Welcome to the January 2019 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.

Little Evidence That Screen Time Is Harmful for Kids, Say Doctors
CNN
Tara John
January 4, 2019

The Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) in the U.K. has released guidance to help parents manage their children's screen time. The guidance avoids setting limits on screen time, but advises against using devices an hour before bedtime because of evidence that this can disrupt sleep. The report also stresses that when positive activities such as exercise, socializing, and sleep are replaced by screen time, a child's wellbeing is affected. The guidance diverges from one put forth by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) in 2016, which recommended time restrictions based on the age of a child. RCPCH said in its guidance that recommendations by the AAP "and similar guidelines have been criticized as not being fully evidence-based and being focused on risks rather than recognizing the potential benefits of digital screen use in education and industry." Said RCPCH Officer for Health Promotion Max Davie: "Although there are negative associations between screen time and poor mental health, sleep, and fitness, we cannot be sure that these links are causal, or if other factors are causing both negative health outcomes and higher screen time."

Full Article

Home Health Devices Are Tracking More Than Ever
The Wall Street Journal
Katherine Bindley
January 6, 2018

New technology increasingly is enabled to intuit deeper health data directly from users, often with inexpensive or even wearable devices. According to a spokesperson from the Consumer Technology Association, the 2019 CES technology show will showcase digital health products from 511 companies, versus 472 in 2018. The market's growth is partly fueled by improved sensor accuracy and data processing innovations; however, a key challenge is protecting the privacy of users. For example, Omron Healthcare plans to launch a wrist wearable that reads blood pressure, with all the collected data stored in a system complying with federal health data protection standards. Forrester's Julie Ask said healthcare consumerization could lead to faster and lower-cost care in the long term, but clear industry benefits have yet to emerge.

Full Article

Detecting Depression: Phone Apps Could Monitor Teen Angst
Associated Press
Lindsey Tanner
January 3, 2019

Researchers across the U.S. are testing apps that use artificial intelligence that try to predict depression episodes or potential self-harm. Using smartphones as mental illness detectors would require informed consent from users that install an app, and an understanding that they could withdraw at any time. This biggest hurdle for researchers is to learn about what is in the enormous trove of data people accumulate on their phones that is indicative of a mental health crisis. If smartphones can be shown to be accurate mood predictors, researchers say the ultimate goal would be use them to offer real-time help, possibly via automated text messages and links to help lines, or digital alerts to parents, doctors, or first responders.

Full Article

Tech Firms Enter the Business of Campus Mental Healthcare
The Boston Globe
Deirdre Fernandes
December 12, 2018

Private companies are offering U.S. colleges and their students technology solutions to help handle mental healthcare needs, ranging from phone apps that evaluate well-being to websites that make personalized recommendations for off-campus therapists. For example, Framingham State University teamed with YOU at College, an online platform that offers Web-based mental health assessments, links to campus resources, and mindfulness and studying tips to reduce stress and anxiety. Meanwhile, Zencare connects college students with local therapists and clinicians, enabling them to search for therapists online, based on their insurance, care needs, gender preferences, language expertise, and approach. The Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit Active Minds focuses on suicide prevention, tapping students' growing interest in technology-based options for receiving care. Said Active Minds' Laura Horne, "We are still waiting on more data to see how effective they are."

Full Article

An Inside Look at Apple's Biggest Step Yet in Healthcare
Time
Alex Fitzpatrick
December 6, 2018

Apple has launched a software update for the Series 4 Apple Watch to enable an on-device electrocardiogram (ECG) and warn wearers of potential heart problems. This function marks a move by Apple into medical aspects of health. Apple's Jeff Williams said with tens of millions of people already wearing Apple Watches, "There's a huge opportunity to empower people with more information about their health." The ECG software update stemmed from a collaboration between Apple and Stanford University, in which volunteers wore an Apple Watch that periodically checked for cardiac abnormalities; users were connected with doctors, or were sent a traditional ECG, when the devices detected something abnormal. The Series 4 has sensors for measuring electrical activity in the body, and Apple said to reduce false positives, the watch will only alert users to a potential problem if it detects five instances of what it considers a cardiovascular episode.

Full Article

'Smart Homes' to Help Older, Disabled People Get Digital Skills and Tackle Loneliness in Rural Areas
Gov.uk (United Kingdom)
January 6, 2019

A number of smart homes with digitally proficient residents demonstrating technology are being created as part of a plan to boost the U.K.'s digital skills, especially among the senior and disabled populations. The residences will be built in rural West Essex, where homeowners will be trained as "digital boomers" to help others improve their own digital savvy. One innovation is an app from the Down's Syndrome Association to enable people with the disorder to watch their weight and exercise levels from their smartphones to promote good health and wellbeing. Among the project's goals is to support caregivers and families often at risk of isolation and detrimental effects on health and wellbeing, while improving their digital skills. Said Minister for Digital Margot James, "We are committed to improving the digital skills of people of all ages and abilities so everyone can enjoy the benefits of modern technology."

Full Article

Quality Time, Brought to You by Big Tech
Wired
Arielle Pardes
December 31, 2019

The push to force technology companies to redesign products like cellphones so they place fewer demands on consumers' attention has apparently been co-opted by the tech industry. Said Fred Stutzman, whose Freedom outfit helps people manage their onscreen time by blocking apps and websites, "We're at this uncomfortable stage of digital well-being as marketing, where the tools created by corporations seem like a way to improve their brand image and atone for their past sins." Critics warn Google and Apple have used the term "digital wellness" to rebrand already existing products, while making few actual limit-setting concessions. The Center for Humane Technology's Asa Raskin said, "We need to move away from just human-centered design to human-protection design."

Full Article

'Hey, Alexa! How's My Blood Pressure?'
CNBC.com
Christina Farr
December 11, 2018

Omron Healthcare has partnered with Amazon to integrate its blood pressure monitors with the Alexa voice assistant. Users can pair their Omron cuff monitor to the company's mobile app and then ask Alexa to connect. They then can perform a variety of functions, such as requesting a reading of their latest blood pressure results. Alexa can also remind patients to take their blood pressure. Said Omron Healthcare CEO Ranndy Kellogg, “My team here who wrote the skill worked hand-in-hand with Amazon's Alexa and Echo teams to build the skill, test it, and even add new features as Amazon makes them available to healthcare companies.”

Full Article

Telemedicine Surging in U.S. but Still Uncommon
The Washington Post
Lisa Rapaport
December 11, 2018

A study led by Michael Barnett of the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health found that while telemedicine in the U.S. is growing in popularity, its use is still rare among Americans. The researchers, examining private health insurance claims data from 2005 to 2017 from OptumLabs Data Warehouse, found that annual telemedicine visits increased from 206 visits in 2005, or less than 1 per 1,000 people in the study, to more than 202,000 visits in 2017, or more than 7 per 1,000. An average annual compound growth rate of 52% was observed from 2005 to 2014, increasing to 261% from 2015 to 2017. Said Barnett, “If the growth rates we are observing continue, in a decade telemedicine will be seen as quite common.” Over the entire study period, 53% of telemedicine visits were for the purpose of mental health checks, and 39% were for primary care exams. By the last year of the study, primary care exams were the most frequent form of telemedicine.

Full Article

Depression in Girls Linked to Higher Use of Social Media
The Guardian (United Kingdom)
Denis Campbell
January 3, 2019

A study based on interviews with almost 11,000 14-year-olds who are taking part in the Millennium Cohort Study in the U.K. found that girls tend to spend far more time on social media platforms than boys, and they are much more likely to display signs of depression linked to their interaction on those platforms. The study found that 40% of girls are on social media at least three hours a day, compared to 20% of boys. The researchers found strong links between online bullying and feelings of depression, and time spent on social media and a lack of adequate sleep, both of which were more notable among girls. Said Stephen Scott of King's College London, “Inevitably there is the chicken and egg question, as to whether more dissatisfied children, who to begin with are less pleased with their body shape and have fewer friends, then spend more time on social media. Nonetheless, it is likely that excessive use of social media does lead to poorer confidence and mental health."

Full Article

Can an AI Keep You Happy at Work?
The Daily Mail
Annie Palmer
January 1, 2019

Humu, a startup co-founded by three former Google employees, is pitching artificial intelligence (AI) to help make employees happier at work. Humu wants to bring data-driven insights to other companies by analyzing employee surveys using AI to identify behavioral changes likely to have the greatest impact on elevating a workforce's happiness. The company would then use emails and text messages to "nudge" individual employees into small actions that advance the larger goal. The AI system, known as a "nudge engine," is based on economist Richard Thaler's Nobel Prize-winning research into how people often make decisions because of what is easier rather than what is in their best interest, and how a well-timed nudge can prompt them to make better choices. Humu said it will use machine learning to tailor the timing, content, and techniques of the messages it delivers based on how employees respond.

Full Article

In Screening for Suicide Risk, Facebook Takes On Tricky Public Health Role
The New York Times
Natasha Singer
December 31, 2018

Police stations around the world have received alerts from Facebook over the last 18 months as part of possibly the world's largest suicide threat screening and alert program. Facebook utilizes both algorithms and user reports to flag possible suicide threats. Facebook's algorithms scan users' posts, comments, and videos for indications of immediate suicide risk. When a post is flagged, Facebook relies on human reviewers, who are empowered to call local law enforcement. Facebook's role in suicide prevention puts the social network in a tricky position, as it is under investigation for privacy concerns by regulators around the globe. Some mental health experts observed Facebook’s calls to police could potentially cause harm, adding it is unclear whether the company’s approach is accurate, effective, or safe.

Full Article