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Author Archives: Genetics of Design
How Neuroscience Reframes Architectural History (on YouTube)
Story + video by Ann Sussman, RA This video was posted last week at the Academy of Neuroscience for Architecture (ANFA) 2020 conference: It reviews a poster, first presented at the 30th Annual International Trauma Conference in Boston, MA in 2019, … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, Neuroscience
1 Comment
Faces: The Key to Making Happy Places
Do you see faces in these gingerbread cottages in Oak Bluffs, Martha’s Vineyard, a popular summer retreat on this island ten miles off the coast of Massachusetts? Does it seem like they are looking at you? Built as part of … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, Biology, Design, Neuroscience, People-centric Design
Tagged faces, pareidolia
5 Comments
The Case Against All-Glass Facades
The pictures tell the story. And make the case. Biometric studies explain why. At left, is a photo of MassArt Design and Media Center, (c. 2016), a public college of applied art in downtown Boston; at right, the George Wythe … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, Biology, Design, Eye Tracking, Neuroscience, People-centric Design
Tagged Glass Facades
6 Comments
Empathy in Design: Measuring How Faces Make Places
Since 2015, Ragusa, Sicily has hosted FestiWall, an international art festival devoted to enhancing the public realm and improving citizen engagement with the modern section of an old city. Here are two views of a residential tower before and after … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, City Planning, Design, Eye Tracking, Neuroscience, People-centric Design, STEM
2 Comments
Empathy in Design: Measuring the Impact of Biophilia
Is home your happy place? Does it make you feel warm and welcome? Now that a pandemic has turned our homes into multipurpose spaces that double as offices, gyms, schools, playgrounds and safe havens from a virus, feelings matter more than … Continue reading
Posted in Architecture, Biology, Design, Eye Tracking, Health, People-centric Design
Tagged Biophilia
4 Comments
Do the ‘Fish Experiment’ to ‘See’ What We’re Built to See
Did you ever wonder about the strange way humans take in the world? Like the animals we are, of course! A quick way to see this is with the ‘Fish Experiment.’ Look at the images below and note where your … Continue reading
Posted in Neuroscience, Patterns, People-centric Design, Primal Vista
Tagged Neuroscience, Primal Vista, STEM
2 Comments
The Public Realm: What Cars Took Away + Never Gave Back
Where would you rather be? The main street above or the one below? We’d guess you’ll pick the one most at top, even though these images show the very same street — photographed about 100 years apart! It’s Commonwealth Avenue … Continue reading
Posted in City Planning, Design, People-centric Design, Walkability
Tagged Cars, Green Spaces, Health, Indoor-Outdoor, Public Space, Traffic, Walkability
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Why Buildings Need ‘Eyes’
As a social species, we are built to see eyes, so we look for them all the time — everywhere — without conscious awareness or control. When we find them, they grab our attention, anchoring us in space, securing us … Continue reading
We’re Waiting for You!
Stay tuned for more on face-i-tecture, and how faces+’eyes’-make-places, this fall! Ann + Janice
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Five Big Ideas for Designing Today’s Cities
Genetics of Design collaborated with Tufts University on the five big ideas presented here in this week’s TuftsNow and at the Ux+Design conference in April. Too fun! Collaboration’s key. More info here: https://now.tufts.edu/articles/five-big-ideas-designing-today-s-cities
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