The vOICe: Seeing with Sound
DEVICE THAT TURNS IMAGES INTO SOUND, 2016
Michael Proulx (US)
What does it mean, “to see”? Can a person with sight loss 'see' again by substituting one sense for another using? The vOICe is an interactive demonstration of a sensory substitution device technology that allows people to see with sound.
Sensory substitution devices for people with a visual impairment provide for missing visual input by converting images into a format that another sense can process non-invasively, such as sound. This is possible due to neuroplasticity — the ability the brain has to reorganise itself throughout an individual's life by creating new neural pathways to adapt to changes as it needs to, whether that be as a result of changes in the environment or injury.
The vOICe, invented by Dutch engineer Peter Meijer, is now being used by Michael Proulx and other cognitive neuroscientists, philosophers and artists to explore the nature of the senses and how the brain allows us to see, even without vision.
BIO
Michael J. Proulx is Senior Lecturer in Psychology and Director of the Crossmodal Cognition Lab at the University of Bath. He also works with the Centre for Digital Entertainment in the Department of Computer Science. He investigates several aspects of multisensory cognition with a particular interest in the impact of blindness on cognition and assistive technology. His interdisciplinary research spans psychology, computer science, neuroscience, and biology, in collaboration with researchers in several countries. He received his Ph.D. in Psychological and Brain Sciences from Johns Hopkins University, and his B.Sc. in Psychology from Arizona State University. He is a Fellow of the Society for Experimental Psychology and Cognitive Science in the American Psychological Association, and was a torchbearer for the London 2012 Paralympic Games.