Jerk-O-Meter

One of the Rules of Attraction is: Who you are is more important than what you do. However I think the geeks at MIT have taken enforcing BEING NICE a little too far! Jerk-O-Meter monitors friends, associates or co-worker on the other end of the phone to discover if that really are paying attention to what you are saying. The software will be used for cell phones that would analyze speech patterns and voice tones to rate people -- on a scale of 0 to 100 percent -- on how engaged people are in a conversation.

The program, which developers said is nearing completion, uses mathematical algorithms to measure levels of stress and empathy in a person's voice. It also keeps track of how often someone is speaking. The Jerk-O-Meter is set up to monitor the user's end of the conversation. If his attention is straying, a message pops up on the phone that warns, "Don't be a jerk!" or "Be a little nicer now." A score closer to 100 percent would prompt, "Wow, you're a smooth talker."

Check it out at http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/ptech/08/12/jerk.o.meter.ap/index.html