'Necomimi' cat ears now for sale
Posted by GreenReaper (Laurence Parry) on Sat 26 May 2012 - 12:42 — Edited by dronon as of Sun 6 Oct 2019 - 10:49
As reported a year ago, "mind-controlled" cat ears are finally on the market. [CalistaF]
It's unclear whether the technology relies on brainwave analysis or muscular nerve inputs, and the promotional video shows movement to be limited. Still, they seem to be in demand.
About the author
GreenReaper (Laurence Parry) — read stories — contact (login required)a developer, editor and Kai Norn from London, United Kingdom, interested in wikis and computers
Small fuzzy creature who likes cheese & carrots. Founder of WikiFur, lead admin of Inkbunny, and Editor-in-Chief of Flayrah.
Comments
I can't take seriously any product that uses the most generic/cliche "DRAMATIC PIANO" loops from GarageBand as the basis of the sound design. Or, you know, any product that is that product.
Getting a useful EEG reading is very hard, and usually requires shaving hair and applying conductive gel. My (admittedly speculative) guess, based on the product description ("two light-touch sensors on your forehead and ear"), is that it'd be a combination of voltage difference between the two points and _resistance_ between the two points (like a polygraph lie-detector). Those values will change all the time, due to factors you can and can't influence.
Based on that, I'd consider it likely that you _could_ trigger changes between ear-states, with practice, but that they'll still do whatever they want most of the time.
Ears that tracked eye position (facing the direction you're looking) or that point towards the nearest sound source would IMO be better as costume accessories, and would be easy enough to make.
You're not trying to get a medical-standard reading. You just need a rough measurement. For something like this you can have a simple device. I went to a science centre where they had a game where you would try reducing brain activity more than your opponent to win the game. It only had a headband with a detector on.
"If all mankind minus one, were of one opinion, and only one person were of the contrary opinion, mankind would be no more justified in silencing that one person, than he, if he had the power, would be justified in silencing mankind."
~John Stuart Mill~
No, you can't. Because a reading that _isn't_ medical-grade is dominated by *noise*, not by the user's emotional state.
The game you played almost certainly gave readings as crappy as the ones I described above, with results that were a hair's-breadth away from random (and probably dominated by how much each person was sweating; skin conductivity is much easier to measure than surface electrical activity).
It's a hatband with cat ears.
They twitch.
Oh, no, the readings are crappy.
I will put this as simply as I can for you.
RG says that crappy readings will still give you something you can control (mostly).
I say that crappy readings won't (mostly).
The difference between "cat ears that twitch randomly" and "cat ears that twich in response to your mental commands" is substantial enough to be relevant. That was the point of my original post.
Is there a point you're trying to make with your own response?
I think we're on the same side, dude, calm down. We're both unimpressed, especially considering how batshit insane excited people got over the first article, which has only recently been surpassed as the highest rated article on Flayrah.
The only difference, I suppose, is why. You, because science. Me, because hairband with ears that twitch, maybe by the wearer kinda sorta thinking about it, maybe not. Who cares?
Not me.
I guess that's my point.
They're not "on the market", because you can't yet buy one (as of 1 June 2012). The closest they have is a "Register for News" button, which I assume means you'll be notified when they do hit the market.
I think you missed the "buy now" button at the top right.
Wired magazine now has a story on the Nekomimi Cat Ears:
http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2012/07/necomimi-brainwave-cat-ears/?utm_source=f...
Fred Patten
These ears do not go forward when you are relaxed. They move sideways in opposite directions. THey are adorable, I own a pair, AMAZING.
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