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Press release
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Published: 06 July 2010 16:00
A device developed by the Interaction Research Studio, in the Department of Design at Goldsmiths, University of London has been introduced into the lives of a group of nuns in York who otherwise abide by medieval traditions.
The Prayer Companion - or 'Goldie' as the Poor Clares nuns from St Joseph's in York are calling it - is a tabletop appliance with a small screen on the top.
Short sentences about the news or peoples' feelings move continuously across the screen depicting live and up-to-date events. The sentences are taken from a wide range of global news sites as well as websites where people can write about their experiences and emotions.
Professor Bill Gaver, from the Interaction Research Studio, said the overall effect of the Prayer Companion was to give a view onto peoples' current concerns at individual and social, local and global levels.
"We built the Prayer Companion to provide a resource for prayers of intercession, after getting to know the Poor Clares nuns from St. Joseph's in York and understanding something about their spiritual lives. They have lived with the device, which they call 'Goldie', for about a year and a half, and tell us that it has been valuable in keeping their prayers pertinent," he added.
In the York monastery the Prayer Companion is kept on a table by a noticeboard in a central hallway that the Sisters pass through frequently. The device is designed to be unobtrusive: the screen faces upwards and can only be viewed from a fairly short distance, so that it is not unduly distracting to passersby.
The Prayer Companion was developed in collaboration with with Mark Blythe from Northumbria University, and Peter Wright from Newcastle University, for the Landscapes of Cross-generational Engagement project, funded as part of the Joint Research Council’s New Dynamics of Aging initiative.
Notes to Editors
The Interaction Research Studio is a research group in the Department of Design at Goldsmiths, University of London. The group designs new forms of interactive devices as a way of exploring human values and the ways they can be reflected by technology. Visit www.gold.ac.uk/interaction for more examples of their work.
Hi-res Images available on request
Contact the Press Office if you wish to interview Professor Bill Gaver
For further information
Peter Austin
Press & PR Manager
Goldsmiths, University of London
New Cross, London SE14 6NW
t: +44 (0)20 7919 7909
f: +44 (0)20 7919 7975
e: p.austin@gold.ac.uk
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