<p>Science fiction has a funny way of frequently becoming science fact: man reaching the moon, mobile communication units, holograms, and now .

empathetic computers? It’s true, and like many science fiction pieces, apparently Blade Runner and Philip K. Dick’s original novel Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? were right on the money for what to expect from the future.</p><p>NewScientist recently published an article detailing how developers were looking to map emotions in human beings through tracking of vocal patterns, facial expressions, and body posture. This emotion-sensing technology could potentially have many applications, including medical testing, criminal investigation, and depression-management, among countless others. Apparently, disgust, happiness, sadness, anger, fear and surprise are the six basic emotions recognized by computers 9 times out of 10.</p><p>This is all well and good, but naturally, like any new technology, there can be drawbacks. What will happen if and when this becomes available to the average consumer? For example, relationships could potentially shatter, thanks to the technology’s projected ability to determine if a lie is being told. Apart from the elimination of trust in the household, what happens when technology advances to the point that emotions are eventually attached to robots serving the common household? Will the androids dream of electric sheep?</p>