It is a common sight in Chinatown (both San Francisco and New York City) and it has always disturbed me.  It is the sight of old, Chinese ladies hauling big bags of plastic bottles and …

Most people think modern societies are materialistic—we prize our possessions too much. But after working on a fun design-anthropology project on the co-evolution of medium and content, I realized we don’t appreciate our stuff …

In my Great Grandmother’s house hung a peculiar photograph.  It was Grandma J on a ship with a funny pirate and his fake parrot.  This photograph made no sense on the surface. Great Grandma J …

Human beings have evolved to live by one truly unique social strategy: storytelling. All cultures have tales and we are wired to listen to, learn from, and retell these stories.  Smart individuals and savvy companies thrive on …

After devouring the ready-to-use wisdom in Change By Design, I began to consider the number of industrial designers I’ve met.  I asked: were they really implementing design thinking or just doing design?  Sadly, most of them …

San Francisco is a great place to connect with intelligent individuals from small tech start-ups and big tech companies alike.  With plenty of panels and meet-ups to choose from, I decided to attend one all …

It’s all about the bling, baby.  Displaying value in some shape or form is existent in many different countries, clubs, tribes, and all socioeconomic classes.  Yet, during times of high unemployment and recession, many companies go into …

Daily TV news programs report that the United States and other countries are in a terrible recession. The U.S. is in the worst state it’s been in since the great depression.  The pointy fingers of blame …