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Morse Things: A Design Inquiry into the Gap Between Things and Us

Published: 10 June 2017 Publication History

Abstract

Applying a thing-centered, material speculation approach we designed the Morse Things to acknowledge and inquire into the gap between things and us. The Morse Things are sets of ceramic bowls and cups networked together to independently communicate through Morse code in an Internet of Things (IoT). We deployed the Morse Things in the households of six interaction design practitioners and researchers for six weeks. Following the deployment, we conducted a workshop to discuss the role of the Morse Things and ultimately the gap between things and people. We reflect on the nature of living with IoT things and discuss insights into the gap between things and humans that led to the idea of a new type of thing in the home that is neither human-centered technology nor non-digital artifacts.

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  • (2024)Exploring the Roles of Artifacts in Speculative Futures: Perspectives in HCISystems10.3390/systems1206019412:6(194)Online publication date: 3-Jun-2024
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  • (2024)Shifting Ambiguity, Collapsing Indeterminacy: Designing with Data as Baradian ApparatusACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction10.1145/368904331:6(1-41)Online publication date: 6-Dec-2024
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    cover image ACM Conferences
    DIS '17: Proceedings of the 2017 Conference on Designing Interactive Systems
    June 2017
    1444 pages
    ISBN:9781450349222
    DOI:10.1145/3064663
    Permission to make digital or hard copies of all or part of this work for personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage and that copies bear this notice and the full citation on the first page. Copyrights for components of this work owned by others than ACM must be honored. Abstracting with credit is permitted. To copy otherwise, or republish, to post on servers or to redistribute to lists, requires prior specific permission and/or a fee. Request permissions from [email protected]

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    Published: 10 June 2017

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    Author Tags

    1. internet of things
    2. material speculation
    3. postphenomenology
    4. things

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    DIS '17: Designing Interactive Systems Conference 2017
    June 10 - 14, 2017
    Edinburgh, United Kingdom

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    DIS '17 Paper Acceptance Rate 107 of 487 submissions, 22%;
    Overall Acceptance Rate 1,158 of 4,684 submissions, 25%

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    Cited By

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    • (2024)Exploring the Roles of Artifacts in Speculative Futures: Perspectives in HCISystems10.3390/systems1206019412:6(194)Online publication date: 3-Jun-2024
    • (2024)Prototyping with Uncertainties: Data, Algorithms, and Research through DesignACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction10.1145/370232231:6(1-21)Online publication date: 6-Dec-2024
    • (2024)Shifting Ambiguity, Collapsing Indeterminacy: Designing with Data as Baradian ApparatusACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction10.1145/368904331:6(1-41)Online publication date: 6-Dec-2024
    • (2024)Making Space for Poems: An Invitation to More-than-Human DesignProceedings of the Halfway to the Future Symposium10.1145/3686169.3686208(1-6)Online publication date: 21-Oct-2024
    • (2024)Designing Our Way Through Abstractions: Calling for More Practice-based More-than-Human Design ResearchProceedings of the Halfway to the Future Symposium10.1145/3686169.3686195(1-10)Online publication date: 21-Oct-2024
    • (2024)Un/Making Data Imaginaries: The Data EpicsACM Transactions on Computer-Human Interaction10.1145/368526931:6(1-38)Online publication date: 14-Aug-2024
    • (2024)Reimagining Human-Thing Interactions Through Iterative Posthumanist Design SpeculationsCompanion Publication of the 2024 ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference10.1145/3656156.3665125(1-5)Online publication date: 1-Jul-2024
    • (2024)On Disused Connected Devices: Understanding Disuse, ‘Holding On’ and Barriers to CircularityACM Journal on Computing and Sustainable Societies10.1145/3651171Online publication date: 11-Mar-2024
    • (2024)Tracing as a Strategy for Orienting to Nonhuman PerspectivesProceedings of the 2024 ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference10.1145/3643834.3661621(1087-1100)Online publication date: 1-Jul-2024
    • (2024)Airbnb Digital Concierges: Designing Interactions for Authentic Guest ExperienceProceedings of the 2024 ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference10.1145/3643834.3661582(3419-3434)Online publication date: 1-Jul-2024
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