Born To Twitter

by nicole ~ December 16, 2008

If you read our blog frequently, you’re probably familiar with of our ProfNet of the Week postings; well I couldn’t wait for that for this one. Check out this reporter query below:

Kickbee is a belt that uses sensors to track an unborn baby’s movements and sends updates via Twitter. Future versions will update such sites as Facebook, too. I would love to learn more about Kickbee from anyone who’s knowledgeable about it — and if anyone has used it, I would love to hear from you. I’m also interested in talking to medical experts/tech experts. Are there other such inventions? Are they harmful to a developing fetus? Contac: xxxxx at xxx xx@nydailynews.com

This was one I just had to see for myself. According to the Kickbee Twitter page, the device supplies updates looking something like this:

I kicked Mommy at 12:18PM on Thu, Dec 11! 9:21 AM Dec 11th from web
I kicked Mommy at 12:04PM on Thu, Dec 11! 9:05 AM Dec 11th from web
Wow I’m being very active! I kicked Mommy 13 times at 03:44AM on Thu, Dec 11! 12:49 AM Dec 11th from web

According the Kickbee creator’s blog he came up with this idea for his personal use.

“My original idea was to have Kickbee connect to my wife’s mobile phone and send an SMS message directly to me. But my wife and I have iPhones, so using a Sparkfun Bluetooth module and an Arduino microcontroller would not have been possible. (The iPhone’s bluetooth functionality is locked down to all but the most basic “headset” features, which prevents creative exploration such as this.) As an avid Twitterer, I realized that I could just use Twitter to send SMS messages to my phone.”

I have to admit I already feel a little weirded out when I sign on Facebook and find friends of mine posting their fetal ultra sound photos, but I guess it is a new day and age, right? While Kickbee seems a little over the top, the creator reminds us in his blog:

“But the most important point to make about using Twitter is that the updates are completely voluntary by the RECIPIENT. Those who complain about having to receive incessant messages about our baby kicking its mother must not understand Twitter. If you don’t care to know, don’t “follow” Kickbee! I would never presume to impose our baby’s activity on an unwilling public.”

The Kickbee is still in the development phase, and currently looks a bit unwieldy, but already has the bloggers talking. You can check out some of what they’re saying here:

Endgadget
http://www.engadget.com/2008/12/13/kickbee-omg-this-twitter-baby-tracking-hack-is-so-great-kee/  

Gizmodo
http://gizmodo.com/5109297/kickbee-now-the-world-can-know-what-your-fetus-is-up-to  

Mashable
http://mashable.com/2008/12/14/baby-twitter/  

The whole idea of this is a bit frightening to me and leads to the usual “what will they think of next” clique. However I do give this guy kudos for an interesting invention, and who knows, maybe it will have a medical usage somewhere down the line. At this point, what I really want to know is what happens when the baby is born….or maybe I don’t?