#humanistic intelligence

TORONTO: When you first meet Steve Mann, it seems as if you’ve interrupted him appraising diamonds or doing some sort of specialized welding. Because the first thing you notice is the plastic frame that comes around his right ear and holds a lens over his right eye.  But quickly you see that there’s more to his contraption: A tiny video camera is affixed to the plastic eyepiece. Multicolored wires wrap around the back of Mann’s head. Red and white lights blink under his sweater. Mann greets you, warmly at first, though he soon gets distracted by something on the tiny computer monitor wedged over his eye.  In fact, being with Mann sometimes feels like the ultimate, in-your-face version of having a dinner companion who talks on a cell phone. But don’t be put off by it. Someday you, too, might be a cyborg.