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neurological sensors .


Do you remember Strange Days? That 1996 movie pictures a dystopic future in which people wear SQUIDs (Superconducting Quantum Interference Device), headsets that record events directly from the wearer’s cerebral cortex, and when played back through a MiniDisc-like device called DECK, allow a user to experience the recorder’s memory. Well, maybe that scenario is not that far.

In the last years a few neuroengineering companies and open-source projects released a series of affordable EEG systems, brain sensors designed to be consumer friendly while delivering high resolution measurements. These devices allow you to real-time stream brain information, not only in terms of raw data but also in terms of meaningful sensations.

It is possible to get measures of many state of minds and sensations levels of the user wearing the device; record their variations in time; mind-control digital operations and tasks. Different sensors allow different balances between the quantity of the available data and the speed and simplicity of installation. Among others, MHOX started the experimentation by comparing the Emotiv Epoc and the Neurosky Mindwave sensors.

In March 2014 MHOX started seeking for possible design applications of this technology, including it in the studio’s generative design environment and enquiring its connectivity with human activities and experiences. We are curious to see how these headsets may be able to control interactive environments, drive objects’ morphogenesis, and ultimately affect our daily practices. The experimentation is led in collaboration with ENTD | digital design for innovation and Co-de-iT | Computational Design Italy.