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Upon being told to deliver an unprepared five-minute speech and then calculate in reverse in steps of 17 – all in front of a group of unfamiliar people – the intense pressure was written on my face.

The reason was that scientists were documenting this rather frightening scenario for a scientific study that is examining tension using infrared imaging.

Tension changes the blood distribution in the facial area, and researchers have found that the drop in temperature of a subject's face can be used as a indicator of tension and to observe restoration.

Infrared technology, based on researcher findings behind the study could be a "transformative advancement" in stress research.

The Experimental Stress Test

The research anxiety evaluation that I subjected myself to is carefully controlled and purposely arranged to be an unpleasant surprise. I arrived at the university with no idea what I was about to experience.

To begin, I was asked to sit, calm down and experience background static through a audio headset.

Up to this point, very peaceful.

Then, the scientist who was running the test brought in a panel of three strangers into the space. They each looked at me silently as the investigator stated that I now had 180 seconds to prepare a short talk about my "ideal career".

While experiencing the warmth build around my collar area, the scientists captured my complexion altering through their thermal camera. My facial temperature immediately decreased in temperature – showing colder on the heat map – as I considered how to manage this impromptu speech.

Study Outcomes

The researchers have performed this same stress test on 29 volunteers. In every case, they saw their nose decrease in warmth by several degrees.

My nasal area cooled in warmth by a small amount, as my nervous system redirected circulation from my face and to my visual and auditory organs – a physical reaction to help me to look and listen for threats.

The majority of subjects, comparable to my experience, bounced back rapidly; their noses warmed to pre-stressed levels within a few minutes.

Lead researcher explained that being a reporter and broadcaster has probably made me "relatively adapted to being subjected to stressful positions".

"You're accustomed to the camera and speaking to unfamiliar people, so it's probable you're relatively robust to public speaking anxieties," the scientist clarified.

"Nevertheless, even people with your background, trained to be stressful situations, shows a physiological circulation change, so this indicates this 'nasal dip' is a consistent measure of a shifting anxiety level."

Stress Management Applications

Tension is inevitable. But this discovery, the scientists say, could be used to assist in controlling negative degrees of stress.

"The duration it takes a person to return to normal from this nasal dip could be an objective measure of how effectively somebody regulates their tension," noted the lead researcher.

"If they bounce back remarkably delayed, could that be a warning sign of mental health concerns? Is this an aspect that we can address?"

Since this method is non-intrusive and measures a physical response, it could also be useful to track anxiety in newborns or in those with communication challenges.

The Mental Arithmetic Challenge

The second task in my tension measurement was, from my perspective, more challenging than the opening task. I was instructed to subtract sequentially decreasing from 2023 in steps of 17. Someone on the panel of three impassive strangers halted my progress every time I made a mistake and instructed me to begin anew.

I admit, I am inexperienced in calculating mentally.

As I spent embarrassing length of time trying to force my mind to execute subtraction, the only thought was that I desired to escape the growing uncomfortable space.

Throughout the study, merely one of the 29 volunteers for the tension evaluation did truly seek to exit. The others, like me, finished their assignments – presumably feeling varying degrees of humiliation – and were rewarded with a further peaceful interval of white noise through audio devices at the end.

Animal Research Applications

Possibly included in the most remarkable features of the method is that, as heat-sensing technology record biological tension reactions that is inherent within numerous ape species, it can also be used in animal primates.

The scientists are currently developing its application in habitats for large monkeys, such as chimps and gorillas. They aim to determine how to decrease anxiety and boost the health of animals that may have been rescued from distressing situations.

Researchers have previously discovered that showing adult chimpanzees video footage of infant chimps has a calming effect. When the investigators placed a display monitor near the rehabilitated primates' habitat, they noticed the facial regions of primates that viewed the content increase in temperature.

Therefore, regarding anxiety, viewing infant primates playing is the inverse of a unexpected employment assessment or an impromptu mathematical challenge.

Potential Uses

Using thermal cameras in ape sanctuaries could demonstrate itself as useful for assisting rehabilitated creatures to adapt and acclimate to a new social group and unknown territory.

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