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me%20and%20pep.jpg Shelley Batts is a Neuroscience PhD candidate at the University of Michigan. She studies hair cell regeneration in the cochlea, and is just embarking on that quixotic quest called 'thesis.' She lies awake at night pondering how science intersects with politics, culture, policy, money, medicine, and religion in an attempt to be more than just a niche scientist sitting in the oh-so-lovely ivory tower. Follow me and my parrot on the quest to get funded, get a PhD, and stay sane.
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« The 'Technicolor Brain', Science, and Art | Main | Confocal Image of Cochlea Wins Art Prize »

How Can You Make a Taser Girl-Friendly?

Category: Red Herrings
Posted on: November 13, 2007 8:43 AM, by Shelley Batts

Well, apparently you make it *pink.* This is just weird.

pinktaser-thumb.jpg

"We wanted to make sure that it was something that people were comfortable carrying and didn't make it look like they were 'Dirty Harry,'" said Tom Smith, the company's co-founder and board chairman, referring to the Clint Eastwood movie.

"And it does the job."

What's next, snap-on outfit coordinating covers and dangly charms? Wait, what if a tiny cute taser WAS a dangly cellphone charm?! Well, it's already big in Japan.

seal%20taser%202.jpg
Who would think this cute little guy is a taser?

cute%20seal%20taser.jpg

Don't worry, it only gives a slight "zap" to (as the website says) keep creepy businessmen away.

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Comments

1

Hmm, I'd think a big, lumpy, ugly and menacing taser would be a lot more effective as a deterrent than something that looks like a "lady" electric razor.

I like the cute little charm, though, and expect it to infiltrate Junior High schools all across the US within 6 months.

Posted by: Warren | November 13, 2007 10:29 AM

2

Well I think the cellphone charm taser is actually something that would be useful in Japan. I remember reading somewhere that groping on commuter trains is actually considered a real hobby there. That of course begs the questions of why can't they just make do with a punch to the face or a knee to the groin like New Yorkers.

Posted by: Sunny | November 13, 2007 11:40 AM

3

"Well, it's already big in Japan."

This is surely crying out for a Pikachu-shaped cover?

Posted by: Ed | November 13, 2007 11:42 AM

4

A good friend has one of those pink seals... it HURTS, and gives one hell of a jolt! :) It's definately cute though!

Posted by: Jonathan | November 13, 2007 12:27 PM

5

One wonders what people might mistake it for.

Posted by: Tom B | November 13, 2007 1:47 PM

6

Speaking of tech for girls, have you seen the new Barbie Girl(tm) "toy"? It does a few different things. But most interesting to me is that it acts as security device allowing the girls into a secure chat room where they can talk with their best friends, free from the threat of predators. I gather it's kind of like an RSA token with snap on hair. I'm not sure if I'm impressed, or just scared.

http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId=20070426005373&newsLang=en

Posted by: Abby Normal | November 13, 2007 2:23 PM

8

At least the Hello Kitty AK47 was only a parody.

Posted by: David | November 15, 2007 6:54 AM

9

Is it just me, or wouldn't it seem that a civilian taser (the dart-shooty kind) ought to be called the rape-a-tron or abduct-o-matic?

Some freak just has to sit in his van, or behind a bush, waiting for someone to walk past, and zap.

Posted by: Jon H | November 15, 2007 8:04 PM

10

The only advantage I can see to camouflaging a less-than-lethal weapon as something innocuous is reducing the likelihood of an attacker recognizing it as a weapon and wrestling it away from the victim before it can be employed. Of course, if a given line all looks the same and the pictures of it are available online, the advantage is reduced...especially when it looks sleek and hair-care-producty rather than innocuous. I wonder if anyone's thought to set up a business selling tasers with customized housings or the like.

Posted by: Azkyroth | November 18, 2007 3:36 AM

11

WTF is up with this pink business anyway? I thought it only applied to women under the age of about four anyway, and thereafter only by choice. It's especially bothersome with all the breast cancer goods out there -- I don't mind buying something that goes to a good cause, but does it have to be pink? Can't they just slap a star with a pink ribbon on the box?

As for the tazer, it looks remarkably like the phasers from Star Trek: The Next Generation with the front cut off. So there's that.

Posted by: Brian X | November 20, 2007 10:20 PM

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