The Fun Theory videos - educating folk through fun, some examples of how to get people to change their behaviour by making a chore fun

John Maeda TED talk on art, technology and design for leadership

http://www.ted.com/talks/john_maeda_how_art_technology_and_design_inform_creative_leaders.html

Recycling the mouse

Just noticed this place across the road from the Skypark studio.

E-Waste Solutions

Decided to complete the lifecycle of my mouse (follow up from this post), so I took it over!

The mouse is now being turned into different things completely - the PCB and electronics will be sent to Irvine, where precious metals will be extracted from the circuit board (theres gold in them thar components), where the plastic casing will head to Govan, where E-Waste Solutions turns it into garden furniture.

This was good news, as I was fairly pessimistic about the recyclability of plastic products. However, it may not be as simple as the rosy story above.

From speaking with the guy in the shop, I don't believe many people actually bring their electronic products to E-Waste shops. There is no financial incentive, and societal education in terms of what happens to products otherwise is low. "People don't care". But is it really the users fault for these pollution problems and >90% of plastic products going to landfill? Or do designers share some of that blame? Can we change this behaviour?

He was supportive of durable, long lasting design, and design for disassembly. In the case of E-Waste Solutions, there are guys in the shop who literally get screwdrivers and take apart the products - separating and sorting plastics, salvaging components. The materials and electronics that make up a product are valuable - but only if they are accessible in the first place.

Harman Kardon vs Apple = The iSub and Soundsticks

Harman Kardon partnered with Apple to introduce these beautiful speakers back in 2000. They were similar to Apple's design styling at the time, which was based on transparent acrylic (see below).

The design hasn't really aged in my opinion. Where it can be immediately obvious how old other gadgets at the time may be due to their design styling, these speakers are still hot stuff today. If you check out the Harmon Kardon site, all they've really done is updated the hardware to be wireless. Therefore I feel they make a good statement of how styling can lengthen product life. Where users may chuck products as they age out of fashion, they become attached to objects that are neutral or timeless.

Grades of Plastic

 

Plastics are categorised into 7 different types, all of which are detailed in the table below.

 

 

Most of these are not widely recyclable, so although all the symbols include the recycling logo, in Glasgow only bottles made from type 1 or type 2 plastics can be recycled. The link below details how what you put in the blue box is recycled.

http://www.glasgow.gov.uk/index.aspx?articleid=8357

Early learning

Dunno if this is useful to anyone but it might be a good resource for anyone focusing on kids under 3. My group and I saw this on the wall of the sky park nursery.

The 2 principles that are kinda hard to see say RELATIONSHIPS and POSITIVE CARE

Tape dispenser

I chose to examine a tape dispenser. It has no markings but most likely made out of polycarbonate.  The tape dispenser comes in two parts. A detailed drawing of the slotting connection of the two halves is shown below.

The walls of the tape dispenser are about 1mm throughout.  It would have been made from  injection moulding.

Triangular Highlighter Disassembly

I chose to examine a triangular highlighter. It was made from tow ABS shells which were glued together.

The highlighter did not have an ergonomic design

Sir Ken Robinson - TED Talk - Education and creativity

Plastic Electronics

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pr9s2of80xU

Samantha Lorraine: Beautiful plastic object The Smarty Lamp

https://www.pressdispensary.co.uk/releases/c992106/The-Smarty-Lamp:-Style-Meets-Science-to-Create-Contemporary-Classic.html

My beautiful plastic product is the Smarty Lamp and I think it is beautiful because it is both geometric and organic in form depending on how you look at it. It is contemporary and modern but also elegant and this is enhanced by its function as a light shade with the light accenting the beautiful form.

Favourite Polyester top

So I guess I'm kinda taking the mick a little with this one but it is the only thing I could think of. 

It is made of polyester so that it doesn't trap heat keeping the players cool as they play.

The clothing is also easily washable and doesn't need ironed either. It will maintain its colour even through heavy usage and continual washing. It dries easily too.

BEAUTIFUL

Wellington Boots

Wellington boots are a timeless plastic product. UItilising the waterproof properties of plastic, usually PVC or rubber. The boots have become a standard for industrial footwear worldwide.

Now the iconic silhouette of the wellington boot is a fashionable and instantly recognisable form, purely due to the success and properties of the all plastic boot.

Beautiful Plastic - Sailing Dingy

Beautiful plastic product through its simple and lightweight  design which makes it a perfect training and beginner boat for any sailor.

My Mad Catz R.A.T 5 Mouse - Ross MacLean

Possibly an acquired taste in regards to being "beautiful" but I think it is rather nice. This is a highly functional product that I use everyday. The use of plastic makes it smooth yet lightweight without actually feeling (for lack of a better and real word) "plasticcy" or cheap.

IKEA PS VÅLLÖ

The IKEA PS VÅLLÖ (Ikea watering can) is a beautiful plastic object. It not only functions very well as a watering can but looks great as well. The elegant, natural form means that it is not hidden away but often on display in people’s homes. The good design often leads it to be used in other ways; I have seen people use it as juice jugs, a vase to hold flowers and as a cutlery stand.

Designer Monika Mulder said "The shape was extra important when I designed IKEA PS VÅLLÖ water can. I wanted to give it an organic, fluid shape so it would harmonise with plants and running water.”

Magic Mouse - Carwyn Anzani

The smooth curves of the PVC shell reflect Apple's minimalist design style while creating a functional, ergonomic product.The touch surface is innovative and is not biased towards right handed users.

Munny

A munny is a small plastic toy which can be coloured and added to. It develops creativity and fine art skills. 

There is also no limit to what you can make it into

Cassette Tape

A protective layer made of a non-woven fabric is formed and connected to the surface of the cassette body. The cassette body is fabricated of a plastic material or the like by injection moulding.

Although obsolete the design of cassette's are still recognisable. It's now featured in fashion design and art, even though originally it was designed for function over form.

Surfboard

 Polystyrene foam covered with layers of fibreglass, cloth and epoxy resin.

The design of surfboards has been honed through many years of the sports existence. Even modern surfboards are usually hand carved and laminated. 

Stick-lets

The Stick-lets design is aimed at children for them to rediscover the outdoors through play. This plastic product caught my eye as it gives the user a variety of possibilities, thanks to its different shapes, and promotes creativity.

Material - 100% Silicone

Collapsible Water Bottles

A simple but smart idea - you can just fold the water bottle up and save space in your bag!

And they're cute :)

 

Beautiful Plastic Product - Coral Lamp

This product was made by QisDesign collaborating with the Taiwan National Museum of Marine Biology, which is internationally renown for its preservation of corals.  As a result they designed a beautifully sea inspired feature representing the light effect of corals in the water.

It is made by warping planes of technical PMMA (Poly(methyl methacrylate)) plastic into a spherical shape. It relies on the light diffusion down to the edges of the plastic to create the effect.

I like this design because it uses organic shapes with new materials and uses one of the PMMAs properties, hight light transmission, to full advantage. This is in addition to being very aesthetically pleasing and influenced by nature. 

The Cycloc - Chiara

Specifications 
• Produced from recycled Polypropylene. 
• Diameter : 25 cm 
• With spacer : 36 cm from the wall 
• Without spacer : 30.5 cm from the wall 
• Available in black, white, green, and red

The Cycloc is colored yet minimalistic. It gives you the opportunity to store your bike vertically or horizontally, turning it at the same time into a decorative piece for your house. You can store your bike accessories in the central gap and fit any type of bike in it. It is simple and stylish and gives a multitude of possibilities.

The Marble Run is a very popular toy for children, it has sentimental value.

You can build it differently, changing the way the marbles run. 

So has beauty in the passage of the marble and the way the Run is construction.

A Beautiful Product - Townie Syndicate TS Lever+

The Townie Syndicate TS Lever+ is a minimalist tool kit for cyclists. The driving concept behind the product is to reduce bike clutter and as such only features the essential tools for roadside maintenance. It consists of a tyre lever, 4 & 5mm allen keys, #25 torx wrench, #1 phillips screwdriver, and a microvelcro strap to attach an inner tube and pump. Plastic features in this product in the form of injection moulded nylon used for the tyre lever as well as in the microvelcro strap from 3M. 

http://towniesyndicate.com/

A Beautiful Plastic Product

Plastic Slinky

A simple object that moves beautifully with or without users constant interaction.

Eash - Products made for a specific event -

"Eash" means man in Hebrew. Tal Gur designed a plastic light fixture for the big tumult, around the turn of the millennium. Although nothing happened,  the product was designed to reflect the anxiety of people towards the unknown. The wee light fixtures look up the sky in different directions making a whole composition. I like  how the designer thought about the event and made a product reflecting it, but it does not narrow the usability of the product, since it stands as an appealing product after the event likewise.

After the event passed and nothing happened Tal Gur designed a smiling version of this product.

Designed and manufactured in 2000 by rotation modeling. Its mold made of a fixed bottom part, a stylized human shaped body and the head part that is able to rotate around the fixed body.
Dimensions in cm: H60,W30,D20.
It is a really simple product, easily manufactured, serves a purpose other than the specified event and from my point of view it has interesting aesthetics.

Reef-One Biorb Fish Tank

The Biorb is a stylish fish tank manufactured in acrylic, instead of the traditional glass ceramic. 

I find it to be a timelessly elegant design, and much more attractive than the conventional cuboid shape. The built in led light brings out vivid colours and gives the tank a healthy glow, and the hidden filtration system makes for an uncluttered and stylish marine viewing gallery.

A Beautiful Plastic Product - MUJI CD Player

MUJI's wall mounted CD player with radio and remote control.

This product is designed by Naoto Fukasawa. It comes in black colour as well. A description of this CD player from MUJI's website:

Our iconic Wall Mounted CD player has been re-designed to include an FM radio, remote control and backlit LCD display. To make a disk play you simply pull the cable down.

Now also sold with an AC adaptor that is multi-voltage and multi-plugged, it’s suitable for use in the UK and EU. 

Size: 17 x 17 x 4cm.

MUJI UK: 

http://www.muji.eu/pages/online.asp?Sec=8&Sub=29&PID=5587

Beautiful plastic product

Appealing, elegant and practical design. 

Beautiful Plastic Product

My chosen product is the Lego Super Star Destroyer. I think it is an amazing recreation of the iconic Star Wars spaceship. It is fun to build and the result is a beautiful model for collectors to display and treasure. It is also a very challenging build, being one of the bigger sets in the Lego range.