Andrew's PhD

The specific technology focus that an MRDT (i.e. component/asset twin in hologram form) brings can almost fit snugly into the four human-technology-world relations. These are categorised notions that have been observed which various technologies bring about, when the human (subject) and the specific technology (object) meet. MRDTs, as their own entity, fit the bill of all four, whereas previous examples present different technologies for each of these notions. An MRDT dynamically and vividly manifests all four. Let’s consider each one. Embodiment Relations For the “embodiment relations”, where the classic eyeglass technology integrates seamlessly, embodied as it is used. As Ihde describes, "I relate to my environment, my world,” by means of such technologies, and if they are well functioning, then experientially they are “taken into my very sense of bodily experience.” My awareness of wearing glasses is a fringe awareness that gets interrupted only when there is back glare, or wh...

 For my PhD full proposal, it is important that I understand what my overarching goals are and subsequently the objectives that underpin the primary objective. The overarching objective of this research is to develop a comprehensive postphenomenological understanding of the lived experiences of users interacting with dynamic MRDTs, specifically analysing how this technology mediates their perception, action, and understanding within a hybrid physical-digital environment. By properly applying this postphenomenological framework, a robust research plan will be designed and configured as outlined in this proposal in order to extract and articulate first-person perspective accounts through appropriate and effective data collection methods. Achieving this will establish the core phenomenological data (the “what” and the “how” of experience), which will be the basis for all the potential outputs of the in-depth analysis. The primary objective of the research project is contingent upon ac...

 The literature review part of the full proposal is key to understanding the landscape and to better help me situate my research in a context where it can possibly contribute and advance the related fields

 Postphenomenology focus As I’ve done more reading on what postphenomenology is as a philosophical orientation, and what it offers to my research focus, which is a viable phenomenological exploration of MRDTs, I am becoming more convinced of its strengths. However, I am finding myself in the middle of the current debate of whether the focus on technology is either at the level with the individual or broadly, on a societal or cultural level. Ihde acknowledges that there are at least two perceptions, he calls them ‘microperception’ (on the individual level) and ‘macroperception’ (on a broad, cultural level). He does not deny their interdependency on one another but has been criticised for artificially separating them. My position is that while I acknowledge the significant impact of broader societal and cultural forces on technology, as Ihde discusses in Program Two (Ritter, 2021) , my research takes a more focused path, centering on the individual's direct experiences with MRDTs. ...