Dear Tim Cook: Just a quick note from some of us who conduct science-based usability research. We would like you to consider fixing a few small usability problems with Apple products because, after all, Apple does make the greatest tech around, but we keep wondering how such wonderful products end up in the hands of consumers … Continue reading Open Letter to Tim Cook: 4 Simple Usability Asks for Apple 2022
Most who utilize or practice UX research today are stunned to learn that modern UX research finds its beginnings in the killing fields of WW2 and weapons development. This is a significant historical fact that has a direct bearing on how UX research is conducted today. Even more surprising, it is also related to how … Continue reading How UX Research Started In Weapons Development During WW2 and Why It Matters To The Ukrainian Conflict
What We Do Founded in 1975, we are a leading provider of science-based human factors research focused on UX optimization and product development. Below is a brief listing of our human factors testing methodologies. We are a formal development partner of iMotions and have validated our testing methods for stability on the iMotions platform. Our … Continue reading Mauro Usability Science Neuroscience-Based Human Factors Testing and UX Optimization Expertise Profile
Of late, there has been a surprising amount of talk about the future of our digital experiences resting on the concept of the Metaverse. This was brought to a recent apogee by the renaming of FaceBook to META, and the extensive presentation of Mark Zuckerberg’s vision of the META version of the Metaverse. The Zuckerberg vision was … Continue reading Metaverse Is The Future! Well, Not So Fast Mr. Zuckerberg. Research Says Otherwise!
Electronic Voting Machines, Mail-in Ballots vs. U.S. Democracy: There has been a lot of media buzz over the last few years about how voting tech will save democracy. In this misplaced view of the future, electronic voting systems were pushed and prodded into use across the country at precincts large and small. This was done in … Continue reading The Human Factors Science Behind Mail-In Voting…The Surprising Complexity Problems Impacting Voter Participation
Dear Research Colleague: We sincerely hope you and your family are safe and secure. Even though we have temporarily closed our offices in NYC, we remain fully productive in a remote capacity through our cloud-based mirror capability covering all projects and related research. This note is focused on helping our clients and professional colleagues navigate this complex … Continue reading A Note To Our Clients: Medical Device Usability Testing In The Age of COVID-19
In her recent Patently-O article, The Sky is Not Falling, Professor Burstein goes to great length to argue that Columbia Sportswear v. Seirus is nothing to be concerned about, despite the vigorous protestation of many amicus briefs. However, it seems the esteemed professor has actually proven the reverse or at least has demonstrated a profound lack of self-awareness in terms … Continue reading Professor Burstein Says The Sky is Not Falling…Really, Where is The Proof?
Designers ply their craft improving the aesthetic appeal and, to some extent, the functional performance of all manner of products ranging from automobiles to handbags to entire cities. Design is big business, with several million designers working worldwide in a staggering number of industry verticals. The impact that DESIGN has on business performance has been … Continue reading DESIGN As A Corporate Asset Is About To Become Essentially Worthless. Yes, Lawyers Are Involved.
The Spin There has been a great deal of back and forth over the reasons two Boeing 737 MAX airliners took the lives of 346 innocent souls. At the core of the problem is the classic duality of man vs. machine. Were the crashes the result of incompetent pilots and failure to follow procedures (The Man) or was … Continue reading The Human Factors Science Behind The 737MAX MCAS Problem and Why The MAX Should Be Scrapped
The long fight between the airline industry/FAA juggernaut and passengers regarding the Incredible Shrinking Seat Problem (ISSP) is being explored in a new study run by the FAA that apparently does not follow the rigorous science behind human body size variation (physical anthropometry) and study design. It turns out that there is a robust and … Continue reading FAA Ignores Human Factors Science in Tests Related to New Reduced Size Seats
