A Whole New Mind Chapters 1-3

I found chapter one interesting because as I was reading I learned about which side of the brain controlled what. For example the left brain looking at the details and the right brain looking at the big picture, or how the left side of the brain controls your right bodies movement. As I read I understood more how things are also not simply left or right brain, but how the two work together to make things more easily understood and interpreted. Chapter two makes me feel better that I have decided to design. Many people can learn how to be an engineer or work with computers or with math and science, but design is a skill that not everyone has. And items can't be sold without good design. I feel that design is about connecting the product to the potential customer, and design is what makes a product unique and special. Chapter three is about the conceptual age, and describes people now as creators and emphasizers. How to succeed, our generation must use the R-directed thinking and produce work that cannot be produced overseas cheaper. The author also introduces the 6 senses: Design, Story, Symphony, Empathy, Play, and Meaning.

TED TALKS/POP TECH

TED TALKS

Tim Brown- I liked this speech because he talks about thinking out of the box, to focus more on design thinking.

He talks about how design starts with what humans need, what makes life easier and more enjoyable, and understanding culture and context before you even have ideas.

Paul Bennett- design in the details

He discusses what the big organization wants, what the person wants, and how to put them together.

He tells us to try looking from the view of the person out, not the organization in. tiny things that can make a huge amount of difference

Taryn Simon- photos involve research, how most people see photographs as a reality, and how photographers have trouble being allowed to take photography, so she looked on the inside to see things in different ways.

Pop Tech- Imogen Heap, I think its interesting to see how she combines all these different instruments to create such a different sound from anything else out there in the music world at the moment.

Pop Tech- Richard Alley- He speaks about global warming, it's shocking at how far we have come to change our climates through global warming and all the negative effects this has on our futures, such as freezing different countries that are used to be warm, loss of unique ecosystems, spread of tropical diseases, sea-level rise, etc. 

Pop Tech- Caleb Chung- He is a toy designer who is famous for creating Furby, it is interesting to see all the mathematical planning it takes to create a toy, and all the mechanics that are involved in the process.

do good design: summary, second half of book

After reading the second half of the book I realize how much power designers have in changing the world. At one point they asked the reader to read a sentence and count the number of F's in the sentence, and I, like most people, did not count the right amount of letters because I looked over it too quickly. This makes me realize how quickly people look at logos, type, words, and design; and how the messages the designer can communicate with the observer are so important. Design can fool the eye of the observer and lie to them because people look over these small things in everyday life so quickly. I think it is important that designers use their powers for good, just as the book suggests. If the small advertisements, and good design people see everyday can influence future generations to create good, then I think it is worth it to spend some time on making the world a better place since we designers have so much power in our hands. I liked the idea about the shelf that can be turned into a coffin. At first I was not sure if it was a good idea, but after thinking about it, it has a lot of use and can benefit many people in the future. Today I can see elements of how designers incorporate good messages, like canvas and reusable bags are now sold in supermarkets. Hopefully in the future there will be more great design to make an impact on our world.