New
Scientist: Evan Peck of Tufts University in Medford,
Massachusetts, and his colleagues have developed a device that
lets them monitor whether a person is concentrating or
otherwise mentally engaged. They used a technique called
functional near-IR spectroscopy to shoot IR light from an
emitter attached to the wearer's forehead into the brain's
prefrontal
cortex. Some of the light is absorbed by both oxygenated
and deoxygenated hemoglobin, and the rest is reflected. By
measuring the changes in the amount of light reflected, the
headset can detect when the wearer is concentrating. Matching
the periods of activity with knowledge of what the person was
looking at allowed Peck's team to determine what information
the wearer considered "useful." When the researchers used the
device to test a movie rating system, they found that more
favorable ratings were associated with more activity in the
prefrontal cortex. They were then able to use that information
to generate, and further modify, movie recommendations. Similar
systems are being tested for managing work loads for flight
controllers and for testing heads-up displays for driving
vehicles. Peck's group plans to develop a version of the device
that allows for more advanced interactions.
