In reading through tech in the news this morning i was struck by the headline on cnn.com which read, "Next-generation toys read brain waves". My first reaction was, seriously, should i be scared or only slightly disturbed. Maybe both. However, i gave the article a second chance and kept reading. Actually, the sutff theyre talking about would be pretty cool. It would make video 'more educational/require more brain activity'. The idea is that video-gamers could control game characters or avatars in virtual worlds using nothing but their thoughts. Some slightly less complicated versions of these games, such as a Darth Vader suit with a light saber which lights up with nothing but a thought, are due out later this year. The basic technology has to do with reading or recognising brain wave movements and changes. Essentially, " The basis of many brain wave-reading games is electroencephalography, or EEG, the measurement of the brain's electrical activity through electrodes placed on the scalp". This technology has been used in the medical world for a few years but this new use with games is cheaper, simpler, and aimed at kids with behavior disorders such as ADHD, autism and mood disorders. Very interesting. Makes you look at obsolescence in a whole new way. Will there soon be a day where we will have to say to our kids, "back in the day when we had to use controllers for video games"? Is technology extending at such a rate that soon normal, average toys will become obsolete? Sounds possible.
Here is the link to the original article:
http://www.cnn.com/2007/TECH/fun.games/04/30/mind.reading.toys.ap/index.html
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Interesting article! but scary too: the idea that computers could be controlling us is scary to me... it makes me think about those fictional movies about robots takin over and stuff... could it be turning into reality?...
And I like your blog too, it's nice!
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