"By humanizing technology, we have this golden opportunity to (re) Imagine how we connect with machines, and therefore, how we, as human beings, connect with one another."
Good Morning Folks,
If you watch TV you've probably been seeing those public service ads encouraging everyone to put their phones away at dinner and on Sundays so we can all have some good old fashioned human interaction. One example is Dixie®, a Georgia-Pacific brand and the leader in disposable tableware and other conveniences for busy families, who announced the creation of a social movement called “Dark for Dinner.” The movement, which launches on June 14 and will take place every Sunday for six weeks, is designed to encourage families to focus on the present and to “Be More Here.
Maybe you've even experienced having to drop your phone in a basket so you can't be tempted to look at it during a dinner or meeting. A commercial making the point titled "A spoken word film for an online generation" goes like this:
Our emotions influence every aspect of our lives — how we learn, how we communicate, how we make decisions. Yet they’re absent from our digital lives; the devices and apps we interact with have no way of knowing how we feel.
But in todays TEDTalk, Scientist Rana el Kaliouby aims to change that. She demos a powerful new technology that reads your facial expressions and matches them to corresponding emotions. This “emotion engine” has big implications, she says, and could change not just how we interact with machines — but with each other.
Our emotions influence every aspect of our lives, from our health and how we learn, to how we do business and make decisions, big ones and small. Our emotions also influence how we connect with one another. We've evolved to live in a world like this, but instead, we're living more and more of our lives like this -- this is the text message from my daughter last night -- in a world that's devoid of emotion. "So I'm on a mission to change that," says Rana. "I want to bring emotions back into our digital experiences." Have a look.
So as more and more of our lives become digital, we are fighting a losing battle trying to curb our usage of devices in order to reclaim our emotions. So what Rana's trying to do instead is to bring emotions into our technology and make our technologies more responsive. She wants those devices that have separated us to bring us back together. And by humanizing technology, we have this golden opportunity to re imagine how we connect with machines, and therefore, how we, as human beings, connect with one another.
Have a GREAT Day,
Mitchell D. Weiner
Chief Happiness Officer
Ideas are not set in stone. When exposed to thoughtful people, they morph and adapt into their most potent form. TED Tuesdays on MitchWeiner.com highlights some of today's most intriguing ideas. Look for more talks on Technology, Entertainment and Design -- plus science, business, global issues, the arts and much more— HERE.
ABOUT CHIP KIDD
Chip Kidd is a designer and writer living in New York City. His book cover designs for Alfred A. Knopf, where he has worked nonstop since 1986, have helped create a revolution in the art of American book packaging. He is the recipient of the National Design Award for Communication Design, as well as the Use of Photography in Design Award from the International Center of Photography. Kidd has published two novels, The Cheese Monkeys and The Learners. A distinguished and prolific lecturer, Kidd has spoken at Princeton, Yale, Harvard, RISD, and a zillion other places.
About FSO Onsite Outsourcing
Recognized on the Inc. 5000 list of the nation's fastest growing companies for the third consecutive year, and lead by industry pioneer, Mitch Weiner, FSO's growth and success can be attributed to making a positive and powerful impact on their clients' bottom lines, as well as their employees' careers and lives.
