The machine as an interrelationship

The European Parliament’s definition of machine is an: “an assembly, fitted with or intended to be fitted with a drive system other than directly applied human or animal effort, consisting of linked parts or components, at least one of which moves, and which are joined together for a specific application.” (2006/42/ED -Machinery Directive)
A machine is a tool to support the humans’ work (physically and mentally). But now we blow up the definition of machines’. It’s not only the physical object or device the humans interacting with. Even we are machines. The critical engineer calls every relationship between bodies, devices, agents, forces and networks machines. Machines are expanding from the world of objects into the non-haptic, virtual world.

The point that when we are interacting with a “machine” that makes us itself to a machine is an interesting statement, which influences the way we are thinking about future interaction design.

For me an interesting concept about the interaction between human – machine – animal in future: www.cohenvanbalen.com