58PM
> releasing a small dose of levonorgestrel, a hormone. This will happen every day for 16 years,
So how many doses can you fit on one chip? No mention in TFA.
(Score: 4, Informative) by egcagrac0 on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:18PM
TFS says 30 micrograms per daily dose.
Arithmetic says that 16 years of doses would mass around .2 grams, or one-fifth the mass of a dollar bill.
This should be trivial to pack into a device about the size of a nickel. (A nickel, by comparison, masses at 5 grams.)
(Score: 4, Interesting) by VLM on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:31PM
Is there a MD in the house? What happens, hypothetically, if all 0.2 grams get released at once? Hopefully nothing, or does she get sick, or grow massive chest hair, or turn into a female version of the Incredible Hulk, or what?
Everyone else is focusing on the obvious failure mode of what if it shuts down, but being a MS product if it can fail, it will.
(Score: 2) by cafebabe on Tuesday July 08 2014, @08:40PM
I'm not a doctor but I play one on the Internet. According to http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Levonorgestrel [wikipedia.org], it has a half-life of 36 hours ± 13 hours. If the device has 6000 doses, catastrophic failure results in levonorgestrel levels falling to a single dose within 27 days. What happens during those 27 days? I don't know but I wouldn't like to be the guinea pig.
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(Score: 2) by VLM on Tuesday July 08 2014, @09:09PM
Holy cow thats a long time. That implies traditional poison control type stuff like "just drink a lot of water and get fresh air" aren't going to cut it.
27 days is enough for substantial physical change assuming she doesn't just die. So that would be interesting. My incredible hulk joke might not be so far off the mark. An interesting use of the fat piles of cash SN has laying around would be hiring a MD for a consult on MD related news stories. I'm only halfway kidding.
(Score: 2) by cafebabe on Tuesday July 08 2014, @10:34PM
From my research into steriodogenesis [wikipedia.org] and mega doses of sterol hormones [wikipedia.org], it would optimistic to think that this formulation of contraceptive [wikipedia.org] would just chemically disrupt a woman's periods [wikipedia.org] for a few months but it could have permanent effects after all trace of the chemical is gone.
To give an idea of the potency of levonorgestrel, 150µg given orally is enough to prevent pregnancy [wikipedia.org] and, apparently, 30µg given subcutaneously and with the utmost regularity has the same effect. As a comparison, 20-30µg of LSD is enough to have a noticeable effect [wikipedia.org] and 1,000 doses would make you an unemployable acid casualty.
Actually, given that levonorgestrel is usually given for 21 days out of 28 days [wikipedia.org], a device which is intended to work for 16 years may only require 4,380 daily doses rather than 6,000 doses. Accordingly, my estimated duration of concern should be revised downwards to 26 days.
Anyhow, in addition to the failure mode in which all doses could be released at once, there is a failure mode in which the device silently ceases to work. A common failure mode for USB solid state storage is failure of the crystal oscillator [infar.be]. A short consideration of the reliability of moving parts will determine that the crystal is the part with the most movement. To expect a crystal oscillator to operate continuously for 16 years is particularly optimistic.
There are also cases where this contraceptive could be enforced contractually or by military draft [soylentnews.org] and cryptographic keys are withheld from the patient. Or it may be used "stochastically" to limit population [soylentnews.org]. Or it may be used as a modern-day chastity belt [soylentnews.org]. I presume this function would be popular in particularly patriarchal countries. However, even in more moderate societies, giving away the bride may include disclosure of the cryptographic keys to her fertility.
Overall, I'm inclined to agree that the existing solution of a three year, slow release capsule is more than adequate [soylentnews.org].
1702845791×2
(Score: 2) by VLM on Wednesday July 09 2014, @11:54AM
"To expect a crystal oscillator to operate continuously for 16 years is particularly optimistic."
In analog RF world we think they're just barely getting broken in by then. Especially for parameter drift for timing purposes and crystal lattice filter design. In the days before GPS, primary timing references were usually aged for a couple years, sometimes quite a few years of operation and temp cycles, before they'd be turned into a CO or tower reference.
I'm not saying the linked article about crystal failure is totally bogus, because people tend to do things like run their flash drive thru the clothes washer tumble drier cycle multiple times before they finally break them, and a lot of analog EE RF gear never takes any beating at all. In the olden days, decades ago, handheld scanner radios used to use crystals and crystal failure was moderately unusual, from memory.
I think it would matter a lot where you imbed it in the body WRT mechanical vibrational shock damage. In the foot of a runner, or the butt of a motorcycle rider might be a bit unwise. Upper arm is probably pretty safe as long as she's not a female pro boxer or female pro wrestler.
There is a bathtub curve, at least the left side of it, where if the package is improperly sealed, environmental contaminants Will eventually get in there and destroy the xtal but in perhaps a year after mfgr (not use) either you know its well sealed or its failed.
The TLDR is if you beat the hell out of a circuit there is a very fine line where you can break a crystal before you break other circuit components, but assuming you avoid that kind of abuse, they will last forever and performance actually improves (at an analog level) over time. They don't wear out like vacuum tubes or something.
(Score: 2) by cafebabe on Thursday July 10 2014, @01:43AM
It would appear that the expected lifespan of a crystal in a rack is very different to a crystal in a consumable. One failure mode in USB storage comes from SMT crystals being poorly secured relative to other components. For example, not being held with epoxy resin.
A partial solution to crystal failure would involve multiple crystals but that would involve three or more crystals. Two crystals would be insufficient because it increases the chance of one crystal drifting but without either of them being a definitive reference.
We can make some assumptions about mechanical stresses from the size of the device. I presume the 20mm×20mm×7mm device would be implanted in the stomach and not removed. However, two or three of them would be required over a woman's lifetime and the first implant may be present for 60 years or more. I am uncertain how thousands of chemical doses can diffuse out of a device which then remains dormant for decades. Indeed, I remain unconvinced that it is superior to a three year, slow release implant in the arm.
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(Score: 2) by tempest on Tuesday July 08 2014, @02:48PM
So the main driver of this is the "convenience factor". Implants currently exist, but require a "procedure" (which I'm assuming isn't that complicated). How often does a woman really need to turn her birth control on and off? Like once every 5 years? I don't plan on having kids, so I'm just wondering if anyone else had an idea of a situation where something like this offered a substantial benefit.
(Score: 3, Interesting) by VLM on Tuesday July 08 2014, @03:18PM
"I'm just wondering if anyone else had an idea of a situation where something like this offered a substantial benefit."
Benefit might vary in the eye of the beholder, but on a small scale I'm thinking the story involves over controlling parents. Or maybe over controlling insecure husbands (honey I'm going away on business for a week, where's your remote control, just so I can be sure).
On a large scale, another vary in the eye of beholder example, I'm envisioning something like your welfare / unemployment / whatever benefit is partially based on your switch position. Maybe your college scholarship / financial aid, after all why invest money in a girl who might drop out to become a mom half way thru school ... or even more Orwellian, why send a girl to XYZ school if she's just going to use her education to be a stay at home mom, so contractual obligation to either keep the switch on for at least a decade or pay back the entire scholarship in cash. I can see the memos at work already, "Thanks to Obamacare (always blame that for everything) our medical insurance plan budget for the year has been blown by George's son's car accident, so as of next Monday, your continued employment as a female employee of our firm will involve mandatory activation of your mandatory for employment birth control implant unless you have a medical excuse letter from your doctor"
Female deployment to combat zone, given proven inability to provide a legally perfect environment WRT toxic waste and prenatal nutrition, requires activation of the mandatory BC implant. Heck just put a remote control wired to "on" in every tank, truck, plane in a combat zone...
(Score: 2) by VLM on Tuesday July 08 2014, @03:23PM
Oh wait, I've got it, there are existing technologies where a radio signal deactivates your water heater during peak energy use times.
So a HMO installs an activation transmitter in the office ceiling at work and randomly activates it depending on budgetary level for the year. So "on" 50% of the time means a 50%-ish reduction in pregnancy and birth costs to the HMO. Of course the scandal will be its hard wired on 100% of the time to maximize profits and they're lying about the random-ish activation schedule. Also lots of hassle WRT work at home people using up the preggo medical insurance budget and angst amongst workers where girls can't get pregnant unless their boss lets them work at home, and how they need to bribe their boss (G to XXX rated options) to let them get their husbands pregnant.
(Score: 1) by MrNemesis on Tuesday July 08 2014, @05:15PM
I'm inclined to agree, I don't see what the point of the remote control function is.
The SO has one of the NHS contraceptive implants [www.nhs.uk] which has a three year active life. Implantation is basically in the form of a kinda gun thingy through a small incision (with a local, natch), although given the size of the implant it can be a bit more sensitive/prone to bruising than your average hypodermic jab, but it's less annoying than when you're plugged up for an IV. You can have it removed at any of the walk-in centres at any time.
"To paraphrase Nietzsche, I have looked into the abyss and been sick in it."
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Tuesday July 08 2014, @08:15PM
i would think that this direct, small regular dosage delivery system would wreak less havoc on a woman's hormone system...
(Score: 4, Funny) by meisterister on Tuesday July 08 2014, @03:52PM
--Birth Control Chip Web Setup--
We're sorry, but you're using an unsupported browser. Please upgrade to Internet Explorer 6 to continue.
(May or may not have been) Posted from my K6-2, Athlon XP, or Pentium I/II/III.
(Score: 1) by Refugee from beyond on Tuesday July 08 2014, @03:54PM
What purpose do chip and remote controlling serve here?
Instantly better soylentnews: replace background on article and comment titles with #973131.
(Score: 2) by frojack on Tuesday July 08 2014, @06:23PM
Two sentence TL;DR:
The chip device administers a dose of contraceptive every day for 16 years.
The remote control can deactivate the chip without a trip to the clinic, by using (probably) NFC type of technology in her own hand held remote control.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 1) by Refugee from beyond on Tuesday July 08 2014, @06:50PM
I see, thanks. Though I'd rather do such things manually, I guess.
Instantly better soylentnews: replace background on article and comment titles with #973131.
(Score: 2) by hemocyanin on Tuesday July 08 2014, @04:38PM
People become billionaires by getting money from many people simultaneously. The more people, the more money to be had. Sure, many of those people may live in abject poverty and your country may have a terrible economy generally, but if there are enough people to squeeze for a penny or peso, you can get ridiculously rich fast. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlos_Slim [wikipedia.org]
Restraining population growth would be good for the environment and good for the average person -- but it will give the billionaires fewer exploitable resources.
(Score: 2) by frojack on Tuesday July 08 2014, @06:52PM
Funny how Gates looks a lot less evil now that he's giving away money.
Most of the evil seems to have stayed with Microsoft.
Yet the conspiracy theorists will never let go.
No, you are mistaken. I've always had this sig.
(Score: 3, Insightful) by Rune of Doom on Tuesday July 08 2014, @05:10PM
If a woman with this chip goes to work for Hobby Lobby, does it get to stone her to death in accordance with its religious beliefs? Would not being allowed to stone their own employees be an "undue burden"?
(Score: 2, Funny) by Horse With Stripes on Tuesday July 08 2014, @07:49PM
Having to pay for all those stones would be an undue burden.
(Score: 2, Interesting) by horsebeater on Tuesday July 08 2014, @06:56PM
This technology is going to be great for any low-dosage maintenance medication. I have a health condition that requires me waking up at 6am every day to take a pill. If I could get one of these implanted every 5 years and have the chip dose me automatically, I would shit my pants with joy every time I got to sleep in on the weekends.
(Score: 2) by evilviper on Wednesday July 09 2014, @04:15AM
Oh good! This will finally solve the world-wide problem of remote-control insemination...
Hydrogen cyanide is a delicious and necessary part of the human diet.
(Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Wednesday July 09 2014, @07:27AM
"The chip is implanted"
"The project has been backed by Bill Gates"
what a surprise! one of these chip technologies will begin and end with '666'.
Do not want.