Totem. - Industrial Design Bachelor Thesis

Industrial Design Meta Project

Lucas Bruketa

TOTEM.

Show Me

TOTEM. A platform to reimagine the act of self reflection, leveraging environmental and emotional data to produce augmented reality visualizations of the user’s emotional history.

Lucas Bruketa Industrial Design Meta Project OCAD U, 2019 Supervisors - Alexander Manu & Bernhard Dietz // 3

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PHASE 01//

INTRODUCTION

04

PHASE 02//

EXPLORATION

10

PHASE 03//

DISCOVERY

38

PHASE 04//

DEFINITION

56

PHASE 05//

SYSTEM

quick reading sections

92

INTRODUCTION // 6

1

Motivation

// 8

This Meta Project, its topic and the problem space in which it exists, is derived from my own personal struggles with self reflection and identity. A struggle in which I realized that I may not know myself as deeply or as intimately as I once believed. A struggle in which I realized that I am unsure in how I wanted to proceed with my life and career following my graduation. How can one understand where they are going, or what they are striving for, if they do not first understand themselves? This lack of understanding - one that had initially prevented me from knowing what realm I wanted to explore for my thesis - became a central pillar to this Meta Project.

This personal struggle of identity is universal, and through it I am driven to find a new mode of understanding and of self reflection. The creation of a new method through which the individual can see themselves from an objective perspective, so that they may find new insights. I want this experience to be transformative and impacting, granting them a new context through which they may view themselves.

How can one understand where they are going without understanding themselves? // 9

Abstract The purpose of this report is to explore and map the problem space in which this Meta Project exists in its entirety, to define each of its components and lay the way for the design process moving forward. The Meta Project centers around the opportunity to redefine self reflection and improvement, using a complex understanding of individual’s perception of the self and its interaction with memory.

Focusing around a growing societal desire for valuable self reflection, this document delves into the human understanding of the self. How does this understanding falter? What are its impacts? How is it limiting? Through the identification of growing cultural shifts and technological trends, it becomes evident that mass biometric data and the emotional meaning that can be derived from it are a cultural horizon. And through the act of returning this data and value back to the individual it originated from, one can gain deeper self knowledge and new understanding as never before. // 10

What if you could meet yourself?

How do you give physical form to emotions?

What if you could exist outside your body?

What inhibits us from knowing ourselves?

How do we find absolution from ourselves?

What if we had no concept of memory?

What if our thoughts were externalized?

How can we talk to an honest self?

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EXPLORATION // 12

2

Case Studies of the Self

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To understand how to connect one more deeply back to themselves, it was important to first understand existing concepts of the self. The abstract concept, the vague shape of a human that each person identifies themselves as, is one that has been contemplated frequently and repeatedly throughout human history. In an attempt to understand the world around ourselves, philosophers - and others who contemplate on the nature of being - often find a lacking in our understanding of our own identities. What is the nature of being alive? Of consciousness? How does personal identity exist removed of the body or removed of others? Words fail, and the individual definitions of the past never quite encapsulate the experience that each individual undergoes.

In my own pursuit of understanding, 7 different concepts of the self were identified, ranging from the doctrines of Greek philosophers, to the more concrete concepts of leading, modern psychologists. Though at times contradictory, this breadth of research allowed for the construction of a more solidified foundation of ideologies from which the project may grow.

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Aristotle’s Philosophy of Self Aristotle saw that the self is the core essence of humanity, deeply and intrinsically unified with the body. One cannot exist without the other. The self can be interpreted as an action enacted by the body, a manifestation of the body’s existence. As such, the self is less abstracted and cannot be immortal, and it is actualized by the potential of the body, the capacity for rational behaviour. As an entity or an extension of the body, the self exists as four sections, two concerned with rationality and decision making - the calculative and scientific sections - and two with irrationality and need identification - the desiderative and vegetative sections. // 16

Aristotle’s Philosophy of Self

Arthur Schopenhauer’s Theory of Perception

Aristotle saw that the self is the core essence of humanity, deeply and intrinsically unified with the body. One cannot exist without the other. The self can be interpreted as an action enacted by the body, a manifestation of the body’s existence. As such, the self is less abstracted and cannot be immortal, and it is actualized by the potential of the body, the capacity for rational behaviour. As an entity or an extension of the body, the self exists as four sections, two concerned with rationality and decision making - the calculative and scientific sections - and two with irrationality and need identification - the desiderative and vegetative sections.

The human experience is one of distinct divisions and mediation. The mind and the self are comprised of the human will, a restless striving at the core of humanity. This internal self exists in a state of eternal discontent, a dissatisfaction with the one’s condition that - though satiable - can never be completely fulfilled. The determination of the human will, the drive to satisfy this discontent, is the sole kernel of mankind. It is the key to allowing man to take physical shape; as the will itself exists so wholly separate from the world that it necessitates the human body as a conduit to translate experiences into a form the self can interpret. // 17

David Hume’s Bundle Theory of Self The self is not the concrete manifestation of identity that it is commonly perceived to be. It is not an unchanged element, nor a constant.

Rather, the self is a composition of a variety of distinct, flexible elements that are susceptible to change. This looseness and elasticity means that the self that we perceive ourselves to be is not the same self that we were in the past.

This understanding of identity embraces a variability, and finds value in the influence experience has on individual identity. The self is not separate from the life lived, but instead is the loose union of an individual’s sensory and emotional experiences. // 18

Chris Childs’ On Being Alone Through solitude and the conscious action of being alone, one may discover their truest identity. When removed from the presence of others, we are freed from their observation.

In the presences of others we are conscious of observing and being observed - actions that ineffectually alters our own being. In aloneness, a state of solitude in that must be actively sought out and standing separate from loneliness, one can exist regardless of their physical setting. We can be our true selves, doing as the body wishes without asking for permission to act. In this act we are able to connect more deeply with the world that we inhabit, and we may find our place within the world.

Daniel Kahneman’s Experience vs. Memory Examined from a psychological lens, rather than philosophical, the self can be understood as concrete and split into two distinct divisions.

This division runs deep, separating who we are from who we perceive ourselves to be.

This first self, the self we are externally, that is perceived by others, is the Experiencing Self.

This is the self that wakes and interacts with the world, that experiences every moment of our lives. The second self is the Remembered Self, an identity formed through reflection, the retrospective interpretations of our memories, and is the individual that we understand ourselves to be.

These two identities are divided by memory. Each event that the Experiencing Self undergoes is stored as memories for interpretation. However, these memories are fallible - able to be distorted by time and emotions - and are also largely forgotten, with only the emotional start and end of events being retained. The sum of the experience is lost, both in events of pleasure and trauma.

Due to this fallibility, the Remembered Self is largely structured on alternatives, rather than the reality of the Experiencing Self.

Without reconciling this division, the Self that we understand to be real can be deeply misguided, failing to perceive ourselves and our life honestly or accurately. // 19

Self is Fluctuation Memory is Identity

Variable Interplay Emotional Source

Eternal Dissatisfaction

Derived Themes

Permanently Incomplete

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Determination

Search for Truth

Plato

We are our Body Self is Manifested

Kahneman

Innate Humanity

Child

Plurality Body Awareness

Composit

Manifestation of Will Satiation without Satisfaction

The Body

Self as Union Desire as Impetus Experiencing Self

Innate Carnality

Remebered Self

To be Good is an Intention

Satisfaction of Desire

Aristotle

We Are Not What Others See Internal Disconnection

Schopehauer Hume

Balancing the Scales

Fluid Identity

Native Insecurity Observation Alters Identity We Are Our Experiences

Solitude

Experiential Conduit

I am not the Self I was Desire for Harmony We Are Part of Nature // 21

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Case Studies of Memory Through an examination of the nature of the self, it becomes clear that the self cannot be separated from the memories and experiences of the individual. These elements serve as the fundamental building blocks upon which the self - or maybe just the perceived self - is constructed.

Memory plays a wide role in our lives and is an abstract notion. There is a biological definition, one constrained to the firing electrical pulses of synapses, but in a broader notion, memory extends into the act of recording information and experiences, be that through writing, oral accounts, or photography. It is also important to acknowledge the fallibility of memory and the ways in which it can be altered. These flaws become essential, as they affect both our understanding of what the self is, and how we present our self when interacting with others.

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John Anderson’s Interpretation of Memory John Anderson - a Canadian-American psychologist - delineated the memory into two distinct halves, creating the declarative memory and the procedural memory.

The declarative memory is composed of information that is explicitly stored and retrieved, it is memory that require conscious recall to utilize. This form of memory makes up the majority of what is colloquially referred to as memory, containing the events and experiences of one’s life that they can reflect on. Alternatively, the procedural memory is developed around innate actions and behaviours, memories that are taught and ingrained into the individual to the point that they need not be consciously recalled.

The information within it is implicit, with the individual learning it without being conscious that learning has occurred. A clear example of this form of memory is the ability to ride a bike or tie shoelaces. // 24

False Memories False memories are a phenomenon that demonstrates the fallibility of human recollection, and occur when an individual recalls a memory that either never happened, or is remembered as happening differently from its reality. Though stemming from a variety of sources, there is growing evidence that alterations can occur to a memory each time it is recalled. As the memory is recalled, the synapses in which it is based undergo a rejuvenation, and in this process can be slightly altered as they once again cement themselves into the long term memory. With each recollection, a growing number of alterations may occur, leading to the creation of a false memory.

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Anxiety-Memory Interaction In interaction with memory recall, common behavioural disorders, such as anxiety and depression, have shown to be capable of deeply altering one’s recollection. These diseases alter the frequency and type of memories recalled, with studies finding that they result in biases for retrieving negative self-relevant information. In this way, these diseases can alter how an individual understands their personal history. As the act of recollection cements and strengthens a memory, a bias towards recalling negative memories means that they will remain after other memories have been forgotten.

The individual becomes only able to recall predominantly negative information about themselves, based in painful or embarrassing experiences. // 26

Genetic Memory Through an examination of butterflies, one can perceive new understandings of memory as a biological action. As it approaches the end of its time as a larval caterpillar, the insect will create for itself a chrysalis, in which it will encase itself and undergo metamorphosis before emerging as a butterfly. In this process, the caterpillar’s body will enter into an entirely liquid state, breaking down all physical structures that form the insect’s body and brain.

This process of liquefaction is significant when paired with the information that a trained caterpillar will retain its training once it becomes a butterfly. The physical processes that compose a living beings memories are unknown. The butterfly indicates that it is possible to encode memory directly into the genetics of a being, making memory inseparable component of the being rather than a physical structure.

As well this behavior is displayed in the migratory patterns of the monarch butterfly

when passing over Lake Superior. While passing south over the lake, the insects will suddenly take a sharp turn east, before eventually continuing south. The leading explanation for this behavior theorizes that the butterflies are remembering an ancient mountain that once impeded their migration route during the species‘ evolution. Thousands of years and generations later, the memory of the mountain remains ingrained in the species’ genetics, altering their behaviour millennia after its disappearance from the earth’s topography. // 27

Oral Traditions A method of preserving cultural memories, oral histories are an act of transferring information between generation. Prevalent in the cultures of Indigenous First Nations people, through oral histories key cultural information has been maintained and kept alive for thousands of years. These traditions maintain the memories and information created by individuals over several generations, passing along historical knowledge, invaluable ecological information, teachings and language. The oral component of this traditions and histories is necessary in their maintenance. Due to their ephemeral nature, their repeated telling and sharing keeps these memories a living part of the culture. Unlike written histories which are permanent but separated from the cultural zeitgeist, oral histories are woven into the fabric of culture, becoming the basis for traditions, ceremonies, and communal interaction. // 28

Proto-Writing As a tool, writing is the act of recording information, qualitative or quantitative, in a physical way. Abstracted from this understanding, the act can be understood as a method of memory recording. It is the transcription of the ethereal into a physical form, and in doing so giving it permanence.

This behavior is traced back to the origins of humanity, indicating an innate desire or necessity to make memory physical, an understanding of our own memory’s fallibility.

Separate from true writing which transcribes the entirety of one’s language, proto-writing only had the ability to represent a limited amount of concepts. The VinÄ?a symbols represent the earliest of this writing form, tracing back to the 6th or 5th millennium BCE and found in present-day Siberia, predating the earliest true writing system by thousands of years.

Photography as Memory Photography, and in a way videograph as well, is a relatively new mode of memory transcription to humanity. Through photographs, events and memories can be recorded, removed of any form of language (written or oral). In this way, they serve to record a more abstract memory, a memory of aesthetics; bodies, colors, and motion.

However, similar to writing, the context in which the photographs are taken alter the memory being recorded. Portraits and instances in which the individual knows they are being photographed become preformative, reflecting a desired emotion rather than the true memory. In comparison, candid photographs may present a more honest depiction of an event, but both are dependant on the context in which they exist to convey their true memory. This can be seen through early photography of the 19th century, in which individuals posing for a portrait took guidance from the existing customs of painted portraits. Posing without a smile, these images depict a more dour memory of the time period when viewed now, removed of their context. // 29

Memory through Aesthetics Idealized Recording Generational Transfer

Culture Contextual

Derived Themes

Rite of Passage

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Procedural Memory

Abstract Record

Living Memory

Genetic Memory

Universally Human

Photography Reduction

Desire Driven

False Memory

Physical Manifestation Distillation through Recording

Biased Recall

Harmful Feeback Loops Behavioral Inherency

Emotion

Memory as Action Indentity Formative

Conscious

Memory & Knowledge

Innate

Implicit Learning

Declarative Memory

Record Keeping

Inescapable Loss

Writing Trust in the Untrustworthy Oral History Degradation Memory-Anxiety Interplay

Experience defines the body

Intrinsic

Evolution

Inevitable alteration

We are our Ancestors Collective Impacts

The Remembered is not the Totality // 31

Insights

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Having done a wide survey of cases in relation to the self and memory, as well as specifically into the interaction of the two, it becomes valuable to unify the research done. In doing so, the most valuable information from the cases studies can be extracted, and can be consolidated into a clearer understanding of the information presented. Utilizing these insights, the research can more clearly direct the project as it moves forward.

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Within the different presented philosophies of the self, a number of shared themes arose. Though they often presented different - and at time contradictory - understandings of the self, they frequently referenced similar concepts, indicating a universal value to these thought process. Most fundamentally, they each understood the self to stand separate from the body. Even the philosophies of Aristotle and Schopenhauer present them as distinct, though they see the two as inseparable from another. The value in this consensus is found in the inferences that can be drawn from this distinction; if the two components are distinct, then the experiences of the body are fundamentally distanced or separated from the experiences of the self.

Secondary to this, the proposed philosophies are largely in agreement that the self is altered in the presence of others. That the act of witnessing or being witnessed by others alienates the self // 34

from itself, making it impossible to be the true self. Akin to quantum physics, the simple act of observation, even without interaction, alters the outcome. In this way it can be understood that the true self may be incapable of interacting with others, only able to be present before or after experiencing others.

While less discussed between each case study, great value can be derived from how the philosophies understand the nature of experience on the self. Within Hume’s theory, he acknowledges the indeterminate nature of the self, the fluidity of it, and understands that the self is irrevocably defined by what it has experienced. This comprehension operates in accordance with Kanheman’s observations on the self.

In which, he perceives that the self we internally recognize, the remembered self, is defined by the experiences we undergo and our interpretations of them.

This connection deeply links memory to the personal understanding of our self. Memory exists in many forms; collectively, culturally, personally, and so forth. Memory is the tool through which we record our experiences, and the tool that we use to reflect on them, to understand them more deeply. And through this link, memory becomes the tool through which we base our self on.

Simultaneously, memory is fundamentally understood to be fallible. It can be rewritten,

altered, or wholly fabricated within the mind, breaking or damaging the connection between our understanding of our self and the reality.

Part of the flaw in memory is its abstract nature, and due to this it becomes difficult to record. In some situations memory can be so strong it may be physically intertwined with your being, your genetic code. Though even on this level, components are lost, and intention is easily forgotten once removed from its context. In verbal or written situations, the act of direct transcription falters even greater. The whole story of the memory can never be fully recounted, with meaning and context lost in translation.

Through this loss, it becomes clear that a significant element of memory is the interaction with it, the ability to relate to it in its abstract form.

As it has been tested and evidenced, Kanheman’s description of the self can be utilized as a basis for the derived information. The divide between the experiencing and the remembering selves is bridge through memory. Allowing for the remembered self to be birthed through reflection, understanding ourselves through looking back on the events that we have experienced. However, without true memory, one unbiased and infallible, memory clouds our understanding of the self. // 35

Kanheman describes the human memory as only valuing the beginning and end of experiences. These are the emotions that we retain, and that define the memory of the experience. The middle is lost, and thus the sum of our experience is insignificant.

In fact, the majority of our experience becomes internally valueless. The reality of our experiencing self is largely lost, becoming inaccessible to us. If the end is all that matters, it becomes easy to cloud our understanding of experiences. The value in the middle, whatever positivity and growth it may have contained - that may have been the majority of the experience - can easily be lost.

If these elements and interactions are understood to be true, then the self is based largely on a fiction, a misremembered memory of a fraction of an experience.

The remembered and experiencing selves stand in distinct separation of one another, running parallel, without intersection, and without the opportunity for cross consultation. Without intersection, one’s understanding of their self is not representative of an accurate memory, not an honest depiction of one’s history. Our suffering may be less than what believe them to be, our failings may not be as drastic or consequential as we fear them to be.

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The Experiencing Self The Remembered Self

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The Quantified Self Movement

The quantified self movement provides a realm in which this project can exist, revolving around intensive data collection through self-tracking technology. Through the collection of personal quantitative data - food consumed, skin conductance, oxygen saturation in the blood - the movement attempts to derive more qualitative emotional data, using biometrics to develop an archival emotional profile on the self. A key tenant of the movement requires that this data become a source of self knowledge, always being returned to the individuals from which it was collected so that they may grow from it.

self tracking

self knowledge

self growth // 39

D ISCOVERY // 40

3

To understand the methods through which a dialogue can be created between the remembering and experiencing selves, it becomes important to identify concrete cultural shifts and technological influences that are beginning to define the realm within which this project outcome may exist. Through this market analysis and foresight, the identified shifts - centered in technology, wellness, and the self were analyzed and used to extract new key themes. These themes allowed for the creation of a new context and society on which to base this project.

Shifts

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Everyday VR

Wellness Spaces

Signals: Pokemon Go / Flow VR / Hololens / Magic Leap

Signals: Soul7 / Mindset Brain Gym

The concept of self improvement has taken on a new meaning, one with a focus on emotions and communication, and with it, the spaces where this improvement takes place must change as well. A synthesis of technology and space, mindfulness studios are entrenching themselves within the urban landscape, bringing the guided professionalism found in traditional gyms to this new emotional territory.

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The Body as Data Signals: Fitbit / Apple Watch / Body Tracker App

Biohacking Signals: Embedded RFID / 3D Printed Body Parts / Prosthetics

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Mindfulness Everywhere

Derived Self Knowledge

Signals: Peak: Brain Training / Shift Worker / Replika

Data Materialization

Signals: Skin Motion / Clever on Sunday (2016) / The Modern Dowry teapot

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The New Persona

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Spacial Redefinition

Societal

Spatial Interaction

Identity as Value

Augmented Humanity

Open Mindedness

Embedded Technology Niche Creation

Paradigm Rejection

Preemptive Healthcare Societal Reformation Shared Ideals

New Tribalism

Derived Themes

Virtual Companionship

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Sharing

Popular Culture Social Media

Re-Symbolization New Contexts Bonding New Settlements Community Interaction Group Improvement

Motivation

Wellness Spaces The New Persona

Data Materialization

Ethical Beliefs

Infotainment Mindfulness Populism Big Data Storytelling Creativity Self Self Curation Perception Authenticity Value in the Mundane Personal Redemption Internal Exploration Body Sanctification Vulnerability Manifestation of Will

Shifts Derived Self Knowledge

Agents

Impacts

Ambient Data Generation Symbiosis Tech as Mentor Physical Data Mass Data Collection

Technological

Ethics Digital Biology

IoT MR/VR/AR

Ambient Data Collection Ubiquitous MR

Biohacking Wearable tech

Everyday VR

The Body as Data

Agents Desire to Grow

Impacts

Emotional Quantification Self Generated Data

Mindfulness Everywhere

Shifts

Integrated BCI

Enlightened Objects Embedded Tech

Play Through Data On the Go Self Monitoring

Will Power

Growth through Tech

Actualization Self Improvement Digital Body Awareness Experience Memories Emotion Awareness Self De-materialization Transcendence Magical Experiences Information Transformation Internalization through Externalization

Spiritual // 49

Trends

From the derived themes, a broad context was constructed, one that is defined by changing cultural currents in respect to personal identities, technological interactions, and new cultural paradigms. To further narrow the scope in which a new understanding of the self may exist, key themes within the map were identified. These themes were then curated and resymbolized into new trends with new definitions. These trends yield the journey for the project going forward, laying an interconnected groundwork for new possibilities, understandings, and intentions.

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New Me, New Us New Tribalism Niche Creation Creativity Authenticity Story Telling Shared Ideals

As the traditional understanding of identity and societal roles falls away, a new one emerges. Individuals now strive to represent their truest selves, using identity as a tool for communication, and for sharing individual values, insights, and sensitivities. This presents the opportunity to exist in a state of honest expression, in turn leading to new modes of being and shifts in human social organization.

others more deeply. Through understanding themselves wholly and projecting that into the world, one may find others with which they can harmonize intensely and meaningfully.

Social organization now comes through identity and shared being, rather than through social status and accumulated capital.

Individuals search out others with whom they can coexist with freely, giving one another permission to express themselves completely.

And in this way one may become kin to // 51

Nascent Value Memories Self De-materialization Body Sanctification Self Exploration Value in the Mundane Internalization through Externalization As behavioural tracking and quantification become commonplace, new triggers for human identity have been introduced. All aspects of an individual’s life are valued, with an understanding of identity being an understanding of the entire trajectory of an individual’s life. A new awareness is brought forth in recognition that all aspects of existence may define one’s being.

This awareness encourages a societal reach for a state of self actualization. As individuals begin to understand themselves more fully, they as well begin to understand the value intrinsic to their identity, rejecting hierarchical paradigms. They no longer desire to work for the sake of others, but now begin to desire the // 52

value that their work may bring to themselves, striving for a state of pleasure.

Evolved Mutualism Enlightened Objects Magical Experiences Exploration Virtual Companionship Tech as Mentor Play through Data

The spread and impact of technology is being felt throughout all aspects of human life, reshaping the connection between human and technology. Technology no longer dictates on the user, instructing them in its use and intentions, rather, the onus is placed on the user to explore the value that the technology may unlock.

This is not to say that a single path is clearly delineated by technological insights, but that through a balanced union, new meaningful opportunities and varieties can be identified and explored.

As this process continues, the relationship between user and technology becomes one in which technology may guide humanity, presenting a separate, objective understanding. Through technology, humanity has the opportunity for conscious growth, being brought out of a state of aimless wandering, and into one of decisive intention. // 53

Digital Otherlands New Settlements Re-Symbolization Group Improvement Symbiosis Spatial Redefinition Ubiquitous MR

With identity being brought to the forefront of value, new societal groups take shape around these new identities. As new groups take form, the spaces that these individuals and communities inhabit must change to reflect it.

The purpose of space is no longer to dictate its use on those within it, but to become a mediator for those that use it.

Our relationship with spaces is becoming one in which we can utilize it for interpersonal benefit. Through it we are able to benefit from each other, and be of benefit to each other. In this process, technology becomes a necessary element of spaces, with the digital sphere becoming another layer on top of the physical.

In this way spaces become flexible, multi use, // 54

and interactive, allowing for their harmonious use.

Economy of Selves Ambient Data Collection Self Generated Data Identity as Value Augmented Humanity Personal Redefinition Societal Reformation

With changes in the understanding of the human self, society is beginning to experience a shift in values. No longer does it place a premium value on goods and products, but instead significance is placed on the individual: their identity, perspectives, and insights.

As each individual forms complex data profiles, the self can now be understood as a collection of data points, existing separate from the being themselves, and with value being placed on each point. Exchanges occur no longer in the transaction of tangible products, but in the transfer of the thoughts and feelings that one is able to outwardly project. The economy is shifting towards not the value of goods, but the value of human experience and being. // 55

Health as Dialogue Preemptive Healthcare New Contexts Body Awareness Digital Self Self Monitoring Information Transformation The mass collection of data, and, more importantly, the ease at which it can be accessed not only changes what it means to be human but also changes what it means to live as a human. The entirety of one’s existence is being digitized, with an individual’s continued experiences producing more data. This process has lead to the birth of a digital self, one that grows harmoniously alongside the biological self.

The presence of this mass data, and the digital self also changes the ways in which we understand health, bringing medical practices into a new context. This context is one in which healthcare is no longer a responsive practice but a preemptive one. Through // 56

data analysis the new ability to identify shifts and behavioural changes at their onset is introduced, defining the issue - be it mental or physical - before its impacts are felt.

Healthcare is no longer a process of repair and rejuvenation, but one of sustenance and growth.

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D EFINITION // 58

4

Having developed a deeper understanding of the concept of the self, memory, and the interaction between the two, the intention of this project is to bridge the divide that has been identified between the remembered and experiencing selves. These two selves run in a parallel trajectory without the opportunity for intersection, and this division is a fundamental flaw within a being, one that can lead to a lack of personal knowledge and understanding.

Through the creation of a means of cross consultation between the two sides, a unified and actualized individual can be conceived.

In doing so, the fallibility of memory must also be countered, having been identified as a key causal component of this internal division. The aim is to propose an alternative, objective, timeline of events from what may be remembered; an honest timeline from which a new basis for the remembered self can be formed.

The Experiencing Self cross consultation The Remembered Self // 60

Project Intentions

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a guardian angel

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From the perspective of the user, the purpose is the creation of almost a guardian angel for the individual. A quiet and constant companion that holds with them the truth of their life history, and that may walk with them through the world. It is to create a record in which the user’s personal story may be held, recorded but still abstracted, and unaltered by the passage of time. Through this, it is the hope that the individual will be granted a purposeful and transformative experience. One in which they are granted the opportunity for meaningful self reflection, and may find a new level of personal clarity.

an objective alter ego

As a mode of consultation between the two selves, it is paramount that an intimate relationship must be formed between the user and the project outcome. One that fosters a high level of trust. Within the parameters of the project, the user is being asked to make themselves vulnerable to themselves and the system, to open themselves up to the fear of retribution for their actions, not necessarily from others, but from themselves. Without fostering the trust relationship between user and outcome, the interaction falters. In doing so, the user’s ability to grow from the outcome is inhibited, restricting them from their opportunity to thrive and understand themselves.

a place of safety

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what

A system of data collection to allow for the creation of a new paradigm of self. // 64

who

where

Not geographically tied to any one space, but to whatever location the user inhabits at any moment.

when

Continuously integrated into the users life, accessed whenever the user desires.

how

By utilizing mass data collection and visualization.

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Evaluation of Success // 66

must

should Provide the individual with a sense of magic.

Be emotionally impacting for the user.

Be a meaningful companion to the user.

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data collection

social disengagement

emotional tracking

innate discomfort

biometrics

misperceptions what

belonging

ambient

us ca

emotion

hyperfixation

impact redefinition of self new paradigm intimate companionship // 68

how

d

identity

behavioral

tho me

es

fear

unobtrusive visual

outcome discovery on self new self knowledge innate significance

Outcome Proposition The outcome of this project should not be seen as the creation of a one time solution, or maybe even a solution at all. The intention of the outcome is the creation of a tool for living, one that transforms how we behave within our individuals contexts and the world at large. It is the creation of a platform for a new lifestyle. In interaction with the outcome, the process is slow. It takes time; it is work. And, largely, it is dependant on the motivation of the user, the desire to benefit themselves. There must be a distinct willingness on part of the user to explore and experience it, deriving meaning from what may be learned. This drive is dependant on the user’s will and aspiration for personal enhancement and actualization By creating a space that motivates the user to work within it, rather than a direct solution, one can create a stronger relationship between user and platform. On one level an easy solution is hard to trust, it makes

the user feel as if their problems have been oversimplified, not understood, and it makes them value the platform less. By giving the user space to explore and presenting them with information but not solutions, they can develop their own solutions. These assisted, but self-made, solutions feel more intimate with the user. As well they become more transformative, allowing the individual to re-evaluate their path as they go, change directions, and, in doing so, reach a more meaningful end point. // 69

User Motivations There is an innate desire in all individuals to be known by others, to be recognized and acknowledged. There is a desire to leave a mark on the world so that, as time progresses and in your absence, you can continue to subsist in some way. This echoes the motivating human desire to maintain. The desire to continue to exist as you always have, to achieve some sort of immortality in which you can continue on and on. It is a desire for permanence and continuance. // 70

However, beyond maintenance there are the motivating desires to enhance and actualize.

These two desire are tied to concepts of self growth and improvement. They are the desire to continue to evolve as an individual into something better, something greater, than who you are now. We set milestones and goals markers for ourselves in hopes of quantifying these desires, creating clearly measurable targets to surpass as undeniable proof that we are better than who we once were. These measurements for improvement are personal and subjective, growth for one individual is not growth for another, but as a collective we are all driven by the hope to become a better version of ourselves. If these desires are universal elements of the human experience, if we all are driven by desires correlating to self improvement and growth, what inhibits us from achieving our goals as a collective? And to that end, what tools have we developed culturally as aids in satisfying these desires?

effective, maintained, and meaningful - is not random or sporadic. It is definitive and specific.

Randomized growth spreads in all directions with little benefit; specific growth commits energy in singular directions.

Imagine you had a tool to better understand yourself, one to understand your individual history. A tool capable of recording the characteristics, events and emotions that, as an amalgam, for your identity, your self.

This tool would provide you with the ability to recognize and plan growth. Our individual patterns that are so quickly and easily lost to time and memory would be laid bare. We would be able to recognize who we are, our interests, passions, and flaws, with crystalline clarity. You would be able to know yourself objectively, removed from an interpretation, misremembered interactions, or forgotten emotions. And from this, you would be able to move forward with decisive growth.

It is important to acknowledge that to be able to grow as an individual, one must first have a definitive concept of who they are. Through knowing yourself intimately and deeply, you can define the starting point from where you are going to grow. By understanding the self in all its iterations, we can compare who we are now to who we once were. By recognizing who we are, we can begin to define where we want to grow in the future. Self growth may seem innate and natural, but it must be known that significant self growth - growth that is // 71

Stakeholders Fringe Stakeholders

Impacted Individuals

close friends

Indirect Users

neurobiologists clinical researchers

psychologists psychiatrists

Direct Users

mental health professionals

lacking purpose desiring deep mindfulness

an Individual

with anxiety

mentors in pursuit of personal clarity

mindfulness studios

seeking emotional health & honesty wellness clinics educators

// 72

peers parents / guardians siblings

employers

The secondary group of direct users are individuals seeking personal growth for their own benefit and edification.

These individuals may not be looking to resolve personal issues or symptoms, but are looking for ways in which they can find a new or better understanding of themselves. They strive for greater mindfulness, using this tool as a way of better living in or understanding the present moment, and reaching a better level of conscious understanding.

Indirect Users

Direct Users

The main target of the Meta Project are the directionless, the timid, the individuals who find difficulty in understanding the place they hold in the world. Most primarily, these are individuals who may have issues related to anxiety or depression, either facing these diseases in their entirety or finding themselves facing symptoms like them. The Meta Project is aimed at confronting individuals with problems of hyperfixation and over analysis, in which they are unable to let go of negative emotions related to varying events within their life. These individuals find themselves replaying and reprocessing these experiences for extended periods of time after the end of the event, though no positive personal growth is derived from this occurrence.

Rather, this frequently leads to the growth of a negative and unrealistic of themselves, and the ways in which they interface with their surroundings.

This group of stakeholders consists of those who may not themselves be interested in utilizing the outcome of this project, but are interested in the success, furtherance, and distribution of it. Consisting of professionals and organizations, these may be groups who already exist within the realms of wellness and mindfulness, and may hold an economic stake in these movements. To these groups, the outcome of this project is a tool that they are able to recommend to others, acting as a conduit to connect the direct users with the outcome. It is possible these groups are less emotionally invested in the positive growth of the direct users, but have are instead ethically or economically invested.

// 73

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Fringe Stakeholders

Impacted Individuals

As the name suggests, the parties within this stakeholder group are not in direct contact or use with the outcome, but remain invested in its success. Consisting of family members and friends of the users, these are individuals who will be impacted by the outcome of this project without ever using it themselves. The defining characteristic of this group is a shared emotional investment in the direct users achieving positive growth through use of the outcome, a desire to see the direct users happy.

The smallest group of stakeholders, these are individuals who do not necessarily need to be considered in the designing and formation of the Meta Project, but should be stated none the less. These groups may consist of researchers working in the field of self reflection and therapeutic reflection who may be interested in the outcome of this project, or who simply work tangential to the problem space.

// 75

Design Themes // 76

As development of the outcome, its praxis, continues, it becomes significant to take the final steps forward into the realm of design and concretion. To this end it becomes important to define thematic touchstones that will guide how this concretion will occur.

Primarily the value that storytelling can bring to the user is of the highest priority. Through storytelling one can find transformative significance, and derive meaning from abstract representation. Stories provide the opportunity for exploration and enthrallment, the opportunity to reconstitute the individual.

Whatever form this platform takes, it is necessary that it is one that can tell the best story possible. Though many factors come into play in the design - methods of data collection, accessibility, and freedom and ease of use - from the users perspective, the story that they experience forms the majority of their experience, and is where they derive the most value.

Second to that is the theme of exploration.

Initially a theme that may seem counter to the traditional understanding of storytelling;

one that is defined by a linearity in which the storyteller guides the reader through a preplanned and singular experience. However, in examination of the stories that have defined our culture, ranging from historical events to pop culture, a major element of these great stories is their depth and breadth. Within pop culture one can easily look towards the works of J. R. R. Tolkein, an author and storyteller whose works are characterized by their expansive universe. When taken individually, each work does contain a singular narrative.

However, his success and effect on culture is not derived from a singular narrative, but from complexity he creates when each separate narrative is joined as a whole. His works are defined by their ability to be explored.

The final theme is variability. The story and exploration that will take place is one of the self, the individual. The final design must be capable of not only varying greatly between individuals, but be capable of growing and changing with the individual. If this is to be a platform for a lifestyle, it must be one that is reflective of the fluctuations and pulses of life. To attempt to introduce stagnancy and dormancy to a story of a life would be both inaccurate and disingenuous. It would lead the user to a misunderstanding of themselves. At best impeding their individual growth, and at worst mutating their understanding of their identity. // 77

With these three dominant design themes in mind it is valuable to examine the intended technology that will allow this meta project to take form. Though precise emotional data collection is as of yet unavailable at an easily accessed level, through the future context that has been developed - via the identified cultural shifts, technology based signals, and cultural trends - it can be understood that this emotional data will be accessible for use within design within the next ten years. If this data is available, how can it be shaped and formed through design to have a transformative impact on the user? What technology can act as a medium that visuals the data without impeding its impact on and interaction with the user, or impeding the variability necessary for the visuals to succeed?

Technology Examination

// 78

// 79

Emotional Data If a more concrete indicator of this imagined future is desire, one must only look towards the Consumer Electronics Show of 2019. Which saw the announcement of a consumer grade headband, developed by Urgonight, capable of taking an electroencephalogram (EEG) to identify electrical activity within the brain. When understood as an signal of what is to come, one may predict a continued reduction of the technology’s size and continued cultural adoption until the technology is as widespread and the data as accessible as that of the apple watch is currently. // 80

Augmented Reality With emotional data collection assumed accessible within the defined context, the question becomes how to shape and design with it. Also derived from the context and identified contemporary signals is the wide spread penetration and adoption of mixed or augmented reality into culture. The first phase of its adoption, as already seen in current AR/MR technology, is the transitioning of current archetypes, like television, screens, and applications, into a digital setting. After that phase comes to a close, designer will be concerned with developing new platforms native only to this technology.

As a platform, this virtual space overlaid onto the physical allows users a greater degree of freedom within the space than previously capable. As well, it provides a higher level of interactivity and convenience, being capable of integrating into

daily routines and rituals without necessitating a transition from the physical realm to a digital platform.

The two exist simultaneously. This provides the ideal setting for the outcome of this meta project. Allowing the user to access their individual story at any moment, and allowing it to truly become an element of life, rather than augmentation of it. As well with its ease of interactivity it offers a level of exploration not easily found in or integrated with other digital platforms. // 81

User Journey Map (now)

Evening

Behavior

Thoughts

Feelings

Goes to bed

why is work so stressful?

angry

Sleep Morning

Wakes up

I donÕt want to go to work!

annoyed

IĂ•m to tired to deal with this

frustrated

Gets ready Day

Arrives at work Interacts with co-workers Eats lunch Works

Evening

do I enjoy doing this?

Has dinner with friends

upset

disconnected

Goes home Goes to bed

// 82

maybe tomorrow will be better

frustrated with the day

Opportunities

User Journey Map (imagined)

Evening

Behavior

Thoughts

Going to bed

why is work so stressful?

Consults Totem

how long has it been like this?

Wakes up

Feelings angry concerned

inisight into emotional history

I need to make changes

determined

recognizes unhealthy patterns

how do I make things better?

decisive

IĂ•m going to love what I do

hopefull

Sleep Morning

Gets ready Day

Arrives at work Talks to boss Eats lunch Plans career trajectory

Evening

Has dinner with friends

engaged

Goes home Consults Totem

who do I want to work towards becoming?

excited for the future

takes action to improve the future

// 83

System Map

Memory

Experiencing Self

Action Data Values

Unified Self

// 84

Re-evaluation

innate intervention new connection

Remembering Self

Self Perception Interaction

Data Sets

Personal Profile

Honesty • Forgiveness Actualization • Insight

Exploration

Vulnerability • Disclosure // 85

Behaviour Map Enticement

Entry

. understanding . guidance . affinity with Self

Desire Onset

Aspiration

. belonging . insight . self knowledge . personal harmony

// 86

. curiosity . excitement . yearning . hope

Engagement

Exit

. familiarity . kinship . comfort

Interaction . ambient . calming . unintrusive . immersive

Sentiment Outcome

. questioning . reevaluation . rewarding

Extension

Relationship . companion . willing vulnerability . ease

Value

. new meaning . intimacy . discovery

// 87

Lifetime Journeys

// 88

These experience journeys are not intended to explore the methods through which the user interacts with the outcome, nor the touchpoints at which the user and outcome connect. Rather the context of this narrative is to explore the value that can be derived through a deep and maintained understanding of the self over a long period of time.

How can intimacy with the self change our behaviors and choices? How can it change who we are as people?

The self knowledge gained through reflection is a tool to alter behavior, allowing us to recognize our emotional patterns and interests. In doing so, it provides a path through which we can move forward.

// 89

Present Lifetime Journey // 90

Mid University

University End

Ryan is in the third year of his degree and loving it.

Running into an old highschool teacher, he is asked if he likes what he is doing now and he responds that there is nothing he would rather be doing, no place he would rather be.

There are so many avenues he can explore within his degree, it seems overwhelming. But he thinks he has started to get a better handle on where his interests lay.

A general narrowing of his scope of interest.

Beginning to look towards his career.

Ryan has just begun to hit his stride in full. He is working through his thesis, and pursuing what he thinks his passion is. He made commitments to himself, to begin actualizing elements of himself that he had wanted to see in himself. He is living in the moment, and excited for the future. But there are twinges of doubt, moments where his is unsure of exactly what he is doing. But he works hard to move through them. Move past, and move forward.

Finishes thesis and loves the outcome.

Is this imposter syndrome?

Early Career Career wise, things should be good for Ryan. From the outside, they are. He has continued to work harder and better, and the people around him can see that.

He’s been in his field working for a few years now, and it’s begun to feel routine. Not necessarily a bad thing, some routine seems inevitable. But routine means that new desires aren’t being met. He’s maintained himself. But, he hasn’t actualized anything new, hasn’t been able to expand.

Middle Age Where did it go? When he started into his adulthood, he had been excited. He hadn’t known what the future would be, but Ryan had had goals and ambitions. Now the energy isn’t there. Work is work, it's not passion. Even outside of work, his life just feels off.

His hobbies seem like chores. As if somewhere along the way he shifted, bit by bit, to a different track.

His train runs parallel to where he thought he would be.

What went wrong?

Retirement His career, his life until now, it’s been good, Ryan can’t deny that. But where was the enthusiasm he had imagined? He wasn’t foolish, he knew that life was hard.

But he had thought it would always come back, that, somewhere, he would always have a passion. But he feels like a stranger to himself.

Something went wrong, it’s hard to grasp where. There was no singular moment, but a collection of them that added up to a monumental loss. A loss of himself.

The end of a career.

You can only move on.

A promotion at work.

Accomplishment without satisfaction.

You are here, but where is this?

// 91

Future Lifetime Journey

Mid University

// 92

University End

Ryan is in the middle of his degree and loving it.

Running into a past highschool teacher, he is asked if he likes what he is doing now and he knows that there is nothing he would rather be doing, no place he would rather be.

There are so many avenues to explore in his education, but he reflects on his pasts, searching out patterns in what has captured his interests time and again. He is able to be specific in his pursuits and interests.

Beginning to look towards his career.

Ryan has just begun to hit his stride in full. In school he works through his thesis, tailoring it to his interests, and directing it to maximize its usefulness as a tool for edification and career growth. Over the past few years, he’s had goals and ambitions for himself that he has slowly made progress with, growing himself one piece at a time. He develops healthy habits, and is motivated to continue and move forwards as the best him he can.

Self doubt is normal, when processed and understood.

Precise focusing of desires for the future.

Thesis as a work of passion and intention.

Early Career

Middle Age

Ryan feels like he hasn’t even yet begun to peak, he’s confident and comfortable with who he knows himself to be. For now he is happy with where he is working, it feels right but not ordinary. A few years into his career and he still feels challenged and provoked by what he is doing. More importantly, he knows himself, he checks in frequently, reflects on what excites him. He tailors his life to match the patterns he’s found, bringing energy and change to each day.

Retirement

Work for Ryan isn’t what it used to be, he knows that he feels like he has begun to stagnate. Maintenance is good, it’s healthy. But he wants to be enhance, to continually grow. It has become important for him to reset. He takes the year off, meditating, and recentering himself. He looks for unnoticed patterns, finding new interests and passions.

He makes changes to help himself, shifting his career and life to match the new image of himself in his head.

Now retiring, Ryan can look back on what was a profitable, accomplished, diverse career. But it almost doesn’t matter to him. More important was that, until the end, it had excited him. His career was a manifestation of his interests and passions, and acted as a medium to grow himself. He feels like little will change for him. It might be a slower pace, but this is not an end for him, but simply a transitory period as he continues to grow.

Contentment without stagnation.

You can fix this.

Continual reflection and reinterpretation of the self.

It can’t be good all the time.

It ends just to start again.

You are you.

Always.

// 93

SYSTE M // 94

5

Platform Definition

As a platform, Totem intends to reshape human behavior to allow for more natural and regular acts of self reflection. The platform leverages emotional data, collected through consumer-grade, embedded EEG technology, with granular environmental data to produce data visualization in augmented reality.

The platform intends to be as easily accessible as possible, acting as a self recording emotional diary of sorts, and allow the user to reinterpret how they understand themselves. Through Totem the user can meet themselves in an new way, and find a new mode for decision making and living.

// 96

Benefits

Attributes

To alleviate self doubt Brand Values

Make the user feel known Increase self knowledge

Ambient and unobtrusive

Honest Experiential Devoted

Help provide a path forward

Immersive experiences

Therapeutic

Totem.

data driven

Storytelling

Brand Essence

Returning magic to the human experience through the introduction of an honest self.

Personal

Personal growth through play

Engaging

Individual oriented

Research based

Brand Purpose

Personal pattern recognition

Helping individuals know themselves deeply and intimately to define their own future.

Sate fear of past and future

Virtual

Evocative

// 97

The Feel

Must take advantage of AR/MR platform

Must evoke a desire to interact

The Look

Reactive & responsive to user presence

Understandable without being sterile

Interpretable Sensitive Conceptual

Designs shouldn’t be generic but unique to the user

Soft

Inviting Form and shape are driven by data

Visually Arresting

What has meaning to one, may not to another Must at all times be encouraging

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Draw the user in visually Clean

Totem.

The brand is about the user, engagement, and dialogue.

Be intially vague in meaning Abstract Should intrigue but not overwhelm

Effectual Rewarding Futuristic

Visuals evolve and grow

Design pulses & shifts as if alive Abstract shapes, not representative

// 99

App Colors

// 100

The app aesthetic is centered around the use of bright neon colors.

The colors used in these gradients each relate to one of the five emotional families identified within the platform, being used to gain information by the user. The choice of neon is to both imply a digital and futur-esque aesthetic, as well as to take advantage of the AR/MR technology. As these are colors rarely seen within nature, it makes the data visualizations especially easy to see in AR space.

Brand Colors

In branding situations for the app as a whole, many colors should be mixed into the gradient, creating a stronger and loose visual. However, in functional situations within the platform, the colors are continually dependant on the context, and the specific meaning is always relevant to which color should be used.

// 101

Brand Development

When defining the aesthetic of the brand, the visuals were defined by the aesthetics of the platform itself, utilizing the neon shades and abstract shapes that make up the data visualizations.

The name for the platform - Totem - was as well drawn from the final platform itself, being named after the totem objects that the user interacts with.

Brand Logo Ideation

// 102

Brand Name

TOTEM. Brand Logo

// 103

Entry Hub Who Have I Been?

Who Am I?

Who Can I Be?

Platform Architecture // 104

Year

Month

Week

Individual Spectrum

Joy

Holistic Spectrum

Event Breakdowns

Individual Timeline

Fear

Love

Holistic Timeline

Anger

Individual Events

Sadness

Event Breakdowns

Individual Events

Individual Events

Goals

Create New

Set Granular Goal

View Ongoing

View Granular Goals

View Completed

View Granular Goals

// 105

Hub Screens

The hub screens - the screens from which the user accesses the rest of the platform - are the only entirely 2D screen in the app, and the only screens without an AR element. These screens serve to match the company branding of the rest of the platform, and feature illustrative interpretations of the 3D models.

Providing limited information, the text acts as a prompt for the user, trying to encourage them to engage with the data version of themselves. The text purposefully avoids the classification of “past, present, and future,� instead presenting those criteria on a more personal level.

// 106

Show Me

Show Me

Who I Can Be.

Show Me

Who I Am.

Who I Was.

Show Me

// 107

Each screen places the visualization in AR/ MR space around the user, allowing them to be explored.

Swipe up on any screen to display that visualization’s definition card.

Each visualization features a prompt to contextualize the user.

Screen Layout

With the exception of the home screens, the layout of each screen within the platform is identical. The focal point of each is the visualization placed in AR space around the user. From there, the user is provided a short piece of text at the bottom of the screen to provide them with context to understand the visualization.

For more detail the user can swipe up on the bottom of the screen to reveal the description card, each uniquely written to explain that specific visual.

The user progresses through the app and between visuals through interaction with visualization.

// 109

Definition Cards

To use the platform to its fullest potential, the user must be able to easily interpret what each data visualization means. As such, each data visualization is paired with a definition card containing the legend for that specific visualization.

Though each data visualization conveys a different specific meaning and is for a different purpose, a visual language was developed to maintain consistency across the platform. In this way the user can learn to interpret the visualizations more easily, without having to consult each definition card independently.

// 110

Visual Language

Across all visualizations, the colors all maintain the same meaning to allowing for easy and instantaneous understanding of the general information provided. Size is consistently used to indicate significance, both in overall size of a visualization or in the size of a protrusion from a spectrum.

Interaction

As with the visual language the interactive language is kept consistent across the border. Spinning any visualizations will interact within that specific visual, while tapping is always used to transition between them.

The definition card for any visualization can always be found by swiping up on the screen.

Instructions for interactions are located at the bottom of the card.

Diagrams.

Text. // 111

Spectrums

One of the two visualizations of emotions. This mode displays emotions incomparison to one another, not concerning itself with when the emotion was felt but to what degree. For instance one may derive from it that they felt sad 90% of the time at a low degree, with powerful but short moments of joy.

This visualization may also be used to display a variety of emotions felt over a set period of time. Communicating what emotion was felt, how many times, and with what severity over the duration of a single event.

// 112

Color indicates the emotion represented by the spectrum Each lump represents an instance of severe feeling, the further from the centre, the greater it was felt Size of each spectrum is determined by total amount felt over the time frame

Spin the bottom wheel to adjust the timeframe

Tapping on the spectrum will display the corresponding timeline.

Definition Card

Each Shape represents a single event that has been recorded in your story.

Color represents the two dominant emotions felt during that event.

The order of each event is chronological, with the most recent events on the outside.

Spin the spiral to zoom in on the timeline.

Tapping on a single event will let you explore it more deeply.

Definition Card

Timelines

The second emotional visualization. Here the user can gain an understanding of the timeline of their emotions. It gives them a view of their emotions over a span of time. These can either be the view of all emotions felt over the course of time, or every moment of a single emotion over time.

Spinning the timeline will “zoom in� on it, allowing individuals to see further back into the timeline. As well tapping each node of the timeline will display the corresponding event or event cluster.

// 115

Event Clusters

// 116

This visual displays a variety of related events (the relation is dependent on the method used to reach this screen, but for example maybe all the defining moments or all moments of intense sadness, etc.). From here each independent event may be explored individually for further information.

A collection of moments this visualization gives insights into the moments contained within this data set.

Each sphere represents an individual relevant event, and can be explored more deeply The color of each sphere is strongest emotion, giving insight into the emotions that shaped you at a glance.

Tapping on a single event will let you explore it more deeply.

Definition Card

This spectrum represents a single event that you have experienced.

Each color represents a single emotional family.

The larger the protrusion and the more intense in color, the more you have felt that emotion at the time.

The size of this spectrum is determined by how long the event lasted. The longer the event, the larger the spectrum.

Each ring represents another individual present at the event with whom you interacted.

Definition Card

Individual Events

Here is depicted on the data relating to a specific individual event with the nature of the event being noted at the bottom of each event screen. This visualization is similar to a spectrum in that each emotion felt over the course of the event is depicted through the colored protrusions. Also depicted within the data is the number of other participants during the event.

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Granular Emotions

// 120

Used in the goal setting process, each of these represents a specific emotional goal for the user. Created in sets of seven, the user ranks their goals depending on their personal significance - in turn making them easier or harder to fulfill. The goals are colored and categorized into the five emotional families, with their more detailed emotion displayed in an orbiting band around the form.

Color indicates the general emotional family that each goal belongs to.

The band states the type of feeling the goal pertains to on a more granular level.

Size to indicate the personal

Increase size of each goal to indicate set its personal

Definition Card

Ordering places emotional goals of the highest value at the middle of the totem, decreasing in value in order from the centre to the edges.

Color indicates the general emotional categorization of each goal, with more granular emotions visible upon inspection.

Grey shading of the individual emotions indicate progress towards that goal, turning to stone upon completion.

Definition Card

Goal Totems

Each set of seven goals can be seen at any point as totems. The most significant goals are placed central to the series, with the significance decreasing as they move towards the ends. Any individual emotion can be selected at any time to view it in more detail.

Any completed totems will turn grey, as if to stone. In this way the user’s completed progress and personal growth can be viewed at any time, gaining an understanding of the progress they have made.

// 123

YEAR LIFE

This is the story of who you are now.

WEEK

MONTH

Sample Spectrum Screen

This spectrum represents the user in its entirety, a combination of each emotional family.

Each color represents a single emotional family.

The larger the protrusion and the more intense in color, the more you have felt that emotion.

The size of this spectrum is determined by how much data has been collected. The longer the system has been used, the larger it will be.

Spin the bottom wheel to adjust the timeframe

Corresponding Definition Card

Tapping on the spectrum will display the corresponding timeline.

AR Models

To take the platform to the next level of fidelity, mockups of all the necessary data visualizations were produced in 3D, rendered into AR space through Snapchat’s open source platform, Lens Studio.

The modeling and painting of all models were done entirely within Cinema 4D’s sculpting and bodypaint programs. This allowed for an easy workflow transitioning between sculpting and painting directly onto the 3D model.

Emotion Timeline // 126

Holistic Timeline

Emotion Spectrums

Individual Event

Holistic Spectrum // 127

In-progress Goal Totems // 128

Completed Goal Totems

Scattered Emotion Goals

Granular Emotion Goal // 129

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// 134

Acknowledgements: Thank you sincerely to my two supervising professors, Alexander Manu and Bernhard Dietz, both of whom constructed a course and class environment that allowed me the freedom and space necessary for the completion of my project.

As well, thank you to my friends, peers, and classmates who supported me, worked with me, and helped me innumerable times through out my thesis and my time at OCAD U. Thank you Maddy Bailey, Millie Chen, Emma D’Souza, Briar Gill, Perry Miller, Hanna Steingrimsdottir, Zoe Trommer, Melih Yazici, and all others not listed here.

// 135

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Clarke, A. (n.d.). Why Brain Training Is The Next Big Wellness Trend. Retrieved from https://www.mrporter.com/ journal/the-read/why-brain-training-is-the-next-big-wellness-trend/4168 Gribbin, Tristan. TEDxReykjavik, YouTube, 17 Oct. 2017, www.youtube.com/watch?v=AxRirzHiWNo&feature=youtu. be.

Hooks, B. (2018). All about love: New visions. New York: William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollins.

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