I hate to say this, but the one benefit of being hearing impaired is not having to deal with the searing sounds of a household fire alarm. I guess being burned in a fire is worse, but I was just referring to when the batteries need changing.
A Japanese company called the Air Water Safety Service has designed a fire alarm that discharges he chemical compound allyl isothiocyanate, which is the compelling additive found in such harsh condiments as wasabi and horseradish.
After some significant testing, the device does work – waking test subjects at around 2.5 minutes, but so far the price of the alarm is set at a staggering $560! The company has plans to reintroduce the alarm at a later stage for $225, but still. I bet this thing wouldn’t budge Jackass’s Steve-O from a sound slumber.
