Science Fiction
Dictionary
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
 |
Blob Analysis Key To Next Generation Computerized Lie Detectors
Computer-based lie detectors are in the Homeland Security budget this year. A $3.5 million grant has been given to Rutgers scientists led by Dimitris Metaxas, director at the Center of Compuational Biomedicine Imaging and Modeling. They are researching how body movements, such as shoulder shrugs, hand gestures or slight changes in facial expression, may indicate that a subject is lying.
The system will capture these images digitally, and have the computer provide real-time feedback on whether a subject is telling the truth. It is hoped that by tracking the faces and hands of an individual, objective behavioral indicators of deception can be isolated, extracted and synthesized - accurately detecting human deception.
(From Blob Analysis Paper [pdf])
"Blob analysis" refers to using computer systems to picture essential elements (hands and faces) and track them. After extracting the hand and face regions from an image sequence, the system computes elliptical "blobs" identifying candidates for the face and hands. From the blobs, the left hand, right hand and face can be continuously tracked throughout a session. From positions and movements of the hands and face further inferences about the torso and the relation of each body part to other people and objects can be made. This allows the identification of gestures, posture and other body expressions.
(From Blob Analysis Paper [pdf])
Two theories guide the development of automated systems for detecting deception through identifying agitated and controlled behavior - Interpersonal Deception Theory (IDT) and Expectancy Violations Theory (EVT). IDT states that deception is a dynamic process. Deception is portrayed as a game of moves and countermoves where the deceiver adjusts the message in response to the perceived trust or suspicion of the receiver. EVT is concerned with what nonverbal and verbal behavior patterns are considered normal or expected, what behaviors constitute violations of expectations, and what consequences violations create.
The modern lie detector was invented by Dr. William M. Marston in 1917. The machine was also called a polygraph - literally "many writings", referring to the method of recording several physiological responses at the same time. He also wrote under the pen name Charles Moulton - creating the Wonder Woman comic strip. Wonder Woman, as you may recall, had a magic lasso that caused anyone she caught with it to tell the absolute truth.
Lie detectors entered science fiction as well, in the form of the truth meter from Robert Heinlein's 1954 juvenile classic The Star Beast, and the Veridicator in H. Beam Piper's fine novel Little Fuzzy:
There was a bright conical helmet on his head, and electrodes had been clamped to various portions of his anatomy. On the wall behind him was a circular screen which ought to have been a calm turquoise blue, but which was flickering from dark blue through violet to mauve. That was simple nervous tension and guilt and anger at the humiliation of being subjected to veridicated interrogation.
(Read more about the Veridicator)
Read more at ZDnet and in this paper - Blob Analysis of the Head and Hands: A Method for Deception Detection.
Scroll down for more stories in the same category. (Story submitted 9/12/2005)
Follow this kind of news @Technovelgy.| Email | RSS | Blog It | Stumble | del.icio.us | Digg | Reddit |
Would
you like to contribute a story tip?
It's easy:
Get the URL of the story, and the related sf author, and add
it here.
Comment/Join discussion ( 7 )
Related News Stories - (" Surveillance ")
Chameleon Personalized Privacy Protection Mask
'...the Virtual Epiphantic Identity Lustre.' - Neal Stephenson, 2019.
Spherical Police Robot Rolls In China
'Rand could effectively be in several places at once...' - Niven and Pournelle, 1981.
Vietnam To Have Full Biometric Transparency
'inscriptions too small to be seen with the naked eye; microscopic data...' - Eric Frank Russell, 1939.
Simple Way To Defeat AI Face Recognition
'... designed to foil facial recognition systems.' - Neal Stephenson, 2019.
Technovelgy (that's tech-novel-gee!) is devoted to the creative science inventions and ideas of sf authors. Look for the Invention Category that interests you, the Glossary, the Invention Timeline, or see what's New.
Science Fiction
Timeline
1600-1899
1900-1939
1940's 1950's
1960's 1970's
1980's 1990's
2000's 2010's
Current News
Robot Hand Creeps Along, Separate From It's Owner
'The crawling... object was V-Stephen's surgeon-hand...'
Taikonauts Exercise In China's Tiangong Space Station
'Joe got out the gravity-simulator harnesses...'
Korean Exoskeleton Suit F1 Helps You Put It On
'Better late than never.'
Have AI Researchers Given Up On 'Bio-Babies'?
'You couldn't have the capstone without the pyramid to hold it up.'
Bunker Busters and Bore-Pellets
'The first revelation of the new Soviet bore-pellets.'
'Spikeless' Brand Swizzle Stick Detects Spiked Drinks
'the unobtrusive inspections with tiny remote-cast snoopers...'
Heart Patches Grown In The Lab Repair Hearts
I'm hoping that this procedure becomes a normal part of medical practice!
Humanoid Robots Spotted In Homes Performing Household Chores
'... nothing was perfected until M. Pantalon announced the completion of his automatic valet.'
Musk Proposes Sites For Martian Cities
'...its streets were of remarkable width, with few or no buildings so high as mosques, churches, State-offices, or palaces in Tellurian cities.'
Bambot Open Source Cheap Delivery Robot
'Not since the time he rewired the delivery robot...'
Robot Collective Acts Like A Smart Material
'...it was all composed of tiny, identical cubes, carefully laid to form a tilelike surface.'
Vipera Electric Skis From Frigid Dynamics
'JOAN strapped on her power-skis...'
Pixel Watch 'Loss of Pulse Detection' And Philip K. Dick
'He carried on his person a triggering mechanism sensitive to his heartbeat.'
Nuclear Plant Restarted To Power AI To Feed Us Dreams
'...Anything was possible in my imaginary environment.'
SpaceX's Starman Tesla Roadster In Space
'Somewhere in space, a chrome and blue automobile raced the green light of Earth.'
Pivotal Blackfly Electric Aircraft Lifts And Hovers
'That explains how it was so easy for me to remain motionless in midair...'
