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Response to <b>Information Interaction Design</b> by Nathan Shedroff<br>
<br>
(Figure I'll start with this week 3 and get caught up with the earlier
articles next...)<br>
<br>
<b>Summary</b>: Shedroff explores components that define an experience
of "content": Information Design, Interaction Design, and Sensorial
Design. He then defines and discusses each, and associates existing
disciplines with his categories, ie. interaction design has its roots
in story-telling and performance.<br>
<br>
<b>Comments</b>: His article seems somewhat introductory, and perhaps
rather dated (which seems to happen particularly fast in the topic of
data visualization). I liked his deviations into the metaphysical
repurcussions of "information interaction design," and found the
graphic on page three an attractive and effective diagram of his
points. Looking over his website seems to confirm a few of my
suspicions: there is subtle "feel good" synergistic business-ese slant
that makes me a little wary -- am I being sold something?<br>
<br>
I do like his idea of a "continuum of understanding": Data ->
Information -> Knowledge -> Wisdom. Though perhaps he's gone a
little far. One might assume from this image that if only the world
were filled with <i>information interaction designers</i> we would all
be more enlightened and wise. Somehow a direct link from data to
wisdom seems presumptuous; though I understand his thinking, and
appreciate the attempt to position ones livelihood or field of study as
central to some broader societal benefit. Perhaps there is room for
other kinds of wisdoms as well: wisdom through experience or hardship,
for example.<br>
<br>
I realize in looking at his graphics that info-graphic trends seem to
change very quickly as technology changes, and while the meaning is
still being conveyed I can tell that the historical moment of the
design is beginning to influence my understanding of the data/message.
One can read a dot-com era utopian optimism in Shedroff's mid-90's
diagrams.<br>
<br>
An aside...There is a poster outside the evolutionary psychology
department over on the first floor of HSSB about a study that found
people were more likely to know the precise direction back to a place
where they had been fed high-fat high-calorie food. The participants
had been led through several farmer's markets in SB and fed bits of
this and that, then taken to a random corner and asked to point back to
where they had eaten the ___. Shedroff's mentioning of a great
conversation over a meal reminded me of the poster and makes me wonder
if there really is something to that. Perhaps when cramming for the
next test we should arrange an evolutionarily ideal sensorial
experience: for every question you answer well you get the high-calorie
chocolate, for errors you eat the celery.
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