A new smartphone application that works with Google Glass may help boost the social skills of children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). A small studypublished in the Journal Pediatrics found that over the course of six weeks, children who used the app at home made greater gains in their social abilities than those children who attended therapy alone. While the study is preliminary and the app is not currently commercially available, the results look promising.
Help With Social Skills
Many children with autism suffer socially because they are unable to properly recognize and respond to feelings and emotions in others. They typically have particular difficulty recognizing facial expressions. A group of scientists built facial recognition software for Google Glass to help children with autism distinguish between different facial expressions and learn how to interact socially.
Google Glass is a brand of smart glasses with an optical head-mounted display that is designed in the shape of glasses. Google Glass displays information like a smartphone in a hands-free way. Wearers of the device can communicate with the internet using voice commands.
The new app called “Superpower Glass” helps children decipher what is happening with the people around them. The camera and speaker report information to a smartphone app which is designed to help the children decode what is happening and how to respond. After using Superpower Glass for four 20-minute sessions for six weeks, children scored better on tests of socialization, communication, and behavior.
The app relies on artificial intelligence to offer children feedback on social interactions. This helps them learn from experience the appropriate ways to respond in social situations. The app gives the children feedback in real time. When the children look at a face, a green light flashes and an emoji tells the kids what emotion the face is displaying. The study shows promising results but it still remains to be seen whether Superpower Glass is feasible in real-world settings and whether families will actually choose to use the app.
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