Design and Usability
New technology presents opportunities for
enabling those with disabilities, but also
challenges for all users.
What is Design?
Design is a complicated discipline of research,
synthesis, problem solving, and behavior shaping.
These pieces explore this discipline.

(P)ReVIeW
38 Six Speaking Chairs
(not directly) for People
Who Cannot Speak
Graham Pullin, Andrew Cook
(P)ReVIeW
THe Wa Y I See IT
46 Gestural Interfaces:
A Step Backward in Usability
Don Norman, Jakob Nielsen
The Politics of Development
Social innovation is tremendously political;
these pieces describe some of the political challenges
of social, cultural, and military work.

UNDeR DeVeLOPMeNT

50 Not Your Average Farmer:
Designing for Lead Users in
ICT4D Research
Neil Patel

TIMeLINeS

53 Project SAGE, a Half-Century On
John Leslie King

INTeRaCTINg WITH PUBLIC POLICY

56 Interacting with Policy in a
Political World: Reflections from
the Voices from the Rwanda
Tribunal Project
Lisa P. Nathan, Batya Friedman

FeaTURe
FeaTURe
63 Building a User Observatory:
From Ethnographic Insights to
Effective Recommendations

Valérie Bauwens
FeaTURe
68 Relying on Failures in
Design Research
Nicolas Nova
FeaTURe
70 Solving Complex Problems
Through Design
Steve Baty

ON MODeLINg

74 The Space of Design
Hugh Dubberly

INTeRaCTIONS CaFe

80 On Academic Knowledge
Production
Jon Kolko

September + October 2010

• On the COver: Photograph by Dayna Mason

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