poieis of self

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The ten commandments of bad user experience

The ten commandments of bad user experience

1. Don't define the problem This is the most important step. Don't skip it, because all other steps would fail. You want to create a nice, decorative design. You're an artist. Problems come and go, the art lives forever. 2. Your assumptions are right

Proof of Vibe

By George Mihai

Proof of Vibe

Imagine a world where builders earn like YouTubers. In this world, builders make money based on the impact, engagement, and retention of what they built. That’s how Proof of Vibe could remunerate creative output. Why is this important? Current blockchain networks reward developers based on transaction percentages from their

The digital panopticon

By George Mihai

The digital panopticon

Bentham failed to implement the most powerful layer of control ever seen at the time. In the Panopticon, the guards could observe all prisoners at any moment, but the prisoners couldn’t tell when they were being watched. All cells were arranged in a circle, with a watchtower in the

Designing experiences that override human agency

By George Mihai

Designing experiences that override human agency

"Fifteen Million Merits", the second episode of Black Mirror series, revealed a hard truth about design by showing the imbalance of power between those who design it and those who use it. In 2011, when the episode was launched, the iPhone was gaining popularity. Apple also released the

How to find quality products that last

By George Mihai

How to find quality products that last

In recent years, I started to pay more attention to how the objects around me are built, designed, and how that translates into their long-term usage. No surprise here, mass-market products are usually of poor quality. It has become challenging to find high-quality products that last a lifetime. We live

We buy things to reinforce our beliefs

By George Mihai

We buy things to reinforce our beliefs

This is my second entry in my digital journal. In the first part, I discussed how Apple replaced the screen time with battery usage in the phone settings and how these seemingly small changes shape our perception of ourselves. Until a few years ago, I didn't have any

How small interface updates influence our behaviour

By George Mihai

How small interface updates influence our behaviour

This is the first part of my digital journal, which will have eight parts. The experiment is proposed by Associate Professor Constantin Vică, my teacher in Ethics of Cognitive Technologies in the master's program in Cognitive Science. In the last few years, I became more disciplined with my

Does AI make us less intelligent?

By George Mihai

Does AI make us less intelligent?

This simple question forced me to provide an answer in this short essay, a short analysis of the long-term use of artificial intelligence tools. From neuroscience, we know that we become what we see, hear, think, practice, and study. Therefore, one of the most (if not the most) important factors

How digital products mirror living organisms

By George Mihai

How digital products mirror living organisms

What if... artificial intelligence enables us to create digital experiences inspired by living organisms? Hmm… Ok. What do I mean by that? It's well known that all man-made designs are inspired by nature. The airplane is inspired by a bird's wings. High-speed trains are inspired by

The 3 stages of the creative process

By George Mihai

The 3 stages of the creative process

All creative pursuits start from a few abstract ideas, continue experimenting with them, and culminate with the launch of a well-crafted version that everyone can now criticise. A few years ago, a gray book with a black circle on the cover caught my attention. It was the now-famous The Creative