Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
Using the application to follow multiple emotions at the same time has proven to
be somewhat hard: with the different peak indicators all being independent, it has
come out to be much easier just to follow one main emotion, and to eventually check
the other emotional levels once arrived at a certain location
The addition of sounds has also proven to be extremely useful. A different drone-
based sound loop of specific tones and texture was associated to each basic emotion,
and its volume was connected to the instantaneous intensity of the emotion at the
current user location. By wearing headphones users gets a really accurate sense
of the com-presence of the emotions in the place they are currently in, also being
able to momentarily switch off the various emotions/tones to associate each tone to
the relative emotion. Creating sounds which have a drone-like, constant tone, but
with evolving texture has been proven to give the best effects: users can create
a generative song by walking around, depending on how social networks users
expressed in that location (Fig.
14.4
).
Also, the pairing of the sounds with the indicators, with specific focus on the
color-coded on-screen alert which appears when an emotional peak is reached, has
proven to be really effective, with the alert matching the maximum volume of the
relative sound: when users heard these kinds of high volumes, they consistently
checked the application display to see if the alert appeared. This also allowed users
to use the compass from their pockets, navigating the city by following volume
augmentations, and pulling the smartphone out only when the volume would be
high, to check the visual confirmation that the emotional peak had been reached.
14.6
Conclusions
We have found this research path to be rewarding for its implications in terms of
the possible artworks and services that could be designed by using the proposed
methodology, and of the possibility to observe and experience urban environments
in truly innovative ways. We can imagine highlighting the sense of security,
of enjoyment or satisfaction, with enormous potentials for tourism, real-estate,
entertainment, events and for public administrations wishing to discover and expose
the ways in which people feel in the city.
On the other side, using these kinds of techniques, we are now able to understand
cities better, in how people live their daily lives across cultures, languages,
occupations and interests. For example, by simply filtering the meta data about
language, we would be able to know the emotions of people in the city coming from
different countries and cultures. We could see how they move around the city, we
could compare them and the emotions they express, finding the ways in which they
feel the same, or differently, at the different times of the days and weeks. We could
use this information to better understand our cities, providing ways to empower
multicultural ecosystems to form in more harmonious ways. The concept of the
emotional landmark has proven to be very interesting. Which are the places in which
different cultures more powerfully express a certain emotion, in different times of
