Tangible User Interfaces - Fall 2011

I noticed many thoughtless actions while in motion, just walking around. Physically the action of walking is a multisense action, and people have seem to developed some norms (while probably not intentional). 

The first image is a group of students walking along the sidewalk. What is interesting is that the group of students are walking in a line ton converse easily. It doesn't matter that the pavement ends, but the social norm of being next to one another forces a line. 

1. There is a puddle in front of my apartment, and people always try to avoid stepping on them. Here is the picture below

2. Plate as a napkin holder

I found two examples of thoughtless acts, illustrated below.

Garden hose attachment

While walking around the north side, I noticed a garden hose with its attachment placed on a small curved surface above it, attached to the wall. I'm not sure what the original purpose of the wall attachment was, but it's unlikely it was designed for this purpose. However, it's useful for keeping the hose attachment near the hose.

My thoughtless acts are all pictures of solutions I've devised around my apartment to solve small issues.

They include:

a door prop!

A trashbin in my dorm which was used to keep the door open. Also, a heater used to hang a towel.

Sorry for the bad quality: it was my cameraphone.

An old-fashioned wall-lamp becomes an impromptu clothes hangar / clothing rack.

Photo 1: A cardboard box taped over an air diffuser to block the air. People resort to simple solutions in buildings when the building manager does not respond to complaints or there is no better alternative.

Photo 2: Students in the architecture studios hang drawings from the light fixtures because there adequate wall space (it is open plan, basically no walls). Solution would be to provide more bulletin boards or to provide hangers from the ceiling, not from a fragile light fixture.