Michael Stead
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More-than-Human Net Zero Futures Open
From industry through policymaking to academia, much prevailing sustainability discourse focusses on transitioning to a so-called ‘Net Zero future’. Central to this vision is mitigation of human-driven climate change through the decarbonis…
Designing Prosocial More-Than-Human Rhetoric within Experiential Futures Open
While prosocial behaviour is often described as behaviour intended to help and benefit others, it is primarily considered through an anthropocentric lens in that the others in question are principally humans. In this research, we consider …
View article: Greetings from Silicon Heaven: Postcards from the IoT Afterlife
Greetings from Silicon Heaven: Postcards from the IoT Afterlife Open
As the importance of minimising e-waste and increasing sustainability increase, exploring the design matters impacting the transience of digital technologies has become a key concern. In this workshop we will explore this through the metap…
View article: Fostering IoT Repair Through Care: Learning from Emotional Durable Gaming Practices and Communities
Fostering IoT Repair Through Care: Learning from Emotional Durable Gaming Practices and Communities Open
Electronic waste (e-waste) has become the fastest growing waste stream in the world. So called 'smart' Internet of Things (IoT) devices, now ubiquitous in our homes, are increasingly contributing to this waste stream, due to their lack of …
View article: Creating Sustainable Internet of Things Futures: Aligning Legal and Design Research Agendas.
Creating Sustainable Internet of Things Futures: Aligning Legal and Design Research Agendas. Open
The way consumer Internet of Things (IoT) devices are built is leading to electronic waste (eWaste) growth. This arises from planned obsolescence, bundling of ‘smartness’ creating more routes to device failure, and lacking hardware modular…
View article: Liminal Excavations
Liminal Excavations Open
A zine that explores alternative visions, ideas and critiques on the topic of sustainability and ICT QC 20241001
UbiFix: Tackling Repairability Challenges in Smart Devices Open
IoT products are increasingly becoming the default, with non-IoT versions of common hardware (e.g., TVs and printers) harder to find. Alongside this adoption surge, lack of support, outdated security, and planned obsolescence present conce…
Sustainability Open
Designing for sustainability is all about the future and effecting positive change for the planet's long-term flourishing. From atomic bomb fallouts to shampoo microplastics, the Earth's environmental woes are indelibly linked to people's …
A more-than-human right-to-repair Open
Whilst the recent introduction of the Right-to-Repair to European citizens is undoubtedly a step forward in tackling planned obsolescence, and the resultant deluge of electronic product waste – the efficacy of this new legislation is relia…
Design for Terra-Reforming: Prototyping Environmentally Responsible Socio-technical Futures Open
From the Gutenberg Press to the Internet of Things, socio-technical progress has benefitted humanity in ways our ancestors likely never thought possible. Many advancements have, however, had a profoundly detrimental effect upon our planet’…
Must All Things Pass?:Designing for the Afterlife of (Internet of) Things Open
Sunrise doesn't last all morning A cloudburst doesn’t last all day… All things must pass All things must pass away George Harrison’s 1970 song ‘All Things Must Pass’ could easily be seen to be his sonic lament to the passing of The Beatles…
Edge of Tomorrow: Designing Sustainable Edge Computing Open
Vaunted as the next frontier within the scope of the Internet of Things (IoT), Edge Computing (EC) is seen as a means to improve efficiency and privacy across IoT infrastructures. This is because it enables data to be processed where it or…
Spimes Open
There are numerous loud and powerful voices promoting the Internet of Things (IoT) as a catalyst for changing many aspects of our lives for the better. Healthcare, energy, transport, finance, entertainment and in the home – billions of eve…
The Future Is Metahistory:Using Spime-based Design Fiction As A Research Lens For Designing Sustainable Internet of Things Devices Open
A spime describes a device that could generate data about itself throughout its entire life-cycle and this ‘metahistory’ would be saved and remain searchable and mineable. Given growing Internet of Things (IoT) device e-waste and material …
Spimes Not Things. Creating A Design Manifesto For A Sustainable Internet of Things Open
(2019). Spimes Not Things. Creating A Design Manifesto For A Sustainable Internet of Things. The Design Journal: Vol. 22, Running with Scissors: 13th International Conference of the European Academy of Design, Dundee, 10-12th April, 2019, …
The Little Book of Sustainability for the Internet of Things Open
There are numerous loud and powerful voices promoting the Internet of Things (IoT) as a catalyst for changing many aspects of our lives for the better. Think healthcare, energy, transport, finance, entertainment and in the home – billions …
Do-It-Yourself Medical Devices: exploring their potential futures through design fiction Open
With ever increasing demands on healthcare around the world, ensuring adequate provision for patients is becoming more and more challenging. In this paper, we focus on future healthcare provision, specifically looking at how Do-It-Yourself…
HealthBand:campaigning for an open and ethical Internet of Things through an applied process of design fiction Open
This paper discusses the creation of a design fiction that seeks to embody Sterling’s (2005) spimes concept – near future, Internet-connected, manufactured objects. HealthBand is a fictional open-source wearable device born in a future whe…
Design fiction as world building Open
Design Fiction has garnered considerable attention during recent years yet still remains pre-paradigmatic. Put differently there are concurrent,but incongruent, perspectives on what Design Fiction is and how to use it. Acknowledging this i…
Spimes and speculative design: Sustainable product futures today Open
This paper unpacks Sterling's concept of spimes and outlines how it can be developed as a lens through which to speculate and reflect upon the future of more preferable and sustainable technological products. The term spimes denotes a clas…
Fiber optic loop based integrated RF-photonic system for analog signal processing Open
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A Toaster For Life: Using Design Fiction To Facilitate Discussion On The Creation Of A Sustainable Internet of Things Open
This paper presents a design fiction created by the author – the Toaster For Life. The design is an initial prototype that seeks to embody Sterling's concept of spimes which when viewed simply, are a class of near future, sustainable, manu…