Communications of the ACM
But How Do You Really Feel? Someday the Computer May Know
Credit: www.livingthecrway.com
Affective computing is an emerging technology that aims to give computers the ability to read users' emotions.
For example, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) researchers are developing glasses designed for people with Asperger syndrome that can warn them when they are boring someone. The glasses are equipped with a tiny traffic light, visible only to the user, which flashes yellow when the conversation is dragging on and red when the facial cues suggest the listener has completely lost interest. The researchers also are developing software that maps 24 points on the face to determine an emotion. The researchers are able to capture the subtleties of different facial expressions using Webcams with high-frame rates and resolutions. The software also requires thousands of examples of each facial expression. "If we don’t have enough examples, across cultures and age ranges, the machine won’t be able to discriminate these subtle expressions," says MIT's Rana el Kaliouby.
Affective technology also may be able to help online education programs provide better learning experiences for students. A program that distinguishes when students are bored or confused could offer more challenging problems to the bored students and simpler problems for the struggling students.
From New York Times
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