Facebook Inc.s research unit Building 8 is working to make it possible for people to type using signals from their brains.
Regina Dugan, hired from Alphabet Inc. in 2016 to oversee the lab, said that within “a few years time” Facebook aims to develop a system that can type at 100 words per minute, just from monitoring the brain, without using any kind of implant. The company is working with outside academics on the issue now.
This would give “the ability to text a friend without taking out your phone”, Dugan said Wednesday at the social network operators F8 developer conference. The lab is also working on a way for people to hear through their skin.
“One day, not so far away, it may be possible for me to think in Mandarin and for you to feel it instantly in Spanish,” Dugan said.
Far-fetched as it may sound, Dugan said researchers have already found it possible to use brain waves for typing at eight words per minute.
Its one of many Facebook initiatives for the very long term. For its more near-term goal of making videos and images more immersive, Facebook unveiled a design for two new three-dimensional cameras. The cameras will be given to some filmmakers and partners to help create more 3-D video content.
For Facebook, the research connects to its overall goals because it relates to improving peoples social experiences, Dugan said. It could also make it possible for those who are deaf or otherwise disabled to communicate more easily.
臉書公司的研究機(jī)構(gòu)Building 8正努力使人們用腦電波就能打字。
2016年臉書公司從Alphabet公司(谷歌重組后的“傘形公司”)聘請(qǐng)了雷吉娜·杜根來管理該實(shí)驗(yàn)室。杜根表示,臉書打算在“幾年內(nèi)”開發(fā)一個(gè)系統(tǒng),該系統(tǒng)不需要任何植入,只通過監(jiān)測(cè)大腦(信號(hào))就能在每分鐘內(nèi)打100個(gè)字。目前該公司正與外部院校合作解決這個(gè)問題。
這將會(huì)賦予你“不用拿出手機(jī)就能給朋友發(fā)短信的能力”。星期三杜根在社交媒體經(jīng)營(yíng)者參與的F8開發(fā)者大會(huì)上說道。該實(shí)驗(yàn)室也在研究一種使人們通過皮膚來接收信息的方式。
“有朝一日,我也許可以用中文思考,而你可以用西班牙語(yǔ)即刻了解到(我的想法),而這一天不會(huì)太遠(yuǎn)。”杜根說道。
這聽上去也許有點(diǎn)令人難以置信,但杜根表示,研究人員已經(jīng)發(fā)現(xiàn),用腦電波每分鐘打8個(gè)字是有可能的。
這是臉書公司眾多長(zhǎng)期創(chuàng)新提案之一。而其短期目標(biāo)是使視頻和圖像更擬真化,臉書公司也首次展示了兩款新的三維照相機(jī)的設(shè)計(jì)。該照相機(jī)將提供給一些電影制作人及合作方,以助其創(chuàng)作更多的3D視頻內(nèi)容。
對(duì)臉書公司而言,這項(xiàng)研究結(jié)合了其綜合目標(biāo),因?yàn)樗c提高人們的社交體驗(yàn)有關(guān),杜根說道。而對(duì)那些失聰或殘疾的人來說,這項(xiàng)技術(shù)也可以使他們更方便地與人溝通成為可能。