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Author: Jenny L. Davis
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262044110
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 210
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Book Description
A conceptual update of affordance theory that introduces the mechanisms and conditions framework, providing a vocabulary and critical perspective. Technological affordances mediate between the features of a technology and the outcomes of engagement with that technology. The concept of affordances, which migrated from psychology to design with Donald Norman's influential 1988 book, The Design of Everyday Things, offers a useful analytical tool in technology studies—but, Jenny Davis argues in How Artifacts Afford, it is in need of a conceptual update. Davis provides just such an update, introducing the mechanisms and conditions framework, which offers both a vocabulary and necessary critical perspective for affordance analyses. The mechanisms and conditions framework shifts the question from what objects afford to how objects afford, for whom, and under what circumstances. Davis shows that through this framework, analyses can account for the power and politics of technological artifacts. She situates the framework within a critical approach that views technology as materialized action. She explains how request, demand, encourage, discourage, refuse, and allow are mechanisms of affordance, and shows how these mechanisms take shape through variable conditions—perception, dexterity, and cultural and institutional legitimacy. Putting the framework into action, Davis identifies existing methodological approaches that complement it, including critical technocultural discourse analysis (CTDA), app feature analysis, and adversarial design. In today's rapidly changing sociotechnical landscape, the stakes of affordance analyses are high. Davis's mechanisms and conditions framework offers a timely theoretical reboot, providing tools for the crucial tasks of both analysis and design.
Author: Jenny L. Davis
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262044110
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 210
Get Book Here
Book Description
A conceptual update of affordance theory that introduces the mechanisms and conditions framework, providing a vocabulary and critical perspective. Technological affordances mediate between the features of a technology and the outcomes of engagement with that technology. The concept of affordances, which migrated from psychology to design with Donald Norman's influential 1988 book, The Design of Everyday Things, offers a useful analytical tool in technology studies—but, Jenny Davis argues in How Artifacts Afford, it is in need of a conceptual update. Davis provides just such an update, introducing the mechanisms and conditions framework, which offers both a vocabulary and necessary critical perspective for affordance analyses. The mechanisms and conditions framework shifts the question from what objects afford to how objects afford, for whom, and under what circumstances. Davis shows that through this framework, analyses can account for the power and politics of technological artifacts. She situates the framework within a critical approach that views technology as materialized action. She explains how request, demand, encourage, discourage, refuse, and allow are mechanisms of affordance, and shows how these mechanisms take shape through variable conditions—perception, dexterity, and cultural and institutional legitimacy. Putting the framework into action, Davis identifies existing methodological approaches that complement it, including critical technocultural discourse analysis (CTDA), app feature analysis, and adversarial design. In today's rapidly changing sociotechnical landscape, the stakes of affordance analyses are high. Davis's mechanisms and conditions framework offers a timely theoretical reboot, providing tools for the crucial tasks of both analysis and design.
Author: Michael R. Waters
Publisher: Texas A&M University Press
ISBN: 160344467X
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 258
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Book Description
Some 13,000 years ago, humans were drawn repeatedly to a small valley in what is now Central Texas, near the banks of Buttermilk Creek. These early hunter-gatherers camped, collected stone, and shaped it into a variety of tools they needed to hunt game, process food, and subsist in the Texas wilderness. Their toolkit included bifaces, blades, and deadly spear points. Where they worked, they left thousands of pieces of debris, which have allowed archaeologists to reconstruct their methods of tool production. Along with the faunal material that was also discarded in their prehistoric campsite, these stone, or lithic, artifacts afford a glimpse of human life at the end of the last ice age during an era referred to as Clovis. The area where these people roamed and camped, called the Gault site, is one of the most important Clovis sites in North America. A decade ago a team from Texas A&M University excavated a single area of the site—formally named Excavation Area 8, but informally dubbed the Lindsey Pit—which features the densest concentration of Clovis artifacts and the clearest stratigraphy at the Gault site. Some 67,000 lithic artifacts were recovered during fieldwork, along with 5,700 pieces of faunal material. In a thorough synthesis of the evidence from this prehistoric “workshop,” Michael R. Waters and his coauthors provide the technical data needed to interpret and compare this site with other sites from the same period, illuminating the story of Clovis people in the Buttermilk Creek Valley.
Author: Bailey Bradford
Publisher: Totally Entwined Group (USA+CAD)
ISBN: 1786517469
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 177
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Book Description
FROM BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF LGBTQ+ ROMANCE BAILEY BRADFORD Book one in the Intrinsic Values series Aldric Beamer thought working in an antique shop would be safe and boring. He never expected to find his life—or his heart—in danger... Being the low man on the totem pole is nothing new for Aldric Beamer. The youngest of three siblings, he was always the afterthought in his family, but Aldric's trying hard not to let the little confidence he has sink any lower. Aldric loves the job he manages to land at Intrinsic Value, so much so that he often works off the clock—or maybe he just doesn't want to go home to his empty apartment. Just as he's slowly learning to trust his boss and co-workers, he's attacked outside the store, and all the security he thought he had vanishes with the force of a blow to the head. San Antonio cop Darrell Williams takes one look at the beautiful, bruised man he finds in a dingy alley behind an antique store, and something in his heart melts. This weakness scares him, making Darrell gruff and indifferent when he should have been—and longs to be—compassionate and caring. Aldric's no pushover, though. He's had enough of being ignored and treated like he doesn't matter as much as everyone else. And he'll make damn sure Patrol Officer Williams doesn't dismiss him, in any way...
Author: Neil Young
Publisher: BenBella Books
ISBN: 1948836637
Category : Music
Languages : en
Pages : 173
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Book Description
Neil Young took on the music industry so that fans could hear his music—all music—the way it was meant to be heard. Today, most of the music we hear is com-pressed to a fraction of its original sound,while analog masterpieces are turning to dustin record company vaults. As these record-ings disappear, music fans aren't just losing acollection of notes. We're losing spaciousness,breadth of the sound field, and the ability tohear and feel a ping of a triangle or a pluckof a guitar string, each with its own reso-nance and harmonics that slowly trail off intosilence. The result is music that is robbed of its original quality—muddy and flat in sound compared to the rich, warm sound artists hear in the studio. It doesn't have to be this way, but the record and technology companies have incorrectly assumed that most listeners are satisfied with these low-quality tracks. Neil Young is challenging the assault on audio quality—and working to free music lovers from the flat and lifeless status quo. To Feel the Music is the true story of his questto bring high-quality audio back to musiclovers—the most important undertaking ofhis career. It's an unprecedented look insidethe successes and setbacks of creating thePono player, the fights and negotiationswith record companies to preserve master-pieces for the future, and Neil's unrelentingdetermination to make musical art availableto everyone. It's a story that shows how muchmore there is to music than meets the ear. Neil's efforts to bring quality audio to his fans garnered media attention when his Kickstarter campaign for his Pono player—a revolutionary music player that would combine the highest quality possible with the portability, simplicity and affordability modern listeners crave—became the third-most successful Kickstarter campaign in the website's history. It had raised more than $6M in pledges in 40 days. Encouraged by the enthusiastic response, Neil still had a long road ahead, and his Pono music player would not have the commercial success he'd imagined. But he remained committed to his mission, and faced with the rise of streaming services that used even lower quality audio, he was determined to rise to the challenge. An eye-opening read for all fans of Neil Young and all fans of great music, as well as readers interesting in going behind the scenes of product creation, To Feel the Music has an inspiring story at its heart: One determined artist with a groundbreaking vision and the absolute refusal to give up, despite setbacks, naysayers, and skeptics.
Author: Tamie Glass
Publisher: Birkhäuser
ISBN: 3035610606
Category : Design
Languages : de
Pages : 224
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Book Description
Fueled by an increasingly interconnected world, the desire for engaging experiences plays a more important role in interiors than ever before. There is a tendency in the design of products, furniture, and environments toward enhanced interaction that employs psychosocial principles. This publication presents both high and low-tech applications ranging from a light fixture to art installations and fully realized buildings. The book illustrates human-centered design strategies through a series of six chapters, each including examples that introduce one of following approaches: communicating, stimulating, synomorphic, transactional, transformative, and challenging.
Author: Daniel Miller
Publisher: Duke University Press
ISBN: 0822386712
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 303
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Book Description
Throughout history and across social and cultural contexts, most systems of belief—whether religious or secular—have ascribed wisdom to those who see reality as that which transcends the merely material. Yet, as the studies collected here show, the immaterial is not easily separated from the material. Humans are defined, to an extraordinary degree, by their expressions of immaterial ideals through material forms. The essays in Materiality explore varied manifestations of materiality from ancient times to the present. In assessing the fundamental role of materiality in shaping humanity, they signal the need to decenter the social within social anthropology in order to make room for the material. Considering topics as diverse as theology, technology, finance, and art, the contributors—most of whom are anthropologists—examine the many different ways in which materiality has been understood and the consequences of these differences. Their case studies show that the latest forms of financial trading instruments can be compared with the oldest ideals of ancient Egypt, that the promise of software can be compared with an age-old desire for an unmediated relationship to divinity. Whether focusing on the theology of Islamic banking, Australian Aboriginal art, derivatives trading in Japan, or textiles that respond directly to their environment, each essay adds depth and nuance to the project that Materiality advances: a profound acknowledgment and rethinking of one of the basic properties of being human. Contributors. Matthew Engelke, Webb Keane, Susanne Küchler, Bill Maurer, Lynn Meskell, Daniel Miller, Hirokazu Miyazaki, Fred Myers, Christopher Pinney, Michael Rowlands, Nigel Thrift
Author: Jonathan Chapman
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262363798
Category : Design
Languages : en
Pages : 235
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Book Description
An argument for a design philosophy of better, not more. Never have we wanted, owned, and wasted so much stuff. Our consumptive path through modern life leaves a wake of social and ecological destruction--sneakers worn only once, bicycles barely even ridden, and forgotten smartphones languishing in drawers. By what perverse alchemy do our newest, coolest things so readily transform into meaningless junk? In Meaningful Stuff, Jonathan Chapman investigates why we throw away things that still work, and shows how we can design products, services, and systems that last. Obsolescence is an economically driven design decision--a plan to hasten a product's functional or psychological undesirability. Many electronic devices, for example, are intentionally impossible to dismantle for repair or recycling, their brief use-career proceeding inexorably to a landfill. A sustainable design specialist who serves as a consultant to global businesses and governmental organizations, Chapman calls for the decoupling of economic activity from mindless material consumption and shows how to do it. Chapman shares his vision for an "experience heavy, material light" design sensibility. This vital and timely new design philosophy reveals how meaning emerges from designed encounters between people and things, explores ways to increase the quality and longevity of our relationships with objects and the systems behind them, and ultimately demonstrates why design can--and must--lead the transition to a sustainable future.
Author: Bill Perkins
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin
ISBN: 0358099765
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 243
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Book Description
"A ... new philosophy and ... guide to getting the most out of your money--and out of life--for those who value memorable experiences as much as their earnings"--
Author: Kenneth M. Morris
Publisher: Cold Spring Press
ISBN: 9781593600273
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 0
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Book Description
Originally published in 1930, Kenneth Morris's superb Book of the Three Dragons is an imaginative reworking of elements from the Mabinogion and other Welsh Celtic stories, telling the story of Manawyddan, who is given the choice between immortality with the gods or preventing a new evil from destroying the Island of the Mighty. Manawyddan chooses the latter, and the novel tells of his adventures. Swiftly moving and dramatic, this is a book that lovers of modern fantasy and old hero tales alike cannot afford to miss. Perhaps most importantly for modern readers, for the first time Morris's unpublished ending - amounting to one-third of the book's length - is included in this new edition, telling what became of the hero, his wife, and their son. NOTE ON NEW SERIES: This is the first in our new line of fantasy fiction, which will feature both masterpieces no longer in print in the US as well as new works. The series will be edited by noted Tolkien scholar Douglas A. Anderson, whose previous books include The Annotated Hobbit (HM) and Tales Before Tolkien (Ballantine). Mr. Anderson will also write introductions to each book, providing context and background to enrich the reader's experience. The cover look and interior design will appeal to all demographics (especially younger fans under 30 who play computer fantasy games and love writers like Tolkien, Pratchett, and Pullman) with top artists creating a dazzling fantasy look. Quotes:"It is a singularly fine example of the recreation of a work magnificent in its own right (the 'Mabinogion') -- a literary event rather rare except in fantasy" - Ursula Le Guin "Kenneth Morris was an important, innovative fantasist, worthy to rank with MacDonald, Eddison, and Tolkien." - Ursula Le Guin "Morris writes with all Lord Dunsany's richness, though his cadences are Celtic rather than biblical. This one should be read aloud." - review in the Feb. 2004 issue of Fantasy & Science Fiction magazine "Book of the Three Dragons is perhaps the single best fantasy adaptation from a real-world up0mythology (in this case, the Welsh Mabinogion), and the best of his tales¿" - John Rateliff, review in the Sept. 2003 issue of Wizards of the Coast website (www.wizards.com), the #1 adventure gaming company in the world.
Author: Janet H. Murray
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 0262302802
Category : Design
Languages : en
Pages : 499
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Book Description
A foundational text offering a unified design vocabulary and a common methodology for maximizing the expressive power of digital artifacts. Digital artifacts from iPads to databases pervade our lives, and the design decisions that shape them affect how we think, act, communicate, and understand the world. But the pace of change has been so rapid that technical innovation is outstripping design. Interactors are often mystified and frustrated by their enticing but confusing new devices; meanwhile, product design teams struggle to articulate shared and enduring design goals. With Inventing the Medium, Janet Murray provides a unified vocabulary and a common methodology for the design of digital objects and environments. It will be an essential guide for both students and practitioners in this evolving field. Murray explains that innovative interaction designers should think of all objects made with bits—whether games or Web pages, robots or the latest killer apps—as belonging to a single new medium: the digital medium. Designers can speed the process of useful and lasting innovation by focusing on the collective cultural task of inventing this new medium. Exploring strategies for maximizing the expressive power of digital artifacts, Murray identifies and examines four representational affordances of digital environments that provide the core palette for designers across applications: computational procedures, user participation, navigable space, and encyclopedic capacity. Each chapter includes a set of Design Explorations—creative exercises for students and thought experiments for practitioners—that allow readers to apply the ideas in the chapter to particular design problems. Inventing the Medium also provides more than 200 illustrations of specific design strategies drawn from multiple genres and platforms and a glossary of design concepts.
