Senselists

Senselists are a concept originating from research in human-computer interaction and sensory substitution. They refer to curated collections of sensory information that are designed to be perceived by a sense other than the one typically associated with that information. For example, a senselist might translate visual patterns into a sequence of tactile vibrations on the skin or auditory tones. The goal is to create a new way for individuals, particularly those with sensory impairments, to access or experience information that would otherwise be unavailable to them.

The creation of a senselist involves careful consideration of sensory perception and cognitive mapping. Researchers aim to design mappings that are intuitive and efficient, allowing users to learn and interpret the new sensory input with relative ease. This often involves analyzing the characteristics of the original sensory data, such as its spatial or temporal properties, and finding analogous properties in the target sensory modality. For instance, the brightness of a light might be mapped to the intensity of a vibration, or the movement of an object might be represented by a changing pitch in sound.

Senselists have potential applications in areas such as accessibility for visually impaired individuals, allowing them to "feel" or "hear" visual information like images or text. They can also be explored for enhancing human capabilities by providing novel ways to perceive data, such as environmental information or complex datasets. The effectiveness of a senselist is typically evaluated through user studies that measure learning speed, accuracy of interpretation, and overall user experience. The field is continually evolving, exploring new sensory modalities and more sophisticated mapping techniques to expand the possibilities of sensory substitution.