Bathroom Scales - Aiding & abetting little lies...

Most people who own and use bathroom scales probably feel like the poor inanimate object is somehow antagonistic towards them - it tells them things they don't want to hear, and doesn't sugar-coat the message. In hopes of mending this relationship, designer Alice Wang came up with three bathroom scale concepts inspired by Asimov's First Law of Robotics: a robot may do no harm to a human, and in this case, she interprets emotional harm as part of the deal. In two of these concepts, the scale enlists a human loved one of the user to do the lying for it. In Half-Truth, seen at left, the user's partner is the only one who can see the actual weight readout, and is responsible for reporting the number (with or without sugarcoating) to the user. In Open Secrets, the scale sends the weight as a text message to the user's partner's cell phone, and again, the partner's job is to report it to the user. In White Lies, it's all the user's call - where the user stands on the scale determines how much weight is shaved off of reality. It's all a little shady, but if small bits of self-delusion can make for a happier population, it may all be worth it.
[via Deezen and Gizmodo]