Designing-with More-than-Human Through Human Augmentation

2025-11-16

AI Summary

Human perceptual limitations hinder embodied understanding of nonhuman life experiences, constraining multispecies co-design practices. To address this, we propose the “HtH+” ecological phenomenological design paradigm, which repurposes human augmentation technologies for cross-species perceptual modulation. Grounded in somaesthetics, ecological embodied cognition, wearable sensing, and multimodal interaction, the paradigm establishes seven design principles and yields five embodied perception prototype systems. Evaluated through five cross-species perceptual case studies, the approach effectively extends human sensory boundaries, fosters ecological empathy and symbiotic responsibility, and shifts design practice from anthropocentrism toward multispecies ethical care. Its core contribution lies in the first systematic integration of sensory extension technologies with ecological phenomenology—yielding an embodied, actionable framework for multispecies co-design.

Technology Category

• Intelligent Robots: Multimodal Perception & Sensor Fusion
• Humans and AI: Brain-Sensing and Analysis
• Cognitive Modeling & Cognitive Systems: Simulating Human Behavior

Application Category

• Economics, Online Markets and Human Computation: Incentives in network design for Web infrastructures and ecosystems
• Semantics and Knowledge: Methods to enhance, augment, integrate or synergize semantic models such as knowledge graphs and LLMs
• Responsible Web: Machine-in-the-loop, human agency and autonomy

Abstract

The recent more-than-human turn in design calls for "designing-with" other species and ecologies beyond humans. Yet-as Thomas Nagel's famous "What is it like to be a bat?" thought experiment highlights-human experience is constrained by our own sensorium and an irreducible gap in phenomenal access to nonhuman lifeworlds. This paper proposes More-than-Human through Human Augmentation (MtHtHA, denoted ">HtH+") as a design approach that repurposes human augmentation technologies-typically aimed at enhancing human capabilities-away from human optimization and exceptionalism but toward eco-phenomenological awareness. Grounded in somaesthetic design and eco-somatics, MtHtHA entails creating temporary, embodied experiences that modulate the human Umwelt to re-sensitize us to pluriversal more-than-human perceptions. We articulate seven design principles and report five design cases-EchoVision (bat-like echolocation), FeltSight (star-nosed-mole tactile navigation), FungiSync (fungal network attunement), TentacUs (octopus-like distributed agency), and City of Sparkles (urban data from AI's perspective). We demonstrate that such experiential "designing-with" can cultivate ecological awareness, empathy and obligations of care across species boundaries.

Problem

• Bridging human sensory limitations to understand nonhuman lifeworlds
• Repurposing augmentation technology for eco-phenomenological awareness
• Creating embodied experiences to cultivate cross-species ecological empathy

Innovation

• Human augmentation for eco-phenomenological awareness
• Modulating human Umwelt through somaesthetic design
• Temporary embodied experiences for cross-species empathy