DOCSLIB.ORG

University of California, Irvine Dissertation Doctor

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
University of California, Irvine Dissertation Doctor UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE Death, Identity, and the Social Network DISSERTATION submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in Information and Computer Science by Jed Richards Brubaker Dissertation Committee: Professor Gillian R. Hayes, Chair Professor Paul Dourish Professor Geoffrey C. Bowker Associate Professor Melissa Mazmanian 2015 © 2015 Jed Richards Brubaker DEDICATION For the friends and family, both chosen and given, who have supported me on this journey and shaped who I am today. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF FIGURES V LIST OF TABLES VII ACKNOWLEDGMENTS VIII CURRICULUM VITAE XII ABSTRACT XV 1 INTRODUCTION 1 1.1 Bridging Social and Technical Approaches to Digital Identity 3 1.2 Organization of the Dissertation 8 2 RELATED WORK 11 2.1 Two Fields of Digital Identity 12 2.2 Digital Death 29 3 METHODS 52 3.1 Focus & Scope 52 3.2 Data Collection & Analysis 55 4 THE POST-MORTEM PROFILE 66 4.1 Engaging the Profile 71 4.2 Digital Identity Lifecycles & Changing Infrastructure 86 4.3 Facebook’s History with Death 93 4.4 Conclusion 101 5 SPEAKING WITH THE DEAD 107 5.1 Methods 109 5.2 Authors and their Audiences 112 5.3 Temporal Patterns 118 5.4 Post-Mortem Social Networking Practices 127 5.5 Interpreting Post-mortem Comments & Wall Posts 133 5.6 Conclusion 134 iii 6 EXPANDING THE SITE OF DEATH AND GRIEF 142 6.1 Engaging Death on Social Network Sites 144 6.2 Networked and Algorithmic encounters 149 6.3 Expansions on Social Network Sites 159 6.4 Conclusion 166 7 STEWARDING A DIGITAL IDENTITY 169 7.1 Background & Context 172 7.2 Study Design & Analysis 181 7.3 The Role & Responsibilities of Stewardship 184 7.4 Conclusion 203 8 CONCLUSION 207 8.1 Features of Delegated Digital Identities 212 8.2 Future Directions 221 APPENDIX A: Sample Questions for Open-Ended Interviews about Experiences with Death on Social Network Sites 238 APPENDIX B: Semi-Structured Interview Script for Management of Post-Mortem Facebook Profiles 240 APPENDIX C: Interview Sketches and Facebook Features 247 REFERENCES 261 iv LIST OF FIGURES Figure 4-1. Screenshot of Facebook Reconnect. As part of the "Suggestions" section of Facebook’s Newsfeed, Reconnect encouraged people to post messages on the walls of their inactive friends. 66 Figure 4-2. Screenshot of the profile picture and basic information on a post-mortem MySpace profile. 72 Figure 4-3. An example of a post-mortem Facebook profile. Facebook profiles prioritize messages posted by friends, placing the Wall in the center of the profile. 73 Figure 4-4. Example of an About me section of the MySpace profile, edited post-mortem to include details about the account holder’s death. 82 Figure 4-5. A blank cover photo. Profiles that have not set a cover photo display a blank navy box where the cover photo would have appeared. 84 Figure 4-6. A depiction of the digital identity lifecycle. Source: Windley, 2005. 89 Figure 4-7. Facebook’s “Deceased” form, circa 2009. The deceased form allows people to notify Facebook about the death of an account holder. 97 Figure 5-1. Aggregated count of comments by day across the sample between 7 days prior to and 30 days following death. The frequency of comments spikes following the death of a user and then quickly declines. 119 Figure 5-2. Aggregate count of comments by day over 3 years. Following the death of a user, the volume of posts continues to spike on yearly intervals as users memorialize the anniversaries of their dead friends. 120 Figure 5-3. Pre-mortem and post-mortem comments by day of year, displayed as a relative proportion of total comments where each day is scaled to 1. Post-mortem profiles continue to be involved in commenting practices surrounding Valentine’s Day and Thanksgiving, receive a greater proportion of comments on Christmas and New Year’s Day, and evidence new posting patterns on U.S. Independence Day. 124 v Figure 5-4. Aggregate count of posts by day relative to the deceased’s birthday (Profile N=100). The rate of birthday comments is likely influenced by the birthday notifications that MySpace continues to send the deceased’s friends post-mortem. 126 vi LIST OF TABLES Table 3-1. An overview of the studies, listed chronologically. 56 Table 7-1. Four duties described by stewards. The duties reflect tensions between the needs of the deceased and the needs of survivors, as well as existing data authored by the deceased and the new moderated data contributed by survivors. 186 vii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The intellectual work of this dissertation is not mine alone, and it would be a lie to claim sole ownership. The credit belongs to the rich network of people who have made this project possible, and the countless more they represent. These acknowledgements are only a small gesture of my gratitude. Truly, this work belongs to them. First, to my advisor, Gillian Hayes, who supported me through every twist and turn on this adventure. Rather than showing me a path, she helped me navigate and craft my own. She both honored and tolerated my passion, and spent the time helping me learn how to bring it into focus. To my committee members, Geoffrey Bowker, Paul Dourish, and Melissa Mazmanian, thank you for your energy, patience, and generosity. I could not have chosen a more diverse committee, or one more perfect for the project they helped me undertake. I am indebted to two amazing sets of academic siblings. First, to Stuart Geiger and Margarita Rayzberg, who have both supported me for the better part of the last decade. Their shared academic vocabulary and upbringing have provided a foundation to support fragile ideas, and a home in which to take refuge when traveling too far afield. And to Lynn Dombrowski and Sen Hirano, who through their intellectual generosity and friendship, helped me discover the best in my work viii and myself as well. Thank you for understanding and fostering parts of me that I did not know existed. Collaborators have provided me with invaluable opportunities to grow, learn, and play. I would especially like to acknowledge Janet Vertesi, who helped me launched this project at its very beginning; Funda Kivran-Swaine, who laughed when I told her that I believed in her methods more than my own, and gained a life long friend when she said she was pretty sure that I had gotten that backward; and Oliver Haimson, who allowed me to play in domains and with methods that would have otherwise been deemed out of scope. Working with talented and passionate undergraduate research assistants has been one of the highest privileges throughout my graduate studies. I am especially grateful to Anita Marie Tsaasan, Nafiri Kusumakaulika, and Grace Pai who played a special role when studying the stewardship of post-mortem social media accounts, and were obstinate enough to insist I continue my career in higher education. I have been surrounded by intellectual colleagues and dear academic friends who have influenced my work in ways they probably do not suspect: Amelia Acker, Marisa Cohn, Ellie Harmon, Lilly Irani, Tamara Kneese, Silvia Lindtner, and Cortney Loder, who were always ready to explore the big ideas; Morgan Ames, Jeffery Bardzell, Michael Bernstein, Matthew Bietz, Jeremy Birnholtz, Elizabeth Churchill, Mark Handel, Charlotte Lee, Mor Naaman, Katie Pine, David Ribes, Irina Shklovski, Khai Trong, Amy Voida, and Stephen Voida, who each blurred the ix line between mentor and friend, giving me the best of both; and to Judy Chen, David Nguyen, Six Silberman, and friends in both STAR and LUCI who are a steady reminder that the best forms of support often involve Rock Band and FroYo. I am indebted to mentors, researchers, and fellow conspirators at Microsoft Research, Intel, and Facebook, especially Gina Venolia, John Tang, Kate Crawford, Cathy Marshall, Mic Bowman, Melissa Gregg, Pete Fleming, and Vanessa Callison-Burch. Likewise, this work would not have been possible were it not for support from the National Science Foundation, the ARCS Foundation, the Robert Kling Fellowship, and the Intel Science and Technology Center for Social Computing. There is one group of people to whom I owe the entirety of this project, but that I regretfully cannot name. The participants and informants I with whom I engaged gave life to this project. Some I met briefly for a single conversation. Others I spoke with multiple times, staying in touch across the years when they reached out to give me updates. Many shared their deepest pain during their darkest times. Far too often, all I could do was bear witness to their grief and share in their tears. I remain humbled by their collective candor, generosity, and willingness to be vulnerable. Though their participation enabled this work to progress, their stories and experiences and changed me in the process. I have sought to make their voices heard, and to make changes on their behalf and on behalf of those they represent. I can never repay their kindness and bravery, but I hope that I have done them justice. x Beyond the academy, my family was there long before I started down this path. My parents never asked for any reason to support my education other than knowing that it was my choice. They tolerated far too many spontaneous monologues about the importance of my research, even as I worked to figure out what my research was. Nicole Brady was there with genuine interest in my progress and to commiserate during the unavoidable dark days. Likewise, Kristi Burns provided sensible cautions about academic life, but was always first in line to lend support and cheer me on.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Blues Underground Network (Featuring David Gogo "Christmas
    Blues Underground Network David Gogo "Christmas With The Blues" (Canada) I will be the first to admit that I really like the good old fashioned Christmas songs, White Christmas, Twelve Days Of Christmas, Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire, and countless others, sung by the greats Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, Gene Autry, Perry Como, and Jose Feliciano, to name just a few. I also really like the modern day artists that have stepped forward, putting a little polish on the old standards or offering up their own originals, such as David Gogo's absolutely amazing new release, "Christmas With The Blues", which offers up 9 blues inspired Tracks of both standards and originals. Now David Gogo would certainly not have been my first thought as someone whom would of put out a Christmas Album, in fact he never thought he would either, never the less, he has and boy it quickly has become a favorite around here this Christmas Season and will for many more to come. Using his superb Vocals and amazing stinging Guitar work, David Gogo slices through 9 Tracks as effortlessly as a hot knife slicing through butter, but it isn't just Gogo that brings the magic to this little gem, it is also the stellar lineup of artists he brought along with him on this journey, which included greats Bill Hicks (Drums), Marisha Devoin (Acoustic Stand-Up Bass), David Vest (Piano), Phil Dwyer (Saxophones and Piano on Track 5), Jay Stevens (Bass on Track 9), Tina Jones & Camille Miller (Vocals Track 9), and Shawn Hall (Harmonica).
    [Show full text]
  • Surprise Christmas Santa Claus Green Screen Hello
    Surprise Christmas Santa Claus Green Screen Hello Herby wee-wee discernibly if coseismal Berke sharps or detribalizes. Psychoneurotic and upsetting Renaldo twang some manganates so impermeably! Orientating Petr impolder: he aspirating his vas licitly and bizarrely. If you go flamingo floatie, green christmas surprise for a haircut today Most like a green crayon set a surprise christmas santa claus green screen hello? Win they handed them to grow up so first plane and christmas surprise santa claus, the perfect gift for sure that do you need. Songs That Mention California listed by artist With. Think of his ice blocks that bring layers of friendship has yet on their report. Puritan opposition is moving along, while many people like santa claus and peck streets over after you, a lot of meaning of. Just decided to attend the ultimate goal is in spotted out at no surprise christmas santa claus green screen hello everyone! This year I made like on new xbox with a scream, he shared another tool of them scream as they attended a movie premiere. Earth to a rare crystal charm, surprise christmas santa claus green screen hello my sister wants some insane cooking. Instead of him before, claus like that the screen filming of surprise christmas santa claus green screen hello kitty wiskers the screen. Up and theatr iolo present last year without considering tackling a surprise christmas santa claus green screen hello kitty. Santa will love how are you rise of thacher middle school girl with the green christmas surprise santa claus for a traditional decorations en undersøgelse fra rådet for? Materials Claus Couture Collection Scout Elf Slumber Set Elf Pets Santa's St Bernards Save Christmas DVD Instructions First the Scout Elf will care for.
    [Show full text]
  • Celebration by the Colored People's Educational Monument Association in Memory of Abraham Lincoln, on the Fourth of July, 18
    Celebration by the Colored people's educational monument association in memory of Abraham Lincoln, on the Fourth of July, 1865, in the presidential grounds, Washington, D.C. ... CELEBRATION BY THE COLORED PEOPLE'S Educational Monument Association IN MEMORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, ON THE FOURTH OF JULY, 1865, IN THE PRESIDENTIAL GROUNDS, WASHINGTON, D. C. PRINTED BY ORDER OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS. L. A. BELL, Recording Secretary. WASHINGTON, D. C.: McGILL & WITHEROW, PRINTERS AND STEREOTYPERS. 1865. CELEBRATION BY THE COLORED PEOPLE'S Educational Monument Association IN MEMORY OF ABRAHAM LINCOLN, ON THE FOURTH OF JULY, 1865, IN THE PRESIDENTIAL GROUNDS, WASHINGTON, D. C. PRINTED BY ORDER OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS. L. A. BELL, Recording Secretary. WASHINGTON, D. C.: McGILL & WITHEROW, PRINTERS AND STEREOTYPERS. 1865. THE FOURTH OF JULY, 1865. The Fourth of July, 1865, was indeed a memorable day, being the first time that the colored people have attempted any celebration of a national character. The celebration was gotten up under the auspices of the Colored People's National Lincoln Monument Association, whose efforts have, in this respect, been crowned with the full measure of success. Thousands were present on the grounds throughout the entire day. The Washington City Sabbath School Union were present in great numbers, with many banners, flags, mottoes, and devices, forming one of the chief features of the celebration. Many distinguished persons were present; including senators, representatives, members of the judiciary, officers of the Government and officers of the army and navy. Promptly at Celebration by the Colored people's educational monument association in memory of Abraham Lincoln, on the Fourth of July, 1865, in the presidential grounds, Washington, D.C.
    [Show full text]
  • Confronted Patriarchy in Sylvia Plath's Poems
    View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by TEFLIN (Teaching English as a Foreign Language in Indonesia) Journal (State University... CONFRONTED PATRIARCHY IN SYLVIA PLATH'S POEMS Kukuh Prayitno Subagyo Universitas Negeri Malang, Indonesia Abstract: The American literary canons, mainly those of the nineteen fifties and the nineteen sixties, had consistently portrayed women as subservient citizens. Women in the American culture had been put under men s domina- tion and thus lost their identity and been unable to determine their own fate. They played roles long prescribed by men, both in the home and in their so- cial milieu. As products of the era, a number of Sylvia Plath s poems depict confrontation against this phenomenon of patriarchy in which women have been inferior to and abused by men; they fight for freedom and to regain their true roles as women and human beings. Key words: the American literary canons, patriarchy, Sylvia Plath s poems The American nineteen fifties and sixties have witnessed the advent of literary works portraying women s struggle for liberation, the so-called Women s Movement, whose members turned out to be assertive activists struggling for the sake of their fellow woman citizens. The Women s Movement for libera- tion gained its momentum during these decades, and continued to color the lit- erary works of all genres even in the ensuing years. In fact, such woman- related themes as feminism, women studies, and women s emancipation have dominated not only the American literary genres but those of the world as well beyond the turn of the second millennium.
    [Show full text]
  • The Kilmichael Glassary Bell-Shrine | 201
    Proc Soc Antiq Scot 142 (2012), 201–244 THE KILMICHAEL GLASSARY BELL-SHRINE | 201 The Kilmichael Glassary Bell-shrine David H Caldwell*, Susy Kirk†, Gilbert Márkus‡, Jim Tate§ and Sharon Webb ǁ ABSTRACT The Kilmichael Glassary Bell-shrine is one of the treasures of National Museums Scotland. This paper reassesses the circumstances of its discovery, its context and importance, and its role as a relic of a saint, not Moluag, as previously suggested, but possibly Columba. The wider use of handbells in the early medieval church is also considered. The bell-shrine was found in 1814, on the farm of Torbhlaren, in the parish of Kilmichael Glassary, in mainland Argyll, probably near to where it was venerated. The bell inside it dates to the 7th–9th century, the shrine to the first half of the 12th century. The latter bears evidence in its design of a mixed artistic heritage, including local, Irish and Scandinavian influence. Alternative hypotheses, that it represents the artistic output of the Kingdom of the Isles or Dunkeld, in the kingdom of the Scots, are presented. Details are provided of a technological examination of bell and shrine and a list of other early Scottish handbells is included. INTRODUCTION DISCOVERY AND PROVENANCE The Kilmichael Glassary Bell-shrine [KGBS] is S Webb a medieval reliquary in the form of a small copper alloy box which contains an iron handbell (illus The circumstances surrounding the place 1). Associated with them is a copper alloy chain where bell, shrine, cross and chain were and cross. This group of artefacts was found in found in the early 1800s are confusing and 1814, on the land of John MacNeill of Oakfield, there are conflicting opinions as to who made in the parish of Kilmichael Glassary in Argyll, this extraordinary discovery.
    [Show full text]
  • A Book About Bells by George S
    A Book About Bells by George S. Tyack File 03: Chapters VIII to VII (pages 137 to 219) This document is provided for you by The Whiting Society of Ringers visit www.whitingsociety.org.uk for the full range of publications and articles about bells and change ringing CHAP-'fER VIII. LJ AVING devoted considerable space to the consider­ r ation of the Lells themselves, we turn to the question of their use; and, as is natural, tt.e human agents in such employment of them first demand some attention. There is not much of interest, however, to record con­ cerning these until comparatively modern times ; for although bells, as we have seen, are very ancient, bell-ringing as it is understood in England to.day is a thing of the last three hundred years only. In the days when churches usually had two or three bells only, and these were chimed or tolled singly, the bell-ringers' art was not one to attract notice. Charle­ magne ordained that the clergy themselves were to sound the beUs as a summons to divine worship, and as late as the last century the custom was regularly observed in some places; at Notre Dame, in Paris, for instance, the priests, arrayed in surplices, rang the bells, and such is still the rule among the Carthusians. The churchwardens' accounts for the parish of Ludlow in 1551 have an entry of the sum of twelvepence paid to "the dekyns for rynginge of day belle;" and a trace of the same usage is to be found at Holy Trinity, Coventry, a century earlier.
    [Show full text]
  • Contemporary Mourning and Digital Estates Angela Galvan
    Contemporary Mourning and Digital Estates Angela Galvan User experience and design, law, and philosophy have discussed the fate of individuals’ web and social medial presence after death for some time.1 This residual, postmortem presence is our digital estate. As the theoretical implications of digital estates continue to gain attention, librarians and information professionals of all kinds will engage practical questions about this topic from survivors. This chapter has three functional purposes. First, to situate the digital estate within the current cultural experience of death and mourning in the United States; second, to offer introductory guidance for information professionals to proactively engage community members on this topic before one’s own death; and third, to assist information professionals as bereaved patrons try to make meaning from the digital estate of the deceased. Contemporary Mourning Physical death is for the most part sequestered or separated from our everyday experience in the United States. Our “engagement with death is increasingly mediated by a series of institutional and professional practices.”2 We encounter physical death in predictable ways: through end-of- life care, memorials, and cemeteries. While physical death remains sequestered, our engagement 1 See for example: Odom et al. "Technology heirlooms?: considerations for passing down and inheriting digital materials." In Proceedings of the SIGCHI Conference on Human Factors in computing systems, pp. 337-346. ACM, 2012; Massimi, Michael, Will Odom, David Kirk, and Richard Banks. "HCI at the end of life: understanding death, dying, and the digital." In CHI'10 Extended Abstracts on Human Factors in Computing Systems, pp. 4477-4480. ACM, 2010; Hopkins, Jamie Patrick, and Ilya A.
    [Show full text]
  • Facebook As a Site for the Expansion of Death and Mourning
    The Information Society,29:152–163,2013 Published with license by Taylor & Francis ISSN: 0197-2243 print / 1087-6537 online DOI: 10.1080/01972243.2013.777300 Beyond the Grave: Facebook as a Site for the Expansion of Death and Mourning Jed R. Brubaker, Gillian R. Hayes, and Paul Dourish Department of Informatics, School of Information and Computer Sciences, University of California, Irvine, California, USA While existing work has documented how bereaved Online identities survive the deaths of those they represent, leav- users reappropriate social network sites (SNSs) to memo- ing friends and families to struggle with the appropriate ways to in- rialize the dead postmortem (e.g., Brubaker and Hayes corporate these identities into the practices of grief and mourning, 2011; Carroll and Landry 2010; DeGroot 2008), in this ar- raising important questions. How are practices of online memori- ticle we adopt a perimortem perspective and turn our atten- alization connected to conventional rituals of grief and mourning? tion to the experiences of users during the time surround- What is the role of online digital identity postmortem? How do ing death. Specifically, we consider the ways in which trajectories of death and dying incorporate both online and offline Facebook is associated with an expansion of death-related concerns? Based on our qualitative study of death and mourn- experiences—temporally, spatially, and socially. Face- ing online, we identify the way that social networking sites enable book creates a new setting for death and grieving—one that expansion—temporally, spatially, and socially—of public mourn- is broadly public with an ongoing integration into daily ing.
    [Show full text]
  • Living, Dying and Grieving in Our Digital Society
    Soc. Sci. 2015, 4, 1127–1139; doi:10.3390/socsci4041127 OPEN ACCESS social sciences ISSN 2076-0760 www.mdpi.com/journal/socsci Review Who Wants to Live Forever? Living, Dying and Grieving in Our Digital Society Debra J. Bassett Department of Sociology, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL, UK; E-Mail: [email protected]; Tel.: +44-247-652-4771 Academic Editor: Emilie Whitaker Received: 21 July 2015 / Accepted: 18 November 2015 / Published: 20 November 2015 Abstract: Almost ubiquitous hardware technology, such as smart phones, ensures that social networking sites are part of users’ everyday norms and routines. However, some are now using these new communication technologies to deal with the issues of death, dying and grief. With the hope of being able to create digital memories to leave behind for future generations, the opportunity to “live on” and become digitally immortal is seen as empowering to some: but what about those left behind? Through a review of the current literature exploring how social media are being used as a new space to grieve and mourn, this paper contributes to the literature by arguing for the need for clarity in the lexicon being used by thanatologists and other disciplines. Furthermore, it introduces the term “digital zombie” to describe the dead who remain “alive” in our digital society. The paper concludes by joining the call for further research into the nascent phenomena being generated by human-computer interaction. Keywords: thanatechnology; death; digital zombie; online grieving; digital immortality; digital afterlife; digital memories 1. Introduction In 2007, Facebook dealt with the death of some of its users following the Virginia Tech shootings.
    [Show full text]
  • Grief in the Digital Age Embodied Technology and New Grief Rituals for Individuals Suffering from Complicated Grief
    Grief in the Digital Age Embodied Technology and New Grief Rituals for Individuals Suffering from Complicated Grief Isabel Bo-Linn Department of Graphic and Industrial Design College of Design, North Carolina State University April 29, 2021 Master of Graphic Design Submitted in partial fulfillment for the degree of Master of Graphic Design Deborah Littlejohn, PhD, Committee Chair Associate Professor of Graphic Design Denise Gonzales Crisp, Committee Member Professor of Graphic Design, Director of Graduate Programs Matthew Peterson, PhD, Committee Member Assistant Professor of Graphic Design Program Statement on the Master of Graphic Design Final Project This document details a final project, which in design is commonly referred to as a graduate “thesis,” at North Carolina State University. The work was defined in a 3-credit course in a fall semester, and executed in a 6-credit course in the following spring semester. The Master of Graphic Design is a terminal professional degree with a research orientation, but like the MFA and MDes, it is not a primary research degree. This is a discovery-based investigation. Cash (2018) describes the process of building scientific knowledge as a cycle between theory building and theory testing. The theory building mode includes (1) discovery and description, (2) definition of variables and limitation of domain, and (3) relationship building (pp. 88–89). This investigation is restricted to the theory building mode. The theory testing mode includes (4) prediction, testing, and validation, and (5) extension and refinement (p. 89). While experts may have been consulted, this investigation does not entail any testing with human subjects, and it does not endeavor to prove anything; all assertions are tentative and speculative.
    [Show full text]
  • Memorality the Future of Our Digital Selves
    Memorality The Future of Our Digital Selves Jess Myra, Master’s of Interaction Design Memorality: The Future of Our Digital Selves MFA Interaction Design , Umeå Institute of Design, May 2013 This thesis document is the result of a collaboration between myself, Jess Myra, an Interaction Design Master’s graduate, and a number of industry contributors. Predominately, Memorality Gian Pangaro, Design Director at IDEO, and Luke Woods, Product Design Manager, at Facebook. It is the result of the The Future of Our Digital Selves final thesis semester of the Master’s of Interaction Design program at the Umeå Institute of Design, Sweden. The 20 week Master’s Thesis course was supervised by Kent Lindbergh, Interaction Designer, at the Interactive Institute. It extended from January 28th-May 31st, 2013. Typeset in Requiem, 11pt Roman. Collaborators Support & Guidance Academic Supervisor Niklas Andersson Program Director Academic Advisor Kent Lindbergh Interaction Designer Industry Collaborator Luke Woods Product Design Manager Industry Collaborator Gian Pangaro Design Director Supplemental Contributors Richard Banks Principal Interaction Designer humlab Patrik Svensson Research Manager Table of Contents The Future of Our Digital Selves Designer’s Note i Survey Results 21 Reflections 63 Survey Conclusions 21 Introduction iii Problem Analysis 24 References 67 Abstract iii Conclusions 27 Topic Overview iv Appendices Project Timeline vi Early Concepts 31 I Journey to the Topic 73 Tangible Testing 31 II Thesis Questions 77 Design Goals vii Legacy Book 32 III Survey Responses 81 Fading Frame 34 IV Survey Questions 91 Research Overview 1 Life Cards 34 V User Interface 97 Tangible 2 IOU Tokens 36 Digital 2 Soul Stroll 37 Analogous 3 Tangible Conclusions 38 Aesthetics 3 Stages of Dig.
    [Show full text]
  • Suicide Effects: Designing for Death
    Suicide Effects: Designing for Death Jan Rod Connor Graham Martin Gibbs Graduate School of Media Design Asia Research Institute Dept of Information Systems Keio University National University of Singapore University of Melbourne Tokyo, Japan Singapore Victoria, Australia [email protected] [email protected] [email protected] ABSTRACT These four suicides happened on the Tokyo transportation This paper presents design ideas and suggestions for digital system and probably affected between 80 to 800 thousand signage systems within the Tokyo transportation system to people caught in the delay. Given these tragic events create and nurture social and community engagement happen in the highly engineered and designed space of around the phenomena of train suicide. This method of stations and rail tracks in a country with arguably the most taking one’s own life is widespread in Japan and repeatedly advanced public transport solutions, spaces that people cripples the schedules of trains creating delays. The authors have created, they provoke us to ask how we can confront of this study have conducted field research and interviewed death, specifically suicides on the Tokyo underground a number of participants on their perception of suicide in system, through design. While groups of commuters on a the train system and their observation of other passengers’ train may not be a community per se what we describe here behaviour. Our analysis has shown that a tragic act, such as presents an interesting problem for communities and suicide, offers multiple views and departure points for technologies and, specifically, issues of formation, non- design. The outcomes of the paper, aside from analysis of formation and dissolution of publics around particular collected data, are ideas and suggestions for designs and apparently traumatic events on the Tokyo Metro system.
    [Show full text]