world building

Innovation Journalism: performance and curation

Open-stories-CNN

Conference at Stanford – Innovation Journalism 2011 A panel discussion with Marisa Gallagher of CNN. The topic was the future of journalism and the place of narrative. Mobile Media Design – Is the Medium Still the Message?. The contemporary crisis in journalism is simple. With everyone able to witness and publish their experiences of newsworthy [...]


Optimism and transformative design

Anna-Deavere-Smith

Transformative Design, my class about design thinking that makes a real difference, run with Meghann (Dryer of IDEO) and Bernie (Roth of Stanford Engineering), opens again soon in the d.school. I got thinking seriously about its themes this weekend at a fund-raising event organized by Castilleja School, where Helen teaches and Molly learns, on the [...]


design – cultural literacy

Aux-Bons-Crus

This post is in a series of commentaries on a class running at Stanford, Winter Quarter 2010 – “Transformative Design” ENGR 231 – [Link] This evening – a group of friends and colleagues discussing education and schooling with Tony Wagner. Our warm and welcoming hosts were Joan Lonergan and John Merrow at Castilleja School. Topics: [...]


design, exobiology and archaeology

hammerheadtitanothere

Tim Brown has commented on the design of the exobiology in James Cameron’s much-touted movie “Avatar” – [Link] I took Molly and Ben to see it again this weekend. There is certainly something captivating about the creatures and environment of planet Pandora. Tim talks about the plausibility of the design work that makes it easier [...]


Holmes 2009 – documenting the past?

Sherlock-Holmes-posters

It can’t really be called “period detail”. What impressed us about the new Sherlock Holmes movie [Link] was the way it handled the nineteenth century. It was the color space (very mannered, desaturated, toned) and the abraded, worn, littered look of the urban spaces. It just kind of felt like Victorian London. Of course, Victorian [...]