Relational Artifacts with Children and Elders Response
Before this reading, I was unaware of the term "relational artifact". It surprised me that I had never run across this term before considering its relevance in media and technology today. As I continued reading, I was continuously reminded of one of my favorite movies Her, in which a man falls in love with an operating system, and the strides being taken in responsive robotics like Sophia the Robot. American artist Ken Goldberg describes robotics as the most human of all creations, and the examples in this text illustrate this point in the ways that computational objects affect us.
As robotics and android technology creeps into our everyday lives, the questions we ask of it interest me. The reading specifically mentions Furbies, which I remember being a big deal when I was a kid. However, the questions we would ask of it were much more primitive back then: Can it hear me? Can it move? Today, our inquiries on digital companions are much more profound: Is it alive? Can it feel? Does it understand? These questions might point to what we subconsciously desire from our digital associates. I believe the studies carried out from the reading, especially the ones regarding seniors, reveal an unspoken attitude on our interaction with digital media as a whole.
In particular, Jonathan's words on what he would talk about with his robot companion can easily be equated with many's attitude towards social media. He states that he would prefer talking to a computer about more private thing over a person, and he gives the example of being more comfortable blowing off steam to a computer. Although we know social media is public, I can't help but think we are subconsciously more comfortable being open with a computer. Why do you think that is?
Relational Artifacts with Children and Elders: The Complexities of Cybercompanionship." Turkle, Sherry; Taggart, Will; Kidd, Cory D; Daste, Olivia. In Connection Science, Vol 18, Iss. 4. pp. 347-361. Published December, 2006. Taylor and Francis (UK Journals), (15 pages).
As robotics and android technology creeps into our everyday lives, the questions we ask of it interest me. The reading specifically mentions Furbies, which I remember being a big deal when I was a kid. However, the questions we would ask of it were much more primitive back then: Can it hear me? Can it move? Today, our inquiries on digital companions are much more profound: Is it alive? Can it feel? Does it understand? These questions might point to what we subconsciously desire from our digital associates. I believe the studies carried out from the reading, especially the ones regarding seniors, reveal an unspoken attitude on our interaction with digital media as a whole.
In particular, Jonathan's words on what he would talk about with his robot companion can easily be equated with many's attitude towards social media. He states that he would prefer talking to a computer about more private thing over a person, and he gives the example of being more comfortable blowing off steam to a computer. Although we know social media is public, I can't help but think we are subconsciously more comfortable being open with a computer. Why do you think that is?
Relational Artifacts with Children and Elders: The Complexities of Cybercompanionship." Turkle, Sherry; Taggart, Will; Kidd, Cory D; Daste, Olivia. In Connection Science, Vol 18, Iss. 4. pp. 347-361. Published December, 2006. Taylor and Francis (UK Journals), (15 pages).
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