4 Matching Annotations
  1. Nov 2025
    1. Stories need tension, because tension drives stories.

      I agree with this idea because I've noticed that whenever a story feels memorable, there is always some kind of problem or conflict that keeps me paying attention. Reading this made me think more about why certain messages or ads stay in my head while others disappear quickly. I also find it useful because it explains that good communication is not just about listing facts but about arranging them in a way that creates curiosity. This changes my perspective a bit, since I used to think "tension" only belonged in movies or novels, but now I see how it can help in everyday messaging too.

    1. In other words, I can’t win. This sociotechnical system is sure to mark me as “risky.d-undefined, .lh-undefined { background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) !important; }1Muhammad Khurram,” and that will trigger an escalation to the next level in the TSA security protocol..d-undefined, .lh-undefined { background-color: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0.2) !important; }11

      I find this passage powerful and convincing. It shows how a design that forces a binary choice can create harm for anyone who does not fit the expected mold. I agree that the problem is not just individual bias but the way tools, data, and procedures lock in narrow assumptions. The example made me think more carefully about everyday systems I take for granted, and how they can quietly exclude people. It also makes the case that more inclusive design is not a nice to have but a real matter of safety, dignity, and fairness.

    1. Design has a long way to go before its methods are truly equitable, focusing on the edge cases and margins of human experience and diversity, rather than on the dominant cases. It’s your responsibility as a designer to look for those methods and demand their use.

      I agree with the point that many design methods miss real people at the edges. We often chase speed and easy learning and ignore access, culture, and fairness. The reminder to use diverse personas and equity focused checks is practical and helpful. It makes me want to pair walkthroughs with sessions that center people who are usually left out. I will not call a design finished until those cases are tested and included.

    1. The ease with which A/B tests can run, and the difficulty of measuring meaningful things, can lead designers to overlook the importance of meaningful things.

      I strongly agree with this point. In practice, teams gravitate toward the KPIs that are cheapest to measure, such as clicks, sign-ups, short-term retention, while tougher outcomes like equity, safety, or long-term well-being get sidelined. The article is useful because it reframes evaluation as a toolbox: usability tests for breakdowns, probes/experience sampling for real-life fit, and A/B tests for causal impact. It changes my perspective to plan mixed-method evaluations upfront, so that what’s measurable doesn’t quietly replace what actually matters.