Category Archives: design

current and future issues in science education

design, ,

This is a pithy article on science education in Australia and beyond.

http://www.ias.uwa.edu.au/new-critic/ten/venville

Disciplinary versus Integrated Curriculum

The impending Australian national school curriculum leads to important questions about what knowledge should and shouldn’t be included in a curriculum and how the included knowledge should be arranged. Dominant modes of curriculum in the twenty first century suggest there is established, canonical knowledge that is included in school curricula within disciplines such as physics, mathematics, history and literature, and that the disciplines themselves almost always provide the structure of the school day (Scott, 2008)1. This is widely referred to as a disciplinary, or traditional, approach to curriculum. Current, education-based debates, however, question the assumption that there is a corpus of disciplinary received wisdom that is beyond criticism (Kelly, Luke, & Green, 2008)2. Disciplinary knowledge is translated in curriculum documents throughout the world into key criteria, standards, or educational outcomes that are narrowly focused on what is readily measurable, or amenable to standardized achievement testing. As more and more attention in schools turns to the issue of preparing students for high-stakes tests, there is a real risk of reducing the opportunities for students to engage in more contextual, issue-based and applied learning that does not fit within the boundaries of the traditional disciplines. The problem is acute in science where there is considerable evidence that students are disengaged with the way it is currently taught in Australia and other western countries.

Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Fellowships-Deakin University Australia

design, virtual heritage,

Have you recently completed your PhD? Think about a postdoc fellowship with the Cultural Heritage and Museum Studies program/Cultural Heritage Centre for Asia and the Pacific/Centre for Memory, Invention and Imagination at Deakin University in Melbourne. The Alfred Deakin Postdoctoral Fellowships provide a stipend of $62,478 per annum (Level A, Step 6 DU EBA) together with a support grant of up to $15,000. Research Fellows will be appointed for 24 months with potential to extend that period. If you have a project, talk to Ass.Prof. Andrea Witcomb (03-925 17232), Dr Linda Young (03-9251 7130) or Dr Colin Long (03-9251 3938). Potential applicants must then run their ideas past our research centre directors before being accepted for full application. Deadline: 1 February 2010. For further information, visit http://www.deakin.edu.au/research/admin/grants/funding_opps/adrf/

where to with the iPad

design,

Unbelievably apple.com pointed to a review by engadget of the new iPad. Unbelievably, because the reviews by engadget (who are normally Apple-friendly) are not enthusiastic. They correctly (unlike journalists) mention it is a super-sized iPod touch rather than the iPhone, and mention the lack of video, multi-tasking and Flash. I am not convinced HTML 5 will replace Flash and there does seem to be a great opportunity missed of a portable video conferencing tool.  However the future potential, as a designer tablet, multi camera collaborative video tool and overly expensive (not fragile?) game controller and Augmented Reality item tray have great promise.

BBC News – Carbon nanotubes used to make batteries from fabrics

design, ,

Carbon nanotubes used to make batteries from fabrics

The nanotubes stay put and function even when the fabric is stretched

Ordinary cotton and polyester fabrics have been turned into batteries that retain their flexibility.

The demonstration is a boost to the nascent field of “wearable electronics” in which devices are integrated into clothing and textiles.

The approach is based on dipping fabrics in an “ink” of tiny tubes of carbon, and was first demonstrated last year on plain copier paper.

The new application to fabrics is reported in the journal Nano Letters.

“Wearable electronics represent a developing new class of materials… which allow for many applications and designs previously impossible with traditional electronics technologies,” the authors wrote.

A number of research efforts in recent years have shown the possibility of electronics that can be built on flexible and even transparent surfaces – leading to the often-touted “roll-up display”.

DRS | 2010 : MONTREAL 7-9 JULY EXTENDED DEADLINE

Conference, design, ,

Extended Deadline

We invite you to present your research at the Design Research Society 2010 conference. Contributors are invited to submit long or short papers that deal with different facets of the contemporary approaches to design research, education or practice.

All propositions will be independently peer-reviewed by at least two members of the DRS 2010 review committee.

ABSTRACTS
Proposals of no more than 800 words must initially be submitted for review. They may be in English or in French, should describe the context of the research, questions addressed, hypotheses, how the research has been developed including research methods, findings or conclusions, and be supported by a sufficient number of bibliographic references. Clear indication must be provided whether the proposal is for completed research or work in progress. Images are not requested at this time.

Abstracts will be submitted in the form of an electronic submission directly HERE.

DEADLINE FOR ABSTRACTS: MONDAY OCTOBER 12 2009.

PAPER SUBMISSIONS:
Following peer evaluation, authors of accepted proposals will receive an invitation to submit a full paper, accompanied by reviewers’ remarks and suggestions. Full papers, in either English or French and between 3000 and 5000 words long, should be in the form of original contributions that present completed research (specifically the objectives, issues, hypotheses, conceptual framework and methodology), describe work in progress demonstrating the relevance or the innovative nature of the object of study or develop a theoretical reflection about an issue relevant to design research, education or practice.

Authors of accepted papers will be invited to present their work at the 2010 Design Research Society (DRS) International Conference. They will be allowed 20 minutes for presentation and a further 10 minutes to respond to questions. The conference will be held in English with simultaneous translation of French presentations.

Since DRS 2010 will be held in a French speaking city and university, DRS 2010 will exceptionally welcome contributions in French.
Pour information, consultez ici.

For questions and queries, contact us at drs2010

Website: http://www.drs2010.umontreal.ca/cfp.php

Keynotes

Erik Stolterman
Professor and Director of Human Computer Interaction Design
Indiana University, Bloomington, USA

Anne-Marie Willis
Editor of Design Philosophy Papers and Design Philosophy Politics
Co-director of design consultancy Team D/E/S

Can complexity be contained?
To speak of “design AND complexity” suggests design can be held outside complexity. From an instrumental perspective, it implies the designer’s task is to overcome or manage complexity. However, from the point of view of enquiry, the binary relation has to be refused and complexity recognised as the inescapable condition of design. To cast complexity pragmatically is to reduce it and thus negate the complex, while to fully embrace it is to create an unbounded exploration leading to chaos and madness. The challenge then is to find an appropriate mode of thinking, practice and a language to engage complexity.

CFP 5D: The Future of Immersive Design

Conference, design, virtual heritage

http://www.5dconference.com/main/

Digital technologies are blurring the boundaries between the passive and interactive experience of visual art, entertainment, environmental design and the built environment. For all those engaged in the creative process of world-building and storytelling in narrative media, 5D: The Immersive Design Conference is the platform for exploring the present and future of immersive design, and its impact on all aspects of the creative media space.

Our goal is to unite a vital community of designers and image-makers and to serve as a catalyst for innovation.

The next cornerstone biennial 5D conference, a co-presentation of the Art Directors Guild and the University Art Museum of CSULB, will be held on the campus of California State University, Long Beach in October 2010.

Between its 2-yearly conferences, inaugurated in October 2008, 5D curates a series of events distributed in time and place, building the 5D community with an expanding network and content driven knowledgebase.

The Psychology of Transport

design, ,

I admit it, there is something fascinating yet uncanny about Segways. One writer tried to nail its lack of acceptance amongst the public by suggesting that it just looks too effortless (or more accurately that the rider looks too lazy). On the other hand he talks of the response to the electric unicycle and I must admit it does look to be more effort, but surely not just because the rider is astride it, but because it just looks too darn hard to balance on? And is it-what is it like to ride?

time for more efficient digital media and devices

design,

Soaring Electricity Use

The NY times reminds me it is all very well to talk about digital media, but if it is not sustainable, research will not be sustained.

“In fact, if you compare how much electricity is used by the most common electronic devices with traditional large appliances, you’ll find that actually the electronic gadgets use more — not in every house, but in many households in OECD countries,” the report states, adding: “Not only is this surprising, but it is the major reason why residential electricity consumption is increasing in most countries.”

“It would also cost households around the world USD 200 billion in electricity bills and require the addition of approximately 280 Gigawatts (GW) of new generating capacity between now and 2030,” he added. The report is called “Gadgets and Gigawatts: Policies for Energy Efficient Electronics.”

The answer?

“Many mobile devices are already far more efficient in their use of power than other devices which run off a main electricity supply,” explained Tanaka. “Because extending the battery life of a mobile device is a selling point, manufacturers place an emphasis on designing products which require very little power. This example shows us what can be achieved. Where no such commercial drivers exist, governments must step in to ensure that we make the most of every energy efficiency opportunity.”

The EIA believes that, although some of these savings can be achieved through better equipment and components, the largest improvement opportunity must come from making hardware and software work together more effectively to ensure that energy “is only used when, and to the extent needed.”