In this day and age, there are so many devices. Nearly everything has a screen- ATM, Ordering fast food, cashiers in some shops, card machines, advertisements, self-checkouts and much more. Content has also become more flexible, carrying across on multiple devices.
The invention of smart speakers has made life easier for many disabled people across the globe. By only needing voice commands to function makes these devices ideal for people with physical disabilities and those who struggle with fine motor skills which make typing on a small phone screen less than ideal. Smart speakers are also very useful to people with visual impairments, allowing them to stay connected and use the internet with only their voice.
During this class we also looked at a video that was imagining how augmented reality glasses (google glass) could revolutionise the medical field. We can see this becoming a reality with VR headsets being used in the medical field in many different ways. One example of this is how medical students were trained by being shown a POV video of a surgeon operating on a patient via VR headsets. Another example, is how VR headsets are being used to help reduce burn patients pain levels. When being treated for their burns, patients are shown images of icy tundra and snow, which helps distract them and trick their brain into feeling cooler.
Burn patients report 35–50% reductions in procedural pain while in a distracting immersive virtual reality, and fMRI brain scans show associated reductions in pain-related brain activity during VR. [-National Library of Medicine.](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4465767/#:~:text=Burn patients report 35–50,the highest pain intensity levels.)
Just like how we only need our voices to interact with smart speakers, the future will be filled of alternative ways of interacting with technology. We looked at gestural UI in this class, and how the space around us can become like our ‘screens’, where we can swipe and tap in 3D space and interact that way. The Apple Vision Pro is seemingly making that a reality, with their focus on turning your space into a fully interactable UI.
This seminar made me realise how intrinsically linked humans are becoming with our devices. Soon we will be able to interact with the internet through gesture alone, or through thought alone- with Neuralink being in development. This is exciting but also terrifying.