New York Times article on SenseCam

A Little Black Box to Jog Failing Memory, By YUDHIJIT BHATTACHARJEE, NYT, March 8, 2010.

A nice article on SenseCam with a focus on memory-loss applications.

Two years ago, Mr. Reznick, who has early-stage Alzheimer’s disease and is now 82, signed up for an experiment intended to help people with Alzheimer’s and other memory disorders. The concept was simple: using digital pictures and audio to archive an experience like a weekend visit from the grandchildren, creating a summary of the resulting content by picking crucial images, and reviewing them periodically to awaken and strengthen the memory of the event.

Fitbit wearable fitness logging

The FitBit is yet another entry in the wearable fitness category. It uses motion-sensing to keep track of calories burned, steps taken, distance traveled and even sleep quality. It is in the form of a little clip that you can put on your waistband or pocket. It also comes with a wristband, which is recommended while sleeping. Here's a review in the Wall Street Journal

Sensors everywhere – even in lightbulbs

In Total Recall, we predict a proliferation of sensors. It seems that eventually nearly everything than can be instrumented will be. What does “nearly everything” include? Well, how about your lightbulbs? Lyndsay Williams, the inventor of the SenseCam, has invented the SenseBulb. This lightbulb watches over you from above, but with a view to temperature, not what is visible, as the BBC explains:

the device uses four sensors known as thermopiles - the same kind of detector found in heat-seeking missiles. They sense temperature differences accurately and over a short time from a narrow angle.

Lindsay envisions the bulb being used for "Assisted Living  and Alzheimer's  patients" detecting

...incidents in the home, e,g, a door left open, cooker unattended  or somebody fallen in the bathroom. A text message is  sent to a mobile phone. SenseBulb is also useful for security systems in the home and office.

It can even notice "the cold draft from the cat flap," sending Lyndsay a text message when her cat goes in and out.

Where will we find sensors next?

Two wireless wearable devices for vital signs: WIN Human Recorder and Digital Plaster

The WIN Human Recorder:

a system that measures electrocardiographic signals, body surface temperature and human movements at the same time by attaching a sensor with wireless communication capability to the chest... Human movements are detected by a three-axis acceleration sensor.

Digital plaster:

An tiny electronic device, which can be attached to an ordinary plaster, has been developed by a scientist from London's Imperial College.

The device checks vital signs such as temperature, blood pressure and glucose levels, sending results to a computer, which highlights any cause for concern.

Hat tip: Singularity hub

Total Recall for Police Officers

Police in San Jose are testing head-mounted cameras. Meanwhile Vievu is making a chest-worn "video camera for cops." Evidence.com wants to be the storage system for cops:

EVIDENCE.COM™ is a full featured system designed around easy-to-use dashboards that turn geospatial multi-media evidence, such as GPS tagged video, into visual dashboards and tactical maps with full click-through to underlying video data

For soldiers and cops, video may be the first thing to start capturing. For the rest of us, it is probably the last, with things like health data, personal correspondence, and vacation photos being near the head of the list.