Wearable Tech Discussed - Computerphile

The field of Human Computer Interaction has been transformed with wearables that are smaller, more powerful and more plentiful. We talked to HCI expert Max Wilson about the use of his, ahem, one ring.
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This video was filmed and edited by Sean Riley.
Computer Science at the University of Nottingham: bit.ly/nottscomputer
Computerphile is a sister project to Brady Haran's Numberphile. More at www.bradyharanblog.com
Thank you to Jane Street for their support of this channel. Learn more: www.janestreet.com

[@yayaya6799]

So in short, rings are pretty useless at present.

[@Meower68]

In "Ghost Fleet," there was a scene where a Chinese general was doing a PowerPoint-type presentation. To change slides, he did a "pull the trigger" gesture on a finger where he was wearing a smart ring. In another scene in that book, a Chinese hacker, wearing a VR headset and five smart rings on each hand, was able to manipulate things within the virtual environment. In both scenes, the rings could read the movement of the tendons in the finger, such that each ring could determine not just how it was moving but how different sections of the finger were moving. Ergo, reading a trigger action, or multiple registering a grasp / hold / rotate action. The ring he's showing in this isn't able to do that. I've read about at least one company which was trying to put NFC into a ring, such that you could pay for stuff with one finger instead of needing your smartphone or a smart watch. One of many tech items which are still kinda lame at the moment, but could become useful if some of the sci-fi ideas around them are realized.

[@noisycarlos]

I wore an Oura for a year or so, now i have a Fitbit. They're about the same in terms of the info you get, each is more accurate at a different thing. The ring is much more discreet and easier to take on/off but I couldn't get used to wearing a ring in general. Not even after getting married 😂

[@Vaeldarg]

@@Meower68 It's also great for collecting even more data to sell to the highest bidder, as part of an increasing amount of surveillance in China.

[@azrobbins01]

The biggest problem with these is that it shares all of that data with a huge corporation who then sells it and uses it to exploit you.

[@atheosmachina]

Yup. At the end of the day, the overwhelming majority of this tech stuff is just products that are being punted on gullible consumers. Anything to fleece people of their money.

[@ZGorlock]

Yep, imagine if we could just have nice things

[@magicknight8412]

How do they exploit you with that data?

[@quitting_the_internet]

its really obvious. if you can get unrealized emotional feedback on what stimulates a person. you can better build a profile to get new stuff they would potential like and dislike. you could use that data to create new streams of influence and control. its seems like it they would discover a new sort of unconscious demands given 4+ years of improvements and research. its scary and not far fetched.

[@FengLengshun]

There are alternatives such as GadgetBridge, which is free and open-source app for interfacing with your wearables. The problem is that, much like any tech, it gets increasingly locked down. I can't even choose what app notifications to forward on my Mi Band 3, and that's AFTER I deal with the cloud-encrypted pair ID. There are also a lot of devices that they just haven't or cannot support.

[@FriskyKitsune]

It seems like a solution in search of a problem. I was hoping to hear some interesting applications for it. I already know when I'm stressed, I don't need a machine to tell me (and potentially tell other people without my consent)

[@skorp5677]

You presumably get more emotionally attatched to a ring and it has almost no interface, so it is easier to lock you into an ecosystem.

[@brandonthesteele]

What I'm sensing behind this is lots and lots of entrepreneurs and executives who want wearables to be normalized and popular, just like the smartphone. If wearable tech over and above the smart watch can be made to work (i.e. be palatable to the general public), then it's a gold mine.

[@MazLad]

The idea that tech companies might try to add sentiment to the wearables is amusing because if they did that people would be less inclined to buy the inevitable new model the following year!

[@bertblankenstein3738]

Don't worry, they'll do it on a monthly subscription.

[@chbigelow]

1:10 this is incorrect. High HRV indicates low average stress since this is evidence your nervous system is healthy and can adapt to changes

[@waltercolor6969]

Yes. it's supposed to get cool ppl on heir nerves gayops

[@groundwater9120]

I'd be all over a smart ring, but only on my own terms. The idea of sending off this kind of data to a third party is completely unacceptable in my eyes. As soon as they come out with an open source ring that you can install your own OS on, I'm in. The only workable solution in my opinion is to have one computer at home which is allowed to talk to the ring. You would manually upload to that computer, and that's the only device that will ever interface with it.

[@TheDetonadoBR]

If you have a phone you are already accepting much worst

[@WobblycogsUk]

At what point did we start needing a device to tell us if we are stressed?

[@youdontknowme5969]

I've been stressed since March 2020. I want a refund on these last 4 years please.

[@colmx8441]

Surprised not to see a sponsored video notification for this one. What is the technical angle here? How can I write a program to interface with one of these devices? edit: Is this a Jane Street requested video? Seems extremely different to 99% of the videos on this channel.

[@Vaeldarg]

The technical angle would probably be more as an input device/data oracle providing a stream of tracking data.

[@weksauce]

He's got HRV backwards. High HRV is low stress, body that's recovered and ready to go, because it's changing heart rate (varying) frequently and quickly and frictionlessly between sympathetic (fight or flight) and parasympathetic (rest and digest). A low HRV is a stressed, sick, unrecovered, not-ready body, because it's stuck on one (usually high) HR "fighting" for homeostasis.

[@dominicmutzhas6002]

Lower variability=higher stress. You flipped it

[@HereticB]

3:32 dear mr editor, I am appalled that the "I am feeling stressed button" is not a BIG RED BUTTON as it obviously should be. great video tho.

[@PySnek]

That video gave me about the same information like asking ChatGPT in one prompt.

[@AegisRick]

I didn't much care for the monitoring functionality, I just wanted a ring to open my phone or something unimportant. Turns out an RFID ring was the answer, and if you're creative about it you can actually do a hell of a lot with something like that.

[@rachel_rexxx]

The stress response shortfall thing seems like it points to the models not being individualized to the user. This kind of thing seems like it won't be useful until it can retrain a generalized model for the given user.

[@deersakamoto2167]

A recent study (doi: 10.3390/s24020635) shows most of those consumer-grade health trackers (including Oura) are not very accurate when it comes to sleep tracking compared to research-grade stuff.

[@John-Smith-999]

Yesterday I saw a great video by a woodwork guru explaining why it's a really bad idea to wear rings. It came with pictures from the time his ring got caught in a tool... It wasn't nice

[@oclipa]

The phrase you're looking for is "degloving", which I strongly recommend you don't google. I used to work in the oil industry and we used to have annual reminders about this, including a gruesome slideshow...

[@basbekjenl]

I can imagine using it as a personal storage for your most precious digital files. Nothing huge but small files a few gb for health or contract information. Stuff like that. Maybe a tiny emergency light.

[@MyFifaWorldcup2010]

1:35 High heart rate variability is a good thing, low variability is an indicator of stress or other health problems

[@paxdriver]

If I ever get a watch that tells me to calm down when I'm laughing too hard or kanoodling you'd have to give me a free car to wear it for that level of intrusion. Hospitals might buy it for patients I guess?

[@GeoffryGifari]

Thinking about it, is stress any different from excitement?

[@thuantang]

One ring to rule them all.

[@kellerkind6169]

this is sooo on point. I wonder how Tolkien saw this coming in the 1950ies ;-)

[@Bob3519]

🏆

[@nimuslide9047]

Just love seeing lotr references every now and then💪

[@danthe1st]

It looks like the video description already got that...

[@Yezpahr]

5:26 I would personally hate having to go through gestures like pinching, but I'm sure the deaf people would intuitively find way better gestures than the ones companies want to push right now.

[@jursamaj]

We already have 2-finger pinch/spread/rotate gestures on touch devices. Used for things like zooming/rotating maps and pictures.

[@krateng]

Fantasy RPG rings with stats are gonna be real. Gonna get myself a +14 charisma -3 wisdom ring.

[@RimshotKiller]

Finally a step closer to my dream RL equipment, + luck - intellect all the way!

[@rundown132]

Just drink alcohol

[@GeoffryGifari]

Can tech like those rings detect neural signals in the fingers?

[@GeoffryGifari]

And eventually do something like _affecting_ stress level?

[@deltamico]

If only there were wearable mini microphone arrays

[@timetraveller6643]

Sign Language to speech application. Proximity unlock my bicycle/laptop/post box. Encrypted password keeper tied to my biometrics? Medical history like those medalert bracelets.

[@AgentM124]

I hate having to charge 10 or more rings every few days and maybe different intervals. The real hop in tech would be when the rings can get energy directly from your body enough to run the small tasks they might need to do.

[@jursamaj]

I don't keep my phone in my pocket. It's on a clip on my belt because, having old eyes, I went for a large screen. But either way, many of the body sensors rely on seeing skin, to shine light on and measure the return. That's why watches and rings work well. Your phone is seldom in contact with the skin in such a reliable way. Yes, many people hold them a lot, but not constantly, or in the same grip, and the smart folks have them in protective cases anyway.

[@kevintedder4202]

"Accuracy of step count" !!!! I have a Samsung smart watch and some days I get out of bed, put on my watch, walk down stairs and it says I've done a 1000 steps. Has anyone actually counted their steps and compared it to a watch? I doubt it. They're just a gimmick. But it is accurate at telling the time.

[@rachel_rexxx]

Oh yeah these were on _Billions_

[@andyou2327]

The weirdest wearable I know of is the Acer Buddhist beads, but it seems to be selling well.

[@KipIngram]

Oh, PRINCE HARRY. Now I've GOT to have one... 😐

[@jntrcs]

The authentication ring is a lot more interesting to me than a health tracker. I should be able to use my ring to pay for things, log in to my computer, prove I am who I say I am in the Airtport, etc. Much more natural and seamless use case than shoddy health trackers that don't measure what they claim to

[@jursamaj]

Nope. Then all that stuff is at the whim of whoever can steal the ring from you.

[@JNCressey]

​@@jursamaj, the ring could have a fingerprint sensor for unlocking it.

[@adamwishneusky]

Mood ring

[@thisguy00]

If it doesnt give me +1 to all stats, its not worth wearing IMO

[@duytdl]

Aw, just fitness BS? I though they actually shrunk all of computing and AI down to ring sized to replace smartphones and watches entirely. Wake me up when that happens!

[@skaillewokeur]

"Yoo vill eat ze bugs and vear ze verables"

[@hyperbaroque]

I feel like half way through, I felt like we were talking about the PAST. About SUPERSTITIONS. And by the end I realized I just got bullsh****d and my time was wasted. Please; don't.

[@kenjinks5465]

Feel your spouses heart through your ring, that would be hecka hard

[@user-up5ld4pj7w]

Bleep him stat this pulse rate is classic undersleep profile he's about to go full cringe seventeen dobloons me hearties

[@subliminalvibes]

I'm really happy with my smartwatch but I only turn on the sensors when MTB'ing. I get 24 days between charges this way and I know my data footprint is minimal. It's a 3 year old Fenix 6 sapphire. 12 days between charges with everything on all the time. My only other 'wearable tech' is my phone and even that isn't on my person for the majority of the day. Good times. 👍😎

[@jagrcarl]

Nice!

[@dropkoning]

How unintersting. Next!

[@dannysosa5334]

@computerphile Linux XZ hack video when

[@KipIngram]

Well, stress vs. "stress response." "Stress" is a mental experience - of course we can't measure that directly. Our responses to our mental state are all we will ever be able to measure.

[@spoon_bomb]

I'm sorry, what ? Please remove this commercial from your channel, this does not do you credit.

[@Piipolinoo]

not very interesting topic and an even more hollow conversation.

[@smylesg]

0:00 So today we're talking about covert government tracking devices....

[@kellerkind6169]

exactly. I'm horrified this topic is being discussed with such a naive approach on a platform like computerfile

[@azrobbins01]

Yep. It is mindboggling that people willingly wear things like that that collect data on you and report it back so they can sell it, and also track and exploit you.

[@kellerkind6169]

@@azrobbins01 especially when we're talking about people with an IT-background, who SHOULD know better....

[@elliotgillum]

The hilarious part is all of us are commenting from our government approved tracking devices.

[@kellerkind6169]

@@elliotgillum By which you mean your mobile?