prototype this!

I have only watched a few clips of the show but it looks awesome. It reminds me of mythbusters but will more of a toy approach. Everyone wants to have the latest and greatest gadget and these guys on Prototype This! seem to like to play around with the possible future products of the world. My favorite was the water slide simulator; it looks amazing and I want to try. The guys seem to use the trial and error approach. In most instances they build a small model and test it, to work out any kinks before they build a full size model. Then they test out the real deal and hope that it works according to their calculations. People probably also like it because its like tinkering with toys for big people, and it fuels their imagination, and makes many start thinking of new things they can build or try.

power point design 2

Rachel's power point was very well put together. The opening slide was intense, with a fire-eater, and the text was simple and didn't take away from the fire. The rest of the slides were much more matched, with a simple background, and black and white pictures in the same place. All of the transitions were smooth and clean, and if she was giving a presentation, the audience would have been able to view the visuals while also paying attention to Rachel. The last slide would have been a bit better without so much text, but I did like that it still followed the theme of the rest of the slides. Her design overall, was clean and simple but had wonderful visuals that helped bring her point across.

power point design

I tried to keep my power point simple, but visually engaging. I looked for pictures that were either very stereotypical of the hot group archetype, or someone famous who was famous for being like that certain archetype. Being my power point, I liked all of my slides but I think my title and ending slide was the best, although the star trek geek and Franknfurter are my favorite pictures. There was a lot of blue in my pictures, so I unconsciously did some color theory and made the background different, but still simple as not to take away from the pictures or text. The text was simple, because I wanted the focus to be on the picture and on me, the speaker, as I told them about the power point. I tried to keep the pictures in the same place, to keep the transition of slides smooth, but I didn’t keep the pictures the same size, which would have made it better.

hot groups

After taking the change style inventory, I got a glimpse of some personal qualities that our class exhibits (all positive I might add). My personal result, being very close to the middle, I thought was very true. Sometimes I am more progressive, sometimes I’m more traditional, but I like being in the middle. When thinking about people in hot groups, I wanted to encompass a range of people to give the best ideas, both progressive and more traditional. Perfect size would be about 6 to 10 people, with people of many different disciplines and backgrounds. I think the more variety there is, the better ideas the group will be able to produce. I would want some scientists, some artistic folks, and some business people and some other disciplines, to give a rich variety. But I don’t know how I’d put all these different people into a group, although a personality quiz much like we did would be very helpful.

and my type result was Courier, although archer hairline would be my second result since one of the questions was half and half for me.

Cubing

During class on thursday, we discussed several brainstorming techniques. While looking up more techniques, i stumbled upon one and I thought it was kind of cool. It is called cubing, and it provokes the brainstormer to think about the brainstorm idea in six ways, like the six sides of a cube. The brainstormer is asked to describe it, compare it, associate it, analyze it, apply it and argue for and against it. By pulling the idea in several ways it allows the brainstormer to look for new ideas and any connections between the different "sides." It can help one look for patterns and get a better sense of of the idea. On brainstorming for different disciplines I would think that most techniques would work for most disciplines. Some people might have to alter or skip some steps but I think the main core of the techniques can work for anything. In a group, one of the best ways to deal with apathy is to incorporate group exercises, where everyone has to give an idea or opinion. And for those who disagree, we can give them they're opinion but at some point the majority must move on with the more popular idea.

water bottles

Everyday millions of water bottles are thrown away, where they will just sit, taking up space for thousands of years. With a growing population, a growing movement for “green” practices and a growing mountain of empty water bottles, we have to find a way to incorporate many problems with simple solutions. As a college student with a “green” conscious, I have thought of an idea to suffice the growing demands by using empty water bottles as various building materials. Incorporating water bottles in house or building construction could dramatically reduce many factors, such as construction costs and landfill piles. Be it in foundation or filler, insulation or even to keep manmade “islands” afloat, the plastic bottles could be very useful as the growing population builds eco-friendly houses. The water bottles are going to last a long time whether it be in a landfill, taking up space or as part of a house that helps the earth have a bit more elbow room, so why not use the bottles to solve our many problems.

https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjA7G1zaB0VhYMGbO1eGgat2xQ5mk_v1ffGidMNCm9uDrzsQwp9u___FhGlvnPkImVX1_3F67dTnV4Cd39gnk_o8Izqj8ctneM0EPteHmNg6ioUyDOvciPxMI69onUsLTiSE_ZjxW5ISb5F/s1600/bottle1.jpg

revamp idea

Watching IDEO inspired me to design and create, but thinking about something that could be revamped was really hard. I kicked a few ideas around and the best idea I could come up with a stoplight redesign. A lot of the spotlights still are the old big boxes that sway in the wind on a wire. When I go visit my family in Tampa Florida, I saw several new stoplights that were fixed on metal bar that extended out above the road. To me I thought this seemed much safer that traditional wire lights, especially with all the extreme storms that Florida gets. I thought that the revamp could go farther. The lights could be replaced with LED lights, which could last longer, and solar panels could be attached to the top. The stoplights could basically run its self and would require less maintenance. Any extra energy could be sold back to the power company to be used by other people. LED lights are also much brighter than traditional lights so smaller lights and boxes, using less materials. Of course it would take alot of money to change all the lights in the US but I think that the money that the stoplights would give back would be worth it in the long run.

Design thinkers as a whole

During class, we have been bombarded with design thinkers across all disciplines. I myself did not realize how many people are design thinkers in some way. By learning about these people, my thoughts about design thinking have changed a bit, but for the most part has stayed strong. Design thinking is taking and idea or problem and tinkering and/or perfecting it for a more convenient or more practical or more truthful product. All of our design thinkers have had some idea or problem and have run with it, and made it better or more interesting. Einstein made his field more truthful, and expanded the knowledge of physics tremendously. All have also relied on their surroundings for inspiration and have had a team or partner to help them. Madame Marie Curie is another design thinker that I found. She is a woman (hadn't had many of those yet) and became the first person to win two nobel prizes and became one of the first woman scientists. She discovered a new element and expanded radiology immensely. She also worked closely with her husband, but after he died, was more recognized for her work. Without her thinking, our modern radiology, such as chemo and x-rays, would not have been the same.