Things That Make Us Smart: Defending Human Attributes In The Age Of The Machine (Paperback)

by Don Norman (Author), Tamara Dunaeff (Author) "THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT TECHNOLOGY CAN MAKE US SMART..." (more)
Key Phrases: cups puzzle, pile cabinet, compositional medium, United States, San Diego, Post-it Notes (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly
A thoughtful critique of "machine-centered" corporate technology from the author of The Design of Everyday Things .
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
By virtue of their design, machines shape the way we relate to the world. Moreover--as anyone who has been annoyed by voice message systems can testify--many technological "advances" that are efficient from the engineering point of view are of dubious value to those who must use them. In this highly readable book, Norman, author of Turn Signals Are the Facial Expres sions of Automobiles (Addison-Wesley, 1992), offers an intriguing look at the nature and characteristics of human intelligence. He argues that it is time for us to adopt a more human-centered perspective and to insist that informational technologies enhance and complement human cognitive capacities rather than undermine them. Entertaining anecdotes, puzzles, graphics, and speculations regarding future possibilities flesh out this wise and witty book. Recommended for academic and public libraries. --Elise Chase, Forbes Lib., Northampton, Mass.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Basic Books (April 20, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0201626950
• ISBN-13: 978-0201626957
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #307,487 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Easy to understand eye opener, June 11, 2000

By	Rasmus (Denmark) - See all my reviews

This book is easy to read - and should open most peoples eyes a bit more...

It describes how we (mankind) uses external representations to assist our brains - from writing, to diagrams, to maps, to the way we build our offices.

If you want a deeper psychological understanding with which you can do your own reasoning on different types of external representation - get this book. If you want clear-cut guidelines - get another book.

If you like this book - try Normans: The Design of Everydaythings as well. You might like Donald Schöns The Reflective Practitioner also.

Last word: Norman seems to prefer easy reading to structure - which means the book is best read end-to-end.

20 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars From File Cabinets to Video Games; Norman connects, March 27, 2000

By	"sperloff" (Studio City, CA United States) - See all my reviews

In this book, Donald Norman offers a thoughtful examination of the tools, toys and games that we interact with every day. According to Norman these "things that make us smart can also make us dumb." It is the way that we use and interact with these "things" that will determine their effect on our intelligence. Not only does this text offer a comprehensive history of technology tools, but it also examines the evolution of human thought and cognition.

Like Alan Cooper, Norman examines "what is wrong in the design of the technology that requires people to behave in machine-centered ways for which people are not well suited." Norman, however, does not concentrate on the negatives of software design. He presents a look at how we have evolved into our current state in order to make predictions and recommendations about how to proceed into the future.

Norman's study of experiential and reflective cognition should be required reading for any teacher. The study could help both new and veteran users of educational technologies make appropriate choices for the use of different software for different learning opportunities. The section on "optimal flow" is useful for educators, software or game designers and cognitive scientists. Doesn't everybody strive for a "continual flow of focused concentration?"

In his study of the human mind and distributed cognition, Norman examines some of the differences between humans and other species. One of the key distinctions for me was that humans can create tools to help them "overcome the limitations of brainpower." This is where he makes the connection to how things can make us smart. The philosophical nature of this section of the book was very interesting and useful for me. I believe it could help the reader better understand how social learning theory and situated cognition can have an impact on the work of educators and interactive designers.

Overall, this book could be useful for a wide audience of educators, software developers, game designers, interactive designers, cognitive scientists, and students of any of these fields of study. Norman successfully makes connections between many technologies and thought processes. Whether it be the "Wooton Desk and the file cabinet or video games and edutainment, he shows the significance of each and their place in the study of interactive design.

23 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Human-Centered, Laments Loss of Reflective Skills, April 7, 2000

By	Robert D. Steele (Oakton, VA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 50 REVIEWER)

Technology can make us smart. Or stupid. It can liberate. Or enslave. Norman joins a select group of thinkers advocating a human-centered approach to technology. Inspired (or, more accurately, depressed) by Jerry Mander, he wrote this book to examine the differences between humans and machines, and to establish some ground rules for policy that protected the one and leveraged the other. Norman notes that when technology is not designed from a human-centered point of view, it produces accidents and more often than not the human is blamed. He focuses especially on the distinction between experiential cognition and reflective cognition, and laments that television and entertainment are swamping us with the experiential and not teaching us the reflective. He is concerned that our ever-lengthening chain of technology dependence is forcing us to deal with ever-increasing loads of information at the same time that it weakens our inherent capabilities further. People first, science second, technology as servant.