Growing up, the closest I came to an EMF was stage-diving at one of their Manchester gigs in the mid-1990s – of course, my only contact with a ‘mobile phone’ was then my old man’s carphone… a far cry from the 21st century’s ubiquitous smartphones. EMF now stands for electromagnetic fields, it probably did then too, but in a haze of cider and… erm, Vision Street Wear; I didn’t much care. I perhaps would have cared if the science had looked this good, I certainly do now.
And what of said science? Well, this, my friends, is pretty show-stopping stuff – Lapka is a set of beautifully designed ‘environment monitors’ that wouldn’t look out of place in a science fiction movie. Joining EMF (a device that detects electromagnetic pollution caused by telecoms transmitters, nearby power lines or electrical hardware) are Radiation, Humidity – a pretty self explanatory duo – and, most intriguingly, Organic – a tool that, to quote the press release, seeks to examine “significant quantities of nitrates in raw foods and drinking water caused by residues of synthetic fertilizers”.
The results are, of course, reported back to your aforementioned ubiquitous device – in the form of an equally beautiful App. It’s seemingly impressive stuff, with lofty ambitions – the team at Lapka claim it’s almost ready, and that as of late 2012 you’ll be able to order your kit. Reminiscing on your past only serves to heighten the futuristic appeal of this set of tools – and, whilst the teenage me would have probably preferred the technology behind John Hughes’ Weird Science to turn reality, this is a fascinating reminder that the future really is now.
