 |
 |
Dear Terry, First of all an epistemological fine point: I didn't suggest that designers "identify unimaginable possibilities." If they are unimaginable they cannot be acted upon. I said "previously unimaginable possibilities." Designers need to go beyond both what is commonly understood and hence imaginable and expand their own space of possibilities. I grant you that computes can search among an amazing number of data points to find what someone is looking for, hence imagines, but what is found must have been there to begin with. Computers can also explore an amazing number of combinatorial possibilities, more that humans can combine and examine in their life time. But the elements they combine must be finite and known in advance by the programmers of algorithms. Going through a space of say a billion binary variable requires 2 to the power of 1,000,000,000 steps, which is transcomputational. Even with something that is computable, a computer may come up with unanticipated combinations but not transcend them. I have a lot of respect for human creativity. Contrary to what you are claiming, I am suggesting that creative designers are extremely good are thinking out of the box of deterministic processes. I am not referring to designers who merely use a more attractive shape or color of something already known, but designers that propose something previously unimaginable, develop something not predictable by extrapolating past trends, not finding something rarely noticed and increasing its probability by offering it to a large population. Klaus -----Original Message----- From: PhD-Design - This list is for discussion of PhD studies and related research in [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of Terence Love Sent: Saturday, April 13, 2019 6:27 AM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: Automated design generation and optimisation research breakthrough Dear Klaus, Thank you for your message. In it you suggest that one characteristic of design activity is that, ' Design operates in a space of previously unimaginable possibilities. A problem with human designers is that they are not good at identifying 'unimaginable possibilities' In contrast, from my experience over the last 45 years, computers can be much better and more thorough than human designers at finding 'unimaginable possibilities'. There are many many computer-based approaches. Currently, in the product design world, generative design methods have since the 80s been creating optimised designs that human designers have found difficult or impossible to imagine. Another example of such generative approaches that go beyond what human designers can creatively think is the computerised approach that Phillipe Stark is now using to extend his creativity - see for example, https://www.autodesk.com/redshift/philippe-starck-designs/?utm_source=Marketo&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Redshift%20newsletter%20Weekly-2018-10-25T11:00:00.000-07:00%20&mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiTnpGaVpqRTNOamRsWWpneSIsInQiOiJcL3FRd24zOEVtMVwvY0JSTTROdGpBUWc3MW1vYzhHUWMxVmhzYlptSkRsM1ZiR3ZuTzVWSHorWjJiaFQrZkJHK0tad0hCdDBUOVRSRWdOelczRmVjMVwvaThmNmxTNFF5NGUxYnpHVWlWMnJyekZLbjRvNXNSbUhqVnlJV05sQzJnMzQ5RXZnbmVFU0hEUm13c1ZhankxaWc9PSJ9 And... the first full length book machine-written book was published this week by Springer Nature (https://aktuelles.uni-frankfurt.de/englisch/first-machine-generated-book-published/) Best wishes, Terry -----Original Message----- From: PhD-Design - This list is for discussion of PhD studies and related research in <[log in to unmask]> On Behalf Of Krippendorff, Klaus Sent: Saturday, 13 April 2019 1:32 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: Automated design generation and optimisation research breakthrough Hi Terry and Dave, Yes, computers are faster and can search for optimum solutions provided the number of alternatives are well-defined and within computational limits. Regarding computational limits, design decisions often exceed them which is why Herbert Simon suggested to replace optimizing by satisficing -- keeping the criteria within computational limits. Regarding the well-defined mature of computational algorithms, most design problems aren't of this kind. We have plenty of theories, especially including mathematical ones, that extract determinisms from the reality of human interfaces with technology, which may hold for a moment, may be enforced by authorities but soon become outdated. Semiotics is a good example. Morris, Pierce, Russell and many other semioticians abstract meanings from human interactions into triadic conceptions. Their theories has given rise to algorithms that include dictionary definitions of meanings -- the General Inquirer, LIWC, CATPAC, Webcrawlers, Google translator, for example. Such software can mine large data bases, identify, analyze, evaluate, even vary a lot of phenomena. They may create novel texts that may not be obviously distinguishable from what humans might say -- provided such texts are short and of the most basic kinds, like Alexis. Don't forget, by (my) definition: Design operates in a space of previously unimaginable possibilities. Good design is inherently opposed to the kind of determinisms that computers are programmed to follow. Algorithms are routines that when adopted by human beings keep them entrapped in reproducible habits, burdened by dreadful conditions, wasteful of their creativity, or oppressed by conditions that seem hopeless. On a macro level design is what keeps culture viable and unpredictable, on an individual level it has to be revolutionary. We may not be able to compete with computers quantitatively, but even everyday design takes place in a space that computers cannot create on their own. Klaus -----Original Message----- From: PhD-Design - This list is for discussion of PhD studies and related research in [mailto:[log in to unmask]] On Behalf Of [log in to unmask] Sent: Friday, April 12, 2019 11:40 PM To: [log in to unmask] Subject: Re: Automated design generation and optimisation research breakthrough Hi Terry, I have been down this route both practically and intellectually in a number of projects, not with the power of contemporary AI, let alone quantum computing, but the problems of limits in the nature of computers, in contrast to people remain. There are various ways of describing the problem. My best simple ways of describing it involves a knowledge of basic concepts in semiotics and linguistics. Charles Morris’s account of Semantics, Syntactics, and Pragmatics helps. Putting the matter VERY simply: Computers of any kind, including quantum computers, are extremely good at precise and fast construction and application of semantic and syntactic rules. They have NO pragmatics engine. Indeed, as far as I know, no-one has yet conceptualised, let alone implemented such a system. Within their limited domain computers can do great things. They can also make bigger mistakes faster than any person could possibly even conceive of. Our ultimate defence, at least for the moment, is to know where the plug is so that we can pull it out. David ----------------------------------------------------------------- PhD-Design mailing list <[log in to unmask]> Discussion of PhD studies and related research in Design Subscribe or Unsubscribe at https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/phd-design ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- PhD-Design mailing list <[log in to unmask]> Discussion of PhD studies and related research in Design Subscribe or Unsubscribe at https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/phd-design ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- PhD-Design mailing list <[log in to unmask]> Discussion of PhD studies and related research in Design Subscribe or Unsubscribe at https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/phd-design ----------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------- PhD-Design mailing list <[log in to unmask]> Discussion of PhD studies and related research in Design Subscribe or Unsubscribe at https://www.jiscmail.ac.uk/phd-design -----------------------------------------------------------------