The Unicorn, The Gap, and You
AH yes, the magical supposed all knowing entity that is here to solve all of our problems… the Avant-Garde full stack Unicorn.
What is left of an avant-garde in graphic design isn’t about resistance, cultural critique, or experimenting with meaning. Now the avant-garde only consists of technological mastery: who is using the coolest bit of code or getting the most out of their HTML this week.
-Keedy
It seems everything is being mended with a few lines of code. But to what extent? Can physical wounds be solved by intangible remedies? Do my questions sound impossible? It seems that with Technology and design, we are always behind. Whenever any design is thought of, you are already behind in production and execution of the design iteration(Nielson).
To illustrate, years ago, mental health was a joke. It was deemed as a hippie movement and the stigma was strong. Now, most American values are centered around wellbeing and mental health #selfcare. We use meditation apps like headspace.
Years ago, in 2006 a study came out about about injecting viruses and light beams into the brain to excite certain receptors in the brain causing episodic memories. It seems intriguing, but what are the possibilities with this. Can we make games so vivid we creat false memories? Can we solve Alzeihmers? Can we play games with our Heads? This all seems like a dream and not a reality…But let me fast forward to this year.
This year…a man was mid coma and was able to talk to his family via intrusive electrodes in his brain. He successfully asked for a beer.
This year…Elon Musk insists to test on Human patients for Neuralink as he had admitted to illegally test on monkeys. Monkeys that can now play games with the thought of winning via intrusive electrodes. #BrainComputerInteraction
Neuralink shows a monkey playing a game with his mind via Electrodes.
This year, was made possible by Doctors that Implant Electrodes to help stop Epilepsy seizures by predicting motor neuron activities. A medical practice fairly new, but well used.
Where does this bring us now? What are the implications?
As scary as it is to admit it, we can go wherever our minds set us to go? Cosmetic brain surgery will be well available within 10-15 years. Companies like Neuralink hope for results with downloading languages and skills into the brain. The basis of their research is BCIs and intrusive Electrodes that surpass the skull. This seems like an outlandish proposal, but is already happening.
Lets look a little harder under out noses. Gamification and FDA approved software have become the new turning point within our educative and medical field. Alzeihmers, the incurable disease may soon be a thing of the past with preventative measures. Combining behavioral changes with software can be an amazing thing. Building Cognitive resilience daily and holding yourself accountable can reduce Alzeihmers.
Out of curiosity, I have taken the liberty to reach out to some of the top FDA approved companies. Not to my surprise, only one replied our of the 15 I reached out to. I would be surprised to see if I got black listed. I found one podcaster who had the same issue as me to meet resistance.
In search of more support, I applied to one of the tech companies for a product design role. While interviewing, I asked them of their opinions on the topic. “How effective is this really”? Their response as a senior developer was optimistic. That this is a new route for humanity, as product designers, they question the functionality of it everyday and that’s what makes it a job.
I continued by search for answers with Craig Kappa, one of the top rated NYU ITP professors. His answers were satisfactory.
Heres how Craig implements Gamification,
Craig has made an interactive exhibit accommodating with postage signs and AI
Craig has taught a class for coding, where he made a “Harry Potter and the chamber of Dogs” quest, where they had to hard code harry out of the chamber.
This sets an equal playing field for students, incentivizing for them to reach out to him for help.
