Author: abdizads

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3.3 Speculations- Serena & Sahar(Team 1)

Arc: Transform, Terrain: Genetics, Object: Machine, Mood: Shock

In 2020 Happy Habitat continues to protect the national wildlife refuge at Don Edwards San Francisco Bay.

Scientists have used advanced technology and innovative machines to edit genes. Many animals lost their lives as a result of severe damages caused by alteration of their genes.

This evolution had adverse effects on wildlife species by all means. The transformation of human life into a machinelike lifestyle is shocking. Massive experiment and research buildings have replaced the green spaces. A lot of animals life were destroyed as the result of the genetic experiments with the goal of enhancing human’s life. However, by ruining natural recourses, wildlife, and parks more and more people are getting depressed living an artificial life. The Happy Habitat project continues to support kids and families by creating natural spaces for people to interact with green environments while protecting the wildlife and nature of the refuge.

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3.2 Personas: Sahar Abdizadeh

PERSONA

SCENARIO

Aimi moved to the US with her parents three years ago as a refugee. She did not know any English upon arrival. The language barrier could not stop her form by finding new friends. Unlike her parents, she is an outgoing kid who loves fun and outdoor physical activities. Her favorite place is Natural Wildlife Refuge where she can meet new friends and get involved in outdoor activities. This place has beautiful nature and wildlife along with wonderful trails. She enjoys walking on trails and exploring the wildlife.

STORYBOARD

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Narratives 3.1.2- Sahar Abdizadeh

It was Friday morning I left my kids in the playground with their favorite nanny whome they call Aunti Zahra. I was supposed to feel relaxed. It was what I looked for. Spending a few hours in the morning with my husband without worrying about kids. It felt weird. We are not used to not having these two little monkeys around. “Let’s go get coffee,” I said. ” we can get coffee together when we picked up kids from the park, you know how much Daniel loves Starbucks. How about we go have lunch” he replied. “lunch, are you kidding me, without kids” I said. Then we both started laughing. I think we get so much used to having kids around that we miss them everywhere we go. In the end, we decided to cook to the day. Since we both hate to look for parking spaces we decided to go to Whole-foods across the street from our home. We stopped by whole foods to grab a few things. “do you want me to grab a cart” my husband said to me. “no I just need 2-3 items” I replied.  W enjoyed the Christmas music and decorations in the grocery store. I left Whole-foods with chips, Kombucha, eggs, tomatoes, two large one-gallon milk, steak, and fish. We could barely keep our balance holding all these items in hand. My husband turned back to me and said: ” I’ll never trust you when you say you don’t need a cart”. I think overall I really enjoyed my date with my husband, I think we should plan more of such fun days together;) .

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Geographies, Part 2: Sahar Abdizadeh

This exercise reminded me of Jon Kabar quote about mindfulness. He says” The best way to capture moments is to pay attention”. This exercise seemed easy at first. Because I have been practicing mindfulness, living in the moment and capturing experiences, for years. The only difference is that this time beside capturing moments in my mind, I need to illustrate them on a piece of paper. After doing this exercise I realized that I am not as mindful as I thought I was. There are many things happening every sing moment which I miss. Some are happening simultaneously. Paying attention to one thing forces us to fade other things to the background. This exercise also thought me seeing is so different from paying attention. I walked around my neighborhood for the 100th time. But this time I paid attention to things I never noticed before.

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Project 2 – Mappings: Sahar Abdizadeh

Irvine Spectrum Center

Irvine Spectrum Center is one of the most well-known shopping malls in orange county. Aside from shops, it has many attractions for families and children to have fun.

Force1:

(The Giant Wheel):
Irvine spectrum giant wheel is one of the iconic elements that can be viewed from the freeway. It’s design and lightings attracts people attention. There are beautiful photos of this shopping center with the image of the giant wheel at night on the shopping mall advertising photos.

Force2: Parking

 I believe one important element that can affect people’s visits to a shopping center is the availability of parking spaces. Irvine spectrum looks so overwhelming when there are traffic created due to many people anxiously looking for parking spaces.

Force3: Children’s Attraction 

One of the attractions of Irvine Spectrum Center is the Carousel. Most children love riding or watching this antique designed carousel. It affects the ambiance. Hearing kids laughing and having fun creates a satisfying mood for children and parents.
Another interesting attraction I observed was Luckey Climber. I really love the design of this climbing structure for kids. It is both safe, functional, and beautiful.

Force4: Music

One thing that I notice in this place is the ambient background music which is continuously playing in all the areas. I personally music, and I think one thing that makes me want to stay in this place longer is the music.

Force5: Cafes

This area of the shopping mall is full of family activities. I was not surprised to see 3 cafes with plenty to outdoor sitting areas for parents to chill out while their kids are playing

Final Map

PDF

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Informations, Part 3: Sahar Abdizadeh

I like this sign because it has a clear message. The massage is rendered in red, which attracts people attention. I can easily figure out what the designer wanted me to focus on. Scale and color contrasts are used to attract attention to the most important elements.

I hate this sign, because it does not provide me with any information. I can not understand what it is about. It requires me and extra step to figure out what the message is.

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Informations, Part 2: Sahar Abdizadeh

 

 

 

 

This the Newport Beach Public Library’s map. I believe this is a user friendly map. It helped me a lot in find different departments in the library when I visited this place for the first time. I can see the following design principals has been used in designing this map.

Layering: Different colors are used to organize different departments. If the plan was designed in one color it would look complex. Also the related areas are rendered in a same color.

Iconic Representation: Universal Icons such as men and women’s restrooms, information, and elevators are used in this map. These icons along with furniture icons increase learnability and recognition.

Way finding:  Use of door icons, stairs, and entrance helps user understand the flow of movements in this building. It clearly illustrates where people enter, and how they access different departments and upper floor.

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Team 1 Principle# 6: Confirmation

Confirmation

People often accidentally find themselves performing a different action than what they initially intended. Some events could have a severe negative impact if not done correctly. For example, deleting a software project that took a couple of months of a small team of developers will affect the bottom line of a company. Confirmation is not only an authorization message that is nice to have. Confirmation is a design principle that helps in preventing unintentional actions with potentially severe adverse results. In other words, the confirmation design principle uses verification to ensure that a performer of action has selected the intended action correctly before execution.

Example #1 cited by the original source:

The above examples are from the book. One example of a confirmation design is to ask users to re-enter a required input such as a password or an account number as a way to prevent slips. Another example is confirming that an email with a blank subject is intentional.

Example #2 found online:

This is a confirmation example that I saw while using the Venmo mobile app. The Venmo app is used to send money to someone using their cell phone number or a user ID. When I click the call to action button (Send), the app requires me to confirm the transaction information such as the amount to be transferred, the receiver of the money, and a description for the transaction before performing the command.

Example #3 found in real life:

I always get a confirmation to authorize the total amount of order when using my credit card to make a purchase. The credit card readers that are connected to a store’s point of sale solution show a message to customers to approve the amount that will be deducted from their accounts.

Citation:
1. Lidwell, William, et al. Universal Principles of Design 125 Ways to Enhance Usability, Influence Perception, Increase Appeal, Make Better Design Decisions, and Teach through Design. Rockport, 2010.

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Team 1 Principle# 5: Comparison

Comparison

Comparison is a design method through which one can understand how a particular circumstance or situation can have different effects on two or more systems. This method reveals relationships and patterns among systems. Comparison is a useful method for measuring differences among systems which are similar or in the same context.

Example #1 Cited by the original source:

This is the Diagram of the Causes of Mortality in the Army in the East. Comparison is easier when diagrams are located next to each other on the same page. These diagrams compare the causes of army’s mortality in different years. The graph has 12 wedges representing each month, and three colors showing causes of death.

Example #2 found online:

This illustration is the comparison of countries population in the world. Each circle represents a country, and each continent is represented by different color. This data visualization has made the information appear simple.

https://www.businessinsider.com/heres-a-comparison-of-the-population-of-every-us-county-using-bubbles-2017-3

Example #3 found in real life:

Today was really windy. I was walking outside when I noticed a loud noise. I looked back and saw these outdoor chairs were blown away by the wind. I was wondering why only some of these chair has blown away and rest are set in their place. However, they are all the same regarding material and environment. This is an example of apple to apple comparison. The chairs are the same in the same situation. The only variable is their position to the wind.

Citation:
Lidwell, William, et al. Universal Principles of Design 125 Ways to Enhance Usability, Influence Perception, Increase Appeal, Make Better Design Decisions, and Teach through Design. Rockport, 2010.

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Objects, Part 2: Sahar Abdizadeh

 

 

 

 

 

 

A. This is my bar stool. I use this stool a few times a day for eating and doing my work. Although it is not comfortable, I use it a lot. I usually keep things on the island out of the reach of my children, so I use this chair more often. One thing I like about this chair is that I can clean it quickly. It is also a fantastic space saver in my small kitchen.
B. This is my driver’s seat. I drive an average of 2 hours daily, so it is essential for me to be comfortable in my driver’s seat. The fabric is soft and anti-sweat. I feel in control because this seat is highly adjustable. I can also save my preferred adjustments so I can change the seat position with one click.
c. This is my work seat. I love to move around and fidget. The wheels provide smooth gliding, which is an amusing feature for my kids too. I also like the fabric on the seat and on its back. It prevents paint scratches.
D. This is my kids’ chair. I spend a lot of time sitting on this chair with my kids for drawing and eating. They want me to sit next to them on the chair while they’re eating or working. I don’t expect these chair to be comfortable for me, but I appreciate its stability. I feel safe when I sit on them.
E. This is my friend’s patio chair. I like its color and patterns. When I see them, it attracts my attention. Its simplicity provides flexibility for design and decoration. It can go with different quotients’ colors and patterns. With the addition of quotient, I can rest on them for hours. Its fabric does not hold water and rain. It helps the water dry out very fast. One thing I love about them is that they’re washable.
F. This is our community bench. The only good thing about it is that it has a cool design and style. The wood holds water, so I barely find it dry to sit on it. It is not comfortable at all. Besides form being rigid, it does not have any back support. Sitting on this bench is really tiring.

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Objects, Part 1: Sahar Abdizadeh

 

  • Object I love: Ju-Ju Be Diaper Bag

 

 

 

 

 

 

I fell in love with this bag the moment I saw it. I’ve been using this bag for 5 years now. It looks small, but the way it is designed can fit more than I could imagine. It has many pockets. 3 on the outside and 8 on the inside.
My favorite feature is the shoulder straps. The straps afford to wear the bag as a backpack which helps a lot with my shoulder and back pain. The shortening mechanism on the belt has visible signifiers that help understand how to change the length. When reached to the desirable length, the strap buckle gives feedback with a clicking noise which means the strap is locked in place.
The bag also has an over-the-shoulder strap option.
There are two round side pockets on the outside. These pockets are insulated and are designed for baby bottles. I like the circular shape which constrains putting anything other than a baby bottle in insulated pockets. Besides lots of storage pockets inside, this bag has storage on the front which is designed primarily for keys, sanitizers, cellphone, and credit cards. This provides the comfort of carrying only one sack.

 

  • Object I hate: Bissell CrossWaive vacuum and mop

 

 

 

 

 

 

I hate my Bissell vacuum cleaner and mop. When I first saw this product, I was thinking it is going to make my life easy since it both vacuums and cleans different surfaces. However, when I tried it, I realized it does not do any of the jobs well. Besides being heavy and its super loud noise, it leaves the floor wet which leaves stains on my wood flooring. First time I wanted to use this I was utterly clueless about how to use it. There is absolutely no visual cues of how to use it. There were no signifiers for how and where to add water and the detergent. How to clean and empty the trash storage tray. The storage tray seemed to affords pulling. Therefore, my conceptual model was that I need to grab the handle and pull it out. I almost broke the handle because I had first to push the handle to unlock the storage tray and then pull it out. Another problem I have with this product is that it does not provide a feedback on wether it is on carpet clean mode or wood flooring mode. My work around is that I push carpet clean button several times to make sure it is on that mode when I clean the carpet.