August 16, 2000

Applied Digital Solutions, Inc. is developing a high-tech, implantable computer chip that will aid in tracking a subject's location and critical medical data. An operational prototype of the dime-sized chip, called Digital Angel, will be unveiled this October in New York.

Once placed under (or bonded to) the surface of the skin, a tiny antenna on the chip will send and receive signals from global positioning system (GPS) satellites. This will make it possible to pinpoint the chip wearer's location anywhere on earth. The chip will also be equipped with bio-sensors that measure critical medical data, including body temperature and pulse, in people and animals. The tiny antenna attached to the chip will capture this data and transmit it to Web-enabled ground stations, to be monitored by doctors. The chip will be powered by a micro battery that recharges itself using body-heat energy.

The most obvious application of the chip is as a means of monitoring at-risk patients. For example, a person afflicted with Alzheimer's could be tracked using the GPS technology. If the patient wandered away from home, emergency medical workers could quickly locate him. While searching, the medical workers could monitor the person's medical condition.

Critics have suggested the Digital Angel device tramples privacy rights and resembles the Big Brother technology envisioned in George Orwell's novel "1984." ADS counters that the unit can be turned off by the wearer, which makes the monitoring voluntary, and that it won't invade privacy except when used to track criminals.

ADS says the Digital Angel has many other possible applications, including locating lost household pets, tracking endangered wildlife, managing farm animals, locating stolen property and finding lost airline baggage and postal packages.

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