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	Podcast:		Science Nation
	Episode:		Computational behavioral science develops tools, methods to reach children with autism
	Category:		Science & Medicine
	Duration:		00:03:23
	Publish Date:		2016-03-31 00:01:00
	Description:		Lexie is an active, healthy 2-year-old and already lending a hand, or more specifically her wrist, to science. She's helping researchers test sensors designed to gauge something particularly difficult to measure scientifically -- emotional responses. The wrist sensor Lexie is wearing provides immediate feedback on the electrical changes in the skin that increase with her perspiration. With support from NSF, teams across the country like this one are working to advance a new field of research called computational behavioral science. Computer scientist Rosalind Picard of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is developing wearable sensors to measure the subtle changes that naturally occur in the body during social interactions. Picard's group focuses largely on children with autism and other nonverbal learning disabilities that make it difficult for them to understand and communicate their emotions, and to be understood. Among the technologies Picard's group has developed is a new creative learning platform for the digital age called StoryScape, an open and customizable platform for creating animated storybooks that can interact with the physical world. It is available free on Android devices.
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