CHI 2000 • 1-6 APRIL 2000
Invited
Sessions
Sufficiently Advanced Technology:
Using Magic to Control the World
Kim
Binsted
Interaction Lab, Sony C S L
3-14-13 H i g a s h i - G o t a n d a
Shinagawa-ku, T o k y o , Japan
+81 3 5448 4380
[email protected]
w w w . csl. sony. co.j p/person/ki m b /
ABSTRACT
MAGIC
Like magic, technology gives us power over the world.
Human-computer interaction (HCI) research is concerned
with how we wield that power. Here I look at how
storytellers imagine magic, and try to apply some of these
ideas to technology.
Mythology suggests that there are some 'magical' abilities
that people find desirable. We would like to be able to
change our appearance, drastically but not permanently. We
would like to be able to fly. We want to see the future,
communicate over distances and read minds.
Keywords
Technology has already given us some of these abilities,
within limits - flight and long-distance communication, for
example - and the others are on their way (see Figure 1).
We ate interested in making the use of this technology
more effective and appealing. The characteristics of magic
tools, places and creatures suggest some ways to achieve
this end.
Figure 1. HyperMask [2] is a tool which allows the user
to wear someone else's face.
Magic, myth, mobile computing, augmented reality,
character design.
INTRODUCTION
Arthur C. Clarke's third law ("Any sufficiently advanced
technology is indistinguishable from magic") is usually
irdcrpreted to mean that, to the average non-magician user,
advanced technology is usable but not comprehensible.
However, there is more to magic than incomprehensibility.
Magic is about having power over the world around us, and
the typical forms of imagined magic reflect the powers we
would wish to have.
Magic, as described in folklore and fantas% is rarely raw
power. It is encoded into spells, hardwired into tools, and
granted by familiars. Also, it is rarely general purpose.
Typical magical applications include farsensing,
shapeshifting, teleportation, prediction, and mind-reading.
Not surprisingly, technology too has some of these
characteristics: we use specialized software and hardware,
rhaps mediated by a helpful agent, to communicate ideas,
nsport objects, and predict future events.
In this talk, I will argue that effective and appealing
technology will increasingly come to resemble imagined
magic, and discuss some ways in which we might wield
this magic.
POWERS
THE MUNDANE DESKTOP
A desktop is a great place to do office work, and it makes a
fine interface metaphor for office applications. However,
many uses of technology are not so mundane. Moreover,
the computer isn't necessarily kept on a physical desktop
anymore - computing devices are portable, interconnected,
and ubiquitous. Desktops, metaphorical or otherwise, do
not fit this reality.
©
~Hc
Copyright
F u T ~
ss
on this m a t e r i a l
the author(s).
Hc,~c
is h e l d b y
MAGIC TOOLS
Magic tools are rarely general purpose. Their function is
sometimes directly related to their form (e.g. never-empty
bags of gold), sometimes an exaggeration or augmentation
of their apparent function (e.g. seven league boots), and
205
Invited Sessions
CHI 2 0 0 0
sometimes only whimsically or metaphorically related to
their form (e.g. broomsticks for tlying). They are usually
handheld, although they can also be worn (e.g. cloak
invisibility). They might have some form of security to
prevent them being used by someone other than their
rightful owner.
The magic wand is the classic magic tool. It is a simple
handheld pointer, a cousin to the mouse.
Most
augmented/virtual reality environments, such as that
described in [4], have some variation on this device.
~AGIC PLACES
Magic places are characterized by the way they defy the
r,ormal rules of space and time. They can be bigger on the
inside than on the outside (e.g. Aladdin's lamp), move
through space (e.g. Baba Yaga's house), or have distorted
time (e.g. the land of the Sidhe). Some magical locations
are more like familiars, in that they have personalities and
are faithful to their owners (again, Baba Yaga's house is a
good example).
FAMILIARS
Familiars are characters that help the magician wield his or
her powers. Sometimes they just provide information; other
times they themselves are sent to do the task in question.
They are not usually human. Most importantly, they are
strongly attached to a single magician, not shared with
others. They have strong personalities, often sharing
character traits with the magician, sometimes exaggerated
[3]. Magicians can sometimes see through the eyes of their
familiar, blurting the line between a familiar and a shapeshifted magician..
I~IPLICATIONS
I~'ITERACTION
FOR
HUMAN
COMPUTER
d~ Devices should be small, preferably handheld or
wearable. They should be simple and have a specific
206
•
• 1-6
APRIL 2 0 0 0
functions, related to their forms either directly or
whimsically.
Assistant agents should be expressive minions with
strong personalities, preferably non-human. They
should be able to provide information and/or do simple
tasks. Their masters should be able to use them as
avatars.
•
Virtual and augmented environments need not use time
and space realistically. There might be a distinction
between host and guest, with the enviromnent biased
towards the host.
CONCLUSION
Here I have briefly listed some characteristics of magic
tools, places and creatures, and suggested that technological
interfaces should share some of these characteristics. In the
talk I hope to expand on these ideas considerably.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
1 would like to thank everyone at CSL for their ongoing
support.
REFERENCES
1. Arthur C. Clarke. "Profiles of the future:
into the limits of the possible."
An inquiry
2. Kim Binsted, Shigeo Mofishima, Frank Nielsen and
Claudio Pinhanez. "HyperMask: Virtual Reactive Faces
for Storytelling". Emerging Technologies: The
Millenium Motel. SIGGRAPH 1999.
3. Kim
Binsted.
"Character design
for soccer
commentary." pp 23-35, Proceedings of the RoboCup
workshop, 1998.
4. Jun Rekimoto, "The World through the Computer:
Computer Augmented Interaction with Real World
Environments" in Designing Communication and
Collaboration Support Systems, Yutaka Matsushita
(ed.), Gordon and Breach Science Publishers, 1999.
C'P~I.I 2 ~ O