Brilliant 10: Katherine Kuchenbecker, the Puppet Master
Katherine Kuchenbecker John B. CarnettHer work could put lifelike physical feedback not just into videogames, but into online shopping and the instruments used to perform remote surgery Subjects are screaming in Katherine Kuchenbecker's lab; they feel as if they've been shot. Kuchenbecker is testing a vest that she and her students designed to make videogames and military training more immersive. To simulate a bullet impact, the vest launches an actuator-controlled plunger called a solenoid into the unlucky gamer's skin where a bullet would have penetrated. "People jump out of their chairs," she says. "Crossing that barrier from the screen to your body makes the experience so much more real." Kuchenbecker built her career on making things feel real. Her dream is to help make haptics, the science of incorporating touch into human-computer interaction, as convincing as photography. At the moment, however, the field is still immature. With even the best available...