The thought of being able to physically interact with the things we see on television has (disappointingly) stayed a matter of science fiction for the most part of the 21st century.
Slashed are the hopes of being able to taste what you see on TV... Or are they?
Tasty Television.
IMAGE: Reuters
Homei Miyashita, a professor at Meiji University in Japan, has developed a prototype of a TV screen that lets viewers lick what they see on display. Essentially, it's a 'lickable' TV screen that uses 10 flavor canisters to spray certain taste combinations to reflect whatever's on screen. It's fittingly called 'Taste the TV' (TTTV) and the way it works is pretty straightforward.
As one Meiji University student demonstrated for reporters, all you need to do is tell the screen that you want to taste a certain something, in this case, sweet chocolate. The flavor canisters work together to figure out a good combination of tastes that they then spritz out with jets onto a plastic sheet.
"The goal is to make it possible for people to have the experience of something like eating at a restaurant on the other side of the world, even while staying at home," Miyashita said.
IMAGE: Reuters
IMAGE: Reuters
The professor worked with 30 students at the university to develop a variety of flavor-related contraptions, including a fork that makes food taste richer. Miyashita says the commercial version of TTTV will cost somewhere in the ballpark of US$875 to manufacture, which is not bad considering its futuristic abilities.
But if you think it only serves to satisfy curious gastronomy fans stuck in their living rooms, think again.
IMAGE: Reuters
The professor says TTTV has other potential applications. For instance, it could act as a distance learning tool for sommeliers and cooks, and it could also be used as a 'social' tool for tasting games and quizzes. Pretty convenient during a time when everyone's stuck at home, at least for now.
But perhaps one of the most interesting potential uses for the TTTV lies in what Miyashita refers to as the taste version of a music streaming platform, meaning: A place where users can 'download' tastes from all over the world.
For now, we'll have to wait until a device such as this becomes mainstream enough for it to be a worthy purchase.
Would you want to taste what's on TV?
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Cover image sourced from Reuters and @PayPayNews / Twitter.
