ABOUT
In the dynamic world of embraced digital media consumption and media diet, we have found ourselves in total reliance with our smartphones. As a portal to the internet world, we have been given the power of accessibility of unlimited information which have greatly shifted our culture, way of life, and the way we live each day. A main source of interaction in almost every facet that applies to every single one of us. From our simple desires of entertainment and quality time, to our newly found reality of digital social media lives.
Like a pair of clothing, our smartphone has become part of us. To spend hours with it is both a necessity and a choice quickly laid down upon us to keep up with the new world. The norm is to spend hours browsing the internet, shopping, reading anything from our social media feeds, while simultaneously switching from apps to apps checking our notifications and feeds, send and exchange messages, stream videos at the other app. All happens within a single phone use and repeated at a looping fashion, for hours and hours because it feels great to not miss out on something?
To evaluate this behaviour is not the norm, even to question the appearance of crowds, for an instance, staring down individually at their screens is an invisible observation. As we head into these culturally tolerated behaviours, one question will arise, of all the countless hours we spend digitally consuming, do we still have time left for our sleep?
At this rapidly shifting generation, we are as well rapidly switching to a sleepless society or the fact that sleep isn’t valued that much anymore. A tolerance in sleeping less in-exchange of our digital media consumptions. A digitally addicted, poor sleep hygiene society.
This tolerance is what “Netsomnia” stands for. A hidden behaviour we all, at some point, have manifested in our bedrooms as we live in the prevalence of unmanaged and unmoderated smartphone use. It Is the entity that we normally don’t see or ignore during our nighttime sessions. It is the behaviour we have when we continue to scroll on our phones during a scheduled bedtime. It is how we let our eyes engage to the allure of the glowing screen at night. It is an investigation to the behaviour and action we fail to notice or continue to tolerate. As it aims to decipher this, Netsomnia is also about looking for the answers while also providing information in hopes of a better way of understanding this behavious and to promote the importance of digital detox.
This project has only one major goal, and that is to allow you to self-evaluate yourself of what’s important to prioritize. Sleep or browse now and steal sleep later?
A wake up call to sleep.
PHONECRIB
We often use our smartphone devices for pleasures, but ironically, we use our devices to not physically rest anymore. One solution to the issue is the present of a smart device that prevents us from using our phones at night. Imagine a world where people care more about their phones’ wellbeing than themselves. But wait, well this is already happening. One person can have an expensive casing for their phone but can’t cloak a decent clothing for themselves, for example.
Essentially, PhoneCrib is a reimagined product to help with proper management of sleep. It is a mobile phone monitoring device that elevates the role of screentime apps and their downtime capability to help users conform to their intended sleeping schedules and avoid from the interference of their devices. An imaginary product concept that I believe close to being real and practically designed according to its potential and probability of actually being manufactured by present technology.
It is basically a sarcastic reaction to our over reliance on our phones, mocking the booming sleep/meditation industry, and the fact that sleep have become a luxury that people are adamant to spend dollars in order to attain a good night sleep. Like a table-turned perspective, ironically, instead of the users as the subject of concern when it comes to sleep, it’s been replaced by their device. Since we do not seem to take our sleep seriously and focus more on the wellbeing of our phones. Instead of us worrying about our own health, we worry about our devices.
This imaginary product is being advertised as a real item, with all these next-gen product specifications and features that provides maximum experience for our phones. The concept of PhoneCrib is that it operates like a smart pod casing device that temporarily disables the main function of a smartphone. Such as, access to apps which prevents the user to browse eventually, forcing them to not use their device at bedtime hours. Done by a strict approach, the smart pod becomes a cloaking device for the phone which would then be inaccessible and locked within the crib. Only to be released after the user’s alarm settings go off the next morning. In this way, the user still has full control to these devices. They set their alarm settings and the crib honours it. It is a constant collaboration between of the user, their device, and an external device. While stuck in the crib, the phone can only be accessed by incoming and emergency calls, which leaves the phone still functional at the events of emergency situations.
In an allegorical way, the phone represents us, the user. By changing the focus from our sleep to the wellbeing of our devices, there is also an underlying message about it, that if we learn to put our phones down, then we can be rest assured to re-attain a good sleeping hygiene. It is the hidden solution I hope that viewers would realize.
The overall purpose of this is to point out that our phone use is the problem and a balance relationship between our eyes and our screen is a prerequisite for a better sleep.
THE BOOK OF REVELATIONS
Is a visual essay that explores the prevalence of nighttime phone use and the connection between screentime and sleep deprivation. While exploring our behaviours towards internet-based content such as social media and streaming sites and why we are so engaged into them. It is also an information booklet that reveals the impact of “netsomnia” and the potential health risks of being sleep deprived. Aided by a collective juxtaposition of data visualizations, illustrated pages, and expressive typographical folios; together, each carefully arranged as a supporting element to one another.
The role of the visualized data is to provide a raw study and a background check to the increasing decline of sleep due to excess mobile phone use. As well as to investigate further, the impact of social media and other internet-based contents in our overall sleep quality. Represented by a sample study of over 200 participants, viewers are given the chance to interact with this raw information to evaluate and observe the trend for themselves.
Additionally, the book is also supported by illustration in each chapters (renamed “Feed” to conform to the social media-based context), like reading a user’s online activity feed. Each of the illustrated folios represents information to reveal the secrets behind social media designs, as well as health concerns regarding the impact of screens, the concept of unlimited rewards anticipation, and the health risks of sleeping less.
Set-up in a way that emulates the fast paced multi-tasking nature of internet browsing, the book is designed to present information after information. Like switching from one window to another, one app to another. In hopes for viewers to realize their behaviour and evaluate themselves in the issue of screentime and sleep. Its main goal is to create an hypnotic intervention, educate, raise awareness, and promote device moderation.
A wake up call to sleep.