Welcome to the April 2021 SIGCHI edition of ACM TechNews.

ACM TechNews - SIGCHI Edition is a sponsored special edition of the ACM TechNews news-briefing service focused on issues in Human Computer Interaction (HCI). This service serves as a resource for ACM-SIGCHI Members to keep abreast of the latest news in areas related to HCI and is distributed to all ACM SIGCHI members the first Tuesday of every month. ACM TechNews is a benefit of ACM membership and is distributed three times per week on Mondays, Wednesday, and Fridays to over 100,000 ACM members from over 100 countries around the world. ACM TechNews provides timely coverage of established and emerging areas of computer science, the latest trends in information technology, and related science, society, and technology news. For more information on ACM TechNews and joining the ACM, please click. The Interactions mobile app is available for free on iOS, Android, and Kindle platforms. Download it today and flip through the full-color magazine pages on your tablet or view it in a simplified low-bandwidth text mode on your phone. And be sure to check out the Interactions website, where you can access current and past articles and read the latest entries in our ever-expanding collection of blogs.

People Affected by Covid-19 Are Nicer to Machines
University of Southern California
Gary Polakovic
March 22, 2021

A study by researchers at the University of Southern California (USC), George Mason University, and the U.S. Department of Defense found that people affected by Covid-19 show more goodwill to both humans and human-like autonomous machines. The researchers identified people who had been adversely affected by Covid-19 based on stress measurements and had them engage both humans and computers in the role-playing "dictator game." Participants affected by Covid-19 showed the same altruism toward computers and human partners, and became more compassionate toward machines the more they were distracted by coronavirus-related concerns. USC's Jonathan Gratch said, "Our findings show that as people interacted more via machines during the past year, perceptions about the value of technology increased, which led to more favorable responses to machines."

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AI as a Co-Driver
University of Göttingen (Germany)
March 26, 2021

Researchers at Germany's University of Göttingen have demonstrated that a combination of human decision-making and artificial intelligence (AI) applications can improve efficiency in commercial truck management. They compared the work efficiency of truck drivers in retail trade delivery in relation to their use of AI applications like dynamic real-time navigation systems, cruise control, and automated gear-shifting. Three groups were studied, the first using only human decision-making, the second using a combination of human and machine decision-making, and the third using fully automated decision-making. The researchers said, "On average, the second group achieved the most efficient transport trips, with the fewest interventions and deviations from the optimal path."

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Researchers Demonstrate First Human Use of High-Bandwidth Wireless Brain-Computer Interface
News from Brown
March 31, 2021

Brown University researchers have developed a brain-computer interface (BCI) that employs a wireless transmitter capable of transmitting brain signals at single-neuron resolution and in full broadband fidelity. The system replaces cables with a small transmitter that sits atop a user's head, and links to an electrode array within the brain's motor cortex using the same port utilized by wired systems. Brown's John Simeral said, "The signals are recorded and transmitted with appropriately similar fidelity, which means we can use the same decoding algorithms we used with wired equipment. The only difference is that people no longer need to be physically tethered to our equipment, which opens up new possibilities in terms of how the system can be used."

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Computing for Deaf People: The Race to Teach Sign Language to Computers
The Economist
March 6, 2021

Researchers are ramping up efforts to teach sign language to computers. Microsoft researchers are developing a smartphone version of the game Battleship in which each grid square is associated with specific signs, allowing players to generate their own signing data and confirm the meaning of opponents' signs. Hungary's SignAll has developed a proprietary database with 300,000 annotated videos of 100 users using over 3,000 signs from American Sign Language; its software relies on three cameras aimed at a signer wearing motion-tracking gloves. The SignON project and the Intelligent Automatic Sign Language Translation project are working with the European Union of the Deaf on smartphone apps that can translate between European sign languages and oral speech.

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Sophia the Robot Sells Digital NFT Artwork for Nearly $700,000
New Atlas
Rich Haridy
March 29, 2021

An artwork co-created by Hanson Robotics' humanoid robot Sophia recently sold for $688,888 at auction. The digital self-portrait, which uses blockchain-based non-fungible token (NFT) technology, was a collaboration with Italian artist Andrea Bonaceto. The work, "Sophia Instantiation," involved Sophia's neural networks processing a portrait of the robot by Bonaceto and generating its own interpretation. The final artwork is a 12-second MP4 file that morphs back and forth between the two images. Hong Kong-based Hanson has partnered with computer vision firm Immervision, which last year rolled out its own humanoid robot, Joyce, featuring a system of three ultra-wide angle cameras and innovative vision processing technology. Through the partnership, the companies hope to give Sophia an upgraded visual cortex, and Joyce a humanoid body.

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VR Helps People Stay Fit and Well Through Lockdown
University of Portsmouth (U.K.)
March 3, 2021

Researchers at the U.K.'s University of Portsmouth have found that users of virtual reality (VR) headsets to pass time during lockdown also used them to exercise, meditate, socialize, and watch films. The researchers determined that VR technology had a positive impact on users' mental and physical well-being. Lead researcher Alessandro Siani said, "Participants reported that 'exer-gaming' using a VR headset resulted in considerably more vigorous physical activity than doing so using a traditional gaming console." The researchers analyzed VR use by 646 people from 47 countries during the first lockdown in late May and early June 2020, and found that people who spent 10 minutes per day watching a three-dimensional (3D), 360-degree VR video reported feeling less anxiety.

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Small Device Could Warn You if You've Been Too Still at Your Desk
New Scientist
Chris Stokel-Walker
March 12, 2021

City University of Hong Kong researchers have developed small, stretchable sensors that can be worn around the neck to monitor how much wearers move while sedentary. The sensors, powered by two layers of piezoelectric material folded like origami, monitor movement of the neck and periodically prompt wearers to stand up and stretch in an effort to avoid musculoskeletal disorders like neck and shoulder pain. The sensor deforms when the wearer moves, sending a charge to a microcontroller that displays the movement on a computer. Researcher Zhengbao Yang said, "We can use this material to convert stress to voltage, then we can measure the joint motion using that."

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Preventing Injuries, Improving Recovery with Micro-Doppler Radars
Penn State News
Sarah Small
March 3, 2021

Pennsylvania State University (Penn State) College of Engineering and College of Medicine researchers collaborated on the development of a Micro-Doppler radar that could be used in clinical settings to predict injury risk and track recovery progress by detecting subtle variations in human movement invisible to the eye. Penn State's Ram Narayanan said he and his team "designed and constructed the radar system to characterize the micro-Doppler features of human gait, developed and tested various classification algorithms to separate patterns from different gait types, and validated our hypothesis using measured data from athletes mimicking different gait patterns."

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Smartphone Addiction Ruins Sleep, Study Finds
CNN
Sandee LaMotte
March 2, 2021

Researchers at King's College London in the U.K. found that smartphone addiction is taking a toll on sleep. Their study of smartphone use among 1,043 university students aged 18 to 30 found that close to 40% were addicted to their smartphones, based on a 10-question validation scale used to assess smartphone addiction in children. The researchers found that students reporting high use of smartphones also indicated poor sleep quality. While the University of Oxford's Andrew Przybylski noted that smartphone addiction is "not recognized by any global health body and is not a psychiatric disorder," the study authors said, "Should smartphone addiction become firmly established as a focus of clinical concern, those using their phones after midnight or using their phones for four or more hours per day are likely to be at high risk."

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Stanford Researchers Collaborate on StageCast Technology for Performers Separated Due to Covid-19
Stanford Today
Sandra Feder
March 2, 2021

Stanford University computer scientists, electrical engineers, and theater directors together developed StageCast, a platform to help performers separated by the Covid-19 pandemic come together in online theatrical productions. Stanford's Keith Winstein said, "The goal is to make digitally streamed theatrical performance more real and more pleasant by reducing the delay between participants, compared with commercial systems." StageCast is founded on low-latency videoconferencing technology previously developed by Stanford's Sadjad Fouladi. Said Stanford's Michael Rau, "I imagine a future where hybrid shows—simultaneous in-person live and digitally streamed performance—become the norm for our industry, and we hope that the StageCast system can play a role in developing the digital infrastructure for a future generation of artists working in the performing arts."

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In Era of Online Learning, Testing Method Aims to Reduce Cheating
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
March 1, 2021

Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) engineers showed how a distanced online testing strategy can reduce students' ability to receive help from each another in order to cheat at tests taken at individual homes during social distancing. RPI's Ge Wang explained, "The key idea of our method is to minimize this chance via discrete optimization aided by knowledge of a student's competencies." Students receive the same questions when performing a distanced online test, but at varying times, depending on their skill level; Wang said this disincentivizes students from receiving assistance from other students with greater mastery of the material. The order of questions is determined by each learner's competence level, based on grade point average, SAT score, or midterm exam scores. Statistical tests and post-exam surveys indicated the approach lowered points gained through collusion by orders of magnitude versus conventional exam techniques.

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Gatorade Smart Patch Measures Sweat, Hydration
CNBC
Jessica Golden
March 1, 2021

Sports drink maker Gatorade has launched a one-time wearable device that analyzes perspiration to help athletes measure their performance and hydration levels. The company said the Gx Sweat Patch should be worn on the left inner arm during a workout; afterward, users can scan the patch with Gatorade's Gx application to generate a ‘unique sweat profile’ based on perspiration levels, sodium losses in the forearm, body weight, and workout type or intensity. Athletes can use the results to inform their hydration strategies to maximize performance and avoid cramping or dehydration. Gatorade's Brett O'Brien said, "The Gx System represents the evolution of how we're serving athletes. By offering intelligence to help them make choices about everything from their fueling plan to training to recovery, we're supporting athletes like never before."

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Should We All Wear Sensors to Avoid Being Run Over by Driverless Cars?
New Scientist
Matthew Sparkes
March 5, 2021

Princeton University researchers have developed a device that could make self-driving cars safer by making pedestrians, cyclists, and road furniture more visible to them. The device uses aerials to receive, focus, and retransmit radar signals back toward self-driving cars without the need of a power source. Laboratory testing found that the device improved the auto sensor's maximum detection distance from 10 meters to 36 meters. The researchers believe the $2,000 manufacturing price tag could be lowered through mass production, with the device able to be placed on the outside of vehicles, road furniture, and clothing. However, the University of Bath's Ian Walker said, "No matter how effective a device is at making people in the street more visible, it should be obvious that it’s the engineers’ job to make their vehicles safe, and not the pedestrian’s job to help car-makers."

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