1. Designing a New Hot Dog

Image from Fast Company.

A few weeks ago, the American Academy of Pediatrics declared hot dogs a potential choking hazard for young children. In this Fast Company piece, Ravi Sawhney of RKS set out to redesign hot dogs to be safe (and fun!), settling on the spring shape above.

I like the idea in the comments: just slice the dog down the middle before feeding it to your kids. That sounds like the DLB way.

2. "Mad Libs" Forms Increase Conversion 25-40%

Image by Luke Wroblewski.

The headline pretty much says it all.

At first look, it does seem to be a more appealing form design. Though I wonder if it works better because of novelty, or because it really is better than a standard form?

3. To Do Better, Feel Worse

According to studies referenced in Scientific American, people in a bad mood may perform tasks better than those in a good mood.

Grumpy people paid closer attention to details, showed less gullibility, were less prone to errors of judgment and formed higher-quality, persuasive arguments than their happy counterparts. One study even supports the notion that those who show signs of either fear, anger, disgust or sadness—the four basic negative emotions—achieve stronger eyewitness recall while virtually eliminating the effect of misinformation.

That last part sounds like it could apply to commercials or videos to make them more effective. Other than that, while I'm glad bad moods are good for something, I'm not about to induce one just so I can be more productive...

4. Most Attractive Sounds

I must admit, I don't pay much attention to sound in designs, but after this story I might.

According to the article, 83% of advertising is exclusively sight-based. To me, that spells opportunity.

After reviewing the lists of memorable sounds (I'm not going to say "addictive", as the writer suggests, that's just silly), I was surprised at how closely I associated them with their branding or with a particular product category. It may be time to flex those sound design muscles.

1. The Ethics of 3D

Creative Commons photo by Jim Frost

3D seems to be everywhere these days, but is it bad for us? ABC blogger Mark Pesce thinks it might be.

Exposure to the kind of fake-3D we see in movies and video games can affect a person's real-world depth perception. Unless a different technology comes along, Pesce argues that viewing 3D in this way for long periods of time could cause permanent perceptual damage(!).

But the media companies must have thought of this, right? Not really:

All of this is rolling forward without any thought to the potential health hazards of continuous, long-term exposure to 3D. None of the television manufacturers have done any health & safety testing around this. They must believe that if it's safe enough for the cinema, it's fine for the living room. But that's simply not the case. Getting a few hours every few weeks is nothing like getting a few hours, every single day.

To follow up on this question of ethics, what about 3D accessibility, as well?

Even if it proves to be harmless (which I doubt -- more on that next week), as it turns out, some people can't see 3D. It bears noting than an experience should not require 3D, or one risks excluding at least some of the audience.

As designers, it seems as though we ought to be more careful in our application of 3D.

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1. The Customer Whisperer

I've been thinking over this article for a couple of weeks as it supports a theory I have about client relations. Bad interactions are not always the fault of the client. Sometimes it is because the designer has improperly set the expectations within the relationship. The client has not been properly trained.

I think it's human nature to want to be "nice" to those who sign our checks, but as Dave Nicolette points out in this post, if you're nice to a new puppy -- if you don't impose discipline -- it will relieve itself all over your apartment.

In a healthy relationship, it can be necessary for the designer to shape the behavior of the client (or at least be cognizant of patterns of behavior), not to manipulate them, but to ensure the best outcome of the project.

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1. Philosophy is Back in Business

Are we ahead of the curve or what? First business needs design. Now it needs philosophy.

According to a recent article from BusinessWeek, organizations have lost sight of the big picture. Philosophy, which considers problems of values, character, and ethics, can put businesses on the right track, serving human needs and interests.

[C]orporations are promoting the notion that their mission extends beyond profit and provides new frameworks—transportation, fuel, manufacturing, and so forth—for improving existence. These assertions require supporting actions over the long term if they are to have merit. In our connected and transparent world, where so many can easily see deeply into our operations, it has become clear that companies and even nations have character—and that their character is their destiny. For institutions to ensure that their characters, or cultures, are consistent with their behavior, they need more humans within their organizations who can appropriately manifest the desired culture through leadership, business practices, and individual behaviors.

Looks like there's a future for philosophers in the boardroom as well as the classroom. We've been saying it all along. ;)

2. Zen Humidifier

Love this humidifier from Masuza. Made of Japanese Cypress, it uses no electricity. Water is naturally drawn through the wood and evaporated into the air. Minimal, beautiful, and natural -- this is a great little piece of design. Via.

3. Sheepthink

How much of popular culture is simply people following the crowd? Can advertisers get you to buy something by falsely telling you that that other people like it? Clive Thompson writes about a research study that attempted to find out.

In the study, a music store was set up with a ratings system and purchasing habits were tracked in a variety of scenarios. Unsurprisingly, the researchers found evidence that social pressure is real -- that popular music (as rated by other listeners) tended to sell better. Most interesting, though, was that when the researchers purposefully rigged the system to promote bad music, in at least one instance people lost faith in the system and bought less music overall. Another data point for honest advertising.

4. Letterhead Collection

Filed under Inspirado, I'm digging this collection of letterheads from Letterheady. Some of the older ones are especially neat.

1. The Third & The Seventh

Ridiculously-good CG on display here. Alex Roman takes us through a series of artfully-presented architectural spaces. (Really, it's all CG)

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1. Ten Graphic Design Paradoxes

A call for designers to take greater responsibility, Design Observer delivers a hefty dose of reality in this list. It's not the clients or the projects, but how we respond to them that make a heaven or hell of our work.

Number 10 is especially relevant:

If we believe in nothing, we shouldn’t wonder why no one believes in us. In a world with no principles, people respect those who have principles. Impersonating a doormat is a poor way to be an effective graphic designer. In fact, standing up for what we believe in — ethics, morality, professional standards, even aesthetic preferences — is the only way to produce meaningful work. Of course we won’t win every time, but we will win more often than the designer who doesn't believe in anything. There are countless ways in which we can demonstrate professional integrity — the only mistake we can make is not to demonstrate any.

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Photo by Wally Gobetz

1. The Lazy Designer’s Guide to Success

Pentagram's Michael Bierut offers seven ways designers can work smarter, not harder.

#4. Do as you’re told.
Simply following the client's instructions will yield wonders. For Bierut – who likes limitations – creating the gargantuan sign for Renzo Piano’s New York Times building was fairly straightforward. The Times Square Alliance mandates that all buildings in the neighbourhood feature bright, large signage, to "keep Times Square looking like Times Square,” says Bierut. (He adds that, for Piano, hearing the words large-sign-stuck-on-your-building must have been, "like, the biggest 6-word, ‘F--- you, architect’.”) And so, the almost 6 meter-tall logo was chopped into 893 pieces and applied to Piano’s ceramic rod façade.

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1. A visual interpretation of Delueze and Guattari's A Thousand Plateaus

Check out this collection by Marc Ngui.

2. Time in nature makes us more caring

If we want people to do more good in the world, perhaps greater exposure to nature is the ticket. According to this study, you don't even have to be outside to experience the effect. Some outdoor wallpaper and plants can help make one more prone to care about others.

3. Delegate

This is timely. Feeling overwhelmed? Perhaps you need to learn how to delegate.

4. Google Analytics goes asynchronous

Google's new update promises "faster tracking code load times" and "enhanced data collection & accuracy". Time to revise those CMS templates?