Tag archives: humanity

swine flu mask

So in Toyko (NYTimes pic couple days back) has a neat device to detect for any person who may be sick…

SARS…to…Swine.

Last night NBC was broadcasting how New Yorkers were wearing masks…but other Americans have mix feelings of trust and safety when watching fellow citizens masking their faces…. I know we have a “flu situation” but as a cultural observant designer…why are Americans uncomfortable of you wearing a mask compared to the Asian cultures of mask wear on a regular basic? It is a wear imaginative theory in the back of my head.

http://images.mirror.co.uk/upl/m4/apr2009/0/8/flu-pic-david-dyson-307464159.jpg

Subway Art – ticketstyle

Astro boy made up of recycled train tickets.

via KIO

astro2

astro





MIT D-LAB green washing machine


Watch CBS Videos Online

Boomer scroller

LINK

Daniel Molloy- designer- Boomer is emphasizing most on safety and aims to diminish the risk of stair-related falls, which is an identified major public health concern among the elderly community. The design key innovation is the stair compatible function to allow mobility aid by transforming from a simple walker into a gadget that facilitates the user to go up and down on the stairs safely. In fact, the Boomer mobility aid is an exceptional combination of user friendly qualities in a modern form.

boomer mobility aid for the elderly people

boomer mobility aid for the elderly people

boomer mobility aid for the elderly people

Influence … and … design

Instead, influence is iterative—each successful influence opportunity builds on the last. We want to make that cycle an upward spiral that lets us make bigger and better impacts on the decisions made in the organizations we work with.

  1. Reciprocity
    If you scratch my back, I’ll scratch yours. People feel obliged to do things in return for someone who has done something for them.
  2. Authority
    People are more persuaded if they recognize the influencer’s authority. Third-party authority can also be used to bolster influence.
  3. Social Proof
    “Everyone else is doing it”. Seeing other people take the same course or lean a certain way makes someone more likely to be persuaded.
  4. Commitment & Consistency
    People are more likely to be influenced when they have made a small commitment or are acting in a way that are consistent with how they see themselves.
  5. Liking
    People are more likely to be convinced by someone they like. Liking comes from things like humor, similarity, attractiveness.
  6. Scarcity
    People are more likely to be persuaded when they have a sense of scarcity. That might be a deadline (scarcity of time) or scarcity of inventory (”it’s the last one in the store”).

LINK

be sure to check bplusd blog….he has been going on a tangent recently about the subject of influence and the philosophy of decisions and decision making, how ironic cause right now i am reading the book “how we decide”

New addiction – Sloan Review

Today is a new addiction for myself – access to sloan review achives…. it all started for a simple random interest search for brainstorm tactics… LINK

but i discover this article which i will state some qoutes but can’t show it all cause of copyright issues…..MIT got all angles covered….

“One of the reasons that recommendation offerings are proliferating is that consumers today are overwhelmed by “the paradox of choice” — so many choices to make, and no easy way to distinquish among the offerings. Producers face the opposite problem: They need to make wise investment decisons in a world cluttered with cultural products. They seek to mitigate the increasing risks of developing and distributing new offerings. For both consumers and producers prediction and recommendation capabilities are particularly important today.”

This is a problem considering that manufacturing capablities are moving faster and faster and apply cheaper solutions to building products…we are then flooding our market with products that people literally need to be “emotional moved” by the branding and graphics—statements like—”I must be the first to have it” (us youngster’s say) or “Oh i should get that, my friend was telling me about it the other day” (the older generation say). but i must say, this article is a great at pointing what the book “paradox of choice” is about. For the product industry it is a must read.

cheaters! we are all cheaters!

so wonder why we cheat a little….

Missing the EPIC 2015

Earlier i posted the “Did you know?” video and honestly i felt bad not posting the EPIC 2015, cause back in the day of 2004 when style – technology – internet was just starting to mix together, All of us college geeks were like “hey have you heard of googlezon?”

I personally felt this video was a turning point in my decision for what type of designer i wish to become – cause at risd i did everything full speed and then went “okay? that was not challenging enough…” And post risd i jump into medical products – talk about complications….rules, ISO, FDA, human factors, etc, I am like —”okay, cool now that is what i am talking about”

enjoy.

shift happens – did you know update

two years ago (maybe a bit more – time moves fast) the first original “did you know” was presented at the NorthEast IDSA conference held at RISD. But now this is updated for 2008. and it needs updating again cause i feel the shift in internet searching-networking (I am sure this economy is doing it)– cause never before has a community internet network like twitter has sky rocket in such speed. with young college graduates without jobs and the middle age losing jobs there is this mix of time – relearning – reflecting – reinventing – believe me, half of my friends on facebook are pushing the social network to the limits and it is kinda cool too.

Fire Safety & Our Behaviors

Doing a bit of research, I would figure we have a fire safety accessories and equipment like we do for first aid kits and like our crafting tools, (i grew up using tools for multiple tasks, while in today’s market we buy several scissors for specific tasks – a first aid scissor, a craft scissor, a kitchen scissor, a fabric scissor. you know the drill? same thing with hammers…)

but there is no such thing as a fire safety kit or tools, except for a fire extinguisher, escape ladder, fire blankets/broom, and most importantly the alarm detector. but even still 43% of house fires had no alarm detector. What is the deal? What makes Americans not see to buy alarms for the house?

We even have fire-safe cigarettes in the market because cigarettes are the leading cause of fire deaths, seriously, at least one of the Victorian (Australia) bushfire was started by someone tossing an unextinguished cigarette out of a car. And that was a serious bush fire killing –208 people had been killed during the fires, with more than 10,000 left homeless.

This area of opportunity is just itching for products and ideas and implementations to figure out, what is wrong and how to correct the situation. Like for me, i read lists upon lists of what we are to do to prevent fires, but we never follow them. look at the list below and ask yourself do you do this now, and also ask did you know about this too? cause there is a difference to being ignorant and not caring. I personally think people don’t care, that is a design problem to figure out.

below is from this LINK

Prevent Fires Caused by Cooking:

  • Always stay in the kitchen while cooking.
  • Keep things that can burn, such as dishtowels, paper or plastic bags, and curtains at least three feet away from the range top.
  • Before cooking, roll up sleeves and use oven mitts. Loose-fitting clothes can touch a hot burner and catch on fire.
  • Never leave barbecue grills unattended while in use.
  • Keep grills at least ten feet away from other objects, including the house and any shrubs or bushes.
  • Always stay by the grill when cooking.
  • Prevent Fires Caused by Heating:

  • Store matches and lighters in a locked cabinet.
  • Keep space heaters at least three feet away from things that can burn, such as curtains or stacks of newspaper. Always turn off heaters when leaving the room or going to bed.
  • *
  • Have a service person inspect chimneys, fireplaces, wood and coal stoves and central furnaces once a year. Have them cleaned when necessary.
  • Keep things that can burn away from your fireplace and keep a glass or metal screen in front of your fireplace.
  • Prevent Fires Caused by Smoking:

  • Use “fire-safe” cigarettes and smoke outside.
  • Use large, deep ashtrays on sturdy surfaces like a table.
  • Douse cigarette and cigar butts with water before dumping them in the trash.
  • Prevent Fires Caused by Candles:

  • Never leave burning candles unattended. Do not allow children to keep candles or incense in their rooms.
  • Always use stable, candle holders made of material that won’t catch fire, such as metal, glass, etc.
  • Blow out candles when adults leave the room.
  • Prevent Fires Caused by Gasoline and Other Products:

  • Store gasoline in a garage or shed in a container approved for gasoline storage.
  • Never bring or use gasoline indoors; and use it as a motor fuel only.
  • Close the lid on all dangerous products and put them away after using them.
  • Store them away from the home and in a safe place with a lock.
  • Don’t plug in too many appliances at once.
  • Keep Your Family Safe At Home

  • Make a fire escape plan for your family. Find two exits out of every room. Pick a meeting place outside. Practice makes perfect – hold a family fire drill at least twice each year.
  • Install smoke alarms on every level of your home. For the best detection and notification protection, install both ionization- and photoelectric-type smoke alarms. Some models provide dual coverage. The type will be printed on the box or package. Put them inside or near every bedroom. Test them monthly to make sure they work. Put in new batteries once a year.
  • Know how to put out a small pan fire by sliding a lid over the flames.
  • Teach every family member to “Stop, Drop, Roll and Cool” if clothes catch fire by dropping immediately to the ground, crossing hands over your chest and rolling over and over or back and forth to put out the flames. Cool the burned area with cool water and seek medical attention for serious burns.
  • Consider having a home fire sprinkler system installed in your new home, or when you remodel.
  • Learn how and when to use a fire extinguisher.
  • If you have a fire in your home, once you get out, stay out.
  • Do not go back inside for any reason.
  • * Photo Courtesy of Chimney Safety Institute of America