Reading Reflection 02

I finished reading the end of “Design: A Very Short Introduction” by John Hesektt and also started reading “Cradle to cradle” by William McDonough and Michael Braungart.

I found a couple of things very interesting in the “Identity” section of the first book. A part of the section discussed how it is important to keep the culture of the people you are designing for in mind when designing a product. For example, washing machines in India are designed to be able to wash long saris that are often worn. Also, a soak cycle was added to washers in Brazil to tend to the belief that only soaking a garment can really clean it.

I also liked when they talked about the design of Apple’s packaging. I have found many times that I am amazed by how simply and creatively Apple can package a product. I think this says a lot about a company: the fact that they are willing to put effort and money into the packaging design.

When I was reading the “Systems” section, I realized that I never thought about how much design and planning goes into transportation. Other than the physical system itself, there is a lot of thought that needs to go into designing the signs and instructions on how to use the system.

While reading “Cradle to Cradle”, I found it very disturbing how dangerous our common day items are. They mentioned all of the chemicals in the soles of shoes and how whenever we walk and kick up dust, we are releasing toxins in the air.

I also thought the statement in the end of the section about ants was very intriguing. “Ants have been incredibly industrious for millions of years. Yet their productiveness nourishes plants, animals and soil. Human industry has been in full swing for little over a century, yet it has brought about a decline in almost every ecosystem on the planet” (16).

I have often thought about this fact. If you think about how much humans have changed the planet in the past 100 years, it is scary to think what the world will be like in 100 years. I feel like humans have created so many new products and technology, but I feel like we have done significantly more harm to the planet than good. I am looking forward to reading more of this book.