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▲How you breathe is like a fingerprint that can identify younature.com
57 points by XzetaU8 2 days ago | 33 comments
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meindnoch 3 minutes ago [-]
True privacy freaks use a diaphragm pacemaker hooked to a CSPRNG to securely randomize their breathing pattern in public.
tantalor 14 minutes ago [-]
> custom, wearable device that records airflow through each of a person’s nostrils

Yeah, it turns out if you can strap a device to somebody then wow you can identify them.

This is interesting, but not a big surprise!

Now if they can do this from an external passive sensor like a camera or microphone, then yeah that would be a neat result.

tbrownaw 3 hours ago [-]
> When 42 of the participants came back to the laboratory weeks, months and even two years later, to take part in another 24-hour measurement, the trained algorithm could identify them from their breath patterns. Data from periods when the participants were awake gave more accurate results than did those from sleeping periods, but when the researchers used a 100-parameter characterization of a full data set instead of one using 24 parameters, they could pick individuals out with 96.8% accuracy.

The correctly identified .968x42=40.696 of the participants.

Also any standard-ish physical activity that comes with instructions usually includes breathing in those instructions. So I would expect results to vary substantially depending on where they found the study participants.

BLKNSLVR 2 hours ago [-]
This is probably more 'voice' than breathing, but when I'm in the toilet cubicle at work I try to identify anyone who may be next door by the sound of their breathing.

I rarely get to confirm whether I'm right or wrong, but everyone sounds slightly different.

bilekas 1 hours ago [-]
As someone with bathroom stage fright from time to time, this is terrifying.
bradley13 3 hours ago [-]
Including asymmetry between the nostrils brings in physiological factors other than breathing, i.e. sinuses, etc..

Still, I can see it. My wife and I are probably equally fit, but she breathes much faster than I do. I also notice that I sometimes don't take a breath (or feel any need to) for several seconds, if I'm being sedentary.

go_prodev 19 minutes ago [-]
Hold my CPAP

Here's a fun fact, the CPAP machine lowers my Heart Rate Variability. HRV spikes when I sleep part of the night without it.

glitchc 3 minutes ago [-]
Not a mystery. This is directly correlated to the CPAP's primary goal which is to ensure a steady flow of air in and out of your lungs. Without the CPAP, your heart is reacting to variations in O2 (inflow) and CO2 (outflow), speeding up and slowing down accordingly, including experiencing stress during periods when the airway is completely obstructed.
kylehotchkiss 1 hours ago [-]
Ah good, retailers will figure out a way to work this into their camera processing software! Just like gait tracking can help ID somebody if they're wearing a mask.
pchew 27 minutes ago [-]
Pebble in the shoe, pebble in the nostril.
analog31 47 minutes ago [-]
My breathing is probably influenced by what song is going through my head at any given moment.
thenewwazoo 1 hours ago [-]
Neato. I bet this could be trained to identify/differentiate people based on mmWave sensors, which can reliably detect breathing and muscle movements.
macawfish 1 hours ago [-]
There are dozens if not hundreds of papers on exactly this topic :)
XzetaU8 2 days ago [-]
http://archive.today/JX3go
eimrine 2 days ago [-]
I have noticed that I need so much fresh air while sleeping that it is not very comfortable for me to sleep with another person. I can not say anything about breath patterns but I suspect that O2 consumption has to be among those patterns.
stapedium 3 hours ago [-]
I suspect the fresh air is more an issue with temperature and humidity rather than oxygen content. Try a fan first.
zeristor 2 days ago [-]
Does an open window help?

A CO2 monitor might be helpful too?

dudeinjapan 2 hours ago [-]
I always have to tell my girlfriend to stop hogging all the O2.
tinyhouse 16 minutes ago [-]
Can anyone share a link that doesn't require login?
11235813213455 43 minutes ago [-]
Mine is silent, I find it gross when you can hear someone's breath, and hopefully sane (I hate cigarette smokers breathe, it still smells like death)
daveguy 38 minutes ago [-]
> Mine is silent, I find it gross when you can hear someone's breath...

Hate to break it to you, but you're in for an upsetting aging process.

Also, your breath already isn't silent. Your brain attenuates the expected sounds, and our ears aren't nearly as sensitive as microphones.

39 minutes ago [-]
ortusdux 3 hours ago [-]
Previous: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=44262799
canadiantim 2 hours ago [-]
This is brilliant. Could definitely use this for a very low-cost diagnostic tool. It's like reading someone's pulse, but through their breath.
amelius 2 hours ago [-]
Unfortunately this can't be measured on a smartwatch.
genewitch 1 hours ago [-]
Amazfit claim to monitor sleep breathing, and seem fairly accurate based on my observations (n=2)
amelius 53 minutes ago [-]
Ok, but I want to measure during work.
encom 6 hours ago [-]
You are now breathing manually.
cnity 3 hours ago [-]
I like to take these types of comments as an invitation to be present for a moment. Thank you!
smcin 3 hours ago [-]
but we were promised Full Self-Breathing by now!
gbnwl 3 hours ago [-]
We have it! It’s just Full Self Breathing (Supervised)
yvely 1 hours ago [-]
I just lost the game
silon42 2 hours ago [-]
Time to breathe without rhythm.
pbhjpbhj 35 minutes ago [-]
Way ahead of you, I swear I was born without a working internal clock.