The ubiquity of online technology has made it easier for creating, sharing, and experiencing stories. Today we can empathize with many more people through these stories than was ever possible. This studio will be taking a deeper look at generating empathy through storytelling.
What are some metaphors, that already existing in the virtual or physical world, that we can utilize to make us better(more empathetic) storytellers? How can they improve our ways of spreading those stories?
Studio tumblr: hcistorystudio.tumblr.com
Resolutions are the promises we make to ourselves and to others. When trying to keep these promises, technology can be a resource or a liability. An almost infinite supply of entertainment, unplanned interruptions and our own limited time mean that distraction frequently triumphs over even the best of our intentions. This studio will focus on developing technology that supports people as they seek to meaningfully use their time, talent, and resources rather than squander them. The aim is to reduce the friction between intention and outcome. Some questions to consider:
Cities continue to grow in population all over the world. People move to densely populated areas to be inspired, find opportunity, and to be a part of cultural events. Such trends lead to massive amounts human activity, creativity, information and innovation, thus metamorphisizing cities into digital laboratories (see http://on.wsj.com/1TFznKL)
With the help of digital devices, we have an unprecedented ability to track our behaviors, habits, and thoughts. But turning data about ourselves and our communities into valuable insights is still remarkably difficult. This studio will explore ways to support monitoring, reflection, and behavior change by collecting, consuming, and sharing personally relevant information. We will consider:
From casual games to massive online community games, games have become ubiquitous in our society. Jane McGonigal, a game designer and popular author, has stated that by playing games, “we’re evolving to be a more collaborative and hearty species.” This studio will examine how games or gamification can be used to promote some purpose, whether that be education, social collaboration, environmental activism, etc. We will draw inspiration from real games like Fold it, Super Better, and Habitica. Some questions to explore include:
With the help of digital devices, we have an unprecedented ability to track our behaviors, habits, and thoughts. But turning data about ourselves and our communities into valuable insights is still remarkably difficult. This studio will explore ways to support monitoring, reflection, and behavior change by collecting, consuming, and sharing personally relevant information. We will consider:
Technology has been able to transform people’s experiences within physical spaces. For example, learning in a classroom now typically involves lectures slides, while the shape design of the room and the installation of microphones amplify the lecturer’s voice for better audition. A physical space can be augmented in various ways; changing the actual space, changing aspects that comprise the space, or bringing new tools into the space can all alter its experience. In this studio, we will explore how technology can offer additive effects or enhanced experiences in a physical space.
Today’s designers need to be speculative and able to do more than solve known problems; they must be comfortable working with uncertain opportunities and capable of inventing the unexpected by giving form to the ingenious. A long-term perspective on contemporary problems and opportunities, drawing on history and looking to the future, and learn how to ideate, organize, intercede, and build what comes next. This studio will examine the Internet of things, ubiquitous technologies (3D interfaces and virtual reality) drawing from science fiction (e.g. George Orwell, Philip K. Dick, Andy Weir) and pop art (comics, anime, superflat)
My Charizard for your Dragonite. That for this. This for that. We all own many things, both tangible and intangible - a laptop, a name, sweet kicks, memories, knowledge etc. Collectively, there is an incredible wealth of things that people have. This studio will dive into ways of using technology to facilitate the exchange of said things between people. Get creative! Explore all the inventive possibilities behind how we can connect and what we can exchange.
Thought provokers: