HUMAN+ Tech Talk: Your Avatar and You (Identity and Behaviour in the Digital World)

This edition of the HUMAN+ Tech Talk series will focus on whether avatars and digital personas should be considered humans and reflects on the impacts of these on inclusivity, social dynamics, and digital practices. Combining angles of human psychology and behaviour, society, digital technology, and aesthetics, this second edition aims to dissect the following questions: How does humanitys engagement with digital media change social engagement in the long run? How can we increase realism in digital appearances and what does it do to identity and social interactions? How will digital personas become implemented in society and/or change social networks and behaviours? Who are the speakers? Dr Kata Szita Kata is a Human+ fellow based in the Trinity Long Room Hub and her work is focused on questions that consider technological developments from the humanistic perspective. She works closely with her academic mentors Prof Jennifer OMeara (School of Creative Arts) and Prof Aljosa Smolic (School of Computer Science and Statistics) to study the effects of augmented reality on user behaviour. Know more Dr Jennifer OMeara Dr Jennifer is the Assistant Professor of Film Studies; and Director of Undergraduate Teaching and Learning for the School of Creative Arts; and the Academic Advisor for the Columbia University-TCD Dual Degree in Film. Additionally, she is a postdoctoral supervisor on the HUMAN+ programme. Her teaching and research are primarily concerned with the intersections between film and digital media, as well as between critical theory and creative practice. Know more Prof Aljosa Smolic Prof Smolic is the Professor of Creative Technologies at Trinity College Dublin. Before joining Trinity, he was with Disney Research Zurich as Senior Research Scientist and Head of the Advanced Video Technology group. He has edited a number of highly accredited and widely acclaimed scientific journals and has also been a committee member and Chair of various conferences. His research project, V-SENSE, aims to extend the dimensions of visual sensation through novel algorithms and workflows for image-based visual computing expanding the classical 2D video viewing experience common today. Know more Jess Majekodunmi Jess is the Director of the Human Sciences Studio at The Dock, Accentures flagship global R&D centre where she spends her working hours helping business leaders go beyond good intentions, helping them ask why?, how? and so what? when it comes to people, society and technology. She is a design historian and an innovative designer who is a board member of various organisations working in research, art and design, and has earned a number of awards and accolades for her path-breaking work in the area. What is HUMAN+? HUMAN+ is an international and interdisciplinary fellowship programme led by the SFI ADAPT Centre and Trinity Long Room Hub Arts and Humanities Research Institute. The programme is supported by the prestigious European Commission (EC) Horizon 2020 Marie Skodowska-Curie COFUND Action and recruits up to 18 experienced researchers for a 2-year postdoctoral programme. HUMAN+ aims to connect computer science researchers with arts and humanities researchers and enterprises to forge a human-centric approach to technology. Sign up for the second HUMAN+ Tech Talk and be part of fascinating discussions on the behavioural impact and identity evolution caused by emerging digital technologies.