By Filippo Vanucci (February 8, 2009) (Week 3 Technovelgy Response)

Hypno-Motor Control (1954)
This device is a means of controlling the body remotely, cutting off the need for local control (i.e. by your mind). In Philip Dick’s novel the Hypno-Motor Control is primarily used to take over human bodies when people are driving, in order avoid car accidents. My attention was captured by the way this tool is advertised.

“Drivers! Thousands of unnecessary deaths each year from inter-planet driving. Hypno-Motor Control from an expert source-point insures your safety.

Surrender your body and save your life!”

I find it a really bizarre advertising that promotes a scary tool of coercion as a benefit for the consumer. This technology relates on the complete exposure of the persuasive intent. The attempt to persuade the potential purchaser about the advantages of giving up the physical control on their body to an external machine is definitely remarkable. That being said, giving up your body is probably a pretty big price to pay for your safety.

Empathy Box (1964)
The Empathy Box is a device which allows a group of people to empathize with a single person. In Philip Dick’s novel this technology was used by a religious movement for motivating the people to follow the leader. It is a way to give people awareness of the feelings and personal experience of a single person, a powerful and invasive means for persuasion.
The Empathy Box puts into practice a particular kind of persuasive intervention, which probably couldn’t even be defined coercion, because empathy is a human sentiment that doesn’t necessarily forces you to take any action. Just like the Dispepsi concept album emphasizes the iconography and the communication strategy of Pepsi trying to show people the evil side of marketing, the Empathy Box trys to put people in the shoes of the religious leader, in order to convince them about the good values of that religion.

Directional Ticket (1951)
A ticket that also has the property of glowing while you are going toward what you bought. Nice example of poka-yoke (mistake-proofing) technique applied to tickets. The ticket itself guides you to the right direction for the show (i.e. the right seat in a theater) and gives you feedback if you are walking to your destination.