Mirror that reflects your future self

In September, I wrote about Accenture labs' "persuasive mirror" that will display what you will look like in five years' time if you take no exercise, and live on booze and junk food.

New Scientist has more technical details about the project.

A computer builds up a profile of your lifestyle, using webcams dotted around your house. The images of your activities are sent to a software able to identify, for instance, when you have spent most of the day sitting on the couch, and will spot visits to the fridge.

Once the profile is built up, another software will extrapolate how this behaviour could affect your weight in the long term: eat too much and the computer will add pounds to your reflection in the mirror.

Another package will work on your face. If you are a heavy drinker, your reflection will show early wrinkles, shadows under the eyes and blotchy skin.

A prototype mirror is expected to be completed by the middle of this year.