mind-blowing 復習

画期的な目覚まし時計です。一体どんな気持ちで目が覚めるのでしょうか。

Student invents world’s first food-scented alarm clock

We all understand “the waking up for class” struggle. We dread the moment our alarm clock or phone ringtone bursts through our ear drums, telling us it’s time for class.

However, one French engineering student and entrepreneur, 18-year-old Guillame Rolland, has made this universal problem a whole lot better. He created SensorWake, the first food-scented alarm clock that wakes you up to the smell of some of your favorite foods.
“Waking up to my alarm clock was so terrible,” Rolland said. “Here in the 21st century, there must be something I can do about it.”

We know what you’re probably thinking. First, why did it take this long for such an amazing idea to make its way into the world? And what have I been doing with my life all this time?

Well, the teenager created the product’s prototype in his own garage and high school chemistry classroom, where he studied aromas and the extraction of scents (can that please be a legit major?). He then reached out to a marketing agency and worked with a French engineering school to create the product.

To use it, the user simply inserts the chosen capsule into the alarm clock, sets the time, and goes to sleep. The perfumes so far range from fig, banana, American breakfast (bacon and orange juice), continental breakfast (coffee and warm croissants) to chocolate, black vanilla, candy rush (sweet peach and strawberry candy), tea tree extract, ginger and peppermint.

There are also some non-food centered flavors, including one which projects scents of the seaside. There is even a money scent for those business majors who just can’t wait to get on Wall Street.

Thanks to KickStarter, the team has already raised over $130,000 of its initial $54,000 goal. And now, the clock is currently in its last phase of development, but the invention has already won awards from Google and the World Intellectual Property Organization. Yep – pretty mind-blowing.

So now you want this, am I right? Well you might have to save a bit first cause each clock costs around $119 and each capsule is about $9. However, the good news is that they predict each capsule will be able to be used 60 times. FYI, Shipments will start in November and this thing might even replace going down to the dining hall… just maybe.

http://college.usatoday.com/2015/06/30/student-invents-food-scented-alarm-clock/

とりあげる表現は“mind-blowing”です。『ジーニアス英和辞典第５版』（大修館書店）によると、「mind-blowing：〈物・事が〉ひどく興奮させる、びっくりさせる、奇妙な」（“to make you feel very surprised and excited by something”--LDOCE）とありました。興奮・驚きが平常心（mind）を吹き飛ばすイメージです。想像もつかなかったようなことを見たり聞いたりしたときの驚きを表す表現であり、「度肝を抜かれる、ぶったまげる」といった意味合いも持つことがわかりました。

本日もM学院の講義へ参加させていただきました。その帰り道では、普段お目にかかれそうもない様々な車に出会います。気になった車種の価格を調べてみると、想像をはるかに超えているものばかりで“mind-blowing.”な気持ちになりました。（Chris）