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Giving up Control - A Speculative Air Pollution Mask to Reflect on Autonomy and Technology Design

Schulte, BF; Lechelt, Z; Singh, A; (2018) Giving up Control - A Speculative Air Pollution Mask to Reflect on Autonomy and Technology Design. In: Koskinen, I and Lim, Y-K and Cerratto-Pargman, T and Chow, KKN and Odom, W, (eds.) DIS '18: Companion Proceedings of the 2018 ACM Conference Companion Publication on Designing Interactive Systems. (pp. pp. 177-181). ACM: New York, USA. Green open access

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Abstract

In many metropolitan cities air pollution regularly exceeds safe levels, with numerous consequences for health and well-being. Current technological solutions often aim to give users control over their air pollution exposure by measuring, processing and sharing data about pollutant levels. We created a speculative face mask that opens and closes autonomously, taking control away from the user. The goal of the speculative design was to highlight the urgency and effect of air pollution on individuals in a tangible and embodied way. Through this critical design object, we question existing solutionist approaches to air pollution and pose questions about autonomy and individual responsibility. In this paper, we share our development process and the conceptual idea behind the mask to inform and inspire other critical objects to address important societal issues at an individual level.

Type: Proceedings paper
Title: Giving up Control - A Speculative Air Pollution Mask to Reflect on Autonomy and Technology Design
Event: DIS '18, 2018 ACM Conference Companion Publication on Designing Interactive Systems, 9-13 June 2018, Hong Kong, China
ISBN-13: 9781450356312
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1145/3197391.3205432
Publisher version: https://dx.doi.org/10.1145/3197391.3205432
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the author accepted manuscript. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
Keywords: Pollution; critical design; design fiction; sustainability
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > School of Life and Medical Sciences > Faculty of Brain Sciences > Div of Psychology and Lang Sciences > UCL Interaction Centre
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Engineering Science > Dept of Computer Science
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of Arts and Humanities
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10054546
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