A defining feature of life is that it senses: sound, smell, touch, temperature, humidity, light, motion, vibration, orientation. Most of us carry multiple sensors with us every day inside our smartphones. Sensors that know which way you’re holding the phone and re-orient the screen image for instance. Our automobiles contain dozens of sensors that make them more efficient and safer. And in the coming decade  you’ll find sensors showing up in all sorts of places. To get a glimpse into the (very near) future check out these Kickstarter projects:
- Sensordrone-the-6th-sense-of-your-smartphon (I’ve backed this one, looks incredibly useful)
- Twine-listen-to-your-world-talk-to-the-internet and an interview with the creator of “Twine”: http://itc.conversationsnetwork.org/shows/detail5168.html
- Ninja blocks connect your world with the web
- Node a modular handheld powerhouse of sensors
- Pulse sensor an open source heart rate sensor that connects to Arduino.
- Ubi the ubiquitous computer voice activated
- SmartThings make your world smarter
- Public Lab DIY Spectrometry Kit!
- Plant Link: listen to your plants
And a few additional links:
- MyLapka |Â http://www.fastcodesign.com/1670479/iphone-sensors-test-if-your-food-really-is-organic#1Â
- http://www.gizmag.com/electric-imp-internet-of-things/22596/
- Electronic nose sniffs danger
- If you have all these sensors sending data, then you’re going to need a way to store (and maybe share) the data https://cosm.com/how_it_works, and another focused on energy monitoring and automation http://www.switchincorporated.com/
- http://www.gizmag.com/electronic-nose-sniffs-danger/23822/
- The “nono data” trend – video from the 2012 Verge conference
- http://www.koubachi.com for the garden
And most important – take look into how nature does sensing:Â http://www.asknature.org/search?category=default&query=sense.