Use your left + right arrow keys to navigate this slidedeck.
Technology as Extension of Man
An idea popularized by Marshall McLuhan (1964)
But what does it imply?
The Implications of "Extension"
Tech starts with humans (as reference point)
Tech compensates for human lack (fetish)
Tech is modeled on human bodies (norming)
Tech is narcissistic (an image of us)
Tech is gendered power + masculine culture
Tech is a closed system (before electricity)
Tech is a single field of experience (after electricity)
See McLuhan's Understanding Media: The Extensions of Man (1964)
What Are Some Counter-Examples?
Kelly Dobson's "Machine Therapy"
Screambody
Kelly Dobson's "Machine Therapy"
Blendie
Kelly Dobson's "Machine Therapy"
Omo
Temple Grandin's Therapeutic Devices
Squeeze Machine
Temple Grandin's Therapeutic Devices
Squeeze Machine
The Counter-Examples
Tech starts with affordances (not humans)
Tech builds on relations (not lack)
Tech without a default experience (not human bodies)
Tech is play or vulnerability (not narcissus)
Tech is a negotiation (not power)
Tech is an interface (not open or closed)
Assistive tech = innovation (Hendren)