TLDR
Exploration of where we're heading with technology and designing something around it. But things did not turn out quite as expected.
Organised scribbles, here are some of the highlights of the process:
ProcessInspirationModelsDesigning forSignalsDigital BeingWhat's NextReflections
My process is a bit of alchemy; a mix of discovering, distilling, improvisation, reflection, tinkering at different stages. I like Sampling, a technique borrowed from music producers. In which I borrow ideas from various subjects and try to piece them together for a perfect flow; trying something in a different context.
I like working with the unknown and analogies help me understand complexity. For this project, I used a car to think about technology to see where we might be heading with it— to design something for the journey like a seat belt, navigation system or gas station. I wanted to create something thought-provoking, that would spur the viewer to think about technology differently.
“The invention of the ship was also the invention of the shipwreck.” —Paul Virilio
Machines fascinate me, how different parts interact with each other and how they affect us. Once I had tinkered with automata and built a giant one. It filled the room up with smiles every time I cranked it up.
Last summer, I was intrigued by Speculative design. I joined the Speculative Futures community and designed Neo-rural Futures with Speculative Edu. There will always be a technopanics with new technology, and speculative tools are helpful to think about it. Fun fact- Socrates was concern about the forgetfulness that comes with writing.
After watching Frozen for the 39th time, I chanced upon a wise saying from Grand Pabbie, “When one can see no future, all one can do, is the next right thing”.
Predictions are part of our lives; they are alluring and inform our behaviours. With more machines influencing our predictions, how would that then change us?
We always talked about designing the right thing. I wanted to build my foundation as a strategic designer and ask myself..
..how I knew it was the right thing.
From fashion models to spatial models, now mental models. These helped me think clearly as a guide throughout my research. With all models, they are works in progress and can change with new knowledge.
Three new ones I've used for this project.
1. Prediction over time: That reflects how we might make decisions and have certain behaviours.
2. A scale of convenience, privacy and perhaps cost. With everything, there is often a trade-off.
3. Johari window: Understanding our perceptual process.
I've fallen in love with mental models! For me, it a good representation of complexity made simple and super useful to think clearly. Scales are something I'm working on that I find helpful. Everything is not black and white; there's a whole lot of grey. Figuring out the grey, that intrigues me!
One of the pictures that triggered me was this man in line to pay in the supermarket. He had a mask around his neck, gloves on, trolley filled with toilet paper. But because the queue was long, he was probably hungry and decided to snack.
We usually do what we want based on our beliefs and primarily what works for us. Although many things inform this, we often seek information that would justify our actions. Filter bubbles might or might not help. The challenge then is how to change that belief, shed some new light.
“It's bigger than black and white. It's a problem with the whole way of life. It can't change overnight. But we gotta start somewhere.”
—Dominique Armani Jones aka Lil Baby
Relationships, not reports. Part of having a healthy relationship with tech is also being mindful about others. What we do digitally will affect people around us. To know where our children are, we shouldn't have to track them. That doesn't build trust. Call them, send a text.
Minimum Viable Audience (MVA) are parents or anyone that deal with children such as teachers. They are role models, and we want to help them be better ones when it comes to technology.
There are three kinds of Digital Beings: Cruisers, Adventurers and Superheros. If you are Edward Snowden (Hello!) or wear a tin cape, you probably are a superhero. However, most of us are Adventurers — we know things like data breaches but don't know to counter that. The cruisers are the ones that don't know much about the trade-offs and just use technology for the conveniences it brings.
PRINCIPLES FOR GRAHAM’S GUIDE
1. Be of Service, not just a service
2. Everyday use to make life colourful
3. Living, ever-changing
PRINCIPLES FOR CONTENT
1. Factcheck, no misinformation
2. Sense of urgency, not fear
3. KISS, small simple useful wins
VALUES FOR TECHNOLOGY
Recollections not Records.
Relationships not Reports.
Resolve not Resort.
1. Modern machines are everywhere, and they are going to be more intertwined with our lives. The 'Singularity' is not going to be killer robots, it's more invisible, and one should pay more attention to the signs. When we become autonomous with our thinking, our behaviours can be easily manipulated. And of course, a digital divide.
2. Data. 90% of the data on the internet was created in the last two years (IBM, 2016). There is so much data generated and stored, but how much is necessary? You don't tell the baker your birthdate is to buy a loaf of bread, so why do you do it online. Oh yes for the promo code, right.
3. User testing. Remember animal testing? Should we have some rules for it? Do we even know we are part of the experiment? Probably not. How would that change us?
With some signals, I create a few propositions. Bae was about using emergent technologies to create the perfect baby. Graham named after the "World Champion largest number" was about the ultimate algorithm. Graham#1 could give more personal advice, and Graham#2 created a cost-efficient supply chain. After testing and reflecting on them, I decided that we don't need this now. Some might be useful but could give false hope; it was very shallow.
I needed to address a bigger problem.
Through this project, I introduced the idea of "Digital Being". It is a state that we adopt when we use modern machines. It sits on the edges of our physical and digital lives. What happens in one affects the other.
Think about all the things you allow to happen in your digital world that you wouldn't in your physical. Things such as allowing the mailman to open your mail, putting a tracking collar on your children or letting strangers listen in to your conversations.
We usually let those happen because of the convenience technology brings. One of the main trade-off would then be our privacy.
We are like contemporary centaurs, half-man and half-modern machine. Our physical and digital lives can be different, but they interrelate. Sometimes, we need personalisation, other times it's good to hang loose. A better digital being is someone mindful about that balance.
It sits on the edges of our physical and digital lives.
What happens in one affects the other.
We need to start celebrating differences. Everyone has a different balance; what works for me might not for you. We are different in shapes and sizes, so are our devices. We need to design for the differences, not force them to be similar. A world where everything’s the same would be super-efficient and lifeless.
Graham’s Guide is a platform to continue my research and share it with others. In the future, more things might be created around our goal to help us become better digital beings. Right now there’s an awareness campaign #eyesondevice and sharable tips on Instagram. Join us!
“With awareness, we are no longer simply driven to make decisions based on our impulses or desires, but instead, we can make conscious choices that will grant us more freedom to live the life that we want.”
I’ve picked up technical skills— reading, writing, editing audio and building websites. More than that, I’ve built a foundation and grew as a designer from plain aesthetics to a more strategic one. I want to do more work to develop those capabilities.
Why better? Better gives us a base to begin. We know what’s bad and good, as soon as we’ve found our north star, we can strive towards that. Always remember, change takes time, and your north star might shift. And that’s okay.
I set out to do something speculative, and COVID sped time up. Things are changing now, and we shouldn’t hope to go back to what we thought was “normal”. We can’t. We’ve seen systems break, biases, disparities and we should learn from all of that when we design. Design in itself is speculative. Charles Eames said that “The role of the designer is that of a very good, thoughtful host, anticipating the needs of his guest.” If “We shape our technology; after that they shape us”, let us pause to contemplate about where we want to be first before we shape that technology. No matter who you are, the future is yours to shape.
Graham's Guide is done to the best of my knowledge at this time, with more information, my views might change. There's so much more, and I'll be happy to discuss. Email me at seetohandrew@gmail.com
Signing off from my mobile studio,
Andrew Seetoh
July 2020
To see more of my work⟿ andandrew.co
Whew! You made all the way here! Here are some more car analogies, other than the good ol' Information highway, Data is the new oil, Autonomous cars.
1. "We see the world through a rear-view mirror. We march backwards into the future" –Marshall McLuhan. Machines do this by default, and we have to be careful how much we do too.
2. "Turn right to go left!" also know as the Scandinavian flick. Sometimes it's counter-intuitive, but our paradoxes saves humanity.
3. No one knows what will happen in the future. It can be like driving in the dark. So be present, check the rear-view mirror occasionally and look ahead. Find your lights and drive carefully towards your north star.
Many people have been part of this journey, and I would especially like to thank...
Andrea for being the guide for Graham's Guide
Clive for being the rock that he is
Kim for being there, so I can do this ♥