Thermodynamic Design
When a pot of water is brought to a boil, the water in can never reach a temperature above 100°C at a regular pressure of one atmosphere (a condition likely to exist in a kitchen). No matter how long a flame or current applies heat to the pot, the water will still limit out at that temperature. Instead, the water is converted to a gas which is often referred to as steam. If heat is applied long enough, all of the water will convert to steam and the pot will be left empty. While this won’t help cook anything for dinner, it still teaches a valuable lesson in thermodynamics, or the study of heat and energy transfer.
Thermodynamics proposes that energy can never be created or destroyed, but only converted or transferred into another type of energy. If this conservation of energy can be applied to advanced engineering problems, why can’t the same principles be applied in a less direct, but still related way to other areas of study? Even if the work I do now rarely relies on calculation of energy transfer, I still use the underlying concept I learned from thermodynamics—everything goes somewhere. Sure it is much more generalized, but it is entirely as effective when it comes to design. It has taught me to be conscious of how much energy a person will have to go through to interact with my designs as well as how much energy a design gives off and what effect that will have on a viewer.
Usability Engineering
It doesn’t require a tremendous amount of energy for a person to dart their eyes around a page, but I feel that extra effort should be kept to a minimum to ensure that a reader gets the most out of their experience with a well-designed page. If the reader is constantly trying to figure out where to look next, they will spend an unnecessary amount of energy rummaging through something that should be straight forward as well as aesthetically pleasing. The next logical step for a person wasting energy would be to simply drop the designed work, which could very easily fall into a trash can, converting all its potential. If a design gets prematurely disposed of, then something is clearly wrong with it in relationship to a viewer. A strong design not only aims to establish a mental connection with an audience, but it should also strive to establish a physical connection, which I feel is more important. This physical interaction leaves a person more satisfied because they have to transfer some of their own energy to get that tactile sense working, and when a person gives up a part of themselves to a design, they inherently become more attached to it. Designers should make the utmost effort in establishing this connection that allows the transfer of energy.
Energy In = Energy Out
While many processes involving heat involve a direction of flow, very few thermodynamic processes are irreversible. When I design something like a poster or a magazine layout, I put a whole lot of energy into the project. Perhaps it is just my own desire to have people see how much work went into what I make, but I feel that this should come across in the layout of the photos and body copy or the color choices and material selection to anyone who is drawn to the design. I like to think that the energy I put into creating the work somehow gets implanted into the work and can be drawn out by a person interacting with the design. Sometimes when I come home, a little flyer or hanger is stuck to my front door. More often than not, it looks poorly planned and even poorly executed. I can tell how much energy went into making the annoyance and I give it that much energy in return—none. If our energy has to come somewhere, why not put all the energy and excitement into a design that a professional should feel about his or her work so that it can diffuse into a viewer and give them the same feeling?
When I think about how principles of energy and heat transfer can be applied to the way I design, I think about how all the effort that I put into my work will eventually be converted to a rewarding experience with the end user. But as I mentioned about thermodynamic processes not being unidirectional, I can see how the end user can equally transfer energy back to me. My work and energy gets converted to feedback from the audience. This feedback keeps the cycle of energy going, giving me the motivation to keep producing solid work. With all this in mind, I make sure that when I design that everything has a purpose and is placed with intent on maximizing the energy transfer toward the audience instead of requiring them to put forth the energy to get past an unsuccessful design.