Open Questions and Next Steps

• I had to simplify the “lamp that wants to be your friend” that I was going for initially, but I think that it’s very doable to add more complexity to the lamp’s happiness to make it more “human”. The proximity sensor on the Arduino is a bit too limited in range, so a proximity sensor with more range would work better. I also think that having other sensors, like something sound related, can also help capture the experience better. For example, talking to the lamp would increase happiness.

• I’m still unsure about the place that animistic technology has in our society. It was weird for me to try to not focus on the functionality of something I was trying to make, and to actively try to sabotage its usefulness.