Air Quality and Child Wellbeing
Social drivers of effects
Social drivers of effects
Groth, Block, and Newman studied factors related to whether people choose digital or physical forms of books and similar creative works. As they share, “The explosion in digitization means that individuals increasingly have the opportunity to choose between digital and physical versions of creative works—for example, between eBooks and paperback books. However, despite the popularity of digital objects, many people continue to prefer physical equivalents. We suggest that one reason for this preference is that physical versions of works are felt to embody the essence of their creators.
Al-Kire and colleagues evaluated how people evaluate artworks. They report that “Participants were randomly assigned to view original art photos created by a professional photographer that adhered to aesthetic principles, modified photos (i.e., the original photos modified to violate aesthetic principles such as the rule of thirds), or a comparison condition (photos selected from the International Affective Picture System).
Khoury reports on a practical reason to paint surfaces a saturated shade of yellow, one that likely influences space user wellbeing. Khoury shares that “Flies are more than a nuisance. They are the carriers and transmitters of numerous diseases, including particularly dangerous ones such as cholera, typhoid, and gastrointestinal illnesses. . . . In hot, humid countries like Indonesia, flies are a part of everyday life. . . . Many school canteens are open-air, making it even easier for flies to access the food. . . .
Sleboda and team’s work indicate how important word choices can be and their findings are likely applicable generally in designed situations. The group reports that they collected data as “Participants chose between one gourmet food gift basket without meat and dairy and another with meat and dairy. . . . the gourmet food gift basket without meat and dairy was less likely to be chosen when its label focused on its content (stating ‘vegan’ or ‘plant-based’) rather than on its benefits (stating ‘healthy’, ‘sustainable’ or both).
Van Hedger, Bongiovanni, and Khudhair studied people’s responses to different sounds. They report that “we investigate whether the absolute tuning of music influences listener evaluations of music. Across three experiments, participants rated musical excerpts, tuned conventionally (A4 = 440 Hz) versus unconventionally (±50 cents from conventional tuning), in terms of aesthetic preference. . . . participants clearly preferred the conventionally tuned version for highly familiar recordings, they tended to prefer the version that was highest in absolute pitch if the recording was unfamiliar.
Hula and Samalova study of flower preferences produced intriguing findings. The investigators report that “Our previous studies revealed that Czechs, irrespective of gender, age, education, or level of expertise, display very similar esthetic responses to flowers of diverse shapes and colors, that is, they like and dislike the same flowers. . . . This study compares the flower preferences of the inhabitants of two culturally, geographically, and ecologically highly distinct countries—Czechia . . . and Kenya. . . We found a very strong positive correlation . .
Zushi’s team’s research can likely be extended from tasting substances to other sensory experiences. They share that “Prior research indicate that emotional states can alter taste perception, but the underlying mechanisms remain unclear. . . . The first experiment investigated how anxiety affects taste perception when individuals are aware of their anxiety. Participants watched videos inducing relaxation or anxiety, then were divided into groups focusing on their emotions and those who did not, and the taste perception was measure.
Cytowic’s work is an interesting introduction to synesthesia, particularly for people interested in the full range of possible sensory experiences. As Cytowic shares “Synesthesia has already caused a paradigm shift in two senses. For science, it has forced a fundamental rethinking about how brains are organized. It is now beyond dispute that cross talk happens in all brains; synesthetes just have more of it that takes place in existing circuits. The other paradigm shift lies within each individual. What synesthesia shows is that not everyone sees the world as you do. . . .
When design supports the development and maintenance of communities it can elevate the physical and psychological wellbeing of both individuals and the groups they choose to form. Neuroscience indicates how space and object design can bolster communities.