S&S PROMPT: TECHNOLOGY INSPIRED POETRY

Clean Technology

Sciku Inspired by “Life-changing Technology product.”

mighty minty fresh promise of technology electric tooth brush

From the vastness of the cosmos to sub-atomic particles, science has not only helped us understand the world around us and how it works, but it has also made our routine daily tasks more efficient and easier — Technology has infiltrated almost all aspects of our lives.

Few things have had a life-changing impact in our daily lives, like the mighty electric toothbrush — you chuckle — but really think about it — you use it daily, feel good about doing something good for your body and mind — a win-win for all parties involved.

Humans have a long history of experimenting with finding ways to keep their teeth clean. Ancient civilizations used a “chew stick,” which was an essentially thin twig with a frayed end rubbed against the teeth.

The toothbrushes as we know today, otherwise known as bristle toothbrushes are first invented in China in 1498, and the bristles, in this case, were actually the stiff, coarse back of a hog’s hair and attached to handles made of bone or sometimes bamboo.

Then starting in 1938, nylon bristles were introduced by Dupont de Nemours, and the first toothbrush was called Doctor West’s Miracle Toothbrush. The practice of good oral hygiene was actively promoted in the 1940s, and Americans quickly adopted the nylon toothbrush.

The quest to find better instruments and technology for tooth brushing has continued. According to the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office website, there were 138 patents with the word toothbrush in 2012 alone — 138!

“Cleaning the teeth is actually a pretty complex problem, and I think that’s probably why there’s been so much invention around it,” says Tom Mintel, vice president of research and development in Colgate’s global toothbrush division. He’s not at all surprised there were so many toothbrush patents issued. Source: NPR

Brushing is actually a pretty complex problem, and it probably explains the number of patents in the area. For instance, there are areas in the mouth in need of cleaning that have different shapes and funny angles. Teeth are hard, but gums are soft, so you can’t brush both with the same vigor. One of the areas of innovation in the area of smart toothbrushes — one that has sensors in the handle that can tell the toothbrush where it is in the mouth and then accordingly change the vigor of brushing.

There’s a lot of science in the simple act of brushing, but we can probably do just fine by doing the things we already know we ought to be doing — brushing at least two minutes twice a day, using fluoride toothpaste, and applying proper brushing technique, using a toothbrush that has soft bristles — electric or manual — will help create a smile that can change lives — go ahead — Smile :)

And, in case you were wondering, there’s an App for tooth brushing too — Brush DJ!.

Thank you for reading!

*This content is not intended to be a substitute for professional advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Always seek the advice of your physician or another qualified health provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical or mental health condition.

**This story is part of the S&S Prompt series — science-inspired prompts to get you inspired — Our dear readers — to have a little fun exercising your artistic creativity and write a science-inspired story — the format is entirely up to you — haiku, sciku, limerick, poetry, prose, painting, etc. — if you do — feel free to publish it anywhere on medium, just tag it with #SnSPrompt.

***Tagging S&S writers— Laura Griffith Machado, PsyD Lynn E. O’Connor, Ph.D. Rita Hitching Synthia S. Lucy Dan 蛋小姐 (she/her/她) ASeiler Dr. Marina Harris John Levin ScienceDuuude Melissa Gouty Dr. Fatima Imam Cody James Howell Ph.D. (Raiden) Dr. Jackie Greenwood Louis Dennis Adelia Ritchie, Ph.D. Shin Jie Yong Dr. Preeti Singh K. Barrett Cooking at Home Jazz Parks Skanda Vivek Jenine Bsharah Baines and anyone else who feels inspired to follow and/or play along with this fun #SnSPrompt: Science related to “Life-changing Technology product” or simply a story about a technology product (e.g. news article, random facts, funny meme on social media) and its impact.

While on the topic of toothbrushes — do check out John Levin :

Or this latest from Lucy Dan 蛋小姐 (she/her/她) :

Or perhaps :