Story:
Students develop nail polish that detects the presence of date rape drugs.
Other Versions
Undercover Colors invent nail polish which can detect presence of date rape drugs.
Analysis:
These messages shared heavily on social media and elsewhere state that a group of students have developed a nail polish that can detect the presence of date rape drugs and prevent sexual assault. The claims are mixture of hoax and facts.
About Undercover Colors
In late August 2014, four undergraduate students at North Carolina State University – Ankesh Madan, Stephen Grey, Tasso Von Windheim and Tyler Confrey-Maloney have come up with a way to find a manicure that can also prevent date rape. The four male entrepreneurs who call their product as ‘Undercover Colors’, say that the nail polish changes color when in contact with common date rape drugs like Rohypnol, Xanax and GHB (Gamma-Hydroxybutyric acid). To check if one of the date rape drugs has been added to her drink, a woman has to stir it with her finger.
The students say that their product could potentially be used to ward off date rape attacks. On their Facebook page that garnered more than 117K likes as of this writing, Undercover Colors is presented as a “Nail Polish that Changes Color in the Presence of Date Rape Drugs from the First Fashion Company Working to Prevent Sexual Assault“. However, the product is still in its early stages and the team is continuing further research to develop the nail polish. The four men are looking for additional public support and contributions for the same. Guardianlv.com reports that the Undercover Colors team already won $11,000 in a contest on campus, and have made it to the semi-final round of the K50 (Kairos) competition.
Criticism
While some people are enthusiastic about the innovative idea of a nail polish to prevent consuming date rape drugs, some critics say that date rape drugs are not used often and that plain old alcohol is used most times. They also warn that (lack of) the nail polish drug detection system can amount to victim blaming, and that products like this distract from real solutions to the problem.
Hoax or Fact:
Mixture of hoax and facts.
Related Stories:
Date Rape Drug Warning – Facts
References:
Students develop nail polish to detect date-rape drugs
Undercover Colors invent nail polish which can detect presence of date rape drugs
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