The Social Life of Dowse: Ethics and Invisibility in IoT

• In Event: Interrogating Ethics & Values in Technology Design & Engineering Practice

Abstract

Since the rise of ubiquitous computing (ubicomp) visions of a world inhabited by seamless technologies melting into the background of our everyday existence have flourished. With the rapid development of Internet of Things (IoT) sensing technologies these imaginaries have now entered the world in practice. The promises of frictionless connectivity, nevertheless, continuously seem to crumble as IoT devices break down and spark controversy. This paper is based on fieldwork among IoT developers around Europe. While a lot of IoT creators show enthusiasm about the possibilities that IoT technologies engender, uncertainty and concern about what kinds of creations and worlds they bring into being simultaneously proliferate. In manifestos and meetups IoT designers and developers call for attention and ethical reflection. In the paper I present an example of a critical engagement with IoT development through an analysis of the Dowse Box. This is a box developed by the free software organization Dyne based in Amsterdam created with a capacity to make visible otherwise invisible activity across networks and connected devices. Unfolding the social life of Dowse means exploring it as a material, political and ethical intervention into IoT development. My analysis of the Dowse Box reveals how a range of values are embedded in all choices of its design and updates. Through the creation and continuous refinement of Dowse I suggest that approaching the invisible becomes a travelling ethical practice around IoT development.

Author

• Ester Fritsch, IT University of Copenhagen