Maria Cecilia Loschiavo dos Santos

Development of an aspheric 22-diopter 50-mm diameter magnifier

PURPOSE To develop in an interdisciplinary approach between ophthalmology and design areas an ergonomic +22-diopter 50-mm aspheric hand magnifier for low vision. METHODS An aluminum cylinder was cut, processed using a lathe and carved to produce a ring that accommodated a 50-mm aspheric lens, with an external depression not to slide from the holders fingers. A cylindrical steel bar was cut, processed using a lathe and carved in order to form an externally turned ring to be screwed into the internal thread of the aluminum ring, to maintain the lens in a steady position. Both rings were submitted to electrostatic painting with a dull black electrostatic Epoxi ink, except the lower border of the external ring, to indicate the correct side of the magnifier to face the material to be read. RESULTS A 22-diopter 50-mm diameter aspheric lens magnifier with a black ring to be hold at its external circular depression was obtained in order to safely search the adequate reading focus with an inferior aluminum colored ring to face the object to be read and allow a less distorted reading. This is the first Brazilian high-magnification great-diameter magnifier for low vision that permits basically the focusing on an entire word, not only syllables, in order to allow a faster and more comfortable reading. CONCLUSIONS By an interdisciplinary approach a 22-diopter 50-mm aspheric lens magnifier was developed with image and ergonomic characteristics such as to permit comfortable and adequate reading performance in cases of low vision.

Outro espaço: aspectos do design e do habitat informal nas grandes metrópoles

Visando investigar o uso do espaco urbano pelo homeless, este trabalho analisa o habitat informal em que vive, do ponto de vista do design, do projeto, da execucao e do proprio uso. Discute as condicoes de habitabilidade desses habitats, destacando a criatividade de seus moradores no aproveitamento das sobras dos produtos industriais descartados pela nossa sociedade. Finalmente, encaminha uma reflexao sobre a redefinicao do paradigma espaco publico - espaco privado no âmbito desse outro espaco que integra a cultura do homem urbano..

Design by means of citizen activism: three cases illustrated by the action of Coletivo Maré, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil

Abstract: In this paper, we will (1) provide a context to a Brazilian practice in codesign; (2) introduce the Complexo da Maré and the work of Coletivo Maré; to showcase three situations involving collaborative design practice, using participant observation (Ingold, 2012). (3) Later, we will discuss acts of improvisation by revisiting concepts such as ‘tactics’ (de Certeau, 1988), ‘collaborative learning’ and ‘ways of cooperating and making together’ (Sennett, 2009, 2013). Our final considerations discuss forms of spatial qualification based on the human perception and experience of space that are unveiled by collective action.

Why do I love you Vaatelainaamo? Analysis of motivations, barriers and opportunities in a Finnish service for sharing clothes

Abstract Services for sharing are the next challenge in Economy as they configure promising sustainable solutions. This paper presents research on a Finnish service for sharing clothes, aiming to understand factors that could increase the adoption of consumer practices in the Sharing Economy, especially for those products of mass consumption and consumer identity. The research has its foundation on the interpretative paradigm and on the phenomenological study, using questionnaires and “Love & Hate Letters” as research techniques. Among the results, we highlight motivations for both choosing and keeping use of the service, as well as factors that damage the relationship of users with it. Hence, we claim that services for sharing should promote a sense of belonging, which is the fundamental factor for users to love the service even though some aspects can be improved. Thus, designing for the next economy is to design for belonging.

The vital package living on the streets in global cities: São Paulo, Los Angeles and Tokyo

The main objective of this article is to acknowledge and examine the material culture of the homeless in the urban context of downtown areas in Sao Paulo, Los Angeles and Tokyo. Firstly, I introduce some aspects of the complex process of vital package production, which concerns the social function of design and the role of products in our late industrial society. In exploring this process of homeless material culture, I then describe the reverse sense of some of the products and materials re‐functionalized by the homeless. Then, in a brief analysis of design, wasteful culture, products, life cycle and obsolescence, I claim that homelessness and design are linked to the public spaces of metropolitan areas and global cities, as a consequence of the social‐spatial exclusionary processes due to spatio‐economic conflicts that constitute contemporary urban restructuring.The main objective of this article is to acknowledge and examine the material culture of the homeless in the urban context of downtown areas in Sao Paulo, Los Angeles and Tokyo. Firstly, I introduce some aspects of the complex process of vital package production, which concerns the social function of design and the role of products in our late industrial society. In exploring this process of homeless material culture, I then describe the reverse sense of some of the products and materials re‐functionalized by the homeless. Then, in a brief analysis of design, wasteful culture, products, life cycle and obsolescence, I claim that homelessness and design are linked to the public spaces of metropolitan areas and global cities, as a consequence of the social‐spatial exclusionary processes due to spatio‐economic conflicts that constitute contemporary urban restructuring.