Artificial Senses

Running fingers across and down your friends back to try and spell a word or secret out (Body Pictionary )We all did it, now scientists have developed technology to help you see with your sense of touch.

I came across this whilst researching the 5 senses for a uni project. In design the 5 senses are extremely important. Designers need to engage the user in order for them to buy their product. Whilst consumers think that design is visual, designers know that this is merely one appealing aspect. No-one is going to buy a radio covered in swed if they don't like the feel of it. I'm not going to buy a yellow laptop because yellow makes me angry, although it may calm another.

This technology could in the future help blind people fly planes, allow them to discuss visual art and find their way around new places. It is also great news for people who may need prosthetic limbs.

I found this article very interesting and hope that the technology becomes accessible and is used for great things. If not it will at least make body pictionary easier.

Link.

http://www.wired.com/wired/archive/15.04/esp.html?pg=1

I went to see Thomas Hirschhorn's Its Burning Everywhere exhibition at the DCA on Tuesday. I must say i didn't relay like it. It all seemed a bit unfinished and too busy. I think if he had separated the exhibition it would have had greater impact. For example there was a beautiful tree ironically made out of paper placed in the centre of the room, which was supposed to have fallen down. It looked great but at the same time you were being confronted with a massive pile of mannequins. I found it all too .

When you entered you were confronted with a load of gory images which had all been very crudely sellotaped to a piece of card. The whole exhibition had a feeling of cheapness and no effort had been put in to make it neat, it was all very crafty. This was probably deliberate but I found this distracting too.

However it was clear that the exhibition had taken a long time to preppier and had been thought about a lot. so well done Thomas Hirschhorn.