Ceiling decorations
Most ceilings are sparsely decorated, with the rare exception of spaces that are meant to leave an impression of grandeur (e.g. religious sanctuaries and lobbies »
Check your tickets
It's embarrassing when I misread my tickets. Sadly, I've asked people to pick me up at the wrong airport, shown up on the wrong day, and »
The uncanny valley
In aesthetics, the uncanny valley is a hypothesis that describes why we find cartoons like XKCD more compelling, despite being stick figures, than drawings that are »
Toki Pona
Toki Pona is the world's smallest language. With barely over 100 words, command of the language demands simplicity of thought and explanation. For Sonja Lang, Toki »
Outlets in hotel rooms
Why are there so few electrical outlets in hotel rooms? Buildings have clearly been renovated since guests started regularly carrying laptops and cellphones. Right now, you »
Egg cartons in restaurants and conference rooms
It's hard to hold a conversation with anyone that isn't right next to you in a noisy restaurant or conference room. Often I feel like I'm »
Design thinking is about mental discipline
Design thinking is a mindset. Everyone is capable of deferring judgement and building on others' ideas, but most people haven't developed the mental discipline to suppress »
Importance of data design
Many businesses struggle to collect enough meaningful data to improve their operations, or to sufficiently analyze the data they already have. Search funds are formed to »