Understanding interaction : the relationships between people, technology, culture, and the environment. Volume 1, Evolution, technology, language and culture : where do we come from and how did we get here?

Understanding Interaction is a book that explores the interaction between people and technology, in the broader context of the relations between the human-made and the natural environments. It is not just about digital technologies – our computers, smart phones, the Internet – but all our technologies such as mechanical, electrical and electronic. Our ancestors started creating mechanical tools and shaping their environments millions of years ago, developing cultures and languages, which in turn influenced our evolution. Volume 1 of Understanding Interaction looks into this deep history – starting from the tool creating period (the longest and most influential on our physical and mental capacities), to the settlement period (agriculture, domestication, villages and cities, written language), the industrial period (science, engineering, reformation and renaissance), and finally the communication period (mass media, digital technologies, global networks). The aim of the book is to be guide and inspiration for designers, artists, engineers, psychologists, media producers, social scientists etc., and as such be useful for both novices and more experienced practitioners. Cover Half Title Title Page Copyright Page Table of Contents Preface Author Chapter 1 Interacting – Overview of design and research for interaction Interaction – A journey Interaction craft and science Interacting with mechanical technology – Ergonomics Interactive art and architecture Interacting with computers Early visions of computer interaction Interface design User-centred design Human–computer interaction and interaction design Specialisations and subfields in interaction Developing definitions Interactivation The electronic ecology Interaction and education Interaction and design Interactivation and design research Interactivation teaching Interactivation across design disciplines Interactivation and transdisciplinarity Notes Chapter 2 Evolving – Technocultural periods and technology categories Evolution and technocultural change Technocultural periods Classification of technology for interaction Mechanical technology Chemical technology Electrical technology Optical technology Magnetic technology Nuclear technology Technological functions Technological categories and interaction Notes Chapter 3 Creating – Dedicated tool making and the emergence of language  Archaeology and palaeoanthropology Tools and language Evolution and human development Homo floresiensis Homo naledi Homo denisova Homo luzonensis Homo sapiens Evolutionary categories of tool use and communication Opportunistic tool use Dedicated tool making Designed tools Composite tools Fire, burning, and cooking Bipedalism and its evolutionary consequences Two stages of evolutionary transition Influence of bipedalism on rhythm and musicality From walking to running Dispersal across the continents Development of symbolic representation and language Evolutionary relationships between early humans Notes Chapter 4 Settling – Agriculture, mechanical tools, and writing Agriculture and domestication of animals, forming of societies Structure of societies Writing and tools Ceramics Mechanical tools and technology Mechanical structures Metallurgy Power Diseases Ancient civilisations Nomads versus settlers – the value of traditional knowledge Traditional nomadism Degree of settlement in traditional Australian Aboriginal culture Dreaming and songlines Firestick farming in traditional Australian Aboriginal culture Polynesian navigation skills Contemporary nomadic tendencies Notes Chapter 5 Industrialising – Science, enlightenment, reformation, and renaissance Renaissance – art, architecture, and music Science – reason and knowledge Reformation – religious practices Humanism and rationalism Printing press with moveable type Industrial Revolution Technological developments during industrialisation From passive to active mechanical technology From electrical to electronic technology Analogue and digital electronic technology Technological functions Power and energy sources Transmission and distribution of power Storage of energy Conversion and translation of energy Information and communication Transmission of information Recording – storage of information Technology applications and responses Transport Manufacturing developments Artistic responses to industrialised manufacture Phases of industrialisation – the Unindustrial Revolution Consequences of industrialisation Warfare and industrialisation Human nature Humans and nature Humans versus nature The Anthropocene Notes Chapter 6 Communicating – Information, representation, and semiotics Presentation and representation Communication – signs and meaning Information and communication theory Meaning making Signs and semiotics History and overview of semiotics C. S. Peirce – philosophy and logic De Saussure – linguistic structures Further semiotic developments early in the 20th century Ogden and Richards – Literature Karl Bühler – Communication Charles Morris – areas of semiotic study Thomas Sebeok – establishing the discipline The role of context in meaning making Pragmatics Strata – four domains of practice Indexical signs: pointers, symptoms, and traces Index Deixis Traces Semiotic resources and framing Mimetic representation Onomatopoeia – sound words Metaphoric representation Metaphors in language Metaphors in the GUI Skeuomorphs A continuum from mimetic to arbitrary – the Representation Spectrum HCI and semiotics Semiotic modes reflected in HCI Modes and modality in semiotics and HCI Value and authenticity Authenticity in visual art Value creation and authenticity in contemporary art Language and thought Language and time Language and colour Language and orientation Categorisations Phatic communication and interaction Small talk and chit-chat Fidgeting Affordances and direct perception Ecological approach to perception Affordances and semiotics The affordance of affordances Notes Interface – Connecting volume 1 and volume 2—preliminary frameworks and directions References Index Understanding Interaction explores the interaction between people and technology in the broader context of the relations between the human-made and the natural environments. It is not just about digital technologies – our computers, smartphones, the Internet – but all our technologies, such as mechanical, electrical, and electronic. Our ancestors started creating mechanical tools and shaping their environments millions of years ago, developing cultures and languages, which in turn influenced our evolution. Volume 1 looks into this deep history, starting from the tool-creating period (the longest and most influential on our physical and mental capacities) to the settlement period (agriculture, domestication, villages and cities, written language), the industrial period (science, engineering, reformation, and renaissance), and finally the communication period (mass media, digital technologies, and global networks). Volume 2 looks into humans in interaction – our physiology, anatomy, neurology, psychology, how we experience and influence the world, and how we (think we) think. From this transdisciplinary understanding, design approaches and frameworks are presented to potentially guide future developments and innovations. The aim of the book is to be a guide and inspiration for designers, artists, engineers, psychologists, media producers, social scientists, etc., and, as such, be useful for both novices and more experienced practitioners. Image Credit: Still of interactive video pattern created with a range of motion sensors in the Facets kaleidoscopic algorithm (based underwater footage of seaweed movement) by the author on 4 February 2010, for a lecture at Hyperbody at the Faculty of Architecture, TU Delft, NL. This book brings together perspectives and knowledge from a wide range of disciplines. It defines and explains what actually happens in the interaction between people and technology as a basis for the design and implementation of better interfaces. The book demystifies technology by placing it in a historical context and relating social and cultural developments to technical advances. It also presents new frameworks, design tools, and techniques from theory to practice.