Don’t Forget Science
Before I begin with my early-morning bout of whistful philosophy, let me put another expert’s opinions before my own:
Tom Wujec on 3 ways the brain creates meaning
http://www.ted.com Information designer Tom Wujec talks through three areas of the brain that help us understand words, images, feelings, connections. In this short talk from TEDU, he asks: How can we best engage our brains to help us better understand big ideas?
Meanwhile, at Clever Zebra we just finished a big private event for one group and we’re gearing up for another even bigger one. The question I’ve heard a lot of over the past few weeks is: “How can we leverage virtual worlds to do something unique and interactive?”
Now, I have plenty of ideas. We all do. The real question is: how do we know that these ideas have value, and aren’t going to be just a flashy waste of time and money?
Up to this point we’ve found the answer to that question through experimentation and careful survey. That definitely tells us what we need to know, but its an expense of time and money that I’d rather not have to pass on to clients.
More and more, however, I’m finding answers in videos like the one above. The analysis of how we process the world has a direct application to the work we’re doing right now in virtual spaces. Cognitive science gives us hints, on a neurological level, of how we can really make something meaningful.
I could go on for quite awhile but I had better get back to work… so here’s the nut of the thing: yes, consult with the training experts and marketing experts and graphic art experts of the world, but while you do so don’t forget the scientists. They walk the strange and complicated spaces where others fear to tread, and their rare knowledge could change the way everything is done in the virtual world.