Aesthetics and complexity in digital layout systems

Abstract

The layout of pages which carry information is the bread and butter of the graphic design profession. The rationale of what elements are chosen and where they are placed is based on tacit knowledge gained over a number of years of experience. The aesthetics associated with the overall finished design are often based on a style. Important elements of style are complexity and aesthetic value. In this paper I explore how various mathematical aesthetic functions can use complexity as an arousal enhancing or limiting mechanism in the application of layout designs.     

Towards computer game studies

It is relatively stress-free to write about computer games as nothing too much has been said yet, and almost anything goes. The situation is pretty much the same when it comes to writing about games and gaming in general. The sad fact with alarming cumulative consequences is that they are under-theorized; there are Huizinga, Caillois and Ehrmann of course, and libraries full of board game studies,in addition to game theory and bits and pieces of philosophy – most notably those of Wittgenstein – but they won't get us very far with computer games. So if there already is or soon will be a legitimate field for computer game studies, this field is also very open to intrusions and colonisations from the already organized scholarly tribes. Resisting and beating them is the goal of our first survival game in this paper, as what these emerging studies need is independence, or at least relative independence.     

Designing multimodal tracks for mobile users in unfamiliar urban environments

While there have been many studies of navigation design guidelines for integrating maps in mobile devices, we argue that the research focus should turn more towards the design of multimodal navigation aids, which would reflect the impact of typical human wayfinding behaviour. Therefore, we suggest an interdisciplinary design approach, i.e. building on urban design practice that focuses on supporting the navigation of pedestrians in urban areas. The design implications are explored in this study with the subjects being pedestrians accomplishing wayfinding tasks in an unfamiliar, urban area. The main areas that this paper contributes to are: investigating the design implications of multimodal navigation aids; evaluating these in the context of mobile wayfinding tasks; and reflecting the results according to the user's wayfinding strategies and spatial anxiety. It is concluded that through designing multimodal tracks into mobile navigation applications we can help users to find their way in unfamiliar, urban environments.     

Systems of representation: a pedagogical model for design education in the information age

Abstract

The course SDR: Sistemas de Representación(Systems of Representation), is the last stage of a line of work which has the objective of integrating information technologies in the education of architecture in a meaningful way. A distinctive mark of this pedagogic approach has been to look upon computer technology as an opportunity to rethink the methods, contents and goals of architecturaleducation,in thelight of contemporary culture.

The course is structured in six themes, each one standing for a ‘system of representation’: ‘text’, ‘figure’, ‘object’, ‘image’, ‘space’ and ‘light’. Within every system, a variety of issues dealing with the concept of ‘representation’ are addressed in an interdisciplinary manner. It is a compulsory course lasting three semesters, in the second and third year of a five-year architectural program. It has been offered since the academic year 1999/2000.     

Cognitive evaluation for conceptual design: cognitive role of a 3D sculpture tool in the design thinking process

ABSTRACT

This study focuses on the decisive role played by the digital design environment in the cognitive design process and design thinking. To analyse the cognitive role of digital design tools, we carried out a protocol analysis of conventional design sketching and a 3D sculpture tool. Cognitive evaluation was a differentiating factor when considering the contextual role of the 3D sculpture tool in subsequent evaluations, non-sequential evaluations for conversion, and passive approaches within the design process. Cognitive evaluation played the following roles: validation, extension, navigation, exploration, and confirmation. The navigation, exploration, and extension roles played by non-sequential evaluation were mainly related to inductive design thinking. Finally, the types of cognitive evaluation and their roles when using the 3D sculpture tool were different, according to the design thinking type. This study explored the multidimensional roles of cognitive evaluation using a 3D sculpture tool and its relationship with design thinking types.     

Digital design and time on device; how aesthetic experience can help to illuminate the psychological impact of living in a digital culture

ABSTRACT

Aesthetic techniques are increasingly used by marketeers to create enticing digital products. In this paper, I work with the aesthetic experiences of one audience group to consider the psychological impact of living in a culture where digital devices are deliberately designed to influence behaviour. I argue that aesthetic encounters can help with understanding the impact of the interplay between visual stimulus, affect and digital culture, in ways that may support situated understandings of mental distress in a digital age. I show how audiences respond to the artist-led research project Are We All Addicts Now? arguing that they generate ideas connected to submersion and being overwhelmed as a means of reporting on their own personal experiences of living in a digital culture that seeks to influence behaviour. The findings may have value for designers, curators and artists invested in understanding the experiential impact of digital devices.     

金安桥水电站大坝抗震分析和抗震措施设计

金安桥水电站大坝地震设防烈度高达9度,基岩场地设计水平动峰值加速度为0.399 g,大坝抗震分析和抗震措施设计是工程关键性技术问题之一。采用数值计算法和模型试验法对碾压混凝土大坝进行了全面的动力分析,确定了大坝的抗震薄弱部位,为金安桥水电站大坝设计提供了保证。     

天花板水电站水土保持措施设计

在分析天花板水电站概况、项目区环境概况以及工程区水土流失与水土保持现状的基础上,确定了该工程水土流失防治标准及目标,并结合天花板水电站工程特点、区域水土保持防治要求,合理划分水土流失防治分区,提出水土保持防治措施布局及方案.     

压力隧洞设计与结构计算研究进展

针对目前压力隧洞设计现实和设计规范均不是很完善、结构计算缺乏可靠方法以及对内外水荷载作用下围岩衬砌联合承载机理研究还不深入的现状,对压力隧洞设计准则、结构计算以及内外水荷载作用下围岩衬砌联合承载机理这三个方面的国内外研究进展进行了综述,并指出存在的不足.基于研究现状的总结分析,提出了需要进一步深入研究的课题.研究成果可为压力隧洞的设计和结构计算提供参考.     

积石峡水电站混凝土面板堆石坝设计

积石峡水电站拦河坝为混凝土面板堆石坝,最大坝高103 m。坝址位于高山峡谷地区,河谷狭窄且不对称,岸坡陡峻。在设计中,围绕减少岸坡开挖和填筑工程量、减小坝体不均匀沉降、确保止水效果等关键技术问题,就堆石坝的布置、坝体分区、趾板布置、周边缝结构、坝顶结构等进行了优化设计,为在不对称狭窄河谷上建造高面板坝积累了成功经验。