Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas's Avatar

Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas

@ilyena.com.bsky.social

Lecturer (Assistant Professor) at the University of Glasgow creating interactive and internet-enabled systems for animals. www.ilyena.com

379 Followers  |  744 Following  |  24 Posts  |  Joined: 14.11.2024  |  1.7962

Latest posts by ilyena.com on Bluesky

What if your dog could FaceTime you? | Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas | TEDxManchester
YouTube video by TEDx Talks What if your dog could FaceTime you? | Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas | TEDxManchester

My TEDxManchester talk, "What if your dog could FaceTime you?" was featured in the top 25 most essential talks playlist on the TEDx channel. Thank you to everyone who watched, shared, and nurtured these ideas!

youtu.be/Rgfi6DGDPBk?...

@glasgow.ac.uk @uofgstem.bsky.social

09.01.2026 14:56 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Tablets for tabbies: A look at technology, animal welfare, and interaction in cat cafes Can technology improve the cat and visitor experience in cat cafes? A recent study created MewTube to find out.

Grateful to see our cat cafรฉ research getting attention from The American Animal Hosptial Association! ๐Ÿฑ A reminder that animals don't always engage with tech the way we expect.
www.aaha.org/trends-magaz...
@glasgow.ac.uk

07.01.2026 15:19 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 9    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Big year, bigger one ahead.
With my ERC Starting Grant FUTUREFAUNA starting next year, it feels like Iโ€™m stepping into the next phase of what I can do. Excited for the next five years โ€” and to kick it off with a keynote at HRI in March.

31.12.2025 12:47 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 7    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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At the Association for the Study of Animal Behaviour conference, where Jiaqi presented her PhD work showing that multimodal technology (smell, sound, and visuals) engaged lemurs far better than visuals alone.
Paper: doi.org/10.1145/3706... @glasgow.ac.uk

19.12.2025 16:43 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

If you missed Dr Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas at British Science Festival in Liverpool yesterday talking about her work to connect animals through tech, check this out! ๐Ÿฆœ๐Ÿ’ป #BSF25

12.09.2025 07:51 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 7    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 1
Dr Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas of the School of Computing Science (left) and Dr Rachael Boyd of the School of Mathematics & Statistics. Dr Boyd photo credit: Patrick Orson

Dr Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas of the School of Computing Science (left) and Dr Rachael Boyd of the School of Mathematics & Statistics. Dr Boyd photo credit: Patrick Orson

Congrats to Dr Rachael Boyd of the School of Mathematics & Statistics and Dr Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas (@ilyena.bsky.social) of @uofgcompsci.bsky.social, who have received @erc.europa.eu Starting Grants to support groundbreaking new research projects.

Read more here: gla.ac.uk/news/headlin...

04.09.2025 11:26 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 6    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 1
What if your dog could FaceTime you? | Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas | TEDxManchester
YouTube video by TEDx Talks What if your dog could FaceTime you? | Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas | TEDxManchester

My TEDx talk has been featured on TEDx YouTube as an Editor's Pick! youtu.be/Rgfi6DGDPBk?...

20.08.2025 09:20 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 50    ๐Ÿ” 15    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 2    ๐Ÿ“Œ 12
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What happens when your dog uses the internet Imagine this: you walk into a room, and your dog is on a video call with their fellow canine friends. Computer scientist Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas thinks the notion of a social internet for animals is no...

In her TEDx talk, UofG's Dr Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas reveals what happens when animals control their own technology. From parrots choosing their online friends to dogs scheduling video calls!

Learn about her groundbreaking research โฌ‡๏ธ

www.ted.com/talks/ilyena...

04.07.2025 09:12 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 7    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

My group @uofglasgow.bsky.social continues to examine how we can ethically build shared interfaces between humans and animals, supporting welfare, education, and conservation goals through multispecies design. Find us next week at @chi.acm.org

ilyena.com/wp-content/u...

21.04.2025 09:42 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 2    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Analysing 968 questionnaires & 25k visitors, when people had similar tech to experience the stimuli and play a game about the lemurs' preferences, everything significantly improved: people spent more time and in increased numbers at the enclosure, increased empathy and learning

21.04.2025 09:42 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 1    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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How can interactive technology support animals and humans in zoos? We developed a device for red-ruffed lemurs to trigger smell, sound, and visuals. Using the device 4021 times over 63 days, lemurs use the system significantly more with multimodal than unimodal stimuli

21.04.2025 09:42 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 6    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

Yes! Excited about this publication โค๏ธ

20.04.2025 12:32 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 4    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
Red-ruffed lemurs at Blair Drummond Safari Park interact with the SensorySafari system

Red-ruffed lemurs at Blair Drummond Safari Park interact with the SensorySafari system

New technology developed by @ilyena.bsky.social of @uofgcompsci.bsky.social in partnership with Blair Drummond Safari Park which allows zoo animals and their human visitors to share experiences could have positive benefits for both.

Read more here: www.gla.ac.uk/news/headlin...

17.04.2025 08:08 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 9    ๐Ÿ” 6    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Thanks so much to our two speakers for an excellent seminar about starting new research groups. @ilyena.bsky.social and Sharon Ding provided fantastic advice and introspective reflections on their experiences.

20.03.2025 18:04 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 8    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Exciting times, the next GWiCS Seminar is coming soon!

Next week on Wednesday at 3pm Dr Ilyena Hirskyj-Douglas
@ilyena.bsky.social
and Dr Xianghua (Sharon) Ding will talk to us about their experiences establishing new groups as research leaders.

Come join us in SAWB room 423 or on Zoom!

10.03.2025 14:58 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 8    ๐Ÿ” 4    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 1
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Over the weekend, I gave a TEDxManchester talk on creating computer devices that enable animals to control their environment and social lives using the Internet.

The talk will be available on YouTube in a few months (link coming soon!).

@uofglasgow.bsky.social

03.03.2025 15:22 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 10    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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@ilyena.bsky.social delves into building the Animal Internet, a realm where animals connect through technology, reshaping our bond with them. A must-see exploration! ๐ŸŒ #TEDxManchester

01.03.2025 15:59 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 1    ๐Ÿ” 1    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

๐Ÿฅณ!

18.02.2025 13:01 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 1    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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My research group has been awarded a @ufaw.bsky.social
Large Grant to study the behaviour of Red-Ruff Lemurs with technology at @blairdrummond.bsky.social Zoo. Berkay Arslan will join my Animal-Computer Interaction group at @uofglasgow.bsky.social for six months - welcome!

17.02.2025 14:46 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 9    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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What a beautiful campus the @uniofstandrews.bsky.social
has! Thank you for inviting me to talk about my animal-computing research at the Psychology and Neuroscience department and to Prof Amanda Seed for the ice cream and conversation.

17.02.2025 10:51 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 5    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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I'll be giving a TEDx talk in March on my vision and work around the Animal Internet and how this can reshape our understanding of animal lives - exciting times!

17.02.2025 10:40 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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I lectured at @northeasternu.bsky.social Animal-Computer Interaction class; students asked how I chose projects/animals to guide their choices. Ideas spark from institutions, papers and experience, but navigating animal and human desires for tech (of who wants what & why) is complex.

05.02.2025 11:20 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 0    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Feature: 'POCA!' Is A Game Boy Camera Photobook Adventure & A Heartfelt Homage To 'Hip' Tanaka "I feel like I made the book almost for him"

'POCA!' Is A Game Boy Camera Photobook Adventure & A Heartfelt Homage To 'Hip' Tanaka.

28.12.2024 13:00 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 46    ๐Ÿ” 9    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 1

Pet tech offers many ways to transform how we care for animals. As someone who builds pet tech, I've seen the rise of quantified pets offering potential insights into animal health. I'm quoted in this article asking how we make meaning and use pet tracking data and its potential unexpected usage.

18.12.2024 10:25 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 2    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

How was it? Do you mean smelling while doing VR?

15.12.2024 21:19 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 0    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 2    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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I will present my parrot and dog interactive tech research tomorrow at Prof. Ludwig Huber's lab at the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna. I'm looking forward to the comparative cognition perspective on my work and to thinking about wider implications. Thanks for the invite!

09.12.2024 12:58 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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I am was privileged to host the International ACI Conference this week at @uofglasgow.bsky.social. Thank you to Glasgow City Council for their sponsorship, and immense gratitude to all attendees who made this such a productive and engaging event.

08.12.2024 19:27 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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This year Iโ€™m hosting the ACM International Animal-Computer Interaction conference - kicking off today with a workshop on acoustic enrichment

02.12.2024 11:55 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 3    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0
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Hello Bluesky ๐Ÿ‘‹ I make interactive computers for animals that allow them to control their environment and access the internet. I create technologies that allow for animals to have new ways of interaction, enabling choice and control over their life. From tech usage we can peek inside their world.

01.12.2024 21:39 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 32    ๐Ÿ” 2    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 1    ๐Ÿ“Œ 1

I have two papers in this year's proceedings:

1) A review of demographic reporting in animal research w/ @rebeccakleinberger.bsky.social [Honourable mention] doi.org/10.1145/3702...
2) Designing immersive curved screens for dogs to control in their home environment doi.org/10.1145/3702...

30.11.2024 15:51 โ€” ๐Ÿ‘ 6    ๐Ÿ” 0    ๐Ÿ’ฌ 0    ๐Ÿ“Œ 0

@ilyena.com is following 20 prominent accounts