Thanks to Prof. Dr. Molly Steenson for initiating this habit, this is the 9th year I’ve done these reviews. 1.What did you do in 2015 that you’d never done before? Went back home five times. 2. Did you keep your New Years’ resolutions, and will you make more for next year? What New Year’s Resolutions 3. Did… Continue reading End of year review
The year of the Good Night Lamp
I’ve been a bit quiet about the the Good Night Lamp but this year was major. I actually made and shipped lamps around the world. Here is a rather long breakdown of how I did it, how much it cost and what’s next. A bit of history I had the idea in 2005 as a student… Continue reading The year of the Good Night Lamp
New Creatives
I recently gave a talk at the closing event of an EU-funded program to support the creative industries around Coventry and it gave me an opportunity to think about my ‘practice’. This is a word people in the creative industries like. It sounds like ‘craft’ but with more intent, more direction. I don’t think of… Continue reading New Creatives
What does it do? A proposal for connected product labelling.
The problem with connected products is (among other things) that they have a life beyond our actual use of them. Data is collected by manufacturers about how we use our lightbulbs, wristbands, thermostats and more. That data is collected at a particular rate and we often don’t have access to… Continue reading What does it do? A proposal for connected product labelling.
Ten years of the internet of things through the eyes of Gartner
The end of the summer marks the return to school and a time to digest our favorite summer publication: the Gartner Hype Cycle for Emerging Technologies Chart. Every year I feel a bit confused about this graph. Folks in B2B sectors swear by it and have pointed out that in the last two years the internet of things reached… Continue reading Ten years of the internet of things through the eyes of Gartner
Making ourselves happy
I just got off recording a podcast which was focused on AI and sci-fi. Not my favorite topics. Reminded me of a moment in the excellent Déclin de l’Empire Américain (1986). Ce qui veut dire qu’un mariage réussi n’a rien à voir avec le bonheur personnel de deux individus mariés ensemble. À la limite, la question… Continue reading Making ourselves happy
How to get people to make things for you
We’re a week away from the deadline for the Smart Oxford Challenge and I was asked if this was a hackathon. That expression and the format it has come to represent gives me the heeby-jeebies so I wanted to share why, and what makes the Challenge different. This is coming from ten years of organising events… Continue reading How to get people to make things for you
HOME/SICK : the new nature of things in a connected world
I was asked some months ago by the Science Gallery in Dublin to join the curation team to help choose pieces for the HOME/SICK exhibition which is opening to the public tomorrow. We were presented with a number of artworks which would fit within traditional boundaries such as sculpture, architecture, video work, paintings but the team… Continue reading HOME/SICK : the new nature of things in a connected world
Hope, hydroelectricity and all the things that power work.
My adoptive father Marcel was diagnosed with prostate cancer 10 years ago. Last February my adoptive mom (a retired breast cancer nurse) called me and informed me that his cancer was now metastatic which meant a switch to hormone therapy. So in the midst of shipping my first batch of Good Night Lamps (which was… Continue reading Hope, hydroelectricity and all the things that power work.
Placebos, invisibility & just enough information: a long term informal study of wearables
Last November, after a month away for client work and visiting family in New Zealand & Australia I decided to buy an activity tracker. When at home in London I can clock 10K of walking easily. When I’m travelling, all activity ceases. So I wanted to try out a so-called “wearable”. I did what ever… Continue reading Placebos, invisibility & just enough information: a long term informal study of wearables