Persuasive and no-fog mirrors

University of Queensland physicists have invented a permanent coating technology that will prevent your spectacles, car windscreen or bathroom mirror fogging up ever again. As XeroCoat also cuts out unwanted reflections from glass, it lets more light through and improves thus the performance of solar cells and glasshouses.

The technology is based upon thin films of nano-porous silica; this means that the coating is a layer of glass full of tiny invisible bubbles, just like the foam on beer. The whole production process is extremely simple, low-cost and environmentally friendly, which will make the use of solar energy cheaper and more effective.

From Innovations Report.

Going back to mirrors, Agatha Opalach and her team at the Accenture laboratories are developing the "persuasive mirror."

The mirror would be embedded with artificial intelligence and would manipulate images of you depending on what you have been doing all day. If you haven't eaten or slept well, the mirror picks up on these cues, based on the sensory input from other parts of the house, and then projects an exaggerated reflection of the effect of your habits. Good habits could show up in a livelier, younger looking reflection. Their idea si that such a visual reminder of the long-term effects of one’s habits can be a powerful motivator for old and young alike.
Mmh, not for me, thanks!

Also featured in BBC Technology and The Guardian.

Other mirrors: Blended in a mirror and True Mirror.