Consider the objects and products you encounter every day while at MIT—all of these were designed. When looking at a design, it’s important to be critical, but in a constructive manner. It’s also important to recognize that there are very few instances where a design is totally great or totally terrible; there are typically good parts of a poor design, and vice versa.
Take a picture of two very different objects or products, one that you believe is a relatively bad design, and one that is a relatively good design. Discuss the pros and cons of each design, and why you have come to your overall “good” or “bad” conclusion. Also discuss what trade-offs and constraints the designers likely faced in developing these products, and how these challenges were managed.
