It appears body art has hit a whole new level: A woman with a rare skin condition known as dermatographia has been using a blunt knitting needle to etch designs into her skin—and selling them for up to $4,500.
As a symptom of her condition, Ariana Page Russell’s skin swells up into welts at the slightest scratch. Dermatographia, which affects only five percent of the population, is apparently caused by the release of histamines by mast cells near the surface of the skin, once any pressure is applied. Within five minutes, the skin swells in a reaction similar to hives—but it doesn’t hurt, it just “feels a little warm.”
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Prone to sunburn? Help may be on the way. Scotland researchers have developed a wristband that warns its users when they’re about to get burned. The indicator changes color when exposed to potentially dangerous levels of UV rays, so as soon as it turns pink, a person knows to get out of the sun. Or not, and burn.
The technology, which chief researcher Andrew Mills calls “intelligent ink,” relies on a simple enough process: UV rays trigger a chemical reaction in the indicator, which contains an acid-sensitive dye that then causes the change in color. The band improves upon other UV-measuring devices because it gives a signal at the precise moment the sun is about to cause damage. It can also be adapted to different skin types/colors by adding alkali, which delays when the dye changes color.
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