Trinity Students Created A Device That Texts You When Your Milk Is Going Off

Have you ever come home from work aching for a cuppa only to find out your milk has gone off? It happens to the best of us bud.

Good news for fellow scatterbrains then, that Irish scientists have created printed electronic labels that could display a digital countdown to warn you of food spoiling, and even send messages to your phone letting you know when it's time to buy a new carton.

These labels are slick, and a huge breakthrough in printable electronics. Wine bottles could tell you when they reach the desired temperature, and window panes could display the weather temp outside.

The labels are made of two-dimensional nanomaterials, and the scientists say there's even potential for low-cost production, meaning this could be on our shelves sooner than you'd expect.

Prof Jonathan Coleman, from AMBER and Trinity’s School of Physics explained to the Irish Examiner: “In the future, printed devices will be incorporated into even the most mundane objects such as labels, posters and packaging.

"Printed electronic circuitry (constructed from the devices we have created) will allow consumer products to gather, process, display and transmit information: for example, milk cartons could send messages to your phone warning that the milk is about to go out-of-date.

"We believe that 2D nanomaterials can compete with the materials currently used for printed electronics. Compared to other materials employed in this field, our 2D nanomaterials have the capability to yield more cost effective and higher performance printed devices."

No more rotten eggs in fridge, hallelujah.