Finds

№ 44 | Guidelines for Human-AI Interaction, Ethics of Influence, Graphic Nobel, The Apple Game, and The Calm Web

Stephen P. Anderson

07 Jul 2023 — 2 min read

Guidelines for human-AI interaction

I kind of like these Guidelines for Human-AI Interaction from Microsoft. As they're context-based—mapping to stages of an interaction—they're easy to use as a kind of checklist or assessment for any AI projects in-development or recently launched.

Ethics of Influence

Elizabeth Ayer shares a presentation on the ethics of influence: Changing minds: you can but should you? [⚠️ Warning. Annoying. Slideshare. Ads!] This is one of those topics I tend to weary of, having ‘worked it all out’ while writing my first book, Seductive Interaction Design. However, I like Ayer's simple framing, placing things an ethical spectrum. That, and this tends to emphasize the same place I've landed, with phrases like: “Power to.” “Facilitation.” “Coaching.” “Building Capability.” These kinds of ideas sit behind my professional mantra: “Work and learn together.”

Graphic Nobel

Ooh. Nobel prizes in physics explained with cartoons!
And, you can download the first 3 chapters [PFD] (of Volume 1) for free!

The Apple Game

🤔 The Apple Game, from Tim Urban (of Wait But Why).

I’d like to introduce you to a game I’ve been playing with friends for years. It’s not a game really—more of an exercise. The purpose is to add a bit more depth to the question, “Are you a good person?” Here’s how it’s played: Treat a person like an apple, with three layers of depth… [More in the post]

Calm web

Sigh. I'd like a calm web. Wouldn't you?
The Calm Web: A Solution to Our Scary and Divisive Online World

***BONUS: Clever antonym typography
I'm kind of enamored with this Clever Antonym Typography by Yash Mathur:

(More examples in the post!)

№ 110 | ‘Havens, Hubs & Hangouts’, “Infrastructure for Thinking”, Fractal Gridding + the Hadara Method (for Goal Setting), Bootstrapping Computing, Catalyst Game, Four Corners Reflection, A Visual Archive of the Jan 6 Capitol Attack, and the Size of Life

Did you miss me? 🤪 Stephen P. Anderson here, back again with your regular roundup of ‘playful things to think with… and think about’ (wow, that came out sounding like a cheesy DJ announcer!) One of the great things about taking time off between issues is the bounty of amazing finds

№ 109 | Algodeck, Alternatives to Arrows, Comic Lettering, Equations Explained Colorfully, Chemistry Advent Calendar, A Framework for Making Decisions, TikTok’s System Map, Learner Engagement Checklist, and Closing Prompts

Let’s close out the year with an XL-sized roundup of ‘playful things to think with’ and think about. 🗓️NOTE: This will be the last newsletter until next year. I normally publish Thinking Things every two weeks. But, I do like to take a bit of time off during the

№ 108 | Paid Attention, Algorithms to Serve People, Algorithms That Don’t Serve People, the Meaning Matrix, Historical Problem Space Framework, Games as Information Systems, Four Video Games to Change How We Think, and the Circularity Deck

I’m back again with even more playful things to think with, and think about! Chances are, this edition of the Thinking Things newsletter gets lost in the FLOOD of “best deal of the year” emails. Anyway… I’m busy. You’re busy. This will be the “straight to the

№ 107 | Reimagining the Now, Surfacing Worldviews of Change, Characteristics of SenseMaking (Illustrated), The Authoritarian Stack, Wheels of Privilege / Power—Remixed!, Four Leadership Modes

Back again, with even more playful things to think with, and think about. Last issue, I promised more card decks in this edition of Thinking Things. So, more card decks it is! Reimaging the Now card deck The Reimagining the Now card deck was created “to highlight how existing technological