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Professor Simon Baron-Cohen

Developmental Psychopathology, University of Cambridge “Seeing I documents an extraordinary social psychology single-case study, an experiment in which for one month Mark sees the world only through other people's eyes. All this is possible through new technology. One might imagine various outcomes of this experiment: that he might become more empathic, being other- rather than self-focused; that he might experience distorted perceptions and even delusions, given that his own brain is not receiving its normal input but instead is experiencing a kind of sensory deprivation; or that he might establish that the brain can in fact adapt relatively quickly (hours or days?) to a new reality, and then adapt back again at the end of the experiment, with no serious side-effects."

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The Guardian “The point is to discover how adaptable the brain is to another physical body – and whether our sense of self comes from inherent personality or cultural identity. It is, of course, a question philosophy has toyed with for hundreds of years: is the body a mere sensory vessel for the brain, or is identity inextricably linked to its physical manifestation?"

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Artist Gilad Ratman

Israeli Pavilion, 55th Venice Biennale (2013) “One of many aspects of this project that really interests me, is the connection between the reality which is being experienced by Mark and the Other. If I was able to create an identical situation for Mark within the Gallery: temperature, touch, smell, it would be a bad piece of work, because what is happening is exactly linear. What we call Mark right now, is trying to find itself, and this is exactly between the real space and time we are in; everything else is projected into his mind. This must be in collision, and once it is, then we will have something very interesting. Here, as an image and as a situation, any attempt to put Mark into the exact situation where temperature, smell, touch etc. are the same as the Other’s, makes this a boring scientific experiment, but where it becomes Art, is because of the creation of this friction and discontinuity."

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London City Nights “Even though Mark will be viewing video through VR goggles, this is still a form of sensory deprivation, the duration and intensity reminiscent of the CIA's astonishingly unethical MK ULTRA experiments. They'd take volunteers, remove stimulus (placing goggles on them that diffused light and headphones that played constant low noise) and confine them for extended periods of time to observe the psychological impact. What was discovered was that after prolonged periods of sensory deprivation the subjects would become overly vulnerable to any stimulation. They would find themselves in agreement with whatever they were told, even if they were ideas that they'd have automatically dismissed as ridiculous prior to the experiment."

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The Verge “This isn’t escapism. Farid is not trying to live as a famous actor, or a star athlete. For the duration of the exhibition, all Farid will experience will be video and audio captured by a complete stranger, going about their daily life. When they eat, he’ll eat. When they sleep, he’ll sleep. As much as modern technology permits, he will let his individual identity evaporate."

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Professor Barbara Sahakian

Clinical Neuropsychology at the Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge “My initial thoughts are that it is an extremely interesting project and raises a number of important topical issues about society and our human interactions with technology. It also raises ethical issues, including of personhood and what the effects of reality distortion are on the brain and psychological processes. However, I am concerned about how such a long project which involves voyeurism on the part of Mark and also on the part of the public in regard to Mark will affect his mental health and wellbeing. It could be extremely disturbing and it is unclear whether any potential damage to Mark's mental health could be repaired. I would recommend further trials of the project to get an understanding of possible problems that may arise and what kinds of psychological difficulties might be experienced so that these can be monitored carefully in the longer project."

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Vice “For 28 days, Mark Farid will remain in one room, experiencing his every waking moment through the eyes of another human being – a real-life "avatar", who, through some kind of Google Glass-like apparatus, will be streaming everything he sees into a virtual reality headset worn by Mark. Stuck in a doctor's waiting room for hours on end? Mark will see it, too. Out getting smashed till 7AM on a Sunday? Mark will see it, too. Grunting your way through an especially gruelling bowel movement? Mark will see it, too."

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The Independent “They [Seeing I] also ask that potential participants consider whether they are comfortable with someone filming and watching a month of their whole life, and with that footage being used in a documentary. The successful participant will be given time with a psychologist before the task, to ensure he or she is up for it, and after."

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Professor Simon Baron-Cohen

Developmental Psychopathology, University of Cambridge “Whatever the result of Seeing I, the documentary will be ground-breaking and give rise to a raft of new hypotheses and methodologies for social psychology to explore more systematically and in larger samples. I am reassured that Mark has taken sensible precautions in case there are side-effects, and one hopes if these occur that they are temporary and reversible. The ethical issues are important, and at a minimum the fact that the experimenter is also the consenting participant makes this more ethical. The documentary will take us on a journey in the tradition of Timothy Leary and Aldous Huxley, experimenting on one's own perception through a manipulation, in this case not pharmacological but technological."