The system based on changing an optical signal manages to detect 100% the presence of the most common rape drugs F The next step is to miniaturize the system on the way to mass production
Prof. Fernando Petulsky and Dr. Michael Yufa from the Sackler School of Chemistry at Tel Aviv University, developed a sensor that detects the presence of sammy ons in a drinking glass, even in small amounts.
The system is based on changing an optical signal. When a light beam comes into contact with a drink contaminated with rape, there is a change in the signal and the system warns about it.
According to the researchers, the system detects with 100% certainty (without false alarms) the presence in a harmful amount of the most common rape drug GHB as well as the second drug in circulation: Ketamine.
The researchers had the help of bartenders who concocted 15 common cocktails, then they performed a blind test where Sami-Ones were randomly placed into 50 glasses containing Sami-Ones cocktails, with the researchers not knowing which glasses contained the drug. The result of the experiment was that the system was 100% accurate and identified all the infected glasses.
Semi-rapes (under the foreign name Club drugs, Date Rape Drugs), are a group of psychoactive substances: drugs and medicines that are used as a means of blurring, anesthetizing until loss of consciousness and damaging memory in order to sexually exploit others. Most of the victims are teenagers and young people at trance parties, clubs and bars. Sexual assault with the help of these drugs is becoming a growing problem all over the world. According to the publications of the American Ministry of Justice, in 2007 in the USA alone about 200,000 women were raped as a result of rape. Only about 16% of the victims reported the rape to the authorities.
The experts estimate that the rate of rape today is even higher by about 80%-100% of this figure and stands at about half a million women.
Besides being used for sexual assault, these drugs may be used in the commission of other criminal offenses, such as robbery, in order to stun and put the victims to sleep.
The common "rape drugs" are as mentioned (Gamma Hydroxybutyric Acid) GHB, Hypnoderm or Rohypnol (Flunitrazepam) and Ketamine (Ketamine Hydrochloride). The GHB which is the most common, is easy and cheap to produce, is very soluble in an aqueous environment and is colorless, odorless and tasteless and has an amount of 2.5 A gram of it could kill the victim. Ketamine is an anesthetic drug for veterinary and pediatric medicine and a psychiatric drug, while Rohypnol, the third most widely used rape drug, is a prescription drug for anesthesia and sedation from the Helium family manufactured by Hoffmann La Roche. This substance is especially dangerous when combined with alcohol.
"Currently the system concentrates on detecting GHB and ketamine, and we aim to expand the system so that it will allow the detection of additional drugs of rape." says Dr. Yufa.
So far, the police or health officials have not been able to identify the drug in real time. According to the researchers, the reason for the inability of the law enforcement agencies to deal with the phenomenon is that until now no equipment sensitive enough for detection has been developed, and certainly not one that is activated in the pubs themselves in real time. Also, the remains of the drug disappear completely after a few hours, so detection after the victim's recovery is not possible. The researchers hope that transferring the power of discovery to the potential victim before consumption will make it possible to prevent attacks through semi-rape.
The researchers registered patents on all aspects of the system through Ramot, the commercial application company of Tel Aviv University. The next step is to miniaturize the system on the way to mass production. Prof. Petulsky points out that the goal is to produce a device the size of which does not exceed the head of a pin, so that it will allow people spending time at the bar to check the drinking glass in their hands without their partners noticing.
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Fernando well done on the development, how long did it take you to work on this research?
It has been said and it will be possible to minimize it, how do you propose to use it? Make millions for each night - a disposable stirrer for each drink or will you share at the entrance? When I believe that the financial matter is not included in the calculation
Fernando ya king!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Love this lecturer!
Excellent. What is the estimate of the timetable for the product's arrival on the market?
Beelzebub as one of the inventors of the method I say - there are no false positives. About 50 cups were tested, when we didn't know which one had drugs and which ones didn't, and we only identified the ones that had rape drugs in them.
Itzik C. You spend time in this environment already today and without protection. The detector will be able to stay inside the glass all the time, it can also be disguised as a stirrer, for example, and will automatically check the mess several times
It is written at the end of the article "so that it will allow those spending time at the bar to check the drinking glass in their hands without their partners noticing".
What fun it is to spend time in an environment that is dangerous for one's health and he has doubts about the partners for recreation. You can already check openly, it is more reminiscent of a battlefield.
Besides, the substance can be added at any stage of drinking, so you should check before each sip.
And how many uninfected cups did the system recognize as infected (if any)?