Digital Death: Tradition and Technology in Design for Human Experience

The recent appearance of digital technology products in the realm of death is remarkable. While the necessary disposition of the body will always require some form of physical artifact, products associated with rituals of death are not governed by practicality alone. Objects used in rituals play a key role in the celebration of life, commemoration and mourning of the dead, and in cathartic experience for the bereaved. Recent innovation has been inspired by new demand for personalization and participation in the creation of meaningful rituals, and the artifacts that support them. Digital technology products including memorial web sites and DVDs provide flexibility in customization, personal contribution and creation of content, and access without the limitations imposed by physical space or location. However, the physical quality of human emotional experience continues to be important, facilitated through ceremonial action and the tangible sense of place associated with the dead. The integration of digital and physical product attributes in the realm of death has made only limited progress, embedding technology in otherwise traditional objects such as tombstones. New product opportunities exist for design to address the coexistence of the digital and physical, in the context of human experience.