BEEP! sigh, Thesis for a Masters of Industrial Design

“BEEP! sigh,” my Masters of Industrial Design thesis from my days at Pratt Institute in New York City, examines the intersection of humanity and technology. It explores ideas that attempt to make technology less alienating and more supportive of the things that are really important in life. I’ve actually been interested in this web of concepts for a long time; my undergraduate senior thesis was on the relationship between artificial intelligence, personhood, and creativity.

While I’ve grown a lot professionally since this project, it is still a good representation of my personality, technical skills, and design philosophy. I really hope you enjoy it.

00:00 Introduction
00:20 Cut to the chase, woman!
01:13 The Story of Ba Ngoai
06:13 What is Beep?
06:57 What is sigh?
07:43 The Problem with Technology
10:37 So What Do We Do? Strategies 1 and 2
12:05 Odyssey: UFO-inspired brunch service
12:25 Archimedea: Archimedean Solids as Ceramic Bowls
12:45 Libra: Balancing Bowl
13:07 Camber: Geometry of Origami Fruit Bowl
13:40 Kami: Origami Portable Speaker
14:49 Nami: Music without Sound
16:02 Be Here Now: Phone Tray
16:28 Conclusion
17:15 Appendix: More on Nami, Libra, and Archimedea