Social sensing and its display

Abstract

This thesis proposes a public interface that functions as a social catalyst in public spaces. Like a smart mirror, it intends to reflect the social identity of the environment and increase sensibility towards the place and among others in the environment by highlighting a particular aspect of it. Here, our particular use of the medium is to raise awareness of the boundaries among the residents; highlighting their differences and similarities of mobility, displacement and geographical limits. The medium is designed as a custom, multimodal interface, which functions as a tangible, interactive sculpture that senses ambient sound, records deliberate user input and displays interactive graphics as its output. The design explores the utility of sound and physical interaction for envisioning new social, cultural and entertainment uses of public places and help us shape our relationships with each other with new social interfaces embedded in urban settings.