Hand Crank Device Provides Intervention for Active Twitter Users

Researchers from UC Berkeley have designed a device that requires social media users to continuously turn a crank to power a display in an effort to assign value to the content they read.

“Passively consuming digital social media content often precludes users from mindfully considering the value they derive from such experiences as they engage in them,” the team writes in their recently published paper. “We present a system for using Twitter that requires users to continuously turn a hand crank to power their social media screen.”

Scrolling through social media content can be an attention-gripping, addictive experience for those who use them daily or hourly. Passively consuming that content often prevents users from putting a value on what is read in those feeds. While a good portion of social media relates to entertainment and keeping up with friends and family, a significant percentage is also devoted to news, protests, and the spread of misinformation.

The researchers created the intervention device using a Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+ with integrated Wi-Fi and a 7" Pi touchscreen. The system is housed in a laser-cut wooden enclosure and features a hand crank generator mounted on the right side with a power cable connected to the Pi and the other connected to a power outlet. There’s also an input for connecting headphones to listen to audio content. The unit's display is maintained with a high level of brightness and dims when the crank is turned slowly, making the user question if the material being read is valuable enough to continue reading.

In a study involving three regular Twitter participants over the course of three weeks, the researchers found that the number of “likes” and the number of “retweets” were reduced to zero (based on the amount of time they used the social media) by week two of the evaluation. One participant who spent two or three hours a day on the platform dropped to nine minutes using the intervention device.