+Issue 37
User Experience
Accessibility isn’t sexy… and other myths
Every design is a system – The mark of a great designer is their awareness of system thinking.
How do you measure UX? It depends on how you define ‘UX’
The Psychology of Clubhouse’s User Retention (…and churn)
Twitter Stops Cropping Photos and Artists Rejoice
Digital Trust
Google Wants to Make Everyone Use Two Factor Authentication – The company is making some changes to encourage more people to adopt a key digital security mechanism.
Technology
When the Earth is gone, at least the internet will still be working
FTC Report to Congress: Repair Monopolies Harm the Public and the Planet – Bipartisan FTC study confirms that onerous repair restrictions hurt the public, harm the environment, and industry opposition to meaningful reform is “not supported by the record.”
Design
What’s more important: disruptive innovation, or rigorous execution? – While disruptive innovation is revered, iterative innovation and exceptional execution are crucial in driving businesses forward
Plans for 50% funding cuts to arts subjects branded “destructive” by design leaders – Universities and the Design Council condemn the proposals as “short-sighted” and uninformed by real statistics.
How Pixar Uses Hyper-Colors to Hack Your Brain – The animation studio’s artists are masters at tweaking light and color to trigger deep emotional responses. Coming soon: effects you’ll only see inside your head.
The Creative Review Annual Winners 2021
Speculative Design
Designing for disaster – What does design for future cities really look like?
Business
How Duolingo became a $2.4B language unicorn
Google’s Best Things for Everything site features the internet’s top 1,000 rated products. Organized by categories of interest, the site makes it easy to browse and find inspiration for your next purchase.
Amazon Drivers Are Instructed to Drive Recklessly to Meet Delivery Quotas – Drivers say they’re being asked to quietly disable a driver safety system partway through their shifts.
AI & Machine Learning
Deepfake Lips Are Coming to Dubbed Films
Remote Work
The designer’s burnout first-aid kit – Treating the symptoms, and not just the causes of burnout.
Typography
An oral history of Aretha Franklin’s various rhythm sections by Jack Stratton of the band Vulfpeck. Featuring wonderful lettering by James Edmondson
The Broadcast magazine has been designed to recall ’70s print media – The online publication will explore a range of issues through a unique typographic system that aligns subject matter with specific fonts.
Microsoft’s new font: Your work will soon take on a new character
A seemingly trivial choice by Microsoft will determine it.
Photography
Be seduced by the beauty of urban allotments in Chris Hoare’s series Growing Spaces – The series was shot between April and November of 2020 and proves just how important outdoor spaces are to our wellbeing.