A new study indicates humans can detect objects without physical contact, similar to certain birds.
Researchers from Queen Mary University of London and University College London have discovered that humans possess a form of "remote touch." This ability allows people to sense objects buried in granular materials, such as sand, before physically touching them.
The study, published in the IEEE International Conference on Development and Learning, found that humans detect subtle mechanical cues transmitted through the sand when a moving pressure is applied nearby. This mechanism is similar to how shorebirds like sandpipers and plovers locate prey hidden beneath the sand.
In experiments where participants moved their fingers through sand to locate a hidden cube, humans achieved a 70.7% precision rate. This performance notably exceeded that of a robotic tactile sensor trained with machine learning, which achieved only 40% precision and produced more false positives.
This discovery challenges the traditional view of touch as a purely proximal sense. The researchers suggest these findings could have significant implications for assistive technologies and robotics, potentially aiding in the development of systems for search and rescue operations, archaeology, and exploration of hazardous environments.
References:
- EurekAlert! - Research shows humans have remote touch "seventh sense"
- SciTechDaily - New Research Reveals Humans Have a Remote Touch "Seventh Sense"
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