Equestrian sports are amongst the largest sports and leisure activities in Sweden. One of the major reasons for engaging with horses is the bond to the horse. Just recently technology has found its way into the horse industry which otherwise is a very traditional sport. This paper explores possible consequences technology may have in the future in the environment around horses and on the horse-rider relationship. The exploration was done by combining auto-ethnographic research and a co-speculation workshop. The ideas that were gathered were then the starting point for the creation of a design fiction, in which the ideas were developed and explored. The design fiction also serves as an approachable way of mediating the consequences of technology to the equestrian community. The imagined technology for equestrian sports had both positive and negative impact on the sport and the relationship between horse and human. / Ridsporten är en av Sveriges mest populära idrotter. En av de viktigaste anledningarna till att hålla på med hästar är relationen till hästen, enligt dess utövare. Nyligen har tekniken hittat in i ridsporten, som annars är en mycket traditionell sport, i form av sensorteknik, träningsappar och videoövervakning. Trots ridsportens utbredning, är tekniken eftersatt i förhållande till andra idrotter. Detta arbete utforskar, analyserar och diskuterar möjliga konsekvenser som tekniken kan medföra i framtiden i miljön kring hästar, i ridsporten och på relationen mellan häst och ryttare. Studien utfördes genom att kombinera etnografiska metoder och en spekulativ workshop ihop med ryttare. Idéerna från dessa blev utgångspunkten för skapandet av en fiktiv tidning, i vilken idéerna vidareutvecklades och utforskades i sitt sammanhang. Den fiktiva tidningen fungerar även som ett sätt att förmedla studien och dess resultat till ridsportens utövare. Teknikens frammarsch i ridsporten kan tänkas ha både positiv och negativ inverkan på sporten och relationen mellan häst och ryttare.

Med ökad användning av elektricitet av både privatpersoner och industri står Sverige inför en utmaning att täcka upp för belastningen i framtiden. Denna utmaning har i denna studie fått stå som grund för att utforska hur designfiktion kan ge återkoppling om framtida komplexa tjänstesystem. Detta utifrån att designfiktion visat sig ha potential inom framtidsforskning och design av interaktiva produkter för att skapa en samtalsrymd av kritiskt tänkande. Sex experter inom utveckling av tjänster och teknik inom elbranschen har intervjuats och fått läsa designfiktioner som visar en fiktiv framtid om 25 år. Resultatet visade att återkopplingen innefattar värdering av framtidsscenarion, beskrivningar av alternativa framtider, och engagerade resonemang kring framtiden och dess konsekvenser. Deltagarna kritiserade framtidsscenarion och resonerade utifrån olika aspekter och perspektiv. Resultatet gick därför i linje med teori om hur designfiktion kan skapa en samtalsrymd som kan stötta kritisk reflektion kring komplexa utmaningar i tjänstesystem. Slutsatsen var att designfiktion har potential att vara en effektiv metod för att få stakeholders att reflektera över möjliga konsekvenser av framtidsscenarion utifrån flera perspektiv och aspekter.

This doctoral thesis is situated within the digital design field of architecture, and is a continuation of the licentiate thesis Architectural Prototypes: Modes of Design Development and Architectural Practice, presented at the KTH School of Architecture in 2008. The doctoral thesis investigates the current status of the digital design field of architecture, and identifies a number of related discourses. Within this field, it identifies a period of formation, which in recent years has turned into a process of reformation. It contributes to this ongoing reformation by proposing two alternate areas of future practice and research within the field. A speculative approach is considered to be important for a continued mode of exploration within the field, and is suggested as away to bring new scope to the digital design field. A number of key terms from the field of science fiction studies have been investigated to support the construction of a speculative framework for further development. A strategic approach is regarded as crucial to the way new design potentials that have emerged within the digital design field to be implemented into general architectural practice, and to further inform the field itself. Key concepts have been imported from the field of strategic management in the formulation of a framework for digital design strategies. The notion of the prototype, as explored in the previous licentiate thesis, resurfaces as a prototypical approach, which could be equally employed in the speculative approach and the strategic approach. The doctoral thesis is also situated within the field of research-by-design, in the way architectural design projects have been facilitated as contextualized experiments, selected, documented and aligned in regard to terminology, and analyzed through a series of design project enquiries. / QC 20120528

Current Google provides almost all type of information in a similar way - list of web pages. But Each information needs a different manner of mediation. A different way of visualisation. Therefore I decided to create Google of tomorrow. I am focused on a new way of spreading information and communication. I created new tools which help to achieve this vision. These tools operate in augmented reality. My diploma is mainly work of design fiction and information design. I use extrapolation to create possible future scenarios. Future abilities of Google tools are extrapolated from its current technologies.

Barnkonventionen fastslår att barn och ungdomars röster ska höras i frågor som rör dem. Inom stadsplaneringsprocesser finns behov av nya metoder som inkluderar ungdomar på ett meningsfullt sätt. Studien syftade till att undersöka hur deltagande design, designfiktion och ljuddesign kan kombineras för att engagera ungdomar i stadsplaneringsprocesser. Detta undersöks i studien genom att utveckla och utvärdera en metod som benämns deltagande ljudfiktion. Metoden testades med ungdomar på en fritidsgård i Vårby gård där ljudfiktioner av Vårby år 2170 skapades och diskuterades. Resultatet visade att genom diskussion och spekulation kring framtiden avslöjades viktiga insikter om ungdomarnas verklighet, vilka kan vara av värde i stadsplaneringsprocesser. Vidare fann studien att ljud kan vidga ungdomars perspektiv på sin närmiljö. Studien visade att deltagande ljudfiktion har potential att engagera ungdomar men att de hellre vill diskutera nutiden för att känna att deras röster blir hörda. / The Convention on the Rights of the Child stipulates that the voices of children and youth must be heard on issues that concern them. In urban planning processes there is a need for new methods that include youth in a meaningful way. The study aimed to investigate how participatory design, design fiction and sound design can be combined to engage youth in urban planning processes. This is investigated in the study by developing and evaluating a method called participatory sound fiction. The method was tested with youths in a youth center in Vårby gård where sound fictions of Vårby in 2170 were created and discussed. The results showed that through discussion and speculation about the future, important insights were revealed about the youths' reality, which can be of value in urban planning processes. Furthermore, the study found that sound can broaden youths’ perspective on their immediate environment. The study showed that participatory sound fiction has the potential to engage youths, but that they prefer to discuss the present in order to feel that their voices are being heard.

Pharmaceutical detailing is moving to online environments because they are believed to save money, time, and be more convenient. Recently there has also been an increase in e-detailing due to the circumstances around COVID-19 pandemic. In the available literature, the transition to e-detailing is mostly evaluated through efficiency markers, with less focus on broader social implications and the interactions between people involved. To fill this gap and promote development of human-centred e-detailing technologies, this paper explores detailing interactions and related concerns which can guide the development of relevant detailing technologies. The field research and participatory Magic Machine workshops helped reveal and shape concerns which have implications for the future of e-detailing. High-level recommendations were derived to inspire further research and development of lasting, user-centred solutions. Design fiction artifacts were created to convey the research findings as boundary objects between pharmaceutical industry and academia. / Läkemedelskonsulenter flyttar sin verksamhet alltmer till en digital miljö då det anses spara pengar, tid och ska vara mer bekvämt. Covid-19 pandemin har också bidragit till en ökning av användandet av digitala verktyg för läkemedelskonsulenter. Tillgängliga vetenskapliga artiklar inom ämnet som utvärderar digitaliseringen för läkemedelskonsulenter gör det framför allt genom att mäta hur effektivt det är, och inte så mycket på de sociala följderna samt hur det inverkar på interaktionen mellan de inblandade parterna. För att fylla denna kunskapslucka och för att främja en människocentrerad digitalisering för läkemedelskonsulenter utforskar denna masteruppsats interaktionerna och dess relaterade följder, vilket kan användas som vägledning i utveckling av relevanta teknologier för läkemedelskonsulenter. Fältarbete, och en workshop som använde metoden Magic Machine, hjälpte till att ta fram och klargöra de problem som kan ha en viktig inverkan på framtida digitalt läkemedelskonsulterande. Design rekommendationer togs fram för att inspirera kommande forskning och utveckling av hållbara, användarcentrerade lösningar. Den skapade spekulativa designen visar upp forskningsresultat och på ett sätt som kan vara till användning av läkemedelsindustrin och universiteten.

Recherche par le design / Face à l'impératif de transition écologique, il est essentiel de produire des connaissances et d’imaginer des futurs préférables - écologiques et collectivement désirables - pour faciliter le passage à de nouveaux modes de vie consommant radicalement moins de ressources. Les impacts environnementaux méconnus et grandissants liés à nos activités numériques appellent à repenser cette dimension afin de la conjuguer à des futurs plus écologiques. Alors que la métropole montréalaise rayonne à l’international pour ses artistes numériques et son industrie du jeu vidéo, force est de constater que le développement de la culture numérique y est déconnecté du projet de transition écologique. Ces constats empiriques nous amènent à formuler un nouveau projet : faire de Montréal une «métropole culturelle numérique durable». La formulation de cet horizon inconnu constitue une opportunité de recherche à aborder par le design. Cette opportunité nous a incités à réaliser un projet de recherche par le design visant à explorer les futurs possibles pour faire de Montréal une métropole culturelle numérique durable en mobilisant les approches du design participatif, de la prospective et du design critique. Cette recherche a poursuivi deux objectifs principaux : explorer les futurs possibles pour Montréal en tant que métropole culturelle numérique durable en générant des idées qui enrichissent cet inconnu et étudier le croisement des approches théoriques en situation de projet. Pour atteindre ces objectifs, nous avons d’abord mené une enquête par recherche bibliographique et entretiens semi-dirigés pour définir le «numérique durable» et enrichir nos constats empiriques initiaux. Nous avons ensuite conçu un dispositif participatif et créatif en mobilisant des méthodes de prospective et de design critique, notamment pour produire des artefacts déclencheurs (des scénarios de prospectives accompagnés d’affiches) racontant les futurs possibles de la métropole culturelle numérique durable de 2035. Le dispositif a ensuite été utilisé lors de deux ateliers de codesign. Une interprétation des effets combinés de la prospective, du design critique et du design participatif sur la performance générative et les raisonnements de conception observés en atelier conclut le projet. La recherche fournit à la fois des avenues pour penser Montréal en tant que métropole culturelle numérique durable en esquissant les principes d’une nouvelle politique publique et une meilleure compréhension de l’intérêt du croisement des approches du design participatif, de la prospective et du design critique. / Given the urgent need for a sustainable transition, it is essential to generate knowledge and envision preferable futures - sustainable and collectively desirable - to facilitate the shift towards new lifestyles consuming radically fewer resources. The unrecognized and growing environmental footprint of our digital activities are calling for some rethinking in order to reconcile this dimension with greener futures. While the city of Montreal is internationally recognized for its digital artists and video game industry, it is also clear that the development of Montreal's digital culture is disconnected from the ongoing sustainable transition. These empirical observations have led us to propose a new project: to make Montreal a "sustainable digital cultural metropolis." This opportunity sparked a research-through-design project aimed at exploring possible futures to make Montreal a sustainable digital cultural metropolis, drawing on the approaches of participatory design, foresight and critical design. This research had two main objectives: to explore possible futures for Montreal as a sustainable digital cultural metropolis through the generation of insights that enrich this unknown concept, and to study the interplay of the theoretical approaches in the context of a project. To achieve these objectives, we first conducted an inquiry using desk research and semi-structured interviews to define "digital sustainability" and enrich our initial empirical observations. We then designed a participatory and creative device, mobilizing foresight and critical design methods, to produce "trigger" artifacts (foresight scenarios accompanied by posters) depicting the possible futures of the sustainable digital cultural metropolis of 2035. The device was then used in two codesign workshops. An analysis of the interplay between foresight, critical design and participatory design in relation with the generative outputs and design thinking processes observed in the workshops concludes the project. The research provides new avenues to envision Montreal as a sustainable digital cultural metropolis and drafts the principles of a new public policy as well as it provides a better understanding of the benefits stemming from the interplay of participatory design, foresight and critical design.

Everyday we come up with new solutions for our existing problems. But the solutions of today are tomorrow’s problem. The products we create as designers are often bringing more complexity in our society than it is initially intended for. This thesis aims to give a new perspective on the design practice community. Instead of starting with a problem-solving scope, this thesis intent is to find what is truly meaningful for human life, meaning finding, and to propose how we can envision new ways of meaning making within interaction design. The two processes together of meaning finding and meaning making is how we can aim for concrete results that are relevant for our society. To better understand what truly matters for human life, I collected 14 stories through ethnographic research. These ethnographic stories reveal the nature of human characteristics when people face and overcome big challenges in life. Some of these ethnographic stories highlights the life of a WWII survivor, war refugee, leukaemia child-patient and a widow. Parallel, to the ethnographic work, I explored how I can evoke a deeper connection between people, by making them listen to each-other’s heartbeat.  Inevitably, by exploring the fundamental elements of human life and observing the emotions and behaviour of my interviewees and participants, the thesis find itself often on the playground between philosophy and human life. But by taking a strong interaction design perspective, these insights were manifested in the human design manifesto booklet. This booklet proposes six expressions for designers, with the intention to embrace the fundamental elements of human life when we design:  1. Design attitudes, not solutions. 2. Design the medicine of the mind. 3. Design for relationships. 4. Design for our direct senses. 5. Design for the deep human connection. 6. Design the act of kindness  Later on, for the meaning making part: one statement from the Human Design Manifesto was selected to explore in depth: Design the act of kindness. For this expression project Hidden Figures was created. Hidden Figures is a design proposal which demonstrates that a design creation can be driven by the fundamental elements of human life. In this case proposing the act of kindness as a vision on how our society could be.  In overall, this master’s thesis demonstrates how our design proposals can embody and resonate well between the three levels of design philosophy, a designer’s vision and interaction design practice: How we, as designers, can use meaning-making and meaning-finding to create more relevant impact for our society. Last, I hope this work encourages other designers to think deeply about their own creations and its impact. And help designers reflect on why they create and how they could also alternatively practice design.