Seeking fully biodegradable electronics

Progress has been made in efforts to promote recycling of electronic and electrical goods, but the ultimate goal is fully biodegradable electronics.
 
Early biodegradable circuits being designed at Stanford University and elsewhere could find use as control circuits for drug delivery via implanted medical systems, for which the slower speed of organic electronics is not a hindrance. Nanopumps for insulin, for instance, are already being designed by a team from STMicroelectronics and Debiotech S.A. (Lausanne, Switzerland); a biodegradable version would function for an expected lifetime of a few months and then simply dissolve away. 

Success with biodegradable implants, and improved speeds for organic circuitry in general, could one day allow environmentally compostable electronics to become ubiquitous. 

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Touchscreen tabs advance 'consume only' model

Electronic devices designed exclusively to consume, rather than both consume and create, began with Apple's iPod music player, which only Microsoft's Zune has effectively challenged. Following the debut of Apple iPad, however, every major electronics producer is taking on Apple. Makers of laptops, netbooks, smartphones and, yes, even music players will all be marketing competing touchscreen tablets in 2011. Almost all will try to emulate the trend-setting iPad while adding some differentiator; Dell's Streak, for example, also lets you make phone calls. 

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