Photograph by Gauri Nanda
Covered in brown shag carpet and propelled by Lego set lying around the Media Lab, is covered
gray, rubberized wheels, Clocky, a mobile alarm in shag, a nod to the carpet her parents had used
clock invented by Gauri Nanda of MIT’s Media to cover stereo speakers back in the 70s. “As I
Lab, may be the next pet rock. But this adorable started to develop the clock, I realized that the
inanimate object has a purpose: to get you out of look worked really well with the concept that
bed in the morning. Clocky is like a troublesome pet that you love, and
Here’s how it works: after Clocky’s alarm goes less like an annoying, stressful device that you’ve
off, you hit the snooze bar. Clocky rolls off the bed- learned to defeat,” she says.
side table and finds a new hiding place. A few min- This union of “troublesome pet” and useful
utes later, it goes off again and you have to hunt gizmo has generated a splash of publicity for
for the damn thing to turn it off. Presto: you’re out Clocky. Nanda was recently interviewed on The
of bed and probably won’t go back to sleep. Today Show and demoed Clocky on a bedroom
Clocky’s movements are entirely random. An set for Good Morning America.
internal computer is programmed to make it Was Nanda worried about getting up in time for
move in varying directions, says Nanda, 25. “The those early-morning shows? Not with Clocky by
idea is that he will find new places to rest every her side … or rolling across the room.
day, which creates a sort of hide-and-seek game. —Michael Shapiro
The over-sleeper has to employ more of her
senses before disabling the device.” >>Clocky: www.clocky.net
Clocky, whose first wheels came from an old
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