Can we really call it progress when it creates so much waste? What if your phone — the one you’re using right now — was your last phone? Take a good look at it and imagine using it for the rest of your life. Could it even last that long? Could you? Probably not. Today I want to think about what that means. What happens to a planet and its people when technological progress is measured in product cycles. And what happens when there's no balance sheet to account for the other side of that — when every new product leaves billions of products and accessories and packaging behind…Show NotesMy first cellphoneMy second cellphoneThis clip ended up on the cutting room floor, but here's Derek Zoolander's tiny phoneYou can learn more about the Agbogbloshie landfill by reading its Wikipedia page, looking at these photographs, or watching this documentary. Please watch it!You can learn more about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch here."The Victims of the Great Pacific Garbage Patch," a clip from 60 MinutesProject Ara Demo at Google IO 2015Google Cancels Project AraThe FairphoneDanny Boyle interviewed by Marc MaronMusicAll music used in this episode was independently produced by r beny and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.FeltFall Creek UnitFormation ProcessNovation PeakMariposaAlluvialNatomaSpindleIllumination CeremonyCreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

Design Tomorrow

Phones Never Die. They're Eaten By Birds

Every discussion of entrepreneurship is really a discussion about values. Today, we'll follow up on last week's episode, where we began a discussion of entrepreneurship by resetting that idea — by challenging the story of entrepreneurship. We contrasted the protagonist — the hero CEO — with the reality of who we are. And we contrasted the plot — the capitalistic, meritocratic variant of the hero's journey — with the meandering serendipity of our lives' paths. But dismantling one story doesn't write ours for us. And so that's where we'll pick up today — with how we begin — by identifying, examining, and ordering our values so that they may serve as a foundation for the creative and productive lives we build upon them…MusicAll music used in this episode is independently produced and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.Di Breun, by Blue Dot SessionsDrip Hop Modular Beats, by r benyOriel, by Blue Dot SessionsThe Snowgard, by Blue Dot SessionsCrosswire, by Blue Dot SessionsLi Fonte, by Blue Dot SessionsE2 Ambient X, by r benyCreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

You Don't Have to Be an Entrepreneur, Part 2

Entrepreneurship doesn’t have to mean what you think it means.Over the course of the next two episodes, I'd like to share with you how my own perspective on “entrepreneurship” has evolved, and offer a critique of the sameness of the popular model of the entrepreneur. I'll also give you eight little nuggets of wisdom that have been helpful to me on my journey so far, and only grow in their value to me as it continues…Show NotesNewfangled, where I work.MusicAll music used in this episode is independently produced and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.Kirkus, by Blue Dot SessionsTransit Center, by Podington BearOrder of Entrance, by Blue Dot SessionsLunette, by Blue Dot SessionsTralaga, by Blue Dot SessionsTolls Folly, by Blue Dot SessionsExceter Lask, by Blue Dot SessionsCreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

You Don't Have to Be an Entrepreneur

Every vision of the future is a better index of the present from which it came than whatever time it imagines. So today, let's look back at some of the things we believed would serve as landmarks of the future. Not to point out how quaint they are or to dunk on the blind spots of the past. But so that we can better understand why — no matter what shiny new objects we make and use — we never quite feel like we've gotten to the future. Why it's so difficult to recognize how far we've come…Show NotesThe Dymaxion HouseLe CorbusierLewis MumfordLewis Mumford on The CityRobert Heinlein did get a futurist house eventually. He just had to design it himself.The Entire History of YouMusicAll music used in this episode is independently produced and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.Spirals, by r beny Fall Creek Unit, by r beny Live 182801, by r beny Pines, by r beny Crystals & Graves, by r beny Volca Keys Arp Jam, by r beny CreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

The Future vs. The Future

Too often we think of the word "design" as a shorthand for an ecosystem of mostly visual phenomena. But words play an enormous, though often unseen, role in the creation of everything. Today, I want to tell you a story about how my life was changed by a few words said quickly, but words which I will never forget...MusicAll music used in this episode is independently produced and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.Envira, by Blue Dot SessionsOur Digital Compass, by Blue Dot SessionsSvela Tal, by Blue Dot SessionsTolls Folly, by Blue Dot SessionsCreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

Words Matter

The majority of our clicking and tapping is a repetitive act of information management. Isn't A.I. supposed to help us with this? Don't hold your breath... Today, on Design Tomorrow, in the tradition of the rantiest of rants, I'd like to, well, rant about a few things. About AI and us, about wasted time and wasting of the land, and about the lowing and highing of design...LinksThe Sword in the Stone, Wart eats a bug“It is important to use your hands. This is what distinguishes you from a cow or a computer operator.” - Paul RandMusicAll music used in this episode is independently produced and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.Respiration, by Podington Bear Transit Center, by Podington Bear Twine, by Podington Bear The Dirty, by Podington Bear Free Radicals, by Podington Bear Lleb, by Podington Bear Data, by Podington Bear Dark Matter, by Podington Bear Rythn, by Podington Bear CreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

A.I. Ain't that I.

Is technology a means to an end — the ladder we climb to a future we want to inhabit because it's better for us than the present — or is it as far as we let our minds and hearts go? In this episode of Design Tomorrow, we'll connect a few stories about technology that didn't make it in order to better understand the technological path our culture is on...LinksSplit-flap displaysSaying Goodbye to Philadelphia's 30th Street Station's Iconic Flip BoardBERG's Pixel TrackBERG's archived home pageMusicAll music used in this episode is independently produced and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.Arbic Tallow, by Blue Dot SessionsFall Creek Unit, by r benyErvira, by Blue Dot SessionsKalsted, by Blue Dot SessionsArbinac, by Blue Dot SessionsLevanger, by Blue Dot SessionsCreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

The Glove, the Display, and the Possible Future

Does advertising still make sense in our world today? How does a form of media always known as an associated form — as something that sips from the attention river flowing to and from other things — function when the complexity of those waterways has exponentially increased?LinksWho is Using Twitter in the US?28 Twitter Statistics All Marketers Need to Know in 2019The Eye-Opening Influence of Instagram on Buying10 Instagram Stats Every Marketer Should Know in 2019The Cost of Paying Attention, by Matthew CrawfordJared Lanier on micropaymentsThe Roosevelts, by Ken BurnsMusicAll music used in this episode is independently produced and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.Greyleaf Willow, by Blue Dot SessionsRainy Day Drone, by Blue Dot SessionsFall Creek Unit, by r benyLoam, by Podington BearEE2 Ambient, by r benyWilt, by r benyE2 Ambient Electro Jam, by r benyCreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

Ugh. Advertising.

Are interfaces good? Or are they a distraction — for us the makers, and for the users we believe we are helping? How can we think better about both how we interface with digital experiences, personally, and how others do it? Today, we'll think deeply about the nature of the interface — what it is, and what it says about us, the people who made it — and explore the need for new rules for better interface-making...LinksIt's a Mistake to Mistake Content for Content, by Kenneth GoldsmithIn the Kingdom of the Bored, the One-Armed Bandit is King, by Nicholas CarrAmish Hackers, by Kevin KellyKevin Kelly speaking at GoogleWhat Technology Wants, by Kevin KellyMusicAll music used in this episode is independently produced and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.Bloom, by r benyCyclotrak, by Blue Dot SessionsSvela Tal, by Blue Dot SessionsTralaga, by Blue Dot SessionsExceter Lask, by Blue Dot SessionsCreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

The Interface and Me

We live in a time of illusions. Simulations that reflect back upon us more than just the passage of time, but something important about who we are. Something unique is going on right now — with the tools and technology we have — that is giving us the ability to stop, stretch, bend, and replay time. In this episode, we'll explore what that offers us, we for whom at some point, time will end...Links"Danielle"Timelapse of the Imperceptible Effects of Aging Created from Family Portraits by Anthony Cerniello"Noah takes a photo of himself every day for 12.5 years"Homer Simpson Time Lapse"Nancy Grows Up""41 Years in 60 Seconds""The Arrow of Time"Star Trek TNG - Moriarty pleads his case for existenceStranger than Fiction - Harold confronts the necessity of his deathMemento MoriMusicAll music used in this episode is independently produced and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.Danielle, by Mark ReveleyTogether We Are Stronger, by KomikuI Need to Start Writing Things Down, by Chris ZabriskieThe Dark Glow of the Mountains, by Chris ZabriskieI Used to Need the Violence, by Chris ZabriskieOut of the Skies Under the Earth, by Chris ZabriskieCreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

Useful Fictions

When so many problems of existence remain unsolved, we haven't earned the luxury of smartphones. So this is an intervention. A challenge to the status quo of waste and distraction and triviality and short-term pile-on that is our way of life here in 2019...Links"Give it a second! It's going to space!""not just actual attention but the promise of future, fictional, vaporous attention" - Dan HonFlint, Michigan still doesn't have clean waterBill Gates made a machine that turns feces into drinkable waterIt’s In the Bag! Teenager Wins Science Fair, Solves Massive Environmental ProblemMusicAll music used in this episode is independently produced and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.Invicta, by Blue Dot SessionsBloom, by r benyElectribe 2 Meets System 1, by r beny4-Track Cassette Drone, by r benyComma, by Blue Dot SessionsCreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

The Last Thing We Need Are Smartphones

What is it about robots that compels us to create them? And what does it say about a culture that makes machine surrogates despite not having reached a consensus about why to make them in the first place? In this episode, we'll explore the robots taking over our world, and the agenda behind them...LinkshitchBOTthe definition of "robot" from Google and Wikipediaa drumming robota spring-making robotoh, the many uses of springsUber's first self-driven truck delivery was a beer run.Amazon's newest ambition: competing directly with UPS and FedExThe permanent transitionThe three laws of roboticsThe One Thing Real Quick Podcast"How to Keep Yourself Sane in Faketopia"MusicAll music used in this episode is independently produced and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.Inside the Toy Submarine, by Blue Dot SessionsRotary Cog, by Blue Dot SessionsBloom, by r benyNovation Peak Ambient II, by r benyHer Caliber, by Blue Dot SessionsExquisite Motion, by Blue Dot SessionsRainy Day Drone, by Blue Dot SessionsTiny Bottles, by Blue Dot SessionsThe Dustbin, by Blue Dot SessionsCreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC. You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

Behind Every Robot

What are our ideas worth? Are they as valuable as we think they are? And what might change about how we act on our ideas once we start thinking differently about how we value them and how unique they really are? In this episode, we'll explore how simultaneous ideas and discoveries throughout history show that ideas and minds probably work differently than we think...LinksThe Discovery of EndorphinsWho invented Electricity?List of multiple discoveriesThe Theory of MultiplesDueling Movies are a real thingThis episode is based upon an article I wrote in 2015 called "What is an idea worth?"MusicAll music used in this episode is independently produced and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.Ultraviolet Clouds Clone, by by r benyBloom, by r benyFlashing Runner, by Blue Dot SessionsCanopy, by r benyPassing Station, by Blue Dot SessionsE2 Ambient X , by r benyCreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

The Real Value of Ideas

They say that practice makes perfect. I'll settle for "practice makes good," thank you very much! In this episode of Design Tomorrow, we'll explore what it means to practice - what there is in repetition that can help us to get better. Not just at what we do, but also at who we are.LinksMy drawing professor, Alfred Decredico.Balancing Data with Intuition, by Jon YablonskiThe Way to Make Good Things is to Make Many Things, by Chris ButlerMusicAll music used in this episode is independently produced and licensed by Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use.Arctic Draba, by Blue Dot SessionsBut Enough About Me Bill Paxton, by Chris ZabriskieIllumination Ritual, by r benyDrift & Divide, by r benyCold Summers, by Blue Dot SessionsVolca FM Meets PO, by r benyCreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC.You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

How to Make Good Things

There are very few people left on Earth for whom the world isn't shaped by computers or seen through their screens. But does it have to be this way? In this episode, we'll explore how screens — and the images they reveal — are just as much a manifestation of the world from which they come as they are the raw materials of a story about the next one: the future...LinksThe IBM Portable PC 5155Blade Runner - Opening SceneHuman Progress Landscape, the not-so-good student animation I made in 2003, but for which I still retain some fondnessThe machine I used to make it: the Sony VAIO Digital StudioJony Ive's magical voice for Apple marketingyou may have noticed some sound from the Tron Lightbike SceneThe Matrix "What is Real?" scenekeen listeners and sci-fi aficionados will have noticed sounds from the Nostromo boot sequence in Alienyou may have also noticed some sound from The Lawnmower Man's disconnecting sceneWhat Technology Wants, by Kevin KellyThe last clip you heard came from WarGames - The WOPR introduction sceneMusicWith the exception of a brief sample from a live performance of Kraftwerk in 1978, all music used in this episode was independently produced and shared with Design Tomorrow for non-commercial use by Able Parris of kamuter.Stratosfear, by kamuterDiscovery, by kamuterthe robots (live), by KraftwerkFrequency, by kamuterTerraform, by kamuterInterrogation, by kamuterSome of My Favorite Independent MediaRobin Sloan is a writer and self-styled media inventor who constantly inspires me by independently producing short stories and "odd-shaped internet projects." His latest workspace is called Year of the Meteor, where he's writing a regular newsletter and producing some interesting zine-like media. Robin and his partner Kathryn Tomajan also independently produce California extra virgin olive oil under the label: Fat GoldDesert Oracle is a pocket-sized field guide (and radio show) to the fascinating American deserts: strange tales, singing sand dunes, sagebrush trails, artists and aliens, authors and oddballs, ghost towns and modern legends, musicians and mystics, scorpions and saguaros! Independently produced by Ken Layne.Mysterious Universe is my favorite podcast about the weird, the strange, the paranormal, and the metaphysical independently produced for over a decade in Sydney, Australia. You can support them by listening and becoming a member of their Plus Club.Logic Magazine is a print magazine about technology that publishes three times per year and maintains an intentionally small digital footprint. Hurry Slowly is a podcast about how you can be more productive, creative, and resilient through the simple act of slowing down. Aquarium Drunkard is an eclectic audio journal focused on daily reviews, interviews, features, podcasts and sessions.CreditsDesign Tomorrow is produced by Chris Butler at the Tomorrow office in Durham, NC. You can follow the show on Twitter @dsgntmrrw. You can visit the show's website at designtomorrow.co, and you can email me at chris @ designtomorrow.co.Thanks for listening, and remember, what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

Computer World

Design Tomorrow is a podcast about design, technology, and being human with a special emphasis on growing our awareness that what we do and think today can create a better tomorrow.

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Design Tomorrow

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