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Display System That Knows Who You Are
lee1 writes "New Scientist
reports on an 'interactive computer display that keeps track of multiple users by differentiating between their touch'. The system consists of a touch-sensitive screen that can be operated by several users simultaneously. When a user touches the screen an electrical signal is sent through their body and picked up by a receiver located in their chair, telling a computer precisely where the screen was touched and by whom. Applications could include system access control, safer vehicle controls, and smarter videogames. The bottom line, in the words of one of the inventors: 'If the controls know who is operating them, they can behave appropriately.' The movie
even has funkier than average background music."
Maybe the system doesn't care that jim or bob is touching the screen, but rather that seat 1 or seat 3 is touching the screen. However, this also creates the problem that everyone must be sitting on a chair. Maybe they could just have something you stick on your finger tip, or have each user have a separate stylus. Would be a lot easier to implement than tranmitting the signal through the person, and hoping that they are sitting in the chair.
Anthropic principle: We see the universe the way it is because if it were different we would not be here to see it.
The funky music in the video was composed and performed by Peter Wilder. I'm a big fan of his work. You can find out more about him here ...