Informational Geometry

This TED presentation reveals some ideas about design patterns that I always knew, but aren't taken seriously by "academia" (or other, similar establishments). Note to UI designers, forget 2D, imagine the internet as spherical space! Margaret Wertheim: The beautiful math that links coral, crochet and hyperbolic geometry

Happy Earth Day! I have been trying to wrap my brain around the Green trend for the past few years. I care very much about lasting sustainability. Indeed my entire career as a UX designer is all about trying to make the interfaces of software work well, for people, over a long period of time . When I look at the world around me I see a lot of UNsustainable systems which shout to me how obviously unusable they are, and suddenly I feel an urge to log a bug somewhere to get it fixed... before the software crashes... but there's no good place to log those bugs... The truth about being green is that it's not very easy being green. Trying to be green is like trying to use Microsoft Word to edit a photograph. The world around me is just not set up to let me be green. Think about it, how many excuses can you come up with to NOT be green? Do you Recycle? Drive less? Compost? Use compact fluorescent light bulbs? Buy local? Fertilize your lawn organically? Save water? Purchase electricity...

The worst thing about being a renter locked out of the housing market in San Francisco was that I had no control over my own "home". I couldn't garden, I couldn't have pets, and I certainly couldn't remodel a kitchen. Now, I'm able to have all of this in BaltiMORE. Studioroom just launched a new version of Pure Kitchen.com . It's like porn for people like me. Brooklyn, NY based Pure Kitchen specializes in modern, eco friendly kitchens. Unlike traditional construction, Pure Kitchen products use NO formaldehyde or other harmful agents. Did you know that you can get cabinet panels made entirely out of wheat? They utilize local fabricators, so if your in the North East that means your helping the local economy simply by remodeling your home. When I finally buy my place, and am able to create the kitchen I've always been dreaming of, it will be a Pure Kitchen .

What's not to love about a good, fresh salad? I love eating my veggies in all forms, but there's nothing like a crunchy, tangy, sweetly dressed salad - which must occupy my lunch and dinner table on a regular basis. Until last week, I used to love the spring mix salad so conveniently available at every super market, until I read Michael Pollan's The Omnivore's Dilemma . I was amazed to learn that for every one calorie in spring mix lettuce, it takes fifty seven calories worth of "energy" to get it to my plate. That's right, for every ONE calorie of lettuce you eat, it took FIFTY SEVEN petro-calories just to get it in your front door. A typical spring mix salad serving has about 250 calories, but costs a whopping 14,250 calories of fuel (in gas, transportation, refrigeration, and automation). This is exactly the problem that Veggie Trader (my newest site) is trying to address, sustainability . It seems like a no-brainer to me, a foodie. Lettuce is lettuce ...

Human beings are at the very core of User Experience Design. In my line of work (designing websites and software) there is an almost constant conflict between engineers & designers. The tech industry is constantly trying to streamline the way it operates, trading programming efficiency directly for User Experience. I think everybody in tech is already aware of this imbalance and I was amused to see Google offering some user centered design lectures at their upcoming developer's conference . Here's a funny description of one session; Do You Believe in the Users? Too many programmers have forgotten about the lost art of customer service. All software has users, though most developers have forgotten how to respect them, trust them, or “sell” their software to them in an exciting (but honest!) manner. This talk will focus on anecdotes and strategies for keeping software design uncomplicated, making software fast, and putting usability above programming convenience. We’ll a...

We all braved 15 degree temps to see and hear Obama in Baltimore. Onward to History on Tuesday! From Obama in Baltimore Really, it's all about the people... From Obama in Baltimore

So you started blogging, or you want to start, but you need motivation. After plugging away at this blog for the past 2 years here are my motivating tips. 1. Find a Muse and just write a lot Do you have a business? Do you have a lot of clients and contacts? Do you have an interesting hobby or project? A baby? Do you travel a lot? Are you into the news or politics? Do you shop a lot? Pick a topic and don't be shy. The more you post, the more you'll think about blogging, and the more you'll get into the flow. 2. See who reads your blog, add Google Analytics It's really easy, you cut and paste a small snippet of code from Analytics into your blog template and voila! See who visits your blog, where they are from, and which posts are their favorites. See how search engines connect you to your readers. Get Analytics here . 3. Talk about your blog, old school style promotion I've found that I can use my blog as a conversation topic at parties, with friends, at work etc. No...