Of Thermometers and Steam Cleaners and Magic Mice

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Technology Thursday

Three gadgets I've been thinking about recently are thermometers, steam cleaners, and magic mice.

We finally found a usable thermometer for my toddler. We probably own about 6 different thermometers at this point. I have a confession to make - I have never taken my kid's temperature rectally. He did not get sick until he started daycare at around 5.5 months and at that point his head (off the charts since birth) was big enough that I just used the ear thermometers. I know that this fact may seem terribly unjust to parents who've had to struggle with taking baby temperatures that way, but there it is. Even so, the ear thermometer we were using was often inconsistent and even though it only took a few seconds, it still took too long for even my reasonably patient kid. Plus, you're supposed to change the plastic covering every time you use it, and who can remember to do that? Or where the extra covers are stored?

After watching the nurses at the pediatricians' office use their super fast and supposedly highly accurate temporal thermometers over the course of several visits, I decided we needed to get one.

Turns out they're actually not that expensive. The one we got (credit where due: my husband did a bunch of the comparison shopping) is available at Amazon. I actually added one to my kid's Amazon wishlist because another one would be handy to have (rather than running up and downstairs, as inevitably happens). It works so quickly that we all take our temperatures much more frequently. I try to take my son's temperature each morning just to have a running baseline of what's normal for him. But he now sees it as a game and wants me to take my own and his Dad's temperature as well. And then he wants to play with the thermometer. But that's a small price to pay and is far, far less of a hassle than sticking something in his ear... or other places.

A friend of mine recently purchased a pretty heavy duty steam cleaner and swears by its awesome cleaning powers. I am very intrigued. I've never seen one of these in action but there are certainly plenty of places in my house where something that would go after the grime would be great. Anyone have any experience? (Amazon, my trusty source of retail information, has several for sale.)

Finally, another object I haven't seen in action yet but expect to own at some point: Apple's new Magic Mouse. It apparently comes with the line of iMacs that was just announced and can also be bought separately. Brad Choate gave a nice overview of how it works. I think I'm going to have to get one of these. Choate also explains how Apple has basically created three gesturing paradigms: one for the iPhone (which I am still flabbergasted that my 16-month-old is mastering), one for the multi-touch trackpads on the laptops, and now one for the new mouse. He suggests a way in which they could all be consolidated.

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It is much easier to blog about gadgets than about technology policy or other complicated technical issues. Especially when one is as sleep-deprived as I am right now. But in the policy space, apparently there is a nasty, nasty secret copyright treaty that the Obama administration (those stalwart promoters of government transparency, don'tcha know?) are refusing to disclose. It leaked. Cory Doctorow and Larry Lessig are on it. You can also follow the hashtag #ACTA on Twitter.

Comments

[Katherine]

We need a steam cleaner or something that will help cut down the allergy-carrying potential of our carpets. So I hope you get some recommdations!