With digital technology now offering so many compelling options, encouraging children to read books has become a herculean task. So said the author and playwright this week, when he told the London Daily Telegraph that children are such technophiles that he fears for the future of reading.
, president of the UK鈥檚 , thinks these fears are overplayed, however. Speaking at the in London this week, he denounced those who say the abbreviated style used in texting is corrupting English. He thinks we should embrace any and all new technologies that get people reading 鈥� whether that鈥檚 Facebook, blogs, texts or emails.
鈥淲hen these critics walk down the street, don鈥檛 they see kids reading all the time 鈥� on their mobile phones? Are they so blind they can鈥檛 see that?鈥� he says. 鈥淭o say kids aren鈥檛 reading is just false. Too much attention is paid to the technology carrying their words and not the content.鈥�
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Indeed, the digital written word seems to be in rude health. This week an , some say as a direct response to the Apple iPad, which is now used by readers around the world.
Death of print?
But arguably these devices don鈥檛 address Stoppard鈥檚 concerns. It鈥檚 the printed page more than the written word that he fears is under threat from technology. Putting aside the fact that ink and paper chemistry, alongside binding adhesives, make books a technological feat in their own right 鈥� albeit an old one 鈥� what can be done?
It may sound trite, but technology could provide the answer. Children鈥檚 love affair with traditional books could continue in the digital age by augmenting the written word with 3D interactive graphics.
In the vanguard of this is UK-based publisher Carlton, which this week launched what it claims to be the world鈥檚 first augmented reality (AR) book series 鈥� Fairyland Magic and Dinosaurs Alive are out now; Sharks: Monsters of the Deep will follow soon.
Open the dinosaur book and hold it in front of a webcam attached to a computer, and the live image feed on the screen displays a pint-sized 3D T. tex roaming across the page. Do the same with the shark book and the screen fills with water, leaving the user peering into the abyss through a virtual diving mask 鈥� whereupon various animated sharks appear, alongside information about each species.
Fairyland Magic
At Carlton鈥檚 launch this week I saw Russell Porter, the company鈥檚 design director, demonstrating the Fairyland Magic book. 鈥淵ou may not know this, but fairies are attracted by three things: water, fruit and flowers,鈥� he said, as he conjured up all three, and encouraged a virtual fairy to land on a floral card held in his palm.
The technology at the heart of the books is a software package called D-Fusion from , a French AR software house. Total Immersion has perfected a robust technology that can recognise a piece of printed matter such as a book page layout even if some of it is obscured by the fingers and thumbs gripping the book. It then superimposes pre-programmed 3D imagery on the computer鈥檚 camera feed.
It looks fun enough, and an unscientific poll of one child 鈥� my daughter 鈥� suggests it could provide children with a novel way to involve themselves with the stories they read. 鈥淐ool!鈥� was her reaction when I showed her the video accompanying this article.
It has its drawbacks, however. Holding the book open in front of a laptop鈥檚 built-in webcam is a little unwieldy when you need to activate keyboard commands: it鈥檚 best to have a separate webcam and train it on the open book.
鈥淭otal Immersion has a lot more ideas coming: it鈥檚 exciting stuff,鈥� says Porter. It won鈥檛 be long before readers can interact verbally with the animated characters they conjure up, though voice recognition, he says.
Added lure
Crucially, these AR books work as standalone books: they are commissioned and written no differently from any others. The technology is only an added lure, says Carlton managing director Belinda Rasmussen.
She thinks AR could answer some of Stoppard鈥檚 criticisms. 鈥淲e want children to love and read books and we think what we have achieved here is a modern book where the technology gives us something extra. It鈥檚 still a book first and foremost.鈥�
Read previous Innovation columns: Microsoft鈥檚 Kinect isn鈥檛 just for games, 19th-century tech makes a smarter iPhone, Invisibility cloaks and how to use them, Methane capture gives more bang for the buck, Slipping into the wireless white space, Teaching robots some manners, Why labs love gaming hardware, Robots look to the cloud for enlightenment, iPad is child鈥檚 play but not quite magical, Only mind games will make us save power.
