Monthly Archives: March 2016

Annotated Bibliographies 1-9G

Posted on by
Reply

                           Tofle, Ruth Brent, Ph.D, Benyamin Schwarz, Ph.D, So-Yeon Yoon, MA, and Andrea Max-Royale, M.E.Des. “Color In Healthcare Environments.” Color In Healthcare Environments. Coalition for Health Environments Research (CHER), July 2014. Web. 25 Mar. 2016. <https://www.healthdesign.org/chd/research/color-healthcare-environments>.                          

The article is an abstract revealing ideas on the concept of the general use of color in healthcare facilities, and the truth of color having no scientific evidence in it’s effects on health. The authors state, “Regrettably, much of the knowledge about the use of color in healthcare environments comes from guidelines that are based on highly biased observations and pseudo-scientific assertions. It is this unsubstantiated literature that serves color consultants to capriciously set trends for the healthcare market.” The article explains that there have been studies that conclude “color-mood association” exists, but the authors believe there is not enough evidence to prove there is a “one-to-one relationship.” This source is important to my study of the built environment because it challenges what the interior built environment of health care providers currently utilize. It presents a flaw of the built environment, one in which I may look further into.

 

The Hospital Built Environment. October 2005. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://archive.ahrq.gov/professionals/systems/hospital/hospbuilt/index.html

This webpage is a menu to a publication in which looks in depth at the built environment of hospitals. It has links to each section of the piece. It has four sections, one in which includes nine chapters. The publication includes information on the Methodology of healthcare interior design, background, and questions concerning the market for hospital design and construction, research base for the hospital built environment, major challenges in building the field of evidence-based hospital design, where the gaps are in current research, and what are the appropriate future roles for funders in advancing Evidence-based hospital design. This is a great source to use because it provides many more greatly outlined sources to use when looking at the built environment of hosipitals in depth.

 

 

Perez, Daniel. “New York City Children’s Hospital Features Pirate-Themed CAT Scan Room.” Ubergizmo (n.d.): n. pag. Ubergizmo. 06 Sept. 2013. Web. 25 Mar. 2016. <http://www.ubergizmo.com/2013/09/new-york-city-childrens-hospital-features-pirate-themed-cat-scan-room/>.

The article explains how the New York-Presbyterian Morgan Stanley Children’s Hospital decided when it was time to replace their old CT scanner to redesign the CT room all together. The hospital choose to create a pirate themed room to combat the scariness of the scan for children. The article then goes into detail describing what you can see in the picture below. This article relates to my studies in that it is a creative use of the interior built environment in a children’s hospital. It shows that original designs can be manipulated and changed to become more useful.

 

pirate-themed-cat-scan

 

“Georgia Institute of Technology.” GT. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Feb. 2016. <http://www.gatech.edu/>.

The Georgia Tech website provides general information regarding the university and its corresponding organizations. It has a general calendar that highlights many of the school’s upcoming events. Also included in the web page are links to more information regarding the university. Information concerning the admission process, alumni resources, and student resources. My interior environment is the Georgia Tech Library so this website directly relates to my focus in this project.

“Georgia Tech Library.” Georgia Tech Library. N.p., n.d. Web. 22 Feb. 2016. <http://ww

w.library.gatech.edu/>.

The Georgia Tech Library website provides students with tools to help with accessing resources. These resources include but are not limited to links to the library catalog, e-journals, and research guides. The site also includes links to pages in which students can reserve study rooms. On the main page there is a brief calendar that highlights a few upcoming events. The page overall is designed to guide students on to what ever resource they may need to complete their assignments. My interior environment is the Georgia Tech Library so this website directly relates to my focus in this project.

Dead Week in the Library. YouTube. Georgia Tech Library, 4 Dec. 2015. Web. 22 Feb. 2016. <https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=axdebaR8E7s>.

The video highlights a few of the events that the Georgia Tech Library holds during what they call dead week each semester. They inform the viewer of a program the facility holds where dogs are brought in to provide stress relief for the students throughout their finals week. Other programs are highlighted as well for students to take part in in order to reduce stress during finals. The video was made to inform students of their resources during dead week as well as inform prospective students what Georgia Tech’s library has to offer. My interior environment is the Georgia Tech Library so this video directly relates to my focus in this project.

 

England, Trish. “Tucker History.” OTTMA. 25 Aug. 2011. Web. 05 Feb. 2016. <http://www.ottma.com/tucker-history.html>.

            Tucker, Georgia originated as farmland, but was transitioned to connect the towns of Clarkston, Decatur, Stone Mountain, Norcross, Pittsburg and Lawrenceville through dirt roads. In result of the Seaboard Air-Line Railroad completion between Monroe, N.C. and Atlanta, rail lines were laid in Tucker. The region continued to develop schools and small businesses. The site continues to describe the transitions of businesses and residential areas in and around Tucker throughout history. The article directly relates to my built environment piece by describing the history of the region in which I am studying. By learning the history and development of Tucker, I can better understand tucker, and the direct cause and effects of its built environment.

 

England, Trish. “Tucker History.” OTTMA. 25 Aug. 2011. Web. 05 Feb. 2016. <http://www.ottma.com/tucker-history.html>.

            This website provides data regarding Tucker, Georgia and its crime rates. It presents a clear line in which displays the region transitioning from safest levels to high crime. From the data provided you can conclude that the most crime falls on the south east side of Tucker, with the North West being the safest region of Tucker. Below the map the page gives statistics on the crime that takes place in Tucker. The page has a direct relationship with the build environment project in the sense that it reveals facts regarding the city of Tucker based on region, details of which reveal a direct correlation between the built environment of tucker and crime rate.

“Tucker, Georgia (GA) Income Map, Earnings Map, and Wages Data.” Tucker, Georgia (GA) Income Map, Earnings Map, and Wages Data. Web. 05 Feb. 2016. <http://www.city-data.com/income/income-Tucker-Georgia.html>.

            The Webpage provides data in regards to the Income levels distributed throughout Tucker, Georgia. According to the map there is a distinct line between income levels spanning from the south west to the north east corners of the region, the North West corner having a higher income and the South East corner being of a lower income. It presents Lawrenceville highway as the dividing factor in the income levels. This page is directly related to the built environment by providing data that can be directly linked back to the organization of the region and the surrounding built environment. By showing the direct relationship between the separation of income levels and the different sides of Lawrenceville highway, the page hints at the built environment’s involvement in this separation.

Better Online Living- Reading Summary

Posted on by
Reply

In her article, Better Online Living Though Content Moderation, Melissa King addresses the conflicting sides to the argument of whether or not content control features are valuable features in the digital world. Arguments in favor of content control state that users suffering from PTSD could benefit from the online tool, whereas those against the programs believe that users should simply avoid and ignore content in which they cannot handle or altogether become less sensitive.

 

Before reading the article, the first thing that came to my mind when hearing the words content control was school computers controlling what we could access; however, after reading the article completely I fully support the use of content control. Schools utilize content control in a way to protect the computers from viruses and malware students may accidently pick up as well as removing any chances of distractions from school work by blocking sites like Facebook.com and Youtube.com. What I had not considered useful of content control features is its personal use. With the use of content control features and applications, one can limit their access on the internet to only what serves them best. This may include blocking sites that may distract them from the productivity. Also considered are sites that could potentially cause emotional distress.

 

Those whom suffer from post traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, can have episodes triggered by certain stimulants, like sounds or visuals. Content control for someone who has PTSD could mean saving them from an anxiety trigger. For instance, if a war veteran finds graphic violence to be a trigger to his or her anxiety, then the can choose to block those types of digital space from their browser. The article goes on to discuse, in response to some opposing sides, the concept of online bullying or harassment un cencored by content control can cause PTSD if prolonged. If looking at a situation in which a child or adult is facing harassment online, the two options are to either keep access to the source, or to block the user or webpage. If given the option of removing this negativity, people can altogether avoid this chance of PTSD.

 

The arguments against content control really have no solid ground to back them up. They all are very much along the lines of saying, “I am a healthy enough person, I don’t need vitamins; therefore, we as an entire population do not need to take vitamins. In fact, those who choose to better themselves with vitamins are weak.” Just like the fact that no one is required to take a vitamin, no one is forced to use content control. So, there is no reason why it should not be an available tool for those whom find it useful. The article addresses how one can easily access and download these online tools through applications on their browser.

 

The entire concept of content control is completely personal and unique to each user. One may block on specific website, or an entire genre of sites. It all just depends on their needs. In her conclusion, King states, “Ultimately, easy one-size-fits-all solutions ignore the diversity of human psyches and experiences. Content control tools take this fact into account, and give people more room to act on behalf of their own mental and emotional needs.”  

Color walking- Reading Summary

Posted on by
Reply

                The article Color Walking by Phia Bennin and Brendan McMullan discusses color walking, an experiment that was discovered while the two were creating their podcast show “Colors”. Color Walking is an experiment that allows one to attentively notice colors and watch as their surroundings sharpen as they follow a certain color from object to object while walking, talking notice of soft hues and violent strains as they go along.

 

                The experiment was designed by William Burroughs to inspire his students to think more creatively and help people to unwind and let colors take them on an adventure by walking and take notice of all the different colors around them. The idea is that when one picks a specific color to focus on that they begin to notice more about their surroundings, especially parts of an object or features of a person they have never noticed before. From there, the experiment gives one the flexibility to switch from color to color and to follow things like the lavender on a women’s handbag, a yellow cab going into a side street, or even the color of an ice cream cone that could lead a person to walk into a park. The goal of Burrough’s experiment was for people to see the extent that color is as a physical thigs in the physical world, and to what extent that colors create images in one’s mind.

 

                Bennin and McMullan tested out Burrough’s experiment by walking at WNYC in lower Manhattan. As soon as they were out the door they picked a color and set out on their walk. They started with the color blue, which led them to follow the color pink, and then they began looking at violets. At the end of the day the colors they saw were visualized more in their memory, and they concluded that they ended their walk seeing a “world brimming over with colors”, and were able to visualize not only the different colors that they saw but the different hues and intensities of each color in the objects they noticed on their walk. Bennin and McMullan created an interactive timeline that featured the objects that they noticed on their color walk and a description of the object that they noticed the color on. The interactive timeline allows for their readers to observe what they saw on their walk in real time and how they switched from color to color.  

 

                Looking back on how they tested the experiment, Bennin and McMullan advised people that are interested in doing a color walk to give themselves an hour of uninterrupted time where they would have time to just focus with their eyes on the colors they were seeing instead of running errands or trying to get from one part of town to the other during a commute. The second piece of advice they gave was to pick a color, or to even let a color pick you if it makes ones heart want to follow it. Finally, they said that if you get lost to pick another color and that getting lost in the colors means that you are on the right track.

Georgia Tech’s Library, Built Environment Description

Posted on by
Reply

 

The Georgia Institute of Technology Library, located at 704 Cherry St. Atlanta, Ga 30332, is a large building on the top of a hill. I admit I was a little bit lost trying to find the building. Although both located in Atlanta, Gerogia Tech’s campus is very different from Georgia State University’s urban feeling. The Georgia Tech campus is more of a pedestrian campus than Georgia State University.

 

Once I found my self at the top of a hill and entering what I found to be the library, I checked in with the friendly security guard. Unlike Georgia State, all I had to do in order to enter the library was have my I.D checked and recorded, but then I was well on my way. Looking around there were only security at the front entrance. I thought this was interesting because when ever I enter Georgia State’s library the first thing I notice is the abundance of police and security.

 

I took a seat by the stairwell to wait for my friend Jacob, whom I asked to come spend time with me while I observed the library. When he called me to tell me he had arrived, he asked me where I was. I honestly told him I did not know. Then I realized there really were no distinctive landmarks to any section of what I had so far seen of this library. Luckily I saw him walking around the corner moments later. Jacob showed me that a few floors up they have a seating area that was flled with students studying and doing homework. We took our seat in a small booth in the corner of the room so that I could see all that was going on in the room in front of us.

0174fdba67b8305e9367df1b969e94b6aef6aa5ff5

Jacob watching people with me.

Not much happened while I sat in the Georgia Tech library. Everyone was so focused on their schoolwork, it was almost silent. I literally heard a pen drop from across the room at one point. mostly students were using their laptops while a handful of people had physical books in front of them to study. Every once and a while a new handful of people would cycle in and out of the study environment. Each time a new person entered they would find a seat, and pull one of the over head extention cord over to their work station. I continued to watch this occur and occur for a few hours before needing to leave.

01f520787fa5f64f68c1b67c6468809989823a091e

Study Room In library