Doors of Perception Report
by John Thackara
March 2008

TRAVELS IN UNCANNY VALLEY
Many of us are confronted by a painful dilemma: we travel to earn money,
and to see loved ones - and yet the only way to reduce the ecological
footprint of flying is to stop flying. I took 78 flights last year,
for example, which must put me in the top one per cent of individual
polluters in the world. I have committed to fly 30 per cent less this
year, and to reduce my flights by 90 per cent within ten years after
that; but this will still leave me open to the valid charge of
hyprocrisy for years to come. So I am very seriously motivated to
explore substitutes for mobility. My search kicks off at a Pixelache
University seminar on "Traveling Without Moving" in Helsinki. My fellow
speakers are Juha Huuskonen, Andreas Zacharia (Carbon Hero), Matt Jones
from Dopplr (remotely) and Danie Peltz (remotely). Saturday 15 March,
Kiasma Theatre, Helsinki 15:00-16:30. Yes, I'm flying there; I promised
Juha I'd be there nine months back - and you're right, that's no excuse.
Read more about Uncanny Valley here:
http://www.doorsofperception.com/archives/2008/01/traveling_witho.php
Details of the seminar at Kiasma are here:
http://helsinki.pixelache.ac/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=76&It
emid=74

DOTT 07 WRAP EVENT
Before we close the doors at Dott 07 for the last time, the final Dott
07 Explorers Club takes place in Newcastle next week. We'll have updates
from the community design projects, and the Eco Design Challenge; we'll
also debate what design schools are doing (or not) for sustainability.
News on the next Dott will also be announced. This is your last chance
to enjoy (with us) the Robert Stephenson Centre space - birthplace of
the railway age. Time 1730h-2100h. Wednesday 12 March. Spaces are
limited due to fire regulations so you need to book by email:
susan.lowthian@...
(Please put Explorers Club in the subject line).

WOULDN'T A FREE DOTT 07 MANUAL BE GREAT!
What could life in a sustainable region be like - and how can design can
help us get there? Here are some sample spreads from the Dott 07 Manual:
http://www.thackara.com/dott/dottexamples/index.html
We've got a couple of boxes of the book left over, so I will send five
free copies to the person(s) who most intrigue me with the names of four
other people you will send the books to when you get them. Hint: they
should be people likely to make other Dott-like events happen. Email
the names of your nominees, plus your full postal address, to:
john [at] doorsofperception [dot] com
(and please put Manual in the header). Subject to availability.
Single copies are still available from Amazon:
http://www.amazon.co.uk/wouldnt-be-great-if-1/dp/1904335152

SOCIAL INNOVATION CAMP
What happens when you get a bunch of software developers and social
innovators together, give them a set of social problems and only 48
hours to solve them? The Young Foundation plans to find out at the
first ever Social Innovation Camp. They will select between five
and 10 projects to come to the weekend where there will be funders
who, it's hoped, will take on some projects. Ideas already submitted
include Barcode Wikipedia, a tool for sharing cycle routes in London
and an idea for how the web could help the UK prison system become
a more humane institution. Call for Ideas closes this Friday.
The camp is in London 4-6 April 2008
http://www.sicamp.org/

SHOULD DESIGN SCHOOLS BE CLOSED DOWN?
Neil McGuire asks me, in this Wodcast interview, whether I meant it
when I said that design schools should be closed down.
http://www.wodcast.org/wodcast_webarchive/wodcast_thackara.mp3

THE BIG CHILL
Shopping for a snack in central London I counted 78 metres (256 feet)
of chiller cabinets in one small central London branch of Marks and
Spencer. M&S have made a laudable commitment to make its operations
carbon neutral within five years - but the company's Plan A does not
mention refrigeration.This is a huge issue, because more than
50 percent of food in developed countries is retailed under
refrigerated conditions. Read more at:
http://www.doorsofperception.com/archives/2008/01/the_big_chill.php

DAM NATION
Ever since I learned about about water mapping from Georg Bertsch, and
about watershed-based planning from Chris Hardwick, at Doors 9 on Juice
last year, I've been aware that we don't think enough about water. In a
fit of guilt I bought a bunch of books about greywater harvesting; these
now sit in a dispiriting and unread pile next to my bath. Then, I found
a book called Dam Nation: Dispatches From the Water Underground which
I have read - and commend to you all.
http://www.doorsofperception.com/archives/2008/02/dam_nation_disp.php

REAL AND VIRTUAL, HYPER-LOCAL
Steven Johnson's books on the intersection of science, technology and
personal experience have influenced everything from the way political
campaigns use the Internet, to urban planning. He also co-created the
online magazine FEED, Plastic.com, and most recently the hyperlocal
media site, Outside.in. Steven will give the annual Stephan Weiss
lecture in New York in 13 March; it commemorates the life of the late
artist and sculptor, Stephan Weiss, partner of Donna Karan.
Thursday 13 March 13, 6:00pm, Theresa Lang Center,
55 West 13th Street, NYC, 2nd floor.
RSVP +1.212.229.5391 or email: maligi@...

WE THINK
Charles Leadbeater's new book is 'We Think: Mass Innovation Not Mass
Production'. It's published this week. Charlie will debate the impact
of the web with Jonathan Friedland of the Guardian at the British
Library on 26 March. You can book for that event here:
http://www.bl.uk/onlinegallery/whatson/events/march.html
The first three chapters can be downloaded from:
http://www.charlesleadbeater.net

ORANGE DESIGN REVOLUTION
A serious-looking book from the Said Business School at Oxford
University is called "Designing for Services: Proceedings from
the Exploratory Project on Designing for Services in Science and
Technology-based Enterprises". Not a thrilling title, it's true,
but many of the names on the contents page are Doors (and Dott)
regulars - so you may want to check it out. A degree of dedication is
required to decipher the orange pages with white text on them.
http://designingforservices.typepad.co.uk/designing_for_services/service_des
ign/index.html

SOCIAL INNOVATION EXCHANGE (SIX)
The new SIX website lists projects and case studies from
the International Social Innovation eXchange network.
http://www.socialinnovationexchange.org

BIO-INNOVATORS
The European Commisson has made bio-based products a green
priority alongside sustainable construction, recycling and
renewable technologies. In bio-based innovation we have a lot
to learn from the natural world. This workshop brings together
will bring together a number of leading bio-Innovators.
7 April, Reading, UK.
www.dexigner.com/product/news-g13732.html

COMING WITH THE FLOW
A sign when you arrive at Heathrow's Terminal 4 says "Welcome To
Britain" and you enter... a sleazy gift shop. Now I understand why:
The chief executive of BAA, which runs Heathrow, was promoted to the
job from Retail Director. He's now been been sacked - but before we
rejoice, consider this: His replacement's last job was running
a water company, Severn Trent. What will await us next time we
arrive at Heathrow - a sluice?

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