Humanistic Computing: WearComp as a New Framework and Application for Intelligent Signal Processing

Humanistic computing is proposed as a new signal processing framework in which the processing apparatus is inextricably intertwined with the natural capabilities of our human body and mind. Rather than trying to emulate human intelligence, humanistic computing recognizes that the human brain is perhaps the best neural network of its kind, and that there are many new signal processing applications (within the domain of personal technologies) that can make use of this excellent but often overlooked processor. The emphasis of this paper is on personal imaging applications of humanistic computing, to take a first step toward an intelligent wearable camera system that can allow us to effortlessly capture our day-to-day experiences, help us remember and see better, provide us with personal safety through crime reduction, and facilitate new forms of communication through collective connected humanistic computing. The author’s wearable signal processing hardware, which began as a cumbersome backpackbased photographic apparatus of the 1970’s and evolved into a clothing-based apparatus in the early 1980’s, currently provides the computational power of a UNIX workstation concealed within ordinary-looking eyeglasses and clothing. Thus it may be worn continuously during all facets of ordinary day-to-day living, so that, through long-term adaptation, it begins to function as a true extension of the mind and body

Personal imaging

Thesis (Ph.D.)--Massachusetts Institute of Technology, School of Architecture and Planning, Program in Media Arts & Sciences, 1997.Includes bibliographical references (p. 217-223).In this thesis, I propose a new synergy between humans and computers, called "Humanistic Intelligence" (HI), and provide a precise definition of this new form of human-computer interaction. I then present a means and apparatus for reducing this principle to practice. The bulk of this thesis concentrates on a specific embodiment of this invention, called Personal Imaging, most notably, a system which I show attains new levels of creativity in photography, defines a new genre of documentary video, and goes beyond digital photography/video to define a new renaissance in imaging, based on simple principles of projective geometry combined with linearity and superposition properties of light. I first present a mathematical theory of imaging which allows the apparatus to measure, to within a single unknown constant, the quantity of light arriving from each direction, to a fixed point in space, using a collection of images taken from a sensor array having a possibly unknown nonlinearity. Within the context of personal imaging, this theory is a contribution in and of itself (in the sense that it was an unsolved problem previously), but when also combined with the proposed apparatus, it allows one to construct environment maps by simply looking around. I then present a new form of connected humanistic intelligence in which individuals can communicate, across boundaries of time and space, using shared environment maps, and the resulting computer-mediated reality that arises out of long-term adaptation in a personal imaging environment. Finally, I present a new philosophical framework for cultural criticism which arises out of a new concept called 'humanistic property'. This new philosophical framework has two axes, a 'reflectionist' axis and a 'diffusionist' axis. In particular, I apply the new framework to personal imaging, thus completing a body of work that lies at the intersection of art, science, and technology.by Steve Mann.Ph.D

Dispositifs immersifs rapprochés et individuels

Collection : Encyclopédie raisonnée des techniques du cinémaÀ fétichiser la salle de cinéma, on néglige les autres dispositifs de consommation des images. Ce livre numérique suit ainsi le fil des dispositifs rapprochés et individuels, qui sont intimement liés à l’histoire du cinéma mais ont été négligés par l’historiographie. On examine ici quelques nœuds, quelques moments exemplaires où, avec le développement de l’électronique et de l’informatique, le dispositif rapproché individuel est réactivé, mais sous une forme plus immersive encore et désormais interactive, avec une nouvelle extension polysensorielle (visuelle, sonore, haptique, olfactive, gustative) et motrice (qui sollicite la tête, la main et tout le corps).The fetishizing of the movie theater makes us neglect other image consumption systems. This digital book follows the thread of the up-close and individual viewing systems, which are closely tied up with film history but which have been neglected by historiography. Here we will examine a few nubs and exemplary moments in which, with the growth of electronics and computerization, the individual viewing system was reactivated, but in a yet more immersive and henceforth interactive form, with new extensions whose nature is both multi-sensory (visual, acoustic, haptic, olfactory, gustatory) and motive (bringing into play the head, hands and the entire body).Introduction : le cinéma dans le réseau sociotechnique = Introduction : cinema in the socio-technical network / Olivier Asselin ; Une petite typologie des dispositifs immersifs = A brief typology of immersive viewing systems / Olivier Asselin ; Les lunettes télévisuelles = Television eyeglasses / Olivier Asselin ; Les casques interactifs de première génération = First-generation interactive headsets / Olivier Asselin ; Les simulateurs polysensoriels = Multi-sensory simulators / Olivier Asselin ; Les masques stéréoscopiques pour le jeu vidéo = Stereoscopic masks for video games / Adam Lefloïc ; Les gants haptiques = Haptic gloves / Adam Lefloïc ; Des masques avec contrôleurs aux implants sensorimoteurs = From masks with controllers to sensorimotor implants / Olivier Asselin

Technology 2000, volume 1

The purpose of the conference was to increase awareness of existing NASA developed technologies that are available for immediate use in the development of new products and processes, and to lay the groundwork for the effective utilization of emerging technologies. There were sessions on the following: Computer technology and software engineering; Human factors engineering and life sciences; Information and data management; Material sciences; Manufacturing and fabrication technology; Power, energy, and control systems; Robotics; Sensors and measurement technology; Artificial intelligence; Environmental technology; Optics and communications; and Superconductivity

New Mexico Daily Lobo, Volume 086, No 39, 10/15/1981

New Mexico Daily Lobo, Volume 086, No 39, 10/15/1981https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/daily_lobo_1981/1120/thumbnail.jp

Aerospace medicine and biology: A continuing bibliography with indexes (supplement 356)

This bibliography lists 192 reports, articles and other documents introduced into the NASA Scientific and Technical Information System during November 1991. Subject coverage includes: aerospace medicine and psychology, life support systems and controlled environments, safety equipment, exobiology and extraterrestrial life, and flight crew behavior and performance

Performance, Identity, and Cultural Practices in the Oral Histories of Three Generations of Iranian Women

This is a dialogic ethnographic study of Jahleh, Shayde, and Ozra, three women living in Iran. Of the numerous approaches available, this study engages performance theory and oral history as its methodology. Viewed as performative acts, the oral histories in this project transposes narratives from a purely constative plane, to a plane whereby the “meaning” of narrative utterances is the very act by which they uttered. Centering on the process of meaning making rather than foraging for finite denotations or “Truths,” this research considers stories as constituting that which they represent. As such, in this project Jahleh, Shayde, and Ozra are situated as agents of action, shifting history from a recounting of what happened to an interpretation of what that happening meant. This work locates the women’s stories within their understandings of their life experiences, and their interpretations of how these stories related to collective membership in Iran’s social, political, and historical context

Eye-tracking technology in vehicles: application and design

This work analyses the eye-tracking technology and, as an outcome, it presents an idea of implementing it, along with other kinds of technology, in vehicles. The main advantage of such an implementation would be to augment safety while driving. The setup and the methodology used for detecting human activity and interaction using the means of the eye-tracking technology are investigated. Research in that area is growing rapidly and its results are used in a variety of cases. The main reasons for that growth are the constant lowering of prices of the special equipment that is necessary, the portability that is available in some cases as well as the easiness of use that make the usage of that technology more user-friendly than it was a few years ago. The whole idea of eye-tracking is to track the movements of the eyes in an effort to determine the direction of the gaze, using sophisticated software and purpose built hardware. This manuscript, makes a brief introduction in the history of eye monitoring presenting the very early scientific approaches used in an effort to better understand the movements of the human while tracking an object or during an activity. Following, there is an overview of the theory and the methodology used to track a specific object. As a result there exists a short presentation of the image processing and the machine learning procedures that are used to accomplish such tasks. Thereafter, we further analyze the specific eye-tracking technologies and techniques that are used nowadays and the characteristics that affect the exact choice of eye-tracking equipment. For the appropriate choice we have to take into account the area of research-interest in which the equipment will be used. In addition, the main categories of eye-tracking applications are presented and we shortlist the latest state of the art eye-tracking commercial systems. Following, we present our first approach, trying to describe an eye-tracking device that could be used in vehicles offering much better safety standards, controlling various parameters, continuously checking the readiness of the driver and alerting him for potential imminent collision incidents. Finally, we describe the existing way of connecting a device, in our case an eye-tracker, can be connected to an automobile’s system