Ambient devices are a type of consumer electronics, characterized by their ability to be perceived at-a-glance, also known as "glanceable". Ambient devices use pre-attentive processing to display information and are aimed at minimizing mental effort. Associated fields include ubiquitous computing and calm technology. The concept is closely related to the Internet of Things. Research on ambient devices began at Xerox Parc, with a paper co-written by Mark Weiser and John Seely Brown, entitled Calm Computing.