Oct 29, 2009
Social Media counts
08:34 Posted in Research tools | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: social media, web 2.0
Oct 27, 2009
The Green Watch
From the project's website
The project Green Watch/Citypulse aims at multiplying by 1000 the number of environmental sensors in the city, while encouraging people’s implication in measuring environmental indices, thus associating them directly to building a sustainable city.
The green watch comprizes a watch and two environmental sensors (ozone, noise). Data are regularly broadcasted via a mobile phone to an open platform called Citypulse which receives, stores and makes measure data available and anonymous. Data can then be used freely in order to be shown on maps, used in models.

30 prototypes of the green watch was tested in May 2009 by residents of the 2nd arrondissement of Paris (Digital District) and also during Futur en Seine, by highschool students of Montreuil (Maison Populaire), by researchers in the Cité des Sciences et de l’Industrie and by visitors of the wikiplaza, place de la Bastille.


17:20 Posted in Participative ecology | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: participative ecoloogy, positive technology, locative media, openspime
NHS endorses Nintendo Wii Fit video game
The Daily Telegraph reports that the Nintendo Wii Fit Plus, which goes on sale this Friday, got the permission to use the NHS’s Change4Life logo in its advertising on television and in shops. From next year, it is possible that the logo will be used on the product itself, an unprecedented partnership between a video game and the Government.
Change4Life is a public health programme in the UK which began in January 2009, organised by the Department of Health. The campaign aims to encourage people in Britain to lead healthier lives, using the slogan "eat well, move more, live longer"
A spokesman for the Department of Health told the Telegraph: "Active video games, where kids need to jump up and down or dance about as part of the game, are a great way to get kids moving."

16:34 Posted in Serious games | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: serious games, positive technology, wii
Oct 24, 2009
Towards Positive Technology
In the last days, I have been brainstorming non stop about the concept of Positive Technology.
After almost four years of gathering ideas in this blog, I feel it’s time for a summary...
As first step, I have tried to collect my thoughts in this presentation, which I gave last week at the Stensen Foundation in Florence.
Audience feedback was pretty good - nobody was sleeping - so it looks a promising start.
17:50 Posted in Positive Technology events | Permalink | Comments (2) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: positive technology
Oct 23, 2009
Don't try this
11:06 Permalink | Comments (1) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: dune
Oct 20, 2009
Tweaking Your Neurons
This interesting article, recently appeared in hplusmagazine, reviews the emerging trends in "neuroenhancement"
http://hplusmagazine.com/articles/neuro/tweaking-your-neu...

18:09 Posted in Neurotechnology & neuroinformatics | Permalink | Comments (1) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: neurotechnology
The 'I' and the 'Me' in self-referential awareness: a neurocognitive hypothesis
The 'I' and the 'Me' in self-referential awareness: a neurocognitive hypothesis.
Cogn Process. 2009 Sep 11;
Authors: Tagini A, Raffone A
The nature of the 'self' and self-referential awareness has been one of the most debated issues in philosophy, psychology and cognitive neuroscience. Understanding the neurocognitive bases of self-related representation and processing is also crucial to research on the neural correlates of consciousness. The distinction between an 'I', corresponding to a subjective sense of the self as a thinker and causal agent, and a 'Me', as the objective sense of the self with the unique and identifiable features constituting one's self-image or self-concept, suggested by William James, has been re-elaborated by authors from different theoretical perspectives. In this article, empirical studies and theories about the 'I' and the 'Me' in cognition and self-related awareness are reviewed, including the relationships between self and perception, self and memory, the development of the self, self-referential stimulus processing, as well as related neuroimaging studies. Subsequently, the relations between self and different aspects of consciousness are considered. On the basis of the reviewed literature and with reference to Block's distinction between phenomenal and access consciousness, a neurocognitive hypothesis is formulated about 'I'-related and 'Me'-related self-referential awareness. This hypothesis is extended to metacognitive awareness and a form of non-transitive consciousness, characteristic of meditation experiences and studies, with particular reference to the notion of mindfulness and other Buddhist constructs.
17:47 Posted in Meditation & brain | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: meditation, self-awareness, brain
Inducing a virtual hand ownership illusion through a brain-computer interface
Inducing a virtual hand ownership illusion through a brain-computer interface.
Neuroreport. 2009 Apr 22;20(6):589-594
Authors: Perez-Marcos D, Slater M, Sanchez-Vives MV
The apparently stable brain representation of our bodies is easily challenged. We have recently shown that the illusion of ownership of a three-dimensional virtual hand can be evoked through synchronous tactile stimulation of a person's hidden real hand and that of the virtual hand. This reproduces the well-known rubber-hand illusion, but in virtual reality. Here we show that some aspects of the illusion can also occur through motor imagery used to control movements of a virtual hand. When movements of the virtual hand followed motor imagery, the illusion of ownership of the virtual hand was evoked and muscle activity measured through electromyogram correlated with movements of the virtual arm. Using virtual bodies has a great potential in the fields of physical and neural rehabilitation, making the understanding of ownership of a virtual body highly relevant.
17:43 Posted in Mental practice & mental simulation, Telepresence & virtual presence | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: mental simulation, motor imagery, virtual hand, presence, telepresence
Oct 10, 2009
Nokia N900 hacks
Enjoy
15:22 Posted in Creativity and computers | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: creativity, nokia n900, hacking
Oct 02, 2009
Natural weelchair control
Have a look at this demo of an electric wheelchair under control of an Emotiv EEG/EMG headset. The control system developed by Cuitech, detects when the user winks or smiles, and translates these signals into commands to control the wheelchair.
13:22 Posted in Brain-computer interface | Permalink | Comments (2) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: brain-computer interface, neuroinformatics
Sep 29, 2009
Science 2.0 on Linkedin: 100+ members and growing
Science 2.0 professional group on Linkedin last week welcomed our 100th member.
If you are willing to know a bit more about how wikis, blogs and other collaborative web technologies are re-shaping research, and connect with interested scientists worldwide, join us here for membership!
11:20 Posted in Science 2.0 | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: science20, open innovation
Sep 28, 2009
Bionic Eye - Augmented Reality on the iPhone
Bionic Eye is the first augmented reality application developed for the iPhone 3GS. A brainchild of Dutch start-up Layar, Bionic Eye enables you to visualize Points of Interest (POI) located in your nearby environment in the US.
POI databases include restaurants, WiFi hotspots, subway stations (New York Subway, Washington Metro, Chicago L Rapid Transit), etc. Over 100.000 POI are already included in this application. Elements located at a distance less than 1km (0,621miles) only will be displayed on the screen.
12:59 Posted in Augmented/mixed reality, Wearable & mobile | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: augmented reality, mobile, iphone
Sep 25, 2009
Miruko Eyeball Robotic Eye
Via Pink Tentacle
Miruko is a camera robot in the shape of an eyeball capable of tracking objects and faces. Worn on the player’s sleeve, Miruko’s roving eye scans the surroundings in search of virtual monsters that are invisible to the naked human eye. When a virtual monster is spotted, the mechanical eyeball rolls around in its socket and fixes its gaze on the monster’s location. By following Miruko’s line of sight, the player is able to locate the virtual monster and “capture” it via his or her iPhone camera.
In this video, Miruko’s creators demonstrate how the robotic eyeball can be used as an interface for a virtual monster-hunting game played in a real-world environment.
According to its creators, Miruko can be used for augmented reality games, security, and navigation.
18:31 Posted in Artificial intelligence & robotics | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: robotics, iphone, augmented reality
Sep 21, 2009
Nokia Mixed Reality gadgets
Cool video by Nokia Future Tech lab on the next generation of Mixed Reality gadgets.. gaze-tracking eyewear that allows browsing and selecting with your eyes; 3-D audio to find and hear spatialized sounds... and more.
check it out:
17:20 Posted in Augmented/mixed reality | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: mixed reality
HAL: New assistive walking device
Japanese company Cyberdyne, with the scientific support provided by Professor Sankai of Tsukuba University, have developed the Hybrid Assistive Limb - HAL - a device designed to help people walk or carry heavy loads. The assistive walking system weights 10 kilogram and has a battery at the back. Embedded sensors collects electric signals that are delivered to the brain through the skin surface. Thanks to these sensors, the system can help users to move in the direction they are thinking. The walking speed is 1.8 km p/h.
Watch the HAL in action in this video:
17:10 Posted in Artificial intelligence & robotics | Permalink | Comments (1) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: robotics
Driving dreams: cortical activations during imagined passive and active whole body movemen
Driving dreams: cortical activations during imagined passive and active whole body movement.
Ann N Y Acad Sci. 2009 May;1164:372-5
Authors: Flanagin VL, Wutte M, Glasauer S, Jahn K
It is unclear how subjects perceive and process self-motion cues in virtual reality environments. Movement could be perceived as passive, akin to riding in a car, or active, such as walking down the street. These two very different types of self-motion were studied here using motor imagery in fMRI. In addition, the relative importance of visual and proprioceptive training cues was examined. Stronger activations were found during proprioceptive motor imagery compared with visual motor imagery, suggesting that proprioceptive signals are important for successful imagined movement. No significant activations were found during active movement with proprioceptive training. Passive locomotion, however, was correlated with activity in an occipital-parietal and parahippocampal cortical network, which are the same regions found during navigation with virtual reality stimuli.
17:00 Posted in Mental practice & mental simulation, Telepresence & virtual presence, Virtual worlds | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: motor imagery, virtual reality
Reactivity to cannabis cues in virtual reality environments
Reactivity to cannabis cues in virtual reality environments.
J Psychoactive Drugs. 2009 Jun;41(2):105-12
Authors: Bordnick PS, Copp HL, Traylor A, Graap KM, Carter BL, Walton A, Ferrer M
Virtual reality (VR) cue environments have been developed and successfully tested in nicotine, cocaine, and alcohol abusers. Aims in the current article include the development and testing of a novel VR cannabis cue reactivity assessment system. It was hypothesized that subjective craving levels and attention to cannabis cues would be higher in VR environments with cannabis cues compared to VR neutral environments. Twenty nontreatment-seeking current cannabis smokers participated in the VR cue trial. During the VR cue trial, participants were exposed to four virtual environments that contained audio, visual, olfactory, and vibrotactile sensory stimuli. Two VR environments contained cannabis cues that consisted of a party room in which people were smoking cannabis and a room containing cannabis paraphernalia without people. Two VR neutral rooms without cannabis cues consisted of a digital art gallery with nature videos. Subjective craving and attention to cues were significantly higher in the VR cannabis environments compared to the VR neutral environments. These findings indicate that VR cannabis cue reactivity may offer a new technology-based method to advance addiction research and treatment.
16:59 Posted in Cybertherapy, Telepresence & virtual presence, Virtual worlds | Permalink | Comments (1) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: virtual reality, addiction
The sensitivity of a virtual reality task to planning and prospective memory impairments
The sensitivity of a virtual reality task to planning and prospective memory impairments: Group differences and the efficacy of periodic alerts on performance.
Neuropsychol Rehabil. 2009 Aug 26;:1-25
Authors: Sweeney S, Kersel D, Morris RG, Manly T, Evans JJ
Executive functions have been argued to be the most vulnerable to brain injury. In providing an analogue of everyday situations amenable to control and management virtual reality (VR) may offer better insights into planning deficits consequent upon brain injury. Here 17 participants with a non-progressive brain injury and reported executive difficulties in everyday life were asked to perform a VR task (working in a furniture storage unit) that emphasised planning, rule following and prospective memory tasks. When compared with an age and IQ-matched control group, the patients were significantly poorer in terms of their strategy, their time-based prospective memory, the overall time required and their propensity to break rules. An examination of sensitivity and specificity of the VR task to group membership (brain-injured or control) showed that, with specificity set at maximum, sensitivity was only modest (at just over 50%). A second component to the study investigated whether the patients' performance could be improved by periodic auditory alerts. Previous studies have demonstrated that such cues can improve performance on laboratory tests, executive tests and everyday prospective memory tasks. Here, no significant changes in performance were detected. Potential reasons for this finding are discussed, including symptom severity and differences in the tasks employed in previous studies.
16:57 Posted in Brain training & cognitive enhancement, Telepresence & virtual presence, Virtual worlds | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this
Increased personal space of patients with schizophrenia in a virtual social environment
Increased personal space of patients with schizophrenia in a virtual social environment.
Psychiatry Res. 2009 Sep 15;
Authors: Park SH, Ku J, Kim JJ, Jang HJ, Kim SY, Kim SH, Kim CH, Lee H, Kim IY, Kim SI
Virtual reality may be a good alternative method for measuring personal space and overcoming some limitations in previous studies on the social aspects of schizophrenia. Using this technology, we aimed to investigate the characteristics of personal space in patients with schizophrenia and evaluate the relationship between their social behaviors and schizophrenic symptoms. The distance from a virtual person and the angle of head orientation while talking to a virtual person in a virtual environment were measured in 30 patients with schizophrenia and 30 normal controls. It was found that patients with schizophrenia had longer distances and larger angles than did normal controls. The severity of the negative syndrome had significant inverse correlations with the distance from the angry and neutral virtual persons and with the angle of head orientation toward the happy and angry virtual persons, suggesting that negative symptoms may have a close relationship with personal space, including distancing and eye gaze. The larger personal space of patients may reflect their discomfort in close situations or cognitive deficits. Showing these profiles to patients could help them realize the amount of personal space they need.
16:55 Posted in Cybertherapy, Telepresence & virtual presence, Virtual worlds | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: virtual reality, cybertherapy, schizofrenia
The use of biofeedback in clinical virtual reality: the intrepid project
The use of biofeedback in clinical virtual reality: the intrepid project.
Stud Health Technol Inform. 2009;144:128-32
Authors: Repetto C, Gorini A, Algeri D, Vigna C, Gaggioli A, Riva G
In our protocol for the treatment of Generalized Anxiety Disorders we use Virtual reality (VR) to facilitate emotional regulation and the relaxation process. Using a biofeedback biomonitoring system (GSR, HR, Thermal) the patient is made aware of his or her reactions through the modification of some features of the VR environment in real time. Using mental exercises the patient learns to control these physiological parameters and using the feedback provided by the virtual environment is able to gauge his or her success. To test this concept, we planned a randomized controlled trial (NCT00602212), including three groups of 15 patients each (for a total of 45 patients): (1) the VR group, (2) the non-VR group, and (3) the waiting list (WL) group.
16:54 Posted in Biofeedback & neurofeedback, Cybertherapy, Telepresence & virtual presence | Permalink | Comments (0) | Trackbacks (0) | Email this | Tags: virtual reality, biofeedback




