Humanizing Digital Culture Impact Outcomes

Humanizing Digital Culture

Students in the Humanizing Digital Culture Lab, after having discussed the potential for digital experiences—extended reality, net-native art exhibitions, online experiences, and more—to effect change in the physical world, worked with Leonardo to conceptualize software products and virtual experiences that aim to humanize digital culture. The online Lab split into several teams that each proposed their own humanized digital experience. See examples of their proposals below.

Common Point

Using the online virtual reality exhibition platform ArtSteps, one group of students created a self-guided presentation, called Common Point, to answer the question of how digital spaces can support inclusivity through mentorship, especially for first-year undergraduates at ASU. Viewers can walk through Common Point to read about different strategies to extend the inclusivity of physical spaces to the digital world. Experience the online exhibition here.

Data Merge Virtual Reality Glasses

With the help of Google's search engine and Google Glasses, another group conceptualized a product that students can wear as glasses which serves as a portable but immersive search engine. Instead of simply seeing answers to search queries in text, these glasses put the learner into a virtual learning environment that will guide them to the answer through a personal, tailored experience using machine learning and artificial intelligence technologies. Believing that this alternative learning tool could give learners better opportunities to retain information and think critically, the team created a product design proposal and prototype that can be viewed here.

Health and Wellness During COVID-19

Searching for a self-guided digital form of respite from the emotional and physical stress of the COVID-19 pandemic, one team of students conducted a study to determine whether listening to COVID-inspired songs and encouraging artistic expression improves mental health. The team created a website to invite people to participate in their study and published their results in an informal paper.

Whole-istic Health

A group of four students, seeking to bridge society's perceptions of mental health and physical health, designed a health-focused social media campaign that aimed to increase awareness of the importance of holistic health. They conceptualized social media posts, merchandise, and resource guides to accompany their proposed campaign. See their project materials and read about their design process here.

Elevate AR

Another team proposed an augmented reality art platform titled Elevate AR that uses elevators as metaphorical and physical interfaces for experiencing others' cultural narratives. The platform would allow artists to create immersive art exhibits that, though a smartphone app, appear in the doors of an elevator and progress as the elevator moves between floors. The team documented the development of this idea and their thought processes in a presentation that can be viewed here.

Four students from this project decided to extend Elevate AR into a Beyond the Lab the following semester. Read more about their work here.

UrbanGO

Inspired by recent AR apps that have integrated virtual worlds and physical activity, another team of students conceptualized a smartphone app that provides an interface for virtually guided outdoor activities such as running, meditation, scavenger hunts, and walking tours. Additionally, the app would be intimately connected to the app users' local urban environment—physical portals, discounts at local businesses, and experiences tailored to city culture would all encourage users to engage with their surroundings. Read more about their proposal here.

Beyond the Lab

In the Spring 2022 semester, the Elevate AR team will be extending their impact outcome into a Beyond the Lab project. Read more about their upcoming work here.