Making sense of plants

: Making the invisible visible using ambient lighting to interpret the electrical signals of plants

Abstract

The growing awareness of environmental sustainability and the numerous practical ways to
utilize plants as tools and materials contributing to environmental stewardship and
technological advancement, underscores the essential role plants play in supporting human
existence. However, alongside these utilitarian applications, there is a growing emphasis to
focus on human and plant emotional and social well-being. Existing technologies and studies
that seek to extend the principles of HCI to encompass interactions between humans and
plants continue to evolve as new applications and possibilities emerge. Through the lens of
art, technology, and philosophy, this thesis is an exploration of more-than-human interaction,
incorporating the theoretical frameworks of somaesthetics, posthumanism, calm and slow
technology. Applying concept driven interaction design methodology, an interactive
installation was developed using ambient lighting communication software to visualize
real-time plant electrical signals. This thesis presents a viable approach to existing solutions
in the field of people plant interaction (PPI) contributing to interspecies empathy and
collaboration in a shared ecosystem. The results from qualitative interviews show participants
responded positively to the design artifact and it successfully engages users in the awareness
of plant autonomy, viewing plants as active participants in their environment. The findings
suggest that the design concept can be valuable in education and in promoting environmental
awareness. These insights contribute to the broader discourse on human-nonhuman
interconnectedness paving the way for further research on cohabitation in a more-than-human
world.

Date of Award	2024-Dec
Original language	Swedish
Supervisor	Montathar Faraon (Supervisor), Martin Wetterstrand (Supervisor) & Kari Rönkkö (Examiner)