Summary

A PILL THE SIZE OF AN OVERSIZED COLD CAPSULE HELPS DETECT THE CORE TEMPERATE OF THE BODY AND COULD WORK TO PREVENT HEAT STROKES.

Source CONUS Archive
Record ID 209807
Story Slug Heat Pill
Location Manatee County, FL
Format PKG-NT
Date 8/7/2001
Archive Time 29:27
TRT 2:03
Supers Manatee County, Florida Susan SMith, HTI Technologies :37 Steve Nichols, Reporting 1:21
Video Description SHOT OF PILL IN HAND, SHOT OF PILLS ON TABLE, SOT OF MAN, SHOT OF THERMOMETER, SHOT OF POSTER, SHOT OF MAN WITH ROOM FULL OF ELECTRONICS, SOT OF WOMAN, SHOT OF STRINGER, SHOT OF FOOTBALL PLAY, SHOT OF WOMAN ASSEMBLING ELECTRONIC DEVICE, SOT OF WOMAN, STAND-UP,SHOT OF PLAYERS, SHOT OF SUN
Description A PILL THE SIZE OF AN OVERSIZED COLD CAPSULE HELPS DETECT THE CORE TEMPERATE OF THE BODY AND COULD WORK TO PREVENT HEAT STROKES.
Script LEAD: A SMALL COMPANY IN MANATEE COUNTY CONTACTED THE N-F-L LAST WEEK... OFFERING TECHNOLOGY THAT MIGHT HELP PREVENT HEAT STROKE. IN FACT, THE COMPANY TELLS REPORTER STEVE NICHOLS... ITS SENSORS HAVE BEEN AVAILABLE SINCE THE LATE 1980'S... (TAKE PKG) SCRIPT: IT LOOKS LIKE AN OVERSIZED COLD CAPSULE, AND THAT'S HOW YOU TREAT IT: YOU SWALLOW IT. BUT INSIDE THIS PILL...THERE'S AN ITTY BITTY TRANSMITTER...AND A CRYSTAL... (SOT- "The crystal changes frequency proportional to the temperature. So we actually measure the change in frequency, and that's how we get the temperature.") THAT READING IS THEN SENT TO A RECORDER... EITHER WORN ON OR HELD UP TO THE BODY. JOHNS HOPKINS UNIVERSITY DEVELOPED THIS PILL FOR NASA... TO CONTINUOUSLY TRACK THE CORE BODY TEMPERATURES OF ASTRONAUTS. BUT LAST WEEK...THE PALMETTO COMPANY CONTACTED THE OFFICE OF NFL COMMISSIONER PAUL TAGLIABU... (SOT- "We started out with the medical committee under Tagliabu, and then from that point I'll contact the trainers of all of the NFL teams directly, and then I plan on contacting the collegiate arena as well.") THE COMPANY THINKS THIS TECHNOLOGY COULD HELP PREVENT HEAT-STROKE...MOST RECENTLY A CONCERN FOLLOWING THE DEATH OF MINNESOTA VIKING CORY STRINGER. THE PILL MONITORS CORE BODY TEMPERATURE... THE BEST INDICATOR OF WHAT'S GOING ON INSIDE THE BODY. IN FACT SO FAR... THE DEVICE HAS BEEN USED ALMOST EXCLUSIVELY BY RESEARCHERS... (SOT- "Gosh, there's research involved in everything from swimming, swimmers, soldiers, hazmat workers, firefighters...") (SOT- "The technology can also be adopted for other research purposes: This one's for chickens, to see whether their production changes as their body temperatures rise and fall. This one's for monkeys. And this one believe it or not is for cows. Big battery, so it'll last up to a year.") BUT THE HUMAN VERSION PASSES OUT OF THE BODY WITHIN 2 TO 4 DAYS...AND NO, REUSE IS NOT RECOMMENDED. AT $35 A THROW...THE COMPANY DOES NOT EXPECT EVERY FOOTBALL PLAYER TO BE MONITORED CONTINUOUSLY. BUT IT CONTENDS MONITORING THOSE AT HIGHER RISK OF HEAT STROKE IS AFFORDABLE. IN PALMETTO, STEVE NICHOLS, FOX 13 NEWS. TAG: THE U-S GOVERNMENT IS 'H-T-I TECHNOLOGIES' BIGGEST CUSTOMER. FOR EXAMPLE... RIGHT NOW THE SENSORS ARE BEING DEVELOPED IN NEW ARMOR FOR BOMB SQUADS. THE SUIT WILL HAVE TO BE MODIFIED IF THE PERSON WEARING IT OVERHEATS. RECAP
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