Designing an Algal Relay Computer: A Critical Orientation in Exploring More-than-Human Temporality
Yuta Ikeya, Bahareh Barati · 2023
The re-evaluation of our industrial, anthropocentric relationships with time has led to the emergence of new conceptualizations of temporality beyond clock time in design-oriented HCI research. In order to provoke discussions on how design may (or may not) account for temporality of nonhumans, we conceptualized and prototyped Algal Relay Computer (ARC), a "slow" computer that incorporates the growth of algae in its calculation process. The paper presents theoretical groundings and technical details of ARC and offers preliminary insights into multiplicity of more-than-human temporality uncovered through the design process and exhibition of this artefact.