Affective technology one day may help online education programs provide better learning experiences. Now, when a student makes a mistake, a program can’t tell if it’s because the student is bored or befuddled. A program that distinguishes this, Dr. el Kaliouby said, could offer more challenging problems to the bored students and simpler exercises to the struggling ones.
Dr. el Kaliouby and Dr. Picard also are working to develop something called Q Sensors, bands worn on the wrist that measure emotional arousal through the skin’s electrical conductance and temperature, as well as activity level. For people with autism, many of whom can’t speak or can’t articulate their feelings — or for anyone else — the sensors provide insights into emotional state that the users may not be able to articulate themselves.