Seeing through Walls | God's World News

Seeing through Walls

03/02/2016
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    MIT researchers walk through a room as a screen displays how their movement is tracked. (AP)
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    A Massachusetts Institute of Technology researcher sets up the RF-Capture device. (AP)
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    The device uses WiFi signals to “see” through walls. (AP)
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    It could be important to tell if an elderly person is sitting, moving or has fallen. (AP)
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    An MIT researcher works on a laptop with software that runs the “see-through” device. (AP)
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X-ray vision: It’s not just for comic books anymore. Seeing through walls is becoming a reality. But the technology is raising eyebrows with folks concerned about privacy.

A group of researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has developed new software. The software can “see” through walls and track movements.

The technology is called Emerald. It should be available in 2017. But don’t expect a movie-like image of the person in the next room. A human silhouette shows up on a computer screen as a red blotch moving around or sitting still.

The technology doesn’t use radiation like a medical X-ray. Instead, a device emits wireless radio signals. It tracks those signals as they bounce off objects, such as furniture and people, and back to the device. It works even through obstacles, such as walls.

Lead professor Dina Katabi says curiosity drove the MIT group. Could they use signals to detect what was happening behind a solid surface?

The answer turned out to be yes. Wireless signals emitted from a device like a router can track movements. One researcher notes that the person behind a wall “doesn’t even need to know the device is there.” The signals can also measure breathing and heart rate—and perhaps identify the person based on shape, says researcher Zach Kabelac.

Emerald could help health care providers and families keep tabs on toddlers or elderly relatives. If the person falls or makes an unusual movement, the device sends a text or email to a caregiver. It could even call 911 if a person remains motionless.

Healthcare uses are interesting, Katabi says. But she also sees military and law enforcement possibilities—particularly in hostage situations.

The MIT team is still working to make the device smaller. It also wants to develop a smartphone app to let caregivers access readings anywhere.

For some, though, Emerald’s technology raises questions about privacy rights and intrusion. Could you be watched by a stranger without your knowledge? The MIT team gave thought to those issues.

Emerald "will be friendly for setting it up and using it at home, but it will be very hard to use it to track someone just by pointing it at their wall," says team member Fadel Adib.

But Adib’s statement seems conflicting—especially since that’s exactly what the team is trying to do. Right now, the equipment is large and bulky. It would be hard to use it to spy on neighbors. But eventually, he says, it is conceivable. One day, there may be a cellphone interface that allows people to use wireless signals from their own phones like the Emerald technology.

Sound like something out of a spy novel? Some folks note that while peering through walls will be difficult for now, it won’t be impossible. And for many, that’s not much comfort. Where is our comfort? Emerald will never be all-seeing, but we know one who is, and He cares for each of us.

The eyes of the Lord are in every place, keeping watch on the evil and the good.—Proverbs 15:3