SixthSense blurs the digital world and the real world

Researchers from the Fluid Interfaces Group at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Media Lab have unveiled the latest prototype of SixthSense – a wearable, gesture-driven computing platform that continually augments the physical world with digital information.

Imagine being able to turn any surface around you into an interactive surface – checking your email on a blank wall simply by drawing an @ sign in the air with your finger, or being able to check the time by using the same finger to draw a circle on your wrist to produce the image of an analog watch. You can put your thumbs and forefingers together to make a picture frame allowing you to take a digital photograph, or just use your hand as a keypad or dial pad.

If you were in a bookstore and holding a book, SixthSense will recognize that and go to Amazon and display the online reviews and prices of that book right on its cover. The system is also customisable so that if you don't want Amazon reviews you could instead choose to find out what the Guardian thinks of it, or if the actual bookstore had decided to provide their own content you wouldn’t even need to go online to find more information.

MIT are trying to make it possible to have access to relevant information in a more seamless way, and while today's mobile computing devices can be useful, they are still ‘deaf and blind’, meaning that we have to stop what we're doing and tell those devices what information we need or want. MIT have a vision of a computing system that understands, at least to some extent, where the user is, what they are doing, and who they are interacting with. It can then proactively make information available to that user based on the situation.

The idea is that SixthSense tries to determine not only what someone is interacting with, but also how they are interacting with it. The software searches the internet for information that is potentially relevant to that situation, and then the projector takes over.

The prototype has been improved since it was first introduced to the public last year when it consisted of a web camera strapped to a bicycle helmet. The current prototype promises to be more ‘consumer friendly’ by consisting of a small camera and projector combination (about the size of a cigarette pack) worn around the neck. An accompanying smartphone runs the SixthSense software and handles the connection to the internet.

The camera acts as a digital eye, seeing what the user sees, and also tracks the movements of the thumbs and index fingers of both of the user's hands. The hardware included in the SixthSense system is not that expensive, with the current prototype costing about £300 to build, however this attempt to merge the digital world with the physical world requires some serious programming and engineering! The real work is in the software that is constantly trying to figure out what's around you and what you're trying to do. It has to recognise the images you see, track your gestures, and then relate it all to relevant information at the same time.

This initial research phase has only meant a few applications have been developed, but in the longer term it is envisioned that the SixthSense platform will be opened up to let anyone develop applications for it.

There are already some commercial applications planned, with the team looking at developing a sign language application that would "speak out" a translation while someone was signing. There is also potential for SixthSense in the field of gaming. Unlike the Nintendo Wii, which keeps you in front of the television, the SixthSense system might allow a player to go outside and be able to get a real tennis lesson on a real tennis court.

No one involved in the SixthSense project feels that their platform will replace laptops and smartphones, but in certain instances, it can do things that a desktop or laptop can't do, which is quickly put contextual information right where a user wants it wherever they are.

Watch Pattie Maes talk about SixthSense at TED.

Sky brings Skellig to life with bespoke online content

Sky has launched an online campaign for the novel-turned-film, Skellig, and is bringing it to life by featuring bespoke web content.

The film, an adaptation of the fantasy novel by David Almond, features Tim Roth, Kelly MacDonald and John Simm, and will be shown on Sky 1 over Easter ahead of its international theatrical release.

Sky has created a campaign site featuring an interactive game, videos, images, story details and downloadable content, in addition to news and information. The film, which has such rich content itself, has enabled Sky to pull out the detail and create a rich experience which brings the curious and magical elements to life.

The site, which initially launched as a basic presence in February as part of a teaser campaign, will grow to become a central hub for all things Skellig, and continue to feature new content in the run up to the film's premiere to engage its target audience of children. It will also host information about the film as well as details about tickets to school productions, to serve as a resource for Skellig fans.

The bespoke content includes behind-the-scenes videos and images from the making of the film along with interviews with the film's cast and exclusive online promotional videos. It will also feature a competition for schools, which use the novel as a set text, to get pupils to upload creative content about Skellig for the chance to win a premiere screening in their area.

The campaign, promoted via an ad campaign, is part of the ongoing moves by many broadcasters to create multi-platform brands and bespoke online content to attract larger audiences to their web properties.

Computer Tan website fools thousands into seeing the dangers of skin cancer

A fake company called ComputerTan is offering people the chance to get regular top-up tans from the comfort of their office desk using "a revolutionary new technology".

The ComputerTan.com website contains an infomercial film fronted by fictional ComputerTan spokeswoman Hannah Yasmin, who tells her audience how they can look "Tan-tastic" and offers a free trial of the service.

The site allows people to switch on what they expect to be a free tanning session but once the screen has converted to an array of UV bulbs users are confronted with shocking images and facts about skin cancer as well as a link to Skcin's website for more information.

The campaign is designed to raise awareness and engage those most at risk of developing skin cancer in a humorous way and is using a mix of online, print, outdoor ads, street leafleting, PR and digital seeding to reach those most difficult to talk to via conventional advertising.

The 20 second ad is also running on CBS Outdoor's digital network on the London Underground which reaches 1.7m commuters a day in London.

Skcin also managed to persuade influential bloggers to join in the hoax, and together with online seeding of the film on hundreds of sites, managed to generate in excess of 8,000 references to the campaign on Google in the first day of activity alone.

The charity hoped that the media would play along with the hoax, but last week The Sun carried a story explaining it was a hoax, and who was behind it.

Online sci-fi show: Kirill

MSN and Endemol have launched Kirill, an interactive online sci-fi show.

The Kirill series will run for ten episodes of three minutes each, following the stories of two characters living in a mysterious world.

Produced by Endemol and Pure Grass Films the show will screen in High Definition through Microsoft Silverlight technology.

Kirill watchers will be invited to get involved with the show through character blogs, videos and audio films, which will be hidden across the web.

Secret websites will also be created to help watchers decipher clues about the plot and characters.

Kirill looks like a spectacular show that will let fans become fully immersed in the world of the characters, and the online broadcasts on MSN.co.uk means sci-fi fans can catch up on the latest episodes at home or on the move.