Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Class topics of interest


Examples of successful/ unsuccessful development work with a technology focus

In every career path, people inevitably learn from their mistakes.  In a way, I feel that making unsuccessful designs, effectively making mistakes, is the most important aspect of developing a successful product.  Therefore, unsuccessful development work is necessary for successful work.  On the other hand, an unsuccessful products in developing countries can have detrimental effects by not only wasting money, but also discouraging populations about what products will be available for their future.  I see these two situations of unsuccessful design to be very different, one is caused by creativity, trial and error, and the other is caused by carelessness.  I am interested in discussing what makes development work successful and unsuccessful, and if unsuccessful work is due to an inherent design flaw or a neglect to consider who would be using the product.
Furthermore, we have already discussed the challenge engineers face of designing for people who are removed from themselves, and I would like to see how the most successful development work has tackled this problem.  Before looking into the answer, I have a hunch that the greatest success will come from those who have truly engaged with the targeted population and involved them in the design process.  If a community cannot get excited about a product, and does not feel like it is their own, I believe that it will be much harder for a product to have success. 
The lack of technology in developing nature indisputably contributes to a lower living standard, and I see it as developed nations’ responsibility to act as a catalyst for nations to develop their own technologies.  I would find it very interesting to look into the correlation, if any, between successful / unsuccessful development work and giving technologies to countries versus helping them develop / create these technologies themselves. 

No comments:

Post a Comment