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Problematising Upstream Technology through Speculative Design: The Case of Quantified Cats and Dogs

Authors:

Lisa HopkinsAuthors Info & Claims

CHI '15: Proceedings of the 33rd Annual ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

Pages 2663 - 2672

https://doi.org/10.1145/2702123.2702260

Published: 18 April 2015 Publication History

Abstract

There is growing interest in technology that quantifies aspects of our lives. This paper draws on critical practice and speculative design to explore, question and problematise the ultimate consequences of such technology using the quantification of companion animals (pets) as a case study. We apply the concept of "moving upstream" to study such technology and use a qualitative research approach in which both pet owners, and animal behavioural experts, were presented with, and asked to discuss, speculative designs for pet quantification applications, the design of which were extrapolated from contemporary trends. Our findings indicate a strong desire among pet owners for technology that has little scientific justification, whilst our experts caution that the use of technology to augment human-animal communication has the potential to disimprove animal welfare, undermine human-animal bonds, and create human-human conflicts. Our discussion informs wider debates regarding quantification technology.

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Cited By

Lomborg SReutter LVilaza G(2024)Dreaming with data: Cultivating critical consciousness in datafied living researchConvergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies10.1177/13548565241288454Online publication date: 19-Oct-2024
https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565241288454
Dörrenbächer JKneile MHassenzahl MLaschke M(2024)Navigating the Paradox: Challenges of Designing Technology for NonhumansProceedings of the 13th Nordic Conference on Human-Computer Interaction10.1145/3679318.3685363(1-14)Online publication date: 13-Oct-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3679318.3685363
Stamato LProttoy HHiggins EScheifele LHamidi F(2024)Message in a Bottle: Investigating Bioart Installations as a Transdisciplinary Means of Community EngagementProceedings of the 2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3613904.3642339(1-17)Online publication date: 11-May-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3613904.3642339
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Index Terms

Problematising Upstream Technology through Speculative Design: The Case of Quantified Cats and Dogs
1. Human-centered computing

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Published In

cover image ACM Conferences

CHI '15: Proceedings of the 33rd Annual ACM Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

April 2015

4290 pages

ISBN:9781450331456

DOI:10.1145/2702123

General Chairs:
Bo Begole
Huawei, USA
,
Jinwoo Kim
Yonsei University, Korea
,
Program Chairs:
Kori Inkpen
Microsoft Research, USA
,
Woontack Woo
KAIST, Korea

Copyright © 2015 ACM.

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: 18 April 2015

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CHI '15: CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems

April 18 - 23, 2015

Seoul, Republic of Korea

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CHI '15 Paper Acceptance Rate 486 of 2,120 submissions, 23%;

Overall Acceptance Rate 6,199 of 26,314 submissions, 24%

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Cited By

Lomborg SReutter LVilaza G(2024)Dreaming with data: Cultivating critical consciousness in datafied living researchConvergence: The International Journal of Research into New Media Technologies10.1177/13548565241288454Online publication date: 19-Oct-2024
https://doi.org/10.1177/13548565241288454
Dörrenbächer JKneile MHassenzahl MLaschke M(2024)Navigating the Paradox: Challenges of Designing Technology for NonhumansProceedings of the 13th Nordic Conference on Human-Computer Interaction10.1145/3679318.3685363(1-14)Online publication date: 13-Oct-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3679318.3685363
Stamato LProttoy HHiggins EScheifele LHamidi F(2024)Message in a Bottle: Investigating Bioart Installations as a Transdisciplinary Means of Community EngagementProceedings of the 2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3613904.3642339(1-17)Online publication date: 11-May-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3613904.3642339
Schneiders EBenford SChamberlain AMancini CCastle-Green SNgo VRow Farr JAdams MTandavanitj NFischer J(2024)Designing Multispecies Worlds for Robots, Cats, and HumansProceedings of the 2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3613904.3642115(1-16)Online publication date: 11-May-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3613904.3642115
Benford SMancini CChamberlain ASchneiders ECastle-Green SFischer JKucukyilmaz ASalimbeni GNgo VBarnard PAdams MTandavanitj NRow Farr J(2024)Charting Ethical Tensions in Multispecies Technology Research through Beneficiary-Epistemology SpaceProceedings of the 2024 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems10.1145/3613904.3641994(1-15)Online publication date: 11-May-2024
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3613904.3641994
Mancini C(2023)Responsible ACI: Expanding the Influence of Animal-Computer InteractionProceedings of the Tenth International Conference on Animal-Computer Interaction10.1145/3637882.3637895(1-9)Online publication date: 4-Dec-2023
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3637882.3637895
Goodall WWallace FJackson M(2023)KitBit: An Instrumented Collar for Indoor PetsProceedings of the Tenth International Conference on Animal-Computer Interaction10.1145/3637882.3637894(1-8)Online publication date: 4-Dec-2023
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3637882.3637894
Sun SVega GReagan KSeker EVega K(2023)cirCAT: PURRtentio: a Litter Box that Monitors Feline Urine using Electrochemical BiosensorsProceedings of the Tenth International Conference on Animal-Computer Interaction10.1145/3637882.3637887(1-13)Online publication date: 4-Dec-2023
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Wakkary ROogjes DSakib NBehzad A(2023)Turner Boxes and Bees: From Ambivalence to DiffractionProceedings of the 2023 ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference10.1145/3563657.3596081(790-807)Online publication date: 10-Jul-2023
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Ikeya YWakkary RBarati B(2023)Metamorphonic: A Reflective Design Inquiry into Human-Silkworm RelationshipProceedings of the 2023 ACM Designing Interactive Systems Conference10.1145/3563657.3596053(808-819)Online publication date: 10-Jul-2023
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