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Final Project: Dissolvabrush

In the near futuristic setting, our world misuses the DNA from the toothbrush to duplicate other humans. These people can range from regular citizens to important figures such as the president, renowned scientists, and artists. After 3-4 months of using your toothbrush, which is the recommended throwout period of toothbrush by dentists, you would dispose your toothbrush by removing the head and putting it into a solution. The head would slowly dissolve into the solution. This way your DNA traces would be mixed into the water and much harder to find because it will be flushed into the water from the toilet or sink. For our prototype, we chose to use different kinds of materials such as styrofoam and acetone that are able to dissolve. We chose to use styrofoam to also make the bristle part because we did not have the materials to make bristles that actually dissolve. In a futuristic world, we would have used tapioca and corn. However, that material would only last about a month.

As for making the Dissolvabrush, we first 3D-printed the handle using Autodesk Inventor and created a 4in x 1 in x .75 in handle. We then used Cura to change the file from stl to gcode so that the printer could read it. It was cool to be able to preview our 3D print and see layer by layer. There is a hollow opening on the top of the handle so that the cap can be inserted in. The dimensions of the hollow opening is .7in x .4 in x 1.25 in. This is similar to how electric toothbrushes work but instead of screwing a new head on, it slides into place. The head and its bristles are made of styrofoam. We carved it out with an Xacto knife. Ideally, in our futuristic world, it would be made out of a bioplastic or compostable material in order to be considered ecofriendly as most toothbrushes are currently not biodegradable and create excess plastic waste. Hello toothbrushes (the leading brand of ecofriendly toothbrushes) are made of a bamboo handle and the bristles are made of tapioca and corn. The styrofoam and acetone are meant to show the speculative design of our toothbrush, and the materials are just prototypes. We chose these materials because they were easy to get and reliable as both of us have seen how styrofoam can quickly dissolve in acetone.

In the future, we could possibly make the whole part of the toothbrush dissolvable so that it would be even harder for people to trace the DNA. It is still possible to have DNA and fingerprints stuck onto the plastic handle of the brush. It would be cool if we could branch this dissolvable idea which is still in the prototyping phase into something even bigger such as product packaging which is considered a type of waste or pollution. We believe this would help the world in the long run if we could cut down waste and slow the process of global warming.

For my 12th constant output, I wanted to make a balloon pop. Why? I’m not sure. Probably because I wanted to see if I could not use a reference photo, and I thought popping a balloon would be cool to animate.

11/24

for my 11th Constant Output, I wanted to do something that reflects how I’m feeling. Also I wanted to start making my own aesthetic so I colored the puddle and cloud how I would usually draw.

Attend A Lecture

For my lecture, I chose to attend Scott Harrison's charity: water talk at NYU Stern. Charity: water is his nonprofit organization that focuses on providing drinking water to people in developing nations. As of 2019, the organization has raised $370 million. According to the organization, it has funded 44,000 water projects in 28 countries. His lecture mentions how he went from an addicted, nightlife club host to the founder of one of the largest, most successful nonprofits. After a shooting at a nightclub he promoted in Paraguay, Harrison quit his job and volunteered as a photojournalist for the Christian charity Mercy Ships, which operates a fleet of hospital ships offering free healthcare. He took over 60,000 photos of patients in 13 months. While taking photos, he realized the harsh conditions in less-developed countries, so he wanted to take action by creating charity: water. His presentation of the portraits affected me the most. He showed multiple slides of how dirty the water they drank was, how it was filled with viruses, harmful bacteria, and suspended particles. Design-wise, the way Scott Harrison promoted his organization was innovative at the time. No one has thought of creating a GPS system where a donator could visually see where his or her money went. They also implemented a subscription option so anyone could donate a certain amount per month. Charity: water was also able to partner with Google Maps, making their GPS system more accurate, down to the latitude and longitude number. Moreover, the organization has made it clear that 100% of the profits will go towards their message and not funding themselves. Overall, his presentation opened my eyes to the possibilities of design in the world. From the website to the actual equipment being built on-site, Scott is an inventive businessman and designer. He used human-centered design for the technologies used to purify water by making biosand filters. It is affordable (around $50 to build), easy to use, and effective. Moreover, he found the problems in each community by interviewing actual residents and living in their life. A story Scott mentioned was when he walked 20 miles with a woman collecting water in the middle of the summer because that was the closest source of water. While walking, the woman mentioned another person who used to collect water until they committed suicide. After collecting the water, the person dropped the filled pot, all the water spilt, and the pot broke. To prevent confrontation, the person tied themselves to a tree with a rope. Scott saw the exact tree where she died, and took a photo for us to see. These personal stories make his purpose more important and impactful to the world, and his way ot storytelling intertwines with his design thinking.

Reading Response No. 7: The Design of Everyday Things, Ch. 6

In "Design and Everyday Things: Chapter 6," Don Norman discusses the difference between engineers/businessmen to designers. He states engineers and business people are taught to solve problems, but designers are trained to discover the real problems of a product. At first, this caught me off-guard because I usually try to solve the problem given to me, as we were taught that in high school. However, Norma says designers should not be opposed to thinking divergently and almost go backward in solving the problem. I thought the "Double-Diamond Model of Design" was an effective way of visually explaining how the process of iteration occurs when determining what problem to solve, and how to solve it. One topic he mentions that I am familiar with is applied ethnography. In our Engineering Forum class, we have to design a product that is meant to solve a problem. Our product is a bulletproof desk that can be used as a shield or barricade in the events of a school shooting. We were able to use applied ethnography simply by interviewing other students and reflecting on our past high school experiences. Because all our interviewees went to high school, they are aware of what could happen to them while at school. For prototyping, I thought the "Wizard of Oz" reference was clever because it helped me understand what a prototype needs to do: appear as the real product, but not with the specs necessarily. Overall, this chapter helped me realize what to prioritize in terms of human-centered design. Activites are more important than tasks as they are hierarchical and are usually the root of the problem. Instead of trying to appeal to the average human and his/her needs, try to make different versions of your product so no one is left out. Changing what's been standardized is not recommended because it will come across as confusing rather than complex to people.

Cradle to Grave: Toothbrush

For my Seatbelt for Technology project, I chose a toothbrush. Here is the pdf to my Cradle to Grave infographic and my research:

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qmaDTxgfrIGeGL7ERmjf5et8-JgjqXKGBk2S1tSynbk/edit?usp=sharing

Uploaded: 11/17

For our dystopian world, we created a society called HUNGARY. People are hunter-gatherers who live under an authoritarian government.

Group Members: Frederic, Kiana, Caroline, Julia

Submitted: 11/16

for meye 10th constant output, eye wanted to something more realistic because eye have only done cartoons so far, so eye chose an eye. Instead of looking at an already animated version, my friend, Kiana, told me to try recording small clips of people doing the action eye want to animate and then look at each individual frame so eye can make it more accurate.

11/10

Reading Response No. 6: “Her”

Before this assignment, I had never heard of “Her,” even though it has very positive ratings on film review websites. After reading the summary and trailer, it seemed similar to Black Mirror, which I am a massive fan of. Movies set in the future have always interested me, because I like seeing what other people imagine future Earth with its newfangled technologies and robots that are destined to malfunction. “Her” was an example of what reality could become.

The plot is about Samantha, an OS(operating system) that can experience emotions, think for herself, and learn from experience. It can basically grow as a human being, except she’s a software. Theodore, the main character, happens to fall in love with his OS, although most people use them similar to Siri, except it is more efficient. As the movie progressed, we see more people interacting with their personal OS and how it has been integrated into everyone’s lives. People are always talking to them, and they can even communicate with each other, an online OS community. The movie also includes small technological advances, like cameras that look like moles and can be glued to your face, games where the character imitates your actions without needing the VR headset, and phones where your fingers are no longer needed to use it.

Overall, this movie gave me similar feelings to Black Mirror. I was uncomfortable 90% of the time but I still wanted to watch because it was so interesting and weird. Dating a computer, or any AI, in general, makes me uncomfortable, but I know there is already technology geared towards it and this movie could be foreshadowing an inevitable future as people become more independent and reliant on technology. Dating apps are being normalized, and I remember seeing this invention where you could kiss someone from far away because the technology imitates your lips. Although it may seem farfetched, I think having technology integrated into people’s private life is very possible. Would I want that? Absolutely not.

As much as I would like to believe humans can make an OS sentient and experience unique emotions, I’d rather them keep technology separate from relationships. Humans can connect with each other for a reason: we’re the same species. Sure, we have relationships with our pets and other animals, but the way we communicate with each other is unique compared to a human and a dog. There’s intuition, emotion, and our subconscious working all at once, and I don’t think there will ever be enough code to make a robot/computer do the exact same thing.

11/9

Reading Response 5: Speculative Everything, Chapters 1 and 2

“Speculative Everything” made me realize the opportunities our generation currently has in society. It is true that we have to hope for a better world that has less poverty, is more environmentally-friendly, etc. because of the issues that have been passed along. Inventions and industries that were made decades ago have introduced new problems that now affect everyone. Susan Neiman’s quote, “Ideals are not measured by whether they conform to reality; reality is judged by whether it lives up to ideals” stood out to me because it pushes designers to think conceptually instead of realistically. This helped me realize the importance of speculative/conceptual design. Without it, new ideas and innovative designs would be harder to come by. Another observation I noticed while reading was that I was more drawn to the "speculative" designs (ex: Otamatone, Plumen Light Bulb) meant for market expectation rather than the unrealistic concepts such as House VI. After reading I found that this happens for a reason. Using everyday objects and not completely changing their product design does not lead to innovation and new inventions. It only builds upon what has already been made instead of imagining a new reality. Although this reading makes me believe society has not appreciated speculative design as much as it should be, I think we have already shown multiple signs of turning speculative design into a reality. Cars, iPhones, the Internet, and countless other technologies are seen as conveniences today, but 50 years ago, they would be seen as impossible and crazy. Another example mentioned in the reading is Katherine Hamnett's "infamous" slogan t-shirts, even though fashion companies push the line more than ever before, and her slogans are widely used today.

11/5

for my 9th constant output, I wanted to start doing more things in 1930s style, so I did frame-by-frame and deeply regretted it but hey, its an octopus slapping a nonexistent object.

11/3

For my collaborative output, Fiona and I wanted to do something in the 1930s cartoon style because both of us have been wanting to try it for our constant output. Fiona drew the background initially in watercolor and referenced an old cartoon called “Silly Symphony Flowers,” but we decided it would look better in black and white to suit the “vintage look.” I animated the three flowers in the traditional rubberhose style by doing frame-by-frame instead of tweening. The eyes are pie cut because most cartoons used that style, and I tried to shade for the first time. Also, the video is 12 frames per sec because cartoons were also 12 frames per second back then.

10/29

Reupload of my third constant output, I deleted it by accident.

Originally submitted: 9/22

For my fluxus score, I wanted to do something to make others happy or extremely confused. Most people enjoy receiving hugs, but I knew some of my friends aren’t used to it, so I wanted to see their reaction to random acts of kindness. I would have done this with strangers but I felt it would’ve ended badly.

For my seventh constant output, I wanted to recreate Cuphead. This game has always inspired me to animate because the creators drew every character model by hand, similar to how people made cartoons back in the 1930s. I mainly used shape tweens and I tried making layers for the first time.

For my toolbox project, I asked my high school teacher back at home what he would want in an ideal toolbox. He said the box should be thin and lightweight so it’s easily portable and wont take up space. I wanted a place to store my paint brushes and carry them because when I was painting my creative process, it was hard transporting the brushes from my lounge to my room. Also, brushes should be dried sideways in order to preserve the glue, and initially I was letting them dry in a cup.

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