SixthSense is a wearable gestural interface device that augments the physical world with digital information and lets people use natural hand gestures to interact with that information. It was developed by Pranav Mistry, a PhD student in the Fluid Interfaces Group at the MIT Media Lab. It is similar to a neckworn projector+camera system developed by Media Lab student Steve Mann which Mann originally referred to as "Synthetic Synesthesia of the Sixth Sense".



Basically, Sixth Sense is a mini-projector coupled with a camera and a cellphone—which acts as the computer and your connection to the Cloud, all the information stored on the web. Sixth Sense can also obey hand gestures, like in the infamous Minority Report.

However, instead of requiring you to be in front of a big screen like Tom Cruise, Sixth Sense can do its magic—and a lot more—everywhere.

The camera recognizes objects around you instantly, with the micro-projector overlaying the information on any surface, including the object itself or your hand. Then, you can access or manipulate the information using your fingers. Need to make a call? Extend your hand on front of the projector and numbers will appear for you to click. Need to know the time? Draw a circle on your wrist and a watch will appear. Want to take a photo? Just make a square with your fingers, highlighting what you want to frame, and the system will make the photo—which you can later organize with the others using your own hands over the air.

But those are just novelty applications. The true power of Sixth Sense lies on its potential to connect the real world with the Internet, and overlaying the information on the world itself. Imagine you are at the supermarket, thinking about what brand of soap is better. Or maybe what wine you should get for tonight's dinner. Just look at objects, hold them on your hands, and Sixth Sense will show you if it's good or bad, or if it fits your preferences or not.

Now take this to every aspect of your everyday life. You can be in a taxi going to the airport, and just by taking out your boarding pass, Sixth Sense will grab real time information about your flight and display it over the ticket. You won't need to do any action. Just hold it in front of your and it will work.

The key here is that Sixth Sense recognizes the objects around you, displaying information automatically and letting you access it in any way you want, in the simplest way possible.

Clearly, this has the potential of becoming the ultimate "transparent" user interface for accessing information about everything around us. If they can get rid of the colored finger caps and it ever goes beyond the initial development phase, that is. But as it is now, it may change the way we interact with the real world and truly give everyone complete awareness of the environment around us.

Or just make a few people look like dorks. It can go either way, really. Whatever it is, I want to try it.

The first Facebook benefits that I have found is that I am able to find some of my old friends from all my previous schools that I have fallen out of contact with. I know that if you're like me, some of your close friends stay in contact with you, but others just fall away and see you only on rare occasions.

The second Facebook benefit that I know of is that Facebook has many groups on the site that you can join. So if you are interested in America's Next Top Model (ANTM) you can research ANTM in the groups section and you will be able to find friends on there that like the programme just as much as you do. Now that is just one example that I can say right away, but I know that you can join groups for being a fan of your favorite football team, television show, or whatever you want for the most part. Another Facebook benefits is that even if you are unable to find the group that you are looking for, but think that an interest would exist you will be able to start your own group!



The third Facebook benefit that I have found is that you are able to chat with your friends just like you were able to on some of the original Internet programs. I know that some people do not like talking online to others, but if you do not have free long distance or are unsure of peoples phone numbers that are your old friends you can talk to them on Facebook and manage to save yourself a long distance phone call. However, at times you will still want to get that personal connection and call someone up.


With such wonderful benefits from using Facebook, it is no wonder nearly everyone I know, including my aunties, parents and little cousins, all have and use Facebook. Now if only they come up with a software which can limit our time on Facebook so that youths like me will not be able to be distracted by it and be able to complete our homework in no time. (instead of a few hours because someone just changed their status and you had to read and comment on it, or because somebody just uploaded a bunch of new photos)