Stories
Slash Boxes
Comments

SoylentNews is people

posted by martyb on Saturday September 10 2016, @06:42AM   Printer-friendly
from the know-who-you-are-French-kissing dept.

This November, several US states will vote whether to legalize marijuana use, joining more than 20 states that already allow some form of cannabis use. This has prompted a need for effective tools for police to determine on the spot whether people are driving under the influence. Stanford researchers have devised a potential solution, applying magnetic nanotechnology, previously used as a cancer screen, to create what could be the first practical roadside test for marijuana intoxication.

While police are trying out potential tools, no device currently on the market has been shown to quickly provide a precise measurement of a driver's marijuana intoxication as effectively as a breathalyzer gauges alcohol intoxication. THC, the drug's most potent psychoactive agent, is commonly screened for in laboratory blood or urine tests – not very helpful for an officer in the field. The Stanford device might function as a practical "potalyzer" because it can quickly detect not just the presence of THC in a person's saliva, but also measure its concentration.

http://phys.org/news/2016-09-potalyzer-roadside-saliva-marijuana-intoxication.html

[Source]: Stanford University

[Abstract]: Small Molecule Detection in Saliva Facilitates Portable Tests of Marijuana Abuse


Original Submission

 
This discussion has been archived. No new comments can be posted.
Display Options Threshold/Breakthrough Mark All as Read Mark All as Unread
The Fine Print: The following comments are owned by whoever posted them. We are not responsible for them in any way.
  • (Score: 0) by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @05:13PM

    by Anonymous Coward on Saturday September 10 2016, @05:13PM (#400039)

    We shouldn't test for alcohol, either. Here's an idea: Pull someone over if they're driving dangerously, rather than caring about what substances they ingested. I mean, how else would you know if they're driving dangerously unless you've seen it? The tests are unnecessary.