The following is an excerpt from a report titled "5 Technologies to Watch" published by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA).

Most wearable computing still is industrial: laptops and PDA-like devices used by mechanics and technicians who need compact, mobile information technology. Xybernaut Corp., a well-know provider of wearables, says it hold the largest number of patents for these devices. Its products include the Mobile Assistant, which boasts a head-mounted color display, a touch screen flat-panel color display and a voice-recognition interface. Xybernaut’s computers include a headset that projects what looks like a 15-inch screen, a wrist-bound keyboard and a hard drive strapped around the waist.

Internet-enabled wristwatches also are big fashion news: Timex for instance, has rolled out its Internet Messenger watch series, which uses Motorola technology. The Swatch Group and AOL said they would promote one another’s brands, including an Internet Swatch watch carrying AOL entertainment content. And in March, IBM demonstrated its second-generation Linux watch, which isn’t for sale yet since its battery currently only lasts for two hours. With its wrist technology watches, Casio has gone one step better on the wristwatch phone of the Dick Tracy comic strips. Different Casio models include MP3 players, digital cameras, global positioning system (GPS) receivers, voice recorders, and organizers.

But watches are just the beginning, IBM’s research team is beta testing the Vision Pad, a portable computer with a head-mounted display. The Vision Pad might be useful to workers who need to keep their hands-free such as engineers working on jet engines. IBM also is researching fashion accessories, such as digital sunglasses that have a built-in camera. The sunglasses could translate foreign language signs into a native language for tourists as they toured a foreign country. And for the future, IBM is developing digital jewelry as part of its "pervasive computing" project that’s based on the idea that soon people will be connected everywhere. Among its prototypes is a necklace with a microphone, earrings with speakers to take your calls, and a watch and bracelet with screens to view text and images. Also in the pipeline are rings that glow different colors when particular user-selected events occur, such as a stock hitting a certain price. IBM also is working on a prototype in which a small eyepiece on a headband is the monitor and the central processing unit, that weighs less than a pound, clips to a belt.

For sports enthusiasts, FitSense Technology makes the FS-1 , a sensor that clips to a runners shoelace and monitors such data as speed and calories burned. The device uses a wireless platform that connects the device to a wristwatch. FitSense already has sold several thousand units. In fact, Olympic track and field gold medalist Michael Johnson used the FS-1 at the U.S. Olympic trials last summer.

(2002). 5 technologies to watch. Arlington, VA: Consumer Electronics Association.

Talk

Robert Arnot, M.D. in his book, The Biology of Success, says, "Pay close attention to your emotional displays. Remember that smiles, frowns, and all facial expressions communicate information. We’re wired to respond to emotional displays, such as facial expressions, body posture, or tone of voice, all of which tell us whether we’re safe or not.

So smile. Researchers say that smiling also helps you live a longer, happier life. Even if you are not happy, fake it. Experiments show that when people fake smiles, they actually do start feeling better. If you are having trouble faking it, remember that creating positive emotions increases activity of the zygomatic muscles (the smiling muscles), as shown on an electronic muscle activation test called an EMG. Negative emotion increases the muscle activity of the corregator muscle, the muscle of frowning and startle responses."

So put your positive emotions on display and SMILE!

Arnot M.D., R. (2000). The biology of success. Boston: Little, Brown, & Company.

Published: May 13, 2002

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