Melis Agabigum ADPIII-004 World Changing 2 10.05.10
In the article, Doing the Right Thing Can Be Delicious, the topics of slow food and sustainable farming are discussed. I was surprised to learn that we use over half a gallon of gasoline to produce one two-pound bag of breakfast cereal (51). The notion that we are using that much fossil fuel to create something that can be produced much more efficiently is very depressing, and makes me wonder why we have not found a more energy friendly way of producing these products.
Under the section "Sustainable Farming 101", it is stated that there was a 22-year-long study performed at the Rodale Institute of Farming Systems, where they compared organic and chemically grown crops. They discovered that the crops (soybeans and corn) that were grown organically reduced soil erosion, conserved water and used about 30 percent less fossil fuels than chemically dependant forms of farming (52). If all of these facts are true, it becomes difficult for me to understand why all means of farming have not become organic. There is less energy used, and the soil that we are using to farm on does not become depleted of its nutrients. With crop rotation, we would be able to reduce the amount of money and energy that we are spending on chemically created fertilizer and pesticides. It does not make any sense to me, that the cost of organic food is so high in contrast to chemically produced food. If we are creating food from unnatural means, wouldn’t it cost more due to all the techniques that are needed to keep the soil full of nutrients? We are able to conserve 30 percent of fossil fuels used in organic farming: why does organic food cost 30 percent more than chemically produced food? Ultimately, our whole means of farming is becoming superfluous and we must switch over to sustainable farming.
The ways of old industry can no longer be sustained. The way we harvest materials, alter them for our needs and then dispose of them creates too much waste, and often cannot be recycled. Industry as we know it has to change, and not just because we are polluting our world, but because we are running out of materials to harvest, such as fossil fuels.
The term Neobiological industry means that instead of creating objects from fossil fuels and minerals, objects would be made from biological resources. That means making plastics from plants, and new drugs from animal sources. Not only are these sources renewable, but they also are biodegradable and are much less wasteful.
Nature has developed much more precise, simple designs that humans could build from. As mentioned in the article about Neobiological Industry, we could make grass and other plant fibers in canvases or stereo speakers (World Changing, 110). There are many plants and animals in nature that produce strong and flexible materials much more effortlessly than humans can.
Also, these materials produce little to no waste, like crustacean shells. Also, organisms that produce valuable substances can be grown and harvested. The article mentions an alga that produces hydrogen under certain circumstances. This hydrogen can then be used as a fuel, that when its’ used produces water as its runoff. In addition, the use of Neobiological Industry would create materials and objects that when they come to the end of their life can be recycled effortlessly into a new product, or used to create more of the same substance, very much the way that dead plants decompose and are then food for new plants. This sort of sustainability is becoming popular and will likely expand as our need to break from conventional industry techniques increases.
The problems with today’s refugee camps are not something I have ever thought about. Whenever I hear about refugee camps, it’s always the media talking about how helpful and good they are. I obviously know how necessary refugee camps are for so many hard struck people in our world. I’m also aware that volunteering in one of these camps as a UN worker, Doctors Without Borders, or an aid worker is an exhausting and incredibly challenging job completely beyond anything I can fully imagine and understand. And it is a noble and heroic thing to work at one of these camps.
After reading this article, I’ve learned what needs to be improved in refugee camps and what efforts have been made to help thus far. I think the LifeStraw – a drinking straw that filters water as it comes through, is an amazing concept. Lasting a whole year, it supplies clean water to people that otherwise would have none. It’s much more reliable and accessible than transporting filtered water to a refugee camp. Similarly, the Plumy’nut paste gives a malnourished refugee all the nutrition he or she needs without the struggle of properly mixing and safely distributing a dry powder. These inventions are the stepping stones needed to improve our refugee camps and create a better situation for the people in need and the amazing volunteers helping them.
I think the compostable tent city is a phenomenal concept. The temporary shelter made of treated cardboard gives people time to re-build their town, and when the shelters are no longer needed, watering the temporary buildings will turn the cardboard into useful gardens. This is yet another way to help people re-build their lives. Now that I understand more about the issues with refugee camps, I’ll be sure to take note of how they change and hope they continue to develop and become more reliable for both the volunteers and the people in need.
Brands Today, brands play a large role in a world of materialism. They both thrive from consumers while creating the competitive market that forces consumers to continue to purchase their merchandise. In a sense, brands play both a good and a bad role in the economy. A line of products is a brand for a reason, because that brand guarantees a certain quality of good. If a brand does not live up to the expected quality, consumers will discontinue their purchases of that particular brand and buy another. This upholds a competitive market, and ensures goods are of high quality, however, it also pressures companies to go to great lengths to keep their sales up and cut costs. As a result companies engage in corrupt practices such as unfair treatment of both domestic and outsourced labor and shortcuts in production. Brand companies are well known publically and usually carefully watched. Often times lots of information about companies’ practices are available to the public, or privately leaked. Because the mass media so quickly spreads news to the public, and manipulates in what light information is conceived and dictates with what the public should concern their lives, brand companies must consider the ethics of their corporation and how they are perceived by the public. Because many times unflattering information about brand companies is released the public, consumers look to non-brand name stores. These non-brand name stores pride themselves on just that: producing and selling material that is of just as high quality as brand names without the corrupt practices. However as these new corporations become more popular, they are essentially branding themselves with the absence of the brand, and therefore become what they strive not to be and begin again the cyclical cycle. Consumers must be aware that the mass media tightly controls how information is delivered, indirectly telling the public how they should think about certain topics. The public should be weary in their purchases, yet understand that the economy relies on them as consumers. Brands must begin practicing production with methods that they want to be known for in the next decade.
Liz Ritenour ADP III Section 004 Craft It Yourself: pp 90-92 This section discusses not only the importance, but also the fun of do-it-yourself projects. DIY is a concept previously reserved for penny pushers, overconfident men, and eccentric arts and crafts enthusiasts. This is no longer the case. As environmental concerns become more prominent and personal, many people are finding DIY to be a necessity, while others see it as an opportunity to meet the demand of owning one-of-a-kind belongings. As art students, this idea should, essentially, be second nature. We are going to school to learn how to create things, and this interest generally seems to come from a lifetime of simply wanting to make art. Using old materials to make something new is now a way of both helping the environment and making a unique item that we would probably enjoy making anyway. The idea of do-it-yourself has often seemed unrealistic and campy to me. I associate it with poorly made items that could have just as easily been purchased. Now that I am in art school, however, I see how many people make things for themselves because it is fun, and it is what we like to do anyway. Especially considering that we have the tools available and the skills necessary to make quality items, it seems like common sense that we would look at the unnecessary items around us and envision a new use for them. It is also a more direct way of recycling items. Rather than being told that a recycled item is going to be recycled, we can instead recycle it ourselves and directly see the new purpose of the item. I am particularly interested in the idea of DIY because whenever I shop for things, particularly clothing, I am too picky to ever purchase anything. I always wish that I had designed something myself. I am now realizing that I can, in fact, design these things myself. We have sewing studios, wood shops, metal shops, and tons of other resources right in front of us, so it is not only smart to use them, but it is likely fun, as well.
The chapter I read in “World Changing” was titled “Mapping.” It is a topic I had never really thought much of and figure I would really be able to learn something from this writing. It began with a short introductory story following the beginnings of John Snow. Snow solved the Cholera epidemic engulfing the Soho district in London during 1854. He did this by discovering a common factor in all of the diseases victims: They all lived within reasonable walking distance from an infected water pump. This sort of mapping was one that I hadn’t considered as such before and I found to be very interesting. The amount of things maps can be used for is mind-blowing. Basically, anything that you could map-moisture content in leaves, the path and distance that a caribou walks in a given number of days, or something as simple as the temperature throughout the country can be illustrated using detailed maps that can now be rendered very quickly using Geographic Information systems, or more simply put, computers. In order to create maps of unknown areas we send countless smart technologies that have uncovered some of the world’s best-kept secrets, like the Chicxulub Crater discovered on the Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission, talked about in this chapter. This crater proved very important when scientists discovered that it was most likely the remains from the asteroid impact that once wiped out 70 percent of life on the planet 65 million years ago. With current technology it is amazing how people can now view different parts of the world in real time sequences. This was done when Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005 and a website was established for people to view real time imagery and other spatial-data. With so much information at our fingertips, the gap between the United States and other parts of the world is quickly closing.
I couldn’t understand how a 120 dollar operating system, Windows Xp, could still be so successful when a better and infinitely cheaper operating system was on the market. Open source is great, but I’ve learned that it’s hard to teach an old dog new tricks; users become accustomed to using their outdated proprietary software and as a result they aren’t welcoming to new, better software. I think people’s unwillingness to try new things is the biggest roadblock for the explosion of open source, but I think that road block will lower itself as new generations come in, better accustomed to computers. The big switch from Myspace to Facebook seemed like it happened almost overnight, turning Myspace to a joke. I’m sure if an open source social networking site were to arise, free of advertisements and nefarious data mining practices, users would transfer over by the bundle. The future is looking bright for open source.
This week I read “Eating Better Meat and Fish” out of the “World Changing” book. I chose this article because I have been interested in meat production since we read “This Steer’s Life,” and last Tuesday’s lecture made me more aware of fish production. This article was less about the problems of meat production, and more about how to shop for and eat meat with a relatively low environmental impact. It gave a less bleak view of the meat industry than our other readings and discussions have, providing names of organizations committed to producing ecologically friendly beef. One problem this article raised that I had not considered was the issue of methane emissions from cows affecting the greenhouse gases in our atmosphere. It seems absurd that cow’s (pardon the term) farts would be a major environmental concern, but according to this article, they are. The article also poses the idea that some have already put into practice, of utilizing cow’s excrements as an energy source. It also alludes to the idea that it may be good to use another red meat, bison. I found this ironic considering the fact that bison neared extinction in the past, but now could be a viable food source again because they are no longer endangered. The advice this excerpt gives on how to determine what meat to purchase may have gone to slight waste of me. Although I am not a vegetarian, I eat very little meat. In fact, I cannot even remember the last time I had any. At least now the next time I do eat meat, I will be able to make a good decision on what to buy to reduce the impact of my choices.
Elaine Czech 5 October 2010 ARTDES 250: SEC 4 Biomimicry p 99
In the world we live in now, great design is all around us. Mostly thanks to natural selection, which has weeded out all the designs that were not good. The world is constantly evolving new designs and adaptations upon old designs.
We our very much like natural selection: we live for the “now”, most people think in the “now”, and most designers’ design in the “now.” However with the new ecological awareness that is sweeping the “now” designers can no longer create just “now” products. Designers, instead of just making gas guzzling, carbon-emitting cars, need to think about more efficient, environment friendly modes of travel. For example the front of the Shinkansen bullet train in Japan is designed off of a kingfisher1. Although the original purpose for the design was to help reduce noise, it has also helped to decrease energy usage by nineteen percent2. By using the designs already found in nature and adapting them to fit our function designers are able to create things that work in our technology based society but also are less harmful to the environment.
Granted not all biomimicry is beneficial to the environment. The use of the “lotus effect” is great for keeping things clean as it repels water but can actually cause more harm to the environment since one product that uses the effect is a spray paint1 (Hutchinson). However if designers use the nature template to help created more efficient products and even products that benefit the environment then biomimicry will be extremely beneficial.
Bibliography 1)Designboom. Biomimicry. 20 September 2010. . 2)Hutchinson, Alex. World's Fastest Train You Can Ride Dumps Energy Like a Prius. 1 October 2009. 20 September 2010 .
Paula Schubatis October 5 2010 Section 4 Urban Transportation p262
The case study which I choose to reflect upon in World Changing was urban transportation on page 262. Up until my college years, I have taken transportation for granted; I always had access to a car, or someone to drive me somewhere when needed. I grew up in Plymouth, MI, a town just a few miles east of Ann Arbor. Plymouth is on the outskirts of the metro Detroit area to the east, and borders rural agricultural areas and Ann Arbor in the west. Since it is a largely conservative upper middle class community, and also one who’s prosperity is dependant on the auto industry, driving is a necessity. The only form of public transportation was school busses. I got very used to driving a moderately fuel efficient car, and not paying attention to its environmental repercussions. But, when I went to the university of Michigan, I realized how much of a luxury being able to drive everywhere was. In the urban area, there is nowhere to park, and it is very expensive. One can easily ride their bike or walk down the street in the time it takes to dodge a sea of students crossing the street. Public transportation is crowded, and widely used in Ann Arbor, both by the upper classes and the lower classes, not because of the cost or environmental repercussions of driving, as suggested in World Changing but because of convenience. So, if we want to make people use public transportation, we must make it cheaper, faster, and more efficient than driving. Even if “pollution counters” were put into place like speed monitors as suggested in the book, I am doubtful that people would be apt to change their mode of transportation. Also, charging people per mile for insurance and making cost correlated to fuel efficiency would make drivers drive less, but would not compel them to use public transportation. We must improve public transportation if we want people to utilize it in lieu of automobiles.
In World Changing I read “Designing a Sustainable World.” This article related to the lecture slides about designing for temporary products without using permanent materials. The article talked about how designing new greener products that last longer and can be reused more efficiently was the most likely solution to the growing environmental problem caused by waste. The article said that more and more designers are creating ecological friendly products and the demand is increasing rapidly. This is a very good thing but although it claims that the demand is increasing, these products are not readily available. Even if there is a ‘green’ choice for everything that you use daily, it might be very hard to come by. I read about cabinets made from grass and coffee tables made from all recycled materials that could be recycled again, but I think back to the last time I was at IKEA and I don’t remember seeing anything that was advertised as being recycled or ‘green’. Maybe this is because the surge is green design is only a recent phenomenon. This goes beyond making recycled products look shiny, but really putting effort into making something that was last a very long time and have little to no impact on the environment when it has reached the end of its life. Hopefully these types of products will come more readily available in the near future. This was addressed at the end of the article where is said although there is a high interest and many designs the market is controlled by businesses and the economy so unless people make a shift from buying what is available to buying these new designs, the market will not change. Newer better designs cannot be forced upon the public and wont be the standard unless there is a really significant reason for their mass production. I would like to see more of these products in homes and on shelves and more awareness of the options that people have. I think that it must be disheartening as a designer to come up with a design and not be able to get it into widespread use. We should stop seeing these products as specialties or novelties and more of the norm.
Brooke Adams World Changing- Preserving Barnyard Biodiversity- p. 71 ADP III section 4
This article sheds light on how important diversity is in our diets. It reveals the people who have made it their job to store and stock seeds so certain plants don’t become extinct. That’s not to say, however, that there aren’t hundreds of thousands of seeds that are either on the brink of extinction or, unfortunately, forever lost. The organizations and people who are watching over the biodiversity of our farms are many. The first organization spoken of in this article was the Native Seeds/SEARCH. This program, headed by Elders, biologists and ethnobotanists, tracks down crop species from traditional Native American farming and helps bring the crop back from near extinction. This program, along with every other program mentioned in this chapter, was interesting because it introduced me to something I never think about. I have never worried or wondered where my seeds come from, or how the mass production of popular produce is affecting the many seed species that have fallen under the radar. It is thanks to these programs and people that many seeds will withstand the single crop farming procedures of today. Another program devoted to agricultural biodiversity is the Global Crop Diversity Trust, which makes sure that seed banks don’t go under. It is primarily used for very poor farmers who otherwise have no means or resources to keep plant biodiversity alive in their community. Sangams are another group dedicated to seed diversity. Made of intimate groups of farmers primarily located in India, Sangams practice organic farming or are interested in biodiversity. These farmers collectively support seed banking, saving seeds and borrowing seeds from their communal seed stock. It’s important that there are groups of farmers who are so concerned with keeping seed species alive and genetically supple. The final thing mentioned in this chapter was the ‘Doomsday’ vault, in which seeds from all over the world are kept in case of a disaster. It’s t terrifying to think that we need a ‘Doomsday’ vault. It’s amazing, though, to know that there is an indestructible place which houses a treasure chest of seeds. If anything were to happen to humanity, that vault would be come a history book of how we ate all over the world.
Refugees are not people that most of us think about on a daily basis. Yes, there are brief statements about them on the news or a short-lived charity campaign to try and help, but most of us know little about this global issue. I was shocked to learn that 11.5 million people are living as refugees (203). According to the U.S. Census Bureau, that’s about the same population size as the population of Ohio. The number of refugees increases still when one factors in everyone who is not registered or unable to go to a refugee camps.
One thing that struck me when reading about refugees is all of the things that can force someone to become a refugee. I had always thought that people were forced to be refugees through human violence, like wars and genocide. I had not taken into account all of the environmentally aspects. While we know that environmental disasters can easily render someone to flee their home, I had not considered deforestation, overpopulation, and climate change. According to Red Cross, there may be more environmental refugees than war refugees. The changing climate has already rendered many people homeless, from droughts that kill crops to floods that destroy homes.
Another thing that I found very interesting was that when a person flees from their country into another, that country is obligated to help them. To be a refugee, your safety or basic human rights must be in danger. If you are fleeing for economical purposes, the country that you flee to is not obligated to help you. I considered this, the rules that are associated with being a refugee and what classifies someone as a refugee. I believe that people, especially in countries like America where we do not have many refugees, need to be more educated on the ways that a person can become a refugee and how we can take steps to help them. I think that more people need to donate or actively help refugee centers and try and find ways to put people back at safety and on their feet. The smallest steps can make all the difference.
Eliana Gershon ADP III, Section 4 World Changing Response: pp. 157-161, Home Decor
Since moving into an apartment I've been faced with lots of fun design challenges. My summer was consumed with "Do It Yourself" projects to spruce up the boring furniture including renovated picture frames, a purple spray-painted candlabra, and homemade throw pillows in addition to many etsy.com purchases. This section of World Changing was perfect for me, because I've become a lot more conscious of the things I buy and the choices I make when decorating.
One section about paint, and although I will not be painting my apartment, I found it very intriguing. A lot of paints are made with VOCs, which are harmful to the environment and to our health. There are alternatives with low-VOC content or none at all. I also previously looked into other environmentally friendly paints for an environmental festival at my high school, and there are even paints that are milk-based! As an artist, this is pertinent to me. I hope to pay more attention to the ingredients of the materials I use rather than going for what’s cheap and easy if I could be harming myself.
The sections on furniture are mostly about recycling. The book encourages readers to buy products made with recycled materials or up-cycle things that have been previously used. I am one step ahead of the game, as I used scraps of extra cloth from fabric stores and clothes from garage sales to sew my throw pillows, and revamped dirt-cheap picture frames and containers from good will to obtain some unique and recycled decorations for my apartment.
The one section that I really should listen to though is the one about lighting options. There are so many energy efficient light bulbs on the market today, that there’s really no excuse not to be using them in our lamps and ceiling lights where possible. Although they may be a tad more expensive when first purchased, these bulbs end up saving you a ton of money on your energy bill. It is yet another example of pointless consumerism. We shouldn’t be using twice as much energy as we actually need to light the exact same room! My family recently switched all the bulbs in our house to an environmentally sound option and we’ve saved hundreds of dollars already, so I should definitely take the nudge from World Changing and do the same for my apartment.
Melis Agabigum
ReplyDeleteADPIII-004
World Changing 2
10.05.10
In the article, Doing the Right Thing Can Be Delicious, the topics of slow food and sustainable farming are discussed. I was surprised to learn that we use over half a gallon of gasoline to produce one two-pound bag of breakfast cereal (51). The notion that we are using that much fossil fuel to create something that can be produced much more efficiently is very depressing, and makes me wonder why we have not found a more energy friendly way of producing these products.
Under the section "Sustainable Farming 101", it is stated that there was a 22-year-long study performed at the Rodale Institute of Farming Systems, where they compared organic and chemically grown crops. They discovered that the crops (soybeans and corn) that were grown organically reduced soil erosion, conserved water and used about 30 percent less fossil fuels than chemically dependant forms of farming (52). If all of these facts are true, it becomes difficult for me to understand why all means of farming have not become organic. There is less energy used, and the soil that we are using to farm on does not become depleted of its nutrients. With crop rotation, we would be able to reduce the amount of money and energy that we are spending on chemically created fertilizer and pesticides. It does not make any sense to me, that the cost of organic food is so high in contrast to chemically produced food. If we are creating food from unnatural means, wouldn’t it cost more due to all the techniques that are needed to keep the soil full of nutrients? We are able to conserve 30 percent of fossil fuels used in organic farming: why does organic food cost 30 percent more than chemically produced food? Ultimately, our whole means of farming is becoming superfluous and we must switch over to sustainable farming.
Neobiological Industry
ReplyDeleteThe ways of old industry can no longer be sustained. The way we harvest materials, alter them for our needs and then dispose of them creates too much waste, and often cannot be recycled. Industry as we know it has to change, and not just because we are polluting our world, but because we are running out of materials to harvest, such as fossil fuels.
The term Neobiological industry means that instead of creating objects from fossil fuels and minerals, objects would be made from biological resources. That means making plastics from plants, and new drugs from animal sources. Not only are these sources renewable, but they also are biodegradable and are much less wasteful.
Nature has developed much more precise, simple designs that humans could build from. As mentioned in the article about Neobiological Industry, we could make grass and other plant fibers in canvases or stereo speakers (World Changing, 110). There are many plants and animals in nature that produce strong and flexible materials much more effortlessly than humans can.
Also, these materials produce little to no waste, like crustacean shells. Also, organisms that produce valuable substances can be grown and harvested. The article mentions an alga that produces hydrogen under certain circumstances. This hydrogen can then be used as a fuel, that when its’ used produces water as its runoff.
In addition, the use of Neobiological Industry would create materials and objects that when they come to the end of their life can be recycled effortlessly into a new product, or used to create more of the same substance, very much the way that dead plants decompose and are then food for new plants. This sort of sustainability is becoming popular and will likely expand as our need to break from conventional industry techniques increases.
Reinventing the Refugee Camp
ReplyDeletep. 207 - 210
The problems with today’s refugee camps are not something I have ever thought about. Whenever I hear about refugee camps, it’s always the media talking about how helpful and good they are. I obviously know how necessary refugee camps are for so many hard struck people in our world. I’m also aware that volunteering in one of these camps as a UN worker, Doctors Without Borders, or an aid worker is an exhausting and incredibly challenging job completely beyond anything I can fully imagine and understand. And it is a noble and heroic thing to work at one of these camps.
After reading this article, I’ve learned what needs to be improved in refugee camps and what efforts have been made to help thus far. I think the LifeStraw – a drinking straw that filters water as it comes through, is an amazing concept. Lasting a whole year, it supplies clean water to people that otherwise would have none. It’s much more reliable and accessible than transporting filtered water to a refugee camp. Similarly, the Plumy’nut paste gives a malnourished refugee all the nutrition he or she needs without the struggle of properly mixing and safely distributing a dry powder. These inventions are the stepping stones needed to improve our refugee camps and create a better situation for the people in need and the amazing volunteers helping them.
I think the compostable tent city is a phenomenal concept. The temporary shelter made of treated cardboard gives people time to re-build their town, and when the shelters are no longer needed, watering the temporary buildings will turn the cardboard into useful gardens. This is yet another way to help people re-build their lives. Now that I understand more about the issues with refugee camps, I’ll be sure to take note of how they change and hope they continue to develop and become more reliable for both the volunteers and the people in need.
Brands
ReplyDeleteToday, brands play a large role in a world of materialism. They both thrive from consumers while creating the competitive market that forces consumers to continue to purchase their merchandise. In a sense, brands play both a good and a bad role in the economy. A line of products is a brand for a reason, because that brand guarantees a certain quality of good. If a brand does not live up to the expected quality, consumers will discontinue their purchases of that particular brand and buy another. This upholds a competitive market, and ensures goods are of high quality, however, it also pressures companies to go to great lengths to keep their sales up and cut costs. As a result companies engage in corrupt practices such as unfair treatment of both domestic and outsourced labor and shortcuts in production. Brand companies are well known publically and usually carefully watched. Often times lots of information about companies’ practices are available to the public, or privately leaked. Because the mass media so quickly spreads news to the public, and manipulates in what light information is conceived and dictates with what the public should concern their lives, brand companies must consider the ethics of their corporation and how they are perceived by the public.
Because many times unflattering information about brand companies is released the public, consumers look to non-brand name stores. These non-brand name stores pride themselves on just that: producing and selling material that is of just as high quality as brand names without the corrupt practices. However as these new corporations become more popular, they are essentially branding themselves with the absence of the brand, and therefore become what they strive not to be and begin again the cyclical cycle. Consumers must be aware that the mass media tightly controls how information is delivered, indirectly telling the public how they should think about certain topics. The public should be weary in their purchases, yet understand that the economy relies on them as consumers. Brands must begin practicing production with methods that they want to be known for in the next decade.
Liz Ritenour
ReplyDeleteADP III
Section 004
Craft It Yourself: pp 90-92
This section discusses not only the importance, but also the fun of do-it-yourself projects. DIY is a concept previously reserved for penny pushers, overconfident men, and eccentric arts and crafts enthusiasts. This is no longer the case. As environmental concerns become more prominent and personal, many people are finding DIY to be a necessity, while others see it as an opportunity to meet the demand of owning one-of-a-kind belongings. As art students, this idea should, essentially, be second nature. We are going to school to learn how to create things, and this interest generally seems to come from a lifetime of simply wanting to make art. Using old materials to make something new is now a way of both helping the environment and making a unique item that we would probably enjoy making anyway.
The idea of do-it-yourself has often seemed unrealistic and campy to me. I associate it with poorly made items that could have just as easily been purchased. Now that I am in art school, however, I see how many people make things for themselves because it is fun, and it is what we like to do anyway. Especially considering that we have the tools available and the skills necessary to make quality items, it seems like common sense that we would look at the unnecessary items around us and envision a new use for them. It is also a more direct way of recycling items. Rather than being told that a recycled item is going to be recycled, we can instead recycle it ourselves and directly see the new purpose of the item. I am particularly interested in the idea of DIY because whenever I shop for things, particularly clothing, I am too picky to ever purchase anything. I always wish that I had designed something myself. I am now realizing that I can, in fact, design these things myself. We have sewing studios, wood shops, metal shops, and tons of other resources right in front of us, so it is not only smart to use them, but it is likely fun, as well.
The chapter I read in “World Changing” was titled “Mapping.” It is a topic I had never really thought much of and figure I would really be able to learn something from this writing. It began with a short introductory story following the beginnings of John Snow. Snow solved the Cholera epidemic engulfing the Soho district in London during 1854. He did this by discovering a common factor in all of the diseases victims: They all lived within reasonable walking distance from an infected water pump. This sort of mapping was one that I hadn’t considered as such before and I found to be very interesting.
ReplyDeleteThe amount of things maps can be used for is mind-blowing. Basically, anything that you could map-moisture content in leaves, the path and distance that a caribou walks in a given number of days, or something as simple as the temperature throughout the country can be illustrated using detailed maps that can now be rendered very quickly using Geographic Information systems, or more simply put, computers. In order to create maps of unknown areas we send countless smart technologies that have uncovered some of the world’s best-kept secrets, like the Chicxulub Crater discovered on the Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission, talked about in this chapter. This crater proved very important when scientists discovered that it was most likely the remains from the asteroid impact that once wiped out 70 percent of life on the planet 65 million years ago.
With current technology it is amazing how people can now view different parts of the world in real time sequences. This was done when Hurricane Katrina hit in 2005 and a website was established for people to view real time imagery and other spatial-data. With so much information at our fingertips, the gap between the United States and other parts of the world is quickly closing.
(Continued) [I kept getting a too long error]
ReplyDeleteI couldn’t understand how a 120 dollar operating system, Windows Xp, could still be so successful when a better and infinitely cheaper operating system was on the market. Open source is great, but I’ve learned that it’s hard to teach an old dog new tricks; users become accustomed to using their outdated proprietary software and as a result they aren’t welcoming to new, better software. I think people’s unwillingness to try new things is the biggest roadblock for the explosion of open source, but I think that road block will lower itself as new generations come in, better accustomed to computers. The big switch from Myspace to Facebook seemed like it happened almost overnight, turning Myspace to a joke. I’m sure if an open source social networking site were to arise, free of advertisements and nefarious data mining practices, users would transfer over by the bundle. The future is looking bright for open source.
Kaiti Marek
ReplyDelete4, October 2010
ARTDES 250: SEC4
This week I read “Eating Better Meat and Fish” out of the “World Changing” book. I chose this article because I have been interested in meat production since we read “This Steer’s Life,” and last Tuesday’s lecture made me more aware of fish production. This article was less about the problems of meat production, and more about how to shop for and eat meat with a relatively low environmental impact. It gave a less bleak view of the meat industry than our other readings and discussions have, providing names of organizations committed to producing ecologically friendly beef.
One problem this article raised that I had not considered was the issue of methane emissions from cows affecting the greenhouse gases in our atmosphere. It seems absurd that cow’s (pardon the term) farts would be a major environmental concern, but according to this article, they are. The article also poses the idea that some have already put into practice, of utilizing cow’s excrements as an energy source. It also alludes to the idea that it may be good to use another red meat, bison. I found this ironic considering the fact that bison neared extinction in the past, but now could be a viable food source again because they are no longer endangered.
The advice this excerpt gives on how to determine what meat to purchase may have gone to slight waste of me. Although I am not a vegetarian, I eat very little meat. In fact, I cannot even remember the last time I had any. At least now the next time I do eat meat, I will be able to make a good decision on what to buy to reduce the impact of my choices.
Elaine Czech
ReplyDelete5 October 2010
ARTDES 250: SEC 4
Biomimicry p 99
In the world we live in now, great design is all around us. Mostly thanks to natural selection, which has weeded out all the designs that were not good. The world is constantly evolving new designs and adaptations upon old designs.
We our very much like natural selection: we live for the “now”, most people think in the “now”, and most designers’ design in the “now.” However with the new ecological awareness that is sweeping the “now” designers can no longer create just “now” products. Designers, instead of just making gas guzzling, carbon-emitting cars, need to think about more efficient, environment friendly modes of travel. For example the front of the Shinkansen bullet train in Japan is designed off of a kingfisher1. Although the original purpose for the design was to help reduce noise, it has also helped to decrease energy usage by nineteen percent2. By using the designs already found in nature and adapting them to fit our function designers are able to create things that work in our technology based society but also are less harmful to the environment.
Granted not all biomimicry is beneficial to the environment. The use of the “lotus effect” is great for keeping things clean as it repels water but can actually cause more harm to the environment since one product that uses the effect is a spray paint1 (Hutchinson).
However if designers use the nature template to help created more efficient products and even products that benefit the environment then biomimicry will be extremely beneficial.
Bibliography
1)Designboom. Biomimicry. 20 September 2010. .
2)Hutchinson, Alex. World's Fastest Train You Can Ride Dumps Energy Like a Prius. 1 October 2009. 20 September 2010 .
Paula Schubatis
ReplyDeleteOctober 5 2010
Section 4
Urban Transportation
p262
The case study which I choose to reflect upon in World Changing was urban transportation on page 262. Up until my college years, I have taken transportation for granted; I always had access to a car, or someone to drive me somewhere when needed. I grew up in Plymouth, MI, a town just a few miles east of Ann Arbor. Plymouth is on the outskirts of the metro Detroit area to the east, and borders rural agricultural areas and Ann Arbor in the west. Since it is a largely conservative upper middle class community, and also one who’s prosperity is dependant on the auto industry, driving is a necessity. The only form of public transportation was school busses. I got very used to driving a moderately fuel efficient car, and not paying attention to its environmental repercussions.
But, when I went to the university of Michigan, I realized how much of a luxury being able to drive everywhere was. In the urban area, there is nowhere to park, and it is very expensive. One can easily ride their bike or walk down the street in the time it takes to dodge a sea of students crossing the street. Public transportation is crowded, and widely used in Ann Arbor, both by the upper classes and the lower classes, not because of the cost or environmental repercussions of driving, as suggested in World Changing but because of convenience. So, if we want to make people use public transportation, we must make it cheaper, faster, and more efficient than driving. Even if “pollution counters” were put into place like speed monitors as suggested in the book, I am doubtful that people would be apt to change their mode of transportation. Also, charging people per mile for insurance and making cost correlated to fuel efficiency would make drivers drive less, but would not compel them to use public transportation. We must improve public transportation if we want people to utilize it in lieu of automobiles.
James
ReplyDeleteIn World Changing I read “Designing a Sustainable World.” This article related to the lecture slides about designing for temporary products without using permanent materials. The article talked about how designing new greener products that last longer and can be reused more efficiently was the most likely solution to the growing environmental problem caused by waste. The article said that more and more designers are creating ecological friendly products and the demand is increasing rapidly. This is a very good thing but although it claims that the demand is increasing, these products are not readily available. Even if there is a ‘green’ choice for everything that you use daily, it might be very hard to come by. I read about cabinets made from grass and coffee tables made from all recycled materials that could be recycled again, but I think back to the last time I was at IKEA and I don’t remember seeing anything that was advertised as being recycled or ‘green’.
Maybe this is because the surge is green design is only a recent phenomenon. This goes beyond making recycled products look shiny, but really putting effort into making something that was last a very long time and have little to no impact on the environment when it has reached the end of its life. Hopefully these types of products will come more readily available in the near future. This was addressed at the end of the article where is said although there is a high interest and many designs the market is controlled by businesses and the economy so unless people make a shift from buying what is available to buying these new designs, the market will not change. Newer better designs cannot be forced upon the public and wont be the standard unless there is a really significant reason for their mass production.
I would like to see more of these products in homes and on shelves and more awareness of the options that people have. I think that it must be disheartening as a designer to come up with a design and not be able to get it into widespread use. We should stop seeing these products as specialties or novelties and more of the norm.
Brooke Adams
ReplyDeleteWorld Changing- Preserving Barnyard Biodiversity- p. 71
ADP III section 4
This article sheds light on how important diversity is in our diets. It reveals the people who have made it their job to store and stock seeds so certain plants don’t become extinct. That’s not to say, however, that there aren’t hundreds of thousands of seeds that are either on the brink of extinction or, unfortunately, forever lost.
The organizations and people who are watching over the biodiversity of our farms are many. The first organization spoken of in this article was the Native Seeds/SEARCH. This program, headed by Elders, biologists and ethnobotanists, tracks down crop species from traditional Native American farming and helps bring the crop back from near extinction. This program, along with every other program mentioned in this chapter, was interesting because it introduced me to something I never think about. I have never worried or wondered where my seeds come from, or how the mass production of popular produce is affecting the many seed species that have fallen under the radar. It is thanks to these programs and people that many seeds will withstand the single crop farming procedures of today.
Another program devoted to agricultural biodiversity is the Global Crop Diversity Trust, which makes sure that seed banks don’t go under. It is primarily used for very poor farmers who otherwise have no means or resources to keep plant biodiversity alive in their community.
Sangams are another group dedicated to seed diversity. Made of intimate groups of farmers primarily located in India, Sangams practice organic farming or are interested in biodiversity. These farmers collectively support seed banking, saving seeds and borrowing seeds from their communal seed stock. It’s important that there are groups of farmers who are so concerned with keeping seed species alive and genetically supple.
The final thing mentioned in this chapter was the ‘Doomsday’ vault, in which seeds from all over the world are kept in case of a disaster. It’s t terrifying to think that we need a ‘Doomsday’ vault. It’s amazing, though, to know that there is an indestructible place which houses a treasure chest of seeds. If anything were to happen to humanity, that vault would be come a history book of how we ate all over the world.
Kellyn Carpenter
ReplyDeleteADP III: Section 4
World Changing-Refugees pg 203
Refugees are not people that most of us think about on a daily basis. Yes, there are brief statements about them on the news or a short-lived charity campaign to try and help, but most of us know little about this global issue. I was shocked to learn that 11.5 million people are living as refugees (203). According to the U.S. Census Bureau, that’s about the same population size as the population of Ohio. The number of refugees increases still when one factors in everyone who is not registered or unable to go to a refugee camps.
One thing that struck me when reading about refugees is all of the things that can force someone to become a refugee. I had always thought that people were forced to be refugees through human violence, like wars and genocide. I had not taken into account all of the environmentally aspects. While we know that environmental disasters can easily render someone to flee their home, I had not considered deforestation, overpopulation, and climate change. According to Red Cross, there may be more environmental refugees than war refugees. The changing climate has already rendered many people homeless, from droughts that kill crops to floods that destroy homes.
Another thing that I found very interesting was that when a person flees from their country into another, that country is obligated to help them. To be a refugee, your safety or basic human rights must be in danger. If you are fleeing for economical purposes, the country that you flee to is not obligated to help you. I considered this, the rules that are associated with being a refugee and what classifies someone as a refugee. I believe that people, especially in countries like America where we do not have many refugees, need to be more educated on the ways that a person can become a refugee and how we can take steps to help them. I think that more people need to donate or actively help refugee centers and try and find ways to put people back at safety and on their feet. The smallest steps can make all the difference.
Eliana Gershon
ReplyDeleteADP III, Section 4
World Changing Response: pp. 157-161, Home Decor
Since moving into an apartment I've been faced with lots of fun design challenges. My summer was consumed with "Do It Yourself" projects to spruce up the boring furniture including renovated picture frames, a purple spray-painted candlabra, and homemade throw pillows in addition to many etsy.com purchases. This section of World Changing was perfect for me, because I've become a lot more conscious of the things I buy and the choices I make when decorating.
One section about paint, and although I will not be painting my apartment, I found it very intriguing. A lot of paints are made with VOCs, which are harmful to the environment and to our health. There are alternatives with low-VOC content or none at all. I also previously looked into other environmentally friendly paints for an environmental festival at my high school, and there are even paints that are milk-based! As an artist, this is pertinent to me. I hope to pay more attention to the ingredients of the materials I use rather than going for what’s cheap and easy if I could be harming myself.
The sections on furniture are mostly about recycling. The book encourages readers to buy products made with recycled materials or up-cycle things that have been previously used. I am one step ahead of the game, as I used scraps of extra cloth from fabric stores and clothes from garage sales to sew my throw pillows, and revamped dirt-cheap picture frames and containers from good will to obtain some unique and recycled decorations for my apartment.
The one section that I really should listen to though is the one about lighting options. There are so many energy efficient light bulbs on the market today, that there’s really no excuse not to be using them in our lamps and ceiling lights where possible. Although they may be a tad more expensive when first purchased, these bulbs end up saving you a ton of money on your energy bill. It is yet another example of pointless consumerism. We shouldn’t be using twice as much energy as we actually need to light the exact same room! My family recently switched all the bulbs in our house to an environmentally sound option and we’ve saved hundreds of dollars already, so I should definitely take the nudge from World Changing and do the same for my apartment.