Infinity Mirrors by Yayoi Kusama at Art Gallery of Ontario (2019), Photo by Isha Hans

My next decade through data

Isha Hans
Isha Hans
Nov 3 · 3 min read

Storytelling through Data

Mimi Onuoha asks — “How does our attitude towards data change if we see it as the result of a relationship rather than an end in itself?”

There is something enchanting about looking towards the future, being hopeful for all the good things that’ll come with it. The ambiguous nature of it is an opportunity to be open minded yet learn from the past. Reflecting on my journey so far and looking forward to the next decade, one of the things that I’d like to collect data for is about my idea of home. Having lived in 6 cities, with over 40 roommates and setting up 9 houses so far (4 of them set up in the last 2 years), my idea of ‘home’ has been in constant flux. It has multiple characters and elements that make it interesting, and sometimes conflicting.

  • Roommates and pets
  • The amount of natural light in the house
  • Cultural context
  • Friends & Family
  • Where my partner is located (one whole point dedicated to him!)
  • The size of the city and things I can do outside of home and workplace
  • The relationship with the built environment of the city
  • Weather (this has been a small one so far)

Most of this moving to new cities has been intentional and I hope to live in different cities every 5 years. The interconnected nature of the different actors and factors in my everyday life have impacted how I have formed relationships with my family, friends, work and myself. I’m intrigued by how this has made me who I am today and I’m curious to find out what affect it could potentially have in shaping who I become in 2030. I wonder:

  • What choices would I make to have the kind if life I want? Conversely, how would my choices affect my lifestyle?
  • Would I be living close to mountains or in a big city? If I manage to live close to the mountains, would I stay more fit and go for hikes regularly?
  • Which cities would allow me to have the best work-life balance?
  • What would fit as ‘my city’ and ‘my home’, if being a globetrotter means being seen as an outsider everywhere?
  • Would Mumbai or Toronto feel the same when I visit in 2030?
  • Would my parents be across the hall or on a different continent?
  • If I constantly stay on a different continent than my parents, would that weaken my relationship with them?
  • My partner and I enjoy living close to our friends, would that continue?

Reflecting on Mimi Onuoha’s way of looking data through 5 lenses, I realize that this method of collecting data is very personal to me and would be particularly linked to my story, my preferences and my memories as an individual. It would not be a part of census or the story of the city I live in, but how I carve my niche in it. In doing so, some of my inherent biases might shape both the kind of data I collect and the way in which I do so. I’m curious to find out what this would look like!

Reflections on Design and everything else

Interaction Design Seminar musings from MDes @CMU

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