If you thought the health apps on your smartphone could only go so far as to measure the number of steps you took or the distance you covered or the calories you burnt, wait till you hear this: Researchers from Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital have made a device that can be attached to your phone and can measure sperm count.
The device is still a work is progress, but according to reports, researchers have already tested it and published a technical paper on the details.
The report even goes on to suggest that the cost of this device is as low as $5 or around Rs 350.
The process itself is not very dissimilar to the way one tests blood sugar levels at home. The sample of semen is taken on a chip fitted in the device, and is then attached to the smartphone such that the camera lens is directly on top.
The user then activates the app, which then goes on to record a series of short 1 second videos (@30fps) and then analyses the movement of the sperm cells and records it. The technology applied here is image detection algorithms.
The beauty of this app is that one can even take printouts of these reports, or can share them electronically - perhaps with a physician to obtain their medical opinion.