Call of the wild: the new science of human-animal communication
If your pets could speak, what would they tell you? Experts at the animal-computer interaction lab at the Open University (OU) are close to finding out. There, animal behaviour specialists work with designers to create the kind of technology that helps animals communicate and work alongside humans more naturally – to raise the alarm if an owner falls ill, put a wash on, or switch out the lights for an owner who has a disability.
“If you give animals more of a voice, they can make themselves better understood. It’s as though they can talk back to us – and this can be very valuable,” says Clara Mancini, a communication and design expert who founded the lab back in 2011. “We are researching with them, allowing animals to participate in the design process.”
This is a niche area of an already niche field – but dozens of master’s at UK universities relate to animal behaviour in some form; some research-led, some practical.
Working closely with charities, the OU’s lab has collaborated with the likes of Dogs for Good and Medical Detection Dogs. Traditionally, medical detection dogs trained to sniff out cancerous cells have learned to sit down in front of positive samples. But for a dog, this is an unnatural response to an exciting smell, says Mancini, and limits what they can reveal. Her team have created a sort of sniffing platform with pressure pads that measures a dog’s spontaneous response to an odour. Mancini hopes this will allow scientists to detect more nuances in a dog’s reaction, revealing more about the stage or concentration of the cancer, for example. Other projects include designing an alarm – in the shape of a sausage, no less – that an assistance dog could pull if a diabetic owner suffers a hypoglycaemic attack. Researchers have also designed large snout-friendly buttons for assistance dogs in the home.
While the OU’s lab is unique in the UK, the University of Stirling is also offering a master’s in human animal interaction. Many taught courses, such as a new master’s in animal behaviour at the University of St Andrews, aim to act as a springboard into a research career.
Students at Exeter’s MSc in animal behaviour spend a week on Lundy Island observing abundant wildlife, including puffins, guillemots, razorbills and kittiwakes, not to mention the island’s rare breed Soay sheep, says programme director Dr Lisa Leaver, an animal behaviour expert with a background in psychology who founded the course in 2003. “Most of our graduates go on to do PhDs,” she says.
“Some work in science education departments in zoos, or go on to teach, or work with conservation charities.” A research apprenticeship forms a significant part of the course, she says, with subjects as varied as social structure of killer whale groups to male signalling of fiddler crabs on Portuguese beaches.
Understanding animals better has wider moral implications, Mancini believes. “We tend only to listen to our own voice and that’s dangerous. We have forgotten we are part of something bigger – and if we don’t adjust our perspective, we are eventually going to destroy the planet.”
Lauren Samet’s research focuses on anxiety in dogs Photograph: Lauren Samet - Dogs Trust/No Credit
Lauren Samet, 33, is about to complete her PhD in animal welfare and nutrition. Interview by Helena Pozniak
I still pinch myself that I’m here. I’ve always loved animals and wanted to help make a positive change. I’m the first person in my family to go to university. After I graduated in biological sciences from the University of East Anglia, I applied to all the big animal charities – to zoos and to conservation organisations. But animal welfare is so competitive, you need a specialist qualification.
I saved up to take an MSc in animal welfare at Northampton University. It was right up my street, I loved the research element. My supervisor gave me confidence and encouragement to take on a PhD – I never even thought I’d do a master’s, let alone research. During my PhD I’ve worked part-time as a nutritionist for Marwell Zoo for a year on maternity leave cover, which was an amazing experience as those jobs are like gold dust. I’ve also worked as a pet nutritionist in Yorkshire and lectured on an animal science degree.
My research looks at anxiety in dogs and whether herbal supplements actually do have a calming effect. I joined the research team of the Dogs Trust in spring. This is the kind of work I wanted when I first graduated, but I now realise I needed to take the research route to get here. When we are collecting data, we work directly with dogs. Our team is running a groundbreaking longitudinal study looking at dog health, welfare and behaviour. I’m working to develop a tool that measures the bond between humans and animals.
At this level you can carry out research that’s needed to support positive policy changes, as well as having an impact on the welfare of thousands of animals. This is my dream job.
Retail today: Adapting, evolving and embracing technology
Commentary
March 6, 2019
Photo by iStock.com
By Patrick O'Keefe, CEO and founder at O'Keefe
As traditional retail struggles in many ways with new realities, there exist a pair of myths that persist and pervade most conversations related to the industry. They are:
• Retail brick and mortar is shrinking • Technology will eventually destroy brick and mortar retail
Such myths are exactly that and, upon further examination, quite far from reality. That said, there are a dizzying array of trends and data that should be reviewed and scrutinized in order to understand what is really going on and the best way forward.
E-commerce is growing
There is no denying that e-commerce is on the rise and growing at a faster rate than in store with sales values expected to reach $414 billion this year. Not surprisingly, Amazon is still king with 44 percent of all e-commerce sales, roughly four times that of Ebay. Amazon, does struggle, you might be interested to know, however, with luxury offerings as consumers are both fearful of knock-offs (watches and jewelry) and desirous of experiencing (touching, feeling, trying on) such items in person.
Much of this e-rise is generational. Generation Z, despite having ultra low incomes, spend the highest percentage of their income online of all demographics (9 percent), while 40 percent of men and 33 percent of women (18-34) say they would ideally like to buy everything online. Some of this preferred usage is also perceptual. Seventy-one percent believe they get a better deal online than in stores when that is often not the case, in particular with Amazon (more chinks in the armor). Convenience is another key factor with 60 percent of all adult Americans saying they like avoiding a crowded mall or store. And, wrapping all of this into a neat little package, of course, is technology — from computers to tablets to smart phones. For some traditional retailers it is not hard to fathom a disdain for technology. However, when understood and utilized correctly, tech can and does serve as an important driver for brand loyalty and creating a true customer experience.
Technology as a tool
While there have been a tremendous amount of store closings over the past four or five years, the pendulum appears to be swinging the other way with more and more physical stores opening their doors. In fact, when you look at overall statistics, store sales still make up a strong 85 percent of all retail sales. And while technology has been the bane of existence for many traditional sellers (look at consumer electronics) many savvy retailers understand if you can't beat it, join it — and improve upon it. Statistics show, in fact, than 55 percent of online shoppers would prefer to buy from a merchant with a physical store presence over an online-only retailer. Seventy-two percent of young shoppers research online before purchasing in a store to check prices and customer satisfaction ratings. Moreover, three out of four customers are more likely to visit a physical store if its online information is useful — with digital interactions influencing 36 cents of every dollar spent in a bricks and mortar store. Clearly, there is opportunity here with a further call to action from consumers: 84 percent believe that retailers should be doing more to integrate their online and offline channels.
Doing this as well as anyone I've seen of late is international clothing retail company Hennes & Mauritz, better known as H&M. They have proven that they understand the importance of melding online with in store. A recent video ad demonstrates this well. A young woman is sitting on a bench outside watching friends play basketball and flipping through a magazine. In it, she sees another girl wearing clothes and shoes and jewelry that catch her eye so she takes a picture with her cell phone. The phone then details the items' brands, prices and where she can shop locally to purchase them. As she is leaving to head to an H&M someone else sees the clothes and shoes the first woman is wearing and takes a picture of her — and the experience begins anew. And that is what is key for established in store retailers today: creating a unique, positive and meaningful experience; one that provides current and potential customers with the ability to interact and be informed — in person and online.
Interaction leads to action
And when you talk about interaction, that discourse not only means communication between retailer and consumer. Online reviews and recommendations from family, friends and other online users also greatly influence spending. In fact, 55 percent of shoppers say that online reviews influence their shopping experience, while 36 percent of consumers spend 30-plus minutes comparison-shopping before making a decision on purchasing a commodity product
And while many seek to avoid crowds while shopping in person, data shows we are still quite literally social animals. From Facebook to Instagram and everything in between, social media is becoming more and more influential in consumer buying decisions. Consider the following:• 85 percent of orders from social media originate with Facebook.• 62 percent of consumers share local deals with friends.• 40 percent of 18-34 year olds are likely to use social media for gift ideas.• 25 percent of U.S. consumers will consult social media before buying a gift.
For retailers, here's the real kicker: 78 percent of small businesses attract new customers and engage current ones using social media.
The positive customer experience imperative
Earlier in this article I referenced the work of H&M in creating and promoting a unique shopping experience. It is also vital that that experience is a positive one — whether online or in store. The facts are, once again, in the data. U.S. brands are losing approximately $41 billion each year due to poor customer service; 65 percent of consumers have cut ties with a brand over a single customer service experience; and 64 percent of people believe customer experience is more important than price.
Making a customer happier in today's ultra-competitive realm has perhaps never been more important. Indeed, you snooze, you lose. Do that enough times and you may not live to fight another day. To be sure, brand loyalty is essential. And here's why: The probability of selling to a new customer is between five to 20 percent, while, the probability of selling to an existing customer is between 60 to 70 percent. Further, It costs six times more to attract a new customer than to retain an existing one and loyal customers are worth up to 10 times as much as their first purchase.
The changing in-store experience
We've established that for today's brick and mortar retailers, technology should be embraced and not eschewed. But what else are today's savvy marketers doing to stay viable and attract shoppers to their storefronts? How are they adapting and evolving? Again, it is all about offering unique experiences, products and other offerings.
Seventy-three percent of consumers say they prefer to do business with brands that personalize the customer experience. Saks offers in-store technology that allows you to see yourself in a variety of hair and makeup styles with virtual and augmented reality. Similarly, visit Ikea and they'll demonstrate how new furniture and home dΓ©cor offerings will look in your home. Visit Dresden Optics and you can customize your eyewear, with a variety of interchangeable lenses, frames, sizes and colors. Never mind Build-A-Bear, now we can build a watch or a purse or virtually anything. And, to get you coming back, technology prompts and pings make sure consumer and retailer stay in close contact with a range of coupons and other incentives. Remember H&M referenced earlier? They now offer the opportunity to return and recycle old clothes. Target, meanwhile actually has three varying store concepts — traditional, downtown and small — to more effectively fit into the fabric of the particular community it is serving. Small in fact is big. To stay nimble, more and more smaller stores are opening up. This is particularly ideal for independent and start up retailers as there is less need for working capital to fund and carry inventory.
Final thoughts
As has been demonstrated, for traditional retail, the sky is far from falling. Rather, the focus should be on embracing technology and social networks and the big data information it brings along with the ability to more inter-personally interact with customers. The foundation of good retail, however, has not and will not change. It must evolve but will forever be predicated on good old-fashioned customer service — giving the customer what they want, how they want it and when they want it. That, in turn, breeds loyalty, sales and a healthy bottom line.
Topics: Customer Experience, Trends / Statistics
Related Content Latest ContentThe Stages Of A Live Game: How Communities Gravitate To Struggling Games And Find Fun
Stop me if you've heard this one before.
An online game, created by a well-respected developer, and/or as part of a beloved franchise, and/or that is breathlessly anticipated, launches with major technical issues and receives a raft of negative reviews. From there, things get worse. Maybe some features that were promised aren't in the game. Maybe the game is unplayably buggy. Maybe fans can spot the difference between canvas and nylon.
Whatever the reason, the game becomes a punching bag. Articles keep coming out. Fans keep complaining online. Players who bought the game on Day 1 expecting a polished product are outraged. People who didn't buy the game are amused. And a highly anticipated, very expensive game now has a reputation for being a Dumpster fire.
All eyes are on the developer. Can they possibly turn this thing around?
That question has been asked and answered quite a few times in the past decade. Final Fantasy XIV, Destiny, No Man's Sky: these games, and many more, have proven that no launch is too disastrous to recover from. Yet, with the explosion of the indie scene over the last decade and the democratization of game development through accessible platforms like Steam and itch.io, there has never been more great stuff to play at all times.
So what makes players stick with games that launch buggy or broken? What motivates players to return to a game daily even when connectivity issues mean they sometimes can't even actually play it? Why do players spend time talking about games on message boards and social media when the rest of the gaming world has already moved on, dismissing these titles as "dead games"?
To answer that question, we took to Reddit and Twitter looking for players that are passionate about the games that make a bad first impression. Some have witnessed their game of choice find redemption. No Man's Sky and Final Fantasy XIV players have been through the worst of it and now get to enjoy playing some of the best live service games available. Others--like the folks posting in r/GhostReconBreakpoint, r/AnthemTheGame, and r/fo76--are still waiting for their comeback. All in all, we spoke with roughly 40 players who believe that games can, and often do, get better over time.
The Rocky Launch
As recently as September 2019, the cycle began again.
Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, the latest entry in Ubisoft's long-running stealth-action series, is the most recent service game to launch to negative reviews and disappointing sales. We gave it a 4 back in September, praising its infiltration mechanics and satisfying headshots, but feeling that, overall, it was a mish-mash of half-hearted ideas. The negative press and low sales were loud enough that Ubisoft pushed multiple big games into the next fiscal year. Much of the broader Ghost Recon community has avoided Ghost Recon Breakpoint, instead opting to stick with its still-active predecessor, Ghost Recon: Wildlands.
Breakpoint hasn't really moved beyond this phase. Though Ubisoft put out a patch In November that made more than 100 changes, the loot-shooter still has a long way to go, and still has yet to prove, for many players, that there's a reason that it needs to exist at all, in a world where The Division 2 and Ghost Recon: Wildlands--games that came from the same publisher and feature many similar mechanics--still have active communities.
"I felt a genuine wave of relief when I heard the rotors of the AH-6 overhead and knew my buddies had come to rescue me."
Even so, some players have found plenty to enjoy (and post about). Breakpoint player Mizu, an active member of the r/GhostReconBreakpoint subreddit, told GameSpot about the time her team's transport ended up on the business end of a surface-to-air missile launcher.
"The pilot knew he couldn't out-maneuver it in the great big transport he was flying, so he called for everyone to bail out," she said. "All four of us managed to successfully evacuate before the missile struck, but we were scattered across the mountains. The others landed pretty close to each other, but I got lost in the mist and ended up boots down on a mountain several kilometers away.
"Our routine faction mission grind was interrupted by an impromptu rescue operation while the others scrambled to regroup and commandeer an AH-6 to pick me up. Meanwhile, I'd been spotted by an Azreal (a surveillance drone) while I was falling down the mountain and was forced to find an impromptu defensive position in an abandoned cabin. I think that was one of the moments I felt most immersed. Trying to beat back the Wolves who were hunting me, and the Sentinel patrols that had been alerted by the sounds of our firefight. I felt a genuine wave of relief when I heard the rotors of the AH-6 overhead and knew my buddies had come to rescue me. It's the things you didn't expect or plan for that shine the most. You can only have those kinds of experiences in an open-world like this."
In a reactive game like Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, bugs can even become part of the charm. Interesting stories often result as unwieldy jank pairs with functioning systems. If the joy of Breakpoint is in "things you didn't expect or plan," moments of bugginess can contribute to the fun.
"My buddy and I were trying to capture a Sentinel Captain a little while ago. We needed him alive so I shot him in the leg," Mizu remembered. "He exploded."
More often, however, bugs--"spectacular" though they may be--are just bugs, and communities persist in spite of them.
Fallout 76 stumbled at launch as players struggled to overcome bugs, followed by Bethesda's offer of a subscription version of the game. More Mistakes
In a time of frequent, turbulent Internet outrage, a game's very real, critique-worthy flaws are often both amplified and obscured by the vitriolic hatred, abuse, and harassment that angry fans hurl at developers. That is, of course, true for live games as well. But while puddles shrinking in Marvel's Spider-Man or the National Dex being removed from PokΓ©mon Sword and Shield stirred the ire of small portions of each game's fanbase, a disastrous launch for a massive AAA live game invites the ridicule of the entire game-playing Internet.
And under that level of increased scrutiny, mistakes seem to snowball. For example, Fallout 76 was critically panned upon release. It was hampered at the start by a lack of NPCs, an empty-feeling world, and severe technical issues. Bethesda worked hard to address those troubles--one patch in January included fixes for 150 bugs--but often ended up playing Whack-a-Mole with the game's problems. When Bethesda fixed one bug, it broke the game in new ways. This was exacerbated by missteps outside the confines of the game's virtual Appalachia. Bethesda sent some fans who paid for the $200 Power Armor Edition nylon bags instead of the promised canvas ones, sparking outrage. Then the company leaked the personal information of numerous customers.
One year after release, Fallout 76 is no longer on fire. But that doesn't mean that the game has turned around completely. In October, Bethesda began selling Fallout 1st--a $12.99-a-month subscription service that granted paying players access to private servers and a private scrapbox--on the same day that rave reviews hit for Obsidian's Fallout spiritual successor, The Outer Worlds. The decision to add a subscription service to the struggling game was roundly mocked on the Internet, despite the real utility it offered for fans.
Even in a situation like this, during which the community is divided on Fallout 1st, avid players highlight the reasons that, for many, Fallout 76 is worth sticking with. A group of more than 300 Fallout 76 players used their Fallout 1st subscriptions as a jumping-off point for roleplay, forming the Apocalyptic Aristocracy. They leaned into the accusations of elitism that accompanied a subscription, posing for posh group pictures and, tongue firmly in-cheek, referring to players who didn't shell out for the subscription as "peasants." Like Fallout's vault dwellers, these players made the best of a bad situation. And that's what Fallout 76 roleplayers have been doing since launch--carving out their own unique, flashy identities in the wasteland.
"I have a memory of a guy wearing a full Power Armor set sporting a minigun showing up in my camp demanding I 'pay my taxes' or he will destroy my base. This was before they removed camp damage from the game," said itscmillertime, a Reddit user who has been playing Fallout 76 since a week after launch. "I found the whole thing pretty hilarious until his minigun started to wind up. I logged out before he could damage more than a wall. I give him credit for creativity at least."
Fallout 76, building on the foundation of 20 years of role-playing games, naturally attracts players who are interested in fully embodying their characters. Anthem, while a major departure from the single-player, choice-focused RPGs BioWare had developed in the past, similarly draws in players who want to show off. While it's difficult to roleplay a character in Anthem, customization options make it fairly easy to design an extremely cool Javelin (the in-game Iron Man-esque exo-suit). Both games provide an outlet for self-expression.
"One would think, 'How could anyone like a game that's so repetitive with its missions?' Indeed it is, but for me it's not about that," said Sam "JetstreamSAM-I-M" Safi, a frequent poster on the Anthem-centric subreddit r/FashionLancers. "This game, to me, feels more like showing off what you have. There are people who share the legendary items they achieve in the game and there are other people commenting about how much they are looking for that. And when the time comes when they do achieve it [they feel satisfied]."
"Although there are no mics and you travel the cosmos solo, you feel the comradery."
But sometimes communities are just plain nice, and the No Man's Sky fandom is famously kind. The game launched with a dearth of content that turned off many players expecting a space-faring adventure across a huge, endlessly interesting universe. But in response to those criticisms, Hello Games released several free updates over years, eventually completely reshaping their game.
In 2019, a group of generous fans, led by Reddit user Cameron G, raised thousands of dollars to purchase a billboard reading, "Thank You, Hello Games," outside the developer's Guildford office. After the crowdfunding campaign closed, the group used the extra money to buy lunch and beer for the development team and then donated the remaining cash to the Sydney Children's Hospitals Foundation.
In-game, players are often similarly big-hearted.
"One day while in the Nexus, my wife needed my help, [so] I left my character AFK and when I returned someone has gifted me 250 million units worth of items," said Reddit user IrascibleClown. "It made the game a little less stressful since, I play in survival, and now I pass things on to newer players. Although there are no mics and you travel the cosmos solo, you feel the comradery."
Every rocky launch holds the potential for eventual redemption. Reddit user SirGuinnesshad, talking about Anthem, put it succinctly: "I've seen enough games turn a rough launch around that I still have hope."
For Final Fantasy XIV players who have stuck around since the initial launch in 2010, that kind of hope has been richly rewarded.
"It felt incredible to be on the ground floor," said Ryan "Nova" Litteral, who has been playing FFXIV since its 1.0 release. "It truly felt like the developers appreciated us and tried to recognize our dedication with the Legacy subscriptions and tattoos; some of the very few things in-game that are still truly exclusive."
"It's like being in a secret club and recognizing other members while you're out and about," he said. "Even after [A Realm Reborn] launched and the various expansions have been released, the game has still continued to grow and evolve and that same feeling is here. With every expansion launch, I'm reminded of how good it feels to be there for Day 1 with so many people around the world. Not to mention the fact that the game itself actually introduced me to my fiancΓ©e. We met each other raiding the Omega Savage series during Stormblood, clear across the country from each other. Now we've moved in together, it's years later, and we're set to be married in Hawaii in September 2020. So many great things in my life that came to be because of Final Fantasy--a game that absolutely flopped in the beginning but rose from the ashes and became something great."
Not everyone finds their soulmate because of a game, of course. But every live game has the potential to grow and change and exceed expectations. Communities pop up in unexpected places and the fans who flock to service games are admirably resilient.
We will almost never move past rocky launches, entirely. As Kotaku's Jason Schreier tweeted regarding Bungie's rough launch for Destiny 2: Shadowkeep (in response to a request for an expose on why all live games seem to have some degree of issues at launch): "On day one the game might have 4x as many players as it will on every subsequent day. It's cheaper to have a rough launch day than it is to maintain more servers than you actually need. (Also this shit is really hard)."
Live games are massive undertakings. Artists and engineers from a variety of disciplines come together to try to create something from nothing, then attempt to build and maintain an infrastructure that will allow them to share that something with millions of people at once. It will never be easy. But there will always be players who manage to see the beauty through the cracks.
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