Stephen Hawking has long relied on technology to help him connect with the outside world. For the past decade the renowned physicist, who has battled a degenerative motor neuron disease for half a century, has used a voluntary twitch of his cheek muscle to compose words and sentences one letter at a time. Each tweak stops a cursor that continuously scans text on a screen. But in recent years his condition has deteriorated, and he now communicates at the rate of just one word per minute. In late 2011 Hawking contacted Intel to ask if the company could help.

Intel chief technology officer Justin Rattner noted at the International Consumer Electronics Show in January that the company has built an improved word predictor and is exploring the use of facial-recognition software to speed communication. This work is part of Intel's broader research into devices that can help the elderly and disabled. The key is “context awareness,” technology that allows gadgets to anticipate users' needs, such as letting them know about appointment times and reminding them to carry enough cash when running errands.

Intel's plan requires a combination of hardware sensors—camera, accelerometer, microphone, thermometer and others—with software that can check one's personal calendar, social networks and Internet browsing habits, to name a few.

Said Rattner: “We'll be emotionally connected with our devices in a few years.”

This article was originally published with the title Twitching to Talk.

1 Comments

1. 1. wdbarker3 09:12 AM 3/24/13

   This is an interesting subject. It makes me wonder if Dr. Hawking has tried International Morse Code. As a character input method to the Intel word prediction software, the pair might perform at extreme speed. Twitching dah dah, di di di dit, dah di dit would be far faster than pointing out the letters in magnetohydrodynamics, for example. As demonstrated on The Tonight Show (2007-Aug-7), morse can be faster than texting. Of course, the morse experts were using a two-paddle device and I am assuming Dr. Hawking has only one "twitch-point", but a beginner in morse can reach speeds of 5 words per minute in very short order. The 30 wpm demonstrated on the show would be quite an achievement. I'd not expect much more than 10 to 12 wpm from a cheek twitch method. I wonder how I contact Dr. Hawking to ask if this has been tried.
   
   Dan Barker
   Atlanta

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