proving ground: leap motion

Of all of the things Minority Report promised at least one thing is finally coming true: the ability to interact with your computer with the flick of a wrist.

Well that is the promise of a small device called Leap Motion. If you’ve ever played with a Microsoft Kinnect, think of Leap Motion as small one of those but attached to your computer.

The Leap Motion controller tracks your hands in 3D space and converts your movements into actions and gestures on screen. The tiny LEDs and infrared cameras tracking your movement can generate around 300 frames a second of data - almost 12 times as much detail as what you see on TV.

Certain kinds of lights directly above your desk can tend to freak it out but clearly it’s struck a chord because computer manufacturers are now starting to build Leap Motion straight into laptops.

There's also a steadily growing app store - mostly of games where you can stroke radioactive trees or play serial killer. You can also use it to read The New York Times and potentially even completely do away with the mouse and computer handsfree.

proving ground: emotiv insight

Once upon a time the only people with the power to move objects with their mind were upside-down jedi and the demonically posessed... but not anymore. The power of mechanically-enabled telekinesis is just one of the promises of Emotiv Insight: a snazzy bit of sci-fi that is actually a wireless brainscanner you can wear on your head.

Emotiv can sync to applications on a computer or iPhone translating your brain waves into specific movements which can then be used for real-world applications - like steering a remote controled drone.

Firstly you’ve got to calibrate the Emotiv headset and then teach it to recognise how your brain perceives movement. This is an odd process of attaching a very star trekkian headset on to very specific parts of your head and visualising an object moving up, down, forward or back. If you're really adventurous you might even try spinning the object. Once you’ve got the headset programmed you’ve got a pretty fun recipe to destroy the walls of your local office with your choice of remote controlled device. (The walls of SBS will never be the same again!)

The flying example is fun, in an OH&S nightmare kinda way, but it’s the less punishing applications where this starts to get interesting. There’s already been a crowdfunding effort to use the Emotiv to drive a wheelchair and even help with disabled communication. But the real goal is for Emotiv to become the fitness bracelet of your brain - measuring data like 'focus' and 'attention' in realtime throughout the day.

But is Emotiv the sort of thing you would ever want to be seen wearing in public? And What are the limitations of it? And can you call yourself Professor X when you’re wearing it?