Connectedness — Part 1: Overview

Introduction

In this series we will investigate the concept of ‘connectedness’ through a new blogpost every week till the end of April 2017. I intentionally say ‘we’ because these posts will not only be an analysis of system-level thinking/approach but will also pose many unanswered questions that I hope will start a conversation between us.

Scope

We will conduct a study to understand what the automotive industry is doing to shape the future of transportation. We will look into varied issues like car ownership, changes in the infrastructure, safety and security, how future transportation effects our social life and many more. What will the car of 2030 be like?

We will see how the concept of ‘connectedness’ is shaping our homes. Is Amazon Alexa just a household appliance or are social robots becoming a necessity — an integral part of our lives? What makes a smart home really smart?

In times when boundaries between real and digital lives are blurring and becoming increasingly complex, how do we define connectedness? We will explore what it means to connect with people, be it your family, friends, colleagues of the society. As designers what does it mean to be connected with your team?

Impact

To understand how ‘connectedness’ works on a systems level we will first have to look into how it might effect us at an individual level. We could ask -

• How are we connected to our belongings/personal space? (This is different from being attached to our belongings)
• How are we connected socially?
• What does it mean to be connected in real vs. digital life?
• How do we remain connected to our needs? (utilitarian aspect)
• What connects us with the infrastructure and how?
• How do we manage to retain skills with dependance on technology?
• How does ‘connectedness’ shape our ethics and vice versa?
• What does it mean to be connected today and how does it differ from being connected in the past or the possible future?
• How does ‘connectedness’ lead to innovative methods of interactions?

Conclusion

In the next post we will dive deep into what a system is. We will refer to Thinking In Systems: A Primer by Donella H.Meadows to make sense of how systems level thinking can be defined to facilitate and/or shape ones design process.

I am an HCI graduate from Indiana University. This blog series is part of an independent study to understanding systems level thinking and how designers can leverage on this approach to build a well connected future. I would like to thank Prof. Marty Siegel and my fellow classmates for their inputs and critique throughout the study.