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Özdemir V, Springer S, Yıldırım A, Biçer Ş, Kendirci A, Şardaş S, Kılıç H, Hekim N, Kunej T, Arga KY, Dzobo K, Wang W, Geanta M, Brand A, Bayram M. Thanatechnology and the Living Dead: New Concepts in Digital Transformation and Human-Computer Interaction. OMICS : A JOURNAL OF INTEGRATIVE BIOLOGY 2021; 25:401-407. [PMID: 34191613 DOI: 10.1089/omi.2021.0100] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
In a digital society, shall we be the authors of our own experience, not only during our lifetime but also after we die? We ask this question because dying and bereavement have become even harder, and much less private, in the digital age. New big data-driven digital industries and technologies are on the rise, with promises of interactive 3D avatars and storage of digital memories of the deceased, so they can continue to exist online as the "living dead" in a digital afterlife. Famous rock and roll icons like Roy Orbison, Frank Zappa, Ronnie James Dio, and Amy Winehouse have famously been turned into holograms that can once again give "live" performances on the touring circuit, often pulling in large audiences. Death studies, dying, and grief have become virtual in the 21st century. We live in truly unprecedented times for human-computer interactions. Thanatology is the scientific study of death, dying, loss, and grief. In contrast to the biological study of biological aging (cellular senescence) and programmed cell death (apoptosis), thanatology employs multiple professional lenses, medical, psychological, physical, spiritual, ethical, descriptive, and normative. In 1997, Carla Sofka introduced the term thanatechnology as "technological mechanisms such as interactive videodiscs and computer programs that are used to access information or aid in learning about thanatology topics." Onward to 2021, the advent of social media, the Internet of Things, and sensors that digitize and archive nearly every human movement and experience are taking thanatechnology, and by extension, digital transformation, to new heights. For example, what happens to digital remains of persons once they cease to exist physically? This article offers a critical study and snapshot of this nascent field, and the "un-disciplinary" sociotechnical issues digital thanatechnologies raise in relation to big data. We also discuss how best to critically govern this new frontier in systems science and the digital society. We suggest that new policy narratives such as (1) the right to nonparticipation in relation to information and communication technologies and (2) the planetary public goods deserve further attention to democratize thanatechnology and big data. To the extent that systems science often depends on data from online platforms, for example, in times of pandemics and ecological crises, "critical thanatechnology studies," introduced in this article, is a timely and essential field of scholarship with broad importance for systems science and planetary health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vural Özdemir
- OMICS: A Journal of Integrative Biology, New Rochelle, New York, USA
| | - Simon Springer
- Centre for Urban and Regional Studies, Discipline of Geography and Environmental Studies, School of Environmental and Life Sciences, Faculty of Science, University of Newcastle, Callaghan, Australia
| | - Arif Yıldırım
- Department of Journalism, Faculty of Communication, Çanakkale On Sekiz Mart University, Çanakkale, Turkey
| | - Şehmus Biçer
- Department of Media and Cultural Studies, School of Graduate Studies, Çanakkale On Sekiz Mart University, Çanakkale, Turkey
| | - Aslıgül Kendirci
- Ascot Science, Pharmaceutical and Clinical Trial Innovation, İstanbul, Turkey
- Faculty of Pharmacy, İstinye University, İstanbul, Turkey
| | - Semra Şardaş
- Faculty of Pharmacy, İstinye University, İstanbul, Turkey
| | - Hakan Kılıç
- Department for Migration and Globalization, Danube-University Krems, Krems, Austria
| | - Nezih Hekim
- Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics, Biruni Üniversity, Istanbul, Turkey
| | - Tanja Kunej
- Department of Animal Science, Biotechnical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia
| | - Kazım Yalçın Arga
- Department of Bioengineering, Faculty of Engineering, Marmara University, İstanbul, Turkey
| | - Kevin Dzobo
- Division of Medical Biochemistry and Institute of Infectious Disease and Molecular Medicine, Department of Integrative Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Wei Wang
- Key Municipal Laboratory of Clinical Epidemiology, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
- Centre for Precision Health, Edith Cowan University, Joondalup, Australia
- School of Public Health, Shandong First Medical University and Shandong Academy of Medical Sciences, Tai'an, China
- The First Affiliated Hospital of Shantou University Medical College, Shantou, China
| | - Marius Geanta
- Centre for Innovation in Medicine, Bucharest, Romania
- KOL Medical Media, Bucharest, Romania
- United Nations University-Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology, Maastricht, The Netherlands
| | - Angela Brand
- United Nations University-Maastricht Economic and Social Research Institute on Innovation and Technology, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- Faculty of Health, Medicine and Life Sciences, Maastricht University, Maastricht, The Netherlands
- Department of Public Health Genomics, and Manipal School of Life Sciences, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, India
- Dr. TMA Pai Endowment Chair in Public Health Genomics, Manipal School of Life Sciences, Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal, India
| | - Mustafa Bayram
- Department of Food Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Gaziantep University, Gaziantep, Turkey
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