The Strange Headphones That can Read your Thoughts 💭
Just imagine: think hard about an information you need and a device, after reading in your mind, starts looking it for you on Google. That's what AlterEgo promises to do , a curious device - developed by Arnav Kapur and Pattie Maes, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology ( MIT ) - that resembles one of those headphones that are used in chat, but that, thanks to sensors and an artificial intelligence system, creates a private and timely dialogue with its user.
Credits Newsweek
HOW DOES IT WORK
Today it is becoming increasingly common to activate the voice assistants of our smartphones (and virtual butlers such as Google Home, which in recent weeks are making their landing on the market): to call their attention, just say the command provided (" Ok Google "for Android systems," Hey Siri " to interact with iPhone, iPad & c.) And make the request. But
AlterEgo , as said, does not need words: just think of the desired search keys because on our face we produce the imperceptible neuromuscular signals associated with the sound of those words (the process is called subvocalization , and occurs automatically when we think of a sentence, without physically articulating it). The 4 sensors on the device detect these inputs, then an artificial intelligence system deciphers their meaning and launches the search on Google. The response with the results is finally whispered to the user's ear through the cuff. This is a particular model, bone conduction, which transmits the sound directly to the inner ear (and not to the eardrum, as happens with the usual earphones): so no one else can hear the answer and moreover, for the wearer, there is the possibility of perceiving environmental noises, without making deaf the wearer.
YOU READ ME IN THOUGHT!
Before moving on to the tests, the researchers faced a set-up phase of 31 hours, during which they taught the prototype to grasp the differences between the different systems of motor activation of users. Later they discovered that, to correctly interpret the neuromuscular signals, 4 of the 16 sensors initially used were sufficient, and this determined the shape of the device. Finally, the moment of actual trials has arrived.
A short Video from MIT
AlterEgo has shown to be able to decipher from our mind the numbers from 0 to 9, plus a hundred words. In particular, he was able to correctly suggest the local time of other time zones, the population of some large cities, the correct moves in a chess game and the results of arithmetic calculations. In the future, systems such as these could be used to provide instructions to virtual assistants without remembering passwords (or without having to speak them out loud), without typing on a keyboard and without having to talk away from normal everyday activities.
COMPETITION
Other systems of embryonic "thought-reading", like the one carried out by Neuralink , a project by Elon Musk, try to directly capture the electrical activity of the brain with more complex and difficult to position instruments (instead of the subtle movement of nerves and muscles facial). The idea is that Alter Ego may one day become a more consumer-friendly and easy-to-use interface
It seems like this could be very useful to people with speech impairment. Hopefully the device will be affordable or covered through health insurance.
if this can be a success, this innovation can help thousands of people especially those who have speech impairment.
Although skeptical about the technology, I really appreciate the post!
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