In an intriguing article from Fast Company Pixar is named along with Apple, Google and the CIA as companies who have all expressed interest in, or even already implemented innovative new expression recognition technology. Paul Ekman spearheaded and developed the Facial Action Coding System (FACS), the expression library behind the computerized system. Ekman is the expression and lie detection expert who was the real life inspiration for Fox's recently cancelled show Lie to Me.

The article offers a few suggestions as to what the technology could be used for: airport security, torture free interrogation, adapting computer interaction to user's emotions, and market research on consumers' response to products. It is, however, somewhat vague on what the companies are using it for specifically.

You might imagine it in use at screenings of Pixar films, or focus groups to guage an audience's reactions to sequences in movies. Toward the end of the article they cite Pete Docter as a Pixar director with particular interest in facial expression research. "[Ekman] continues to consult to Pixar Director Pete Docter on animated character expressions through his updated dictionary. (Toy Story was the first cinematic use of FACS)."

As an animator (and expressive person himself) he would have a natural interest in expression. But perhaps he has sought out the expertise of Ekman for assistance on his upcoming untitled "inside the mind" film. If he is actually seeking to personify human emotions, as John Lasseter suggested in an interview last week, expression will be an important story telling tool, and getting it right will be crucial.

John Lasseter, Disney animation chief and Pixar director, had a close friendship with the late Steve Jobs. Their kindred spirits and lust for creative perfectionism helped them to establish Pixar as the world's new animation super power.

In this month's edition of TIME magazine, Lasseter offers a brief but touching article on a few of his learning moments with Jobs and the vision and passion he brought to his creations. While Jobs wasn't named TIME's person of the year, as some had suspected, instead being unseated by a generic embodiment of "The Protestor," this short writeup from Lasseter finds its place in the issue under the "Fond Farewells" feature. TIME did, however, give Jobs significant verbiage in an article of several pages in its October 17th issue (Vol 178, No.15).

ABC Family kicked off its seemingly annual Pixar week tonight. Each night until Tuesday ABC will show at least one Pixar film. Notably, UP will make its broadcast debut on Saturday, Dec. 17th.

See the list below for a list of showings. Check local listings for times.

• Wed 14 Dec — Pixar Shorts, Finding Nemo
• Thu 15 Dec — Finding Nemo
• Fri 16 Dec — UP
• Sat 17 Dec — UP, Toy Story
• Sun 18 Dec — Toy Story, Toy Story 2 (twice)
• Mon 19 Dec — The Incredibles
• Tue 20 Dec — The Incredibles