Smell Your Tweets: Web Device Creates Scent-Based Notifications

Olly is a a web-connected device from Mint Digital that takes notification data from services like Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, and turns them into real-world scents. A removable panel for oils and liquids allows for any scent to be triggered, and a stackable form allows for multiple services to be connected to multiple Ollys.

Secondary Attention

With more information actively vying for our direct attention, interaction designers are beginning to think about how to passively make use of what Russell Davies calls secondary attention. Data that doesn’t rudely pull our eyes towards it, but rather shares information with us politely. Mint Digital achieves that in a very unique and simple way, one that can be fully customized as all of parts and code that make up Olly are open and accessible.

Data ” ___”-ization 

Humans are visual creatures, so it makes sense that large amounts of data are visualized. However clever designers are now doing more than just visualizing data, but ‘olfactorializing’ and ‘tasteualizing’ it as well. A similar project is Tastes Like Rain from the MIT Media Lab, in which the day’s weather forecast is passed on through toothpaste.

What do you think of these efforts to contextualize and present data to our other senses? Let us know in the comments.

Olly

Mint Digital