Pierre Chalfoun

Subliminal cues while teaching: HCI technique for enhanced learning

This paper presents results from an empirical study conducted with a subliminal teaching technique aimed at enhancing learners performance in Intelligent Systems through the use of physiological sensors. This technique uses carefully designed subliminal cues (positive) and miscues (negative) and projects them under the learners perceptual visual threshold. A positive cue, called answer cue, is a hint aiming to enhance the learners inductive reasoning abilities and projected in a way to help them figure out the solution faster but more importantly better. A negative cue, called miscue, is also used and aims at obviously at the opposite (distract the learner or lead them to the wrong conclusion). The latest obtained results showed that only subliminal cues, not miscues, could significantly increase learner performance and intuition in a logic-based problem-solving task. Nonintrusive physiological sensors (EEG for recording brainwaves, blood volume pressure to compute heart rate and skin response to record skin conductivity) were used to record affective and cerebral responses throughout the experiment. The descriptive analysis, combined with the physiological data, provides compelling evidence for the positive impact of answer cues on reasoning and intuitive decision making in a logic-based problem-solving paradigm.

Managing Learner’s Affective States in Intelligent Tutoring Systems

Recent works in Computer Science, Neurosciences, Education, and Psychology have shown that emotions play an important role in learning. Learner’s cognitive ability depends on his emotions. We will point out the role of emotions in learning, distinguishing the different types and models of emotions which have been considered until now. We will address an important issue concerning the different means to detect emotions and introduce recent approaches to measure brain activity using Electroencephalograms (EEG). Knowing the influence of emotional events on learning it becomes important to induce specific emotions so that the learner can be in a more adequate state for better learning or memorization. To this end, we will introduce the main components of an emotionally intelligent tutoring system able to recognize, interpret and influence learner’s emotions. We will talk about specific virtual agents that can influence learner’s emotions to motivate and encourage him and involve a more cooperative work, particularly in narrative learning environments. Pushing further this paradigm, we will present the advantages and perspectives of subliminal learning which intervenes without conscious perception. Finally, we conclude with new directions to emotional learning.

Showing the positive influence of subliminal cues on learner's performance and intuition: an ERP study

This paper presents results from an empirical study conducted with a novel subliminal teaching technique aimed at enhancing learners performance in an ITS We replicated previous findings with the same technique but in a 2D environment Non intrusive physiological sensors were used to record affective and cerebral responses A brain analysis technique called Event-Related Potential (ERP), known to describe and confirm cognitive functions in the brain, provided strong evidence that subliminal cues and miscues were cognitively processed even though reported as not seen The obtained results showed that only subliminal cues, not miscues, could significantly increase learner performance and intuition in a logic-based problem solving task.

Optimal Affective Conditions for Subconscious Learning in a 3D Intelligent Tutoring System

In this paper we take a closer and in-depth look at initial results obtained from a previous novel experiment conducted with a 3D subliminal teaching Intelligent Tutoring System. Subliminal priming is a technique used to project information to a learner outside of his perceptual field. Initial results showed great promise by illustrating the positive impact of the subliminal module on the overall emotional state of the learners as well as their learning performances. Indeed, since emotion monitoring is critical in any learning context, we monitored the physiological reactions of the user while they learned and while they answered questions. We present a detailed and precise look at the optimal affective conditions that set the best learners apart. We will also explain a most surprising finding: the positive long term impact of subliminal priming on the entire learning process.

Cognitive priming: assessing the use of non-conscious perception to enhance learner's reasoning ability

Current Intelligent Tutoring Systems (ITS) employ explicit and direct learning strategies when interacting with learners. Although these ITS use cognitive and logical models to analyze the conscious cognitive processes behind reasoning, we believe that in specific situations during knowledge acquisition, such as reasoning, unconscious cognitive processes are heavily solicited in the brain. In this paper, we will propose a complimentary and novel learning strategy to current ITS aimed at enhancing reasoning in a problem solving environment. This approach, called Cognitive Priming, is based on neural correlates of non-conscious perception. We will present two studies that have positively conditioned learners and enhanced different dimensions of their reasoning skills by employing a technique based on the science of subliminal perception. We will also present relevant cerebral data recorded throughout the studies and discuss the importance of such findings for the community.

The potential of subliminal information displays to change driver behavior

In the long history of subliminal messages and perception, many contradictory results have been presented. One group of researchers suggests that subliminal interaction techniques improve humancomputer interaction by reducing sensory workload, whereas others have found that subliminal perception does not work. In this paper, we want to challenge this prejudice by first defining a terminology and introducing a theoretical taxonomy of mental processing states, then reviewing and discussing the potential of subliminal approaches for different sensory channels, and finally recapitulating the findings from our studies on subliminally triggered behavior change. Our objective is to mitigate driving problems caused by excessive information. Therefore, this work focuses on subliminal techniques applied to drivervehicle interaction to induce a nonconscious change in driver behavior. Based on a survey of related work which identified the potential of subliminal cues in driving, we conducted two user studies assessing their applicability in real-world situations. The first study evaluated whether subtle (subliminal) vibrations could promote economical driving, and the second exposed drivers to very briefly flashed visual stimuli to assess their potential to improve steering behavior. Our results suggest that subliminal approaches are indeed feasible to provide drivers with added driving support without dissipating attention resources. Despite the lack of general evidence for uniform effectiveness of such interfaces in all driving circumstances, we firmly believe that such interfaces are valuable since they may eventually prevent accidents, save lives, and even reduce fuel costs and CO2 emissions for some drivers. For all these reasons, we are confident that subliminally driven interfaces will find their way into cars of the (near) future.

Methodical approaches to prove the effects of subliminal perception in ubiquitous computing environments

To cope with the rising volume of information in humancomputer interfaces, explicit and attentive interaction is more and more frequently replaced by implicit means of information exchange, supported by context-and activity-aware systems and applications. The trend of excessive information is, however, still ongoing, calling for further solutions to reduce a persons cognitive load or level of attention. Subliminal interaction techniques are considered a promising approach to deliver information to a person without causing much supplementary workload. This workshop aims at discussing the potential of subliminal perception to improve the information flow for human-computer interaction in the light of the fact that, up to now, the results have been mixed. One group of researchers has provided evidence that subliminal stimulation works, but the other has found that it does not, or even cannot, work. To clarify this issue, experts from various domains attending the workshop will discuss how subliminal effects can be scientifically supported or how a certain claim could be empirically refuted.