Dr Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas (Glasgow): Designing Interactive Environmental and Social Technologies School of Psychology and Neuroscience Friday seminar series

The School of Psychology and Neuroscience seminar series presents a talk by Dr Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas (Glasgow), titled ‘Designing Interactive Environmental and Social Technologies for Zoo Animals and Pets', which will be hosted by Dr Emma McEwen in the Old Library and accessible online through MS Teams.

This talk will explore ways to adapt technologies and methodologies to suit animals as primary users of computer systems, embracing an animal-centred approach to exploring animal behaviour. Dr Hirskyj-Douglas will share insights from her research group's work with lemurs and white-faced saki monkeys on ways they can control their zoo enclosures' audio and visual elements.

This includes work on ‘monkey buttons' and creating technologies for individual animals and groups in zoo settings. She will also explore how interface design influences animal engagement with technology and the results her team drew from computer systems through their studies with giraffes and parrots.

The talk will conclude by examining social enrichment technologies for pets and zoo animals, highlighting her collaborative project on parrot video calls, and discussing how these technological interventions offer fresh perspectives on understanding animals' cognition.