In other experiments, Bonanni projected a blizzard — along with the shrill of blowing wind — onto a refrigerator door when the freezer was opened. Forty-four percent of people in the study said they felt cold and rushed to close the door.

A tap left running initiates a pool of projected water to spill across a countertop and is enhanced by the sound of a babbling brook.

The images grow or shrink depending on the location of the person in the room.

Yang Cai, director of the Visual Intelligence Studio at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, calls the work inspirational but conceptual.

The more computerized an environment becomes, the more complex it becomes to maintain it, he noted.

A problem with today's sink may require a visit from the plumber, but a sink with an ambient interface may require a visit from a plumber and an electrician.

"Practically, there is a still a lot of homework to do," Cai said.

Bonanni is working on a project to distribute autonomous ambient interfaces around MIT's campus in order to measure people's responses and establish a framework for augmenting everyday activities.

He believes that such devices could be used not to encourage or discourage different behaviors, but simply to make everyday activities more lively and enjoyable.