Black people can't drive
Microsoft's hands
free games controller, Project Natal ironically has a problem with Black
people.
Named after the last place in the world with legislated apartheid.
Project Natal has been receiving high mark in terms of innovative
technology and unique ideas. But it seems the controller has a few
problems when it comes to users who are not white.
Dan Hsu on Bitmod noticed
that when game consultant and former Newsweek writer N'Gai Croal gave
Paradise a test drive, however, the game had trouble reading his steering
actions. While it could read his feet, which were covered in shoes, Project
Natal would not let him steer the car.
However there was no problem when
another driver was at the wheel. True, Croal does have dreadlocks but if
that was a problem someone with long hair would also send Natal into a
spin. Apparently it might be a problem with the near-infrared spectroscopy,
which has a problem detecting darker skinned individuals.
The NIRS device
failed to register tissue saturation values at some point in nine of
seventeen volunteers. It seems that when it is used in hospitals patients
with a dark pigmented skin, NIRS StO2 measurements should be interpreted
with caution, as melanin clearly interferes with the quality of the
reflected NIRS signal.
It could mean that black people have to play with
their Xbox with gloves and a paper bag on their heads.