Pixelsumo is a blog about interaction, with an emphasis on play, installation, video game culture, playgrounds and toys. Written by Chris O'Shea.
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The fun theory
Posted October 10th 2009 under Advertising, Installations, Sound, Urban Space
Quite a few people have sent me The fun theory, a viral campaign from ad agency DDB Stockholm for Volkswagen.
“This site is dedicated to the thought that something as simple as fun is the easiest way to change people’s behaviour for the better. Be it for yourself, for the environment, or something entirely different, the only thing that matters is that it’s change for the better.”
I really like the concept of creating these playful experiments for the good of using our bodies & the environment.
The World’s Deepest Bin
“To throw rubbish in the bin instead of onto the floor shouldn’t really be so hard. Many people still fail to do so. Can we get more people to throw rubbish into the bin, rather than onto the ground, by making it fun to do?”
I like this one best out of the two, particularly as its a new idea. Drop the litter in the bin and a sound plays making it seem like the rubbish is falling a very long distance to the bottom of a pit, encouraging you to put more rubbish in to the bin (or perhaps throwing away things that aren’t rubbish to hear the noise again, eek).
Piano Staircase
“Take the stairs instead of the escalator or elevator and feel better is something we often hear or read in the Sunday papers. Few people actually follow that advice. Can we get more people to take the stairs over the escalator by making it fun to do?”
Its nice, but the idea has been done many times before. This is the first time I’ve seen the stairs be made to look like white & black piano keys though, like the big piano toy.
1) Back in 2006 I wrote about Tuned Stairs…
2) Also by the Gainer team for the NTT ICC in Tokyo.
3) And at the Museum of Science in Boston (watch videos).
4) Also in the Science Museum of Minnesota (watch video)
5) And finally also at the Sony Centre in Tokyo (watch video)
In true viral nature you will be able to upload your own video ideas on the theme to win a prize, so it’ll be interesting to see what concepts the people come up with.
Comments
(October 21st 2009)
I like both experiments very much. I think they do not only show how easy it is to change people’s behaviour for the better. It’s also a positive experience for the people being woken up from their daily grind for a moment.
However, things like “the world’s deepest bin” might not make people care more for the environment in the long run. People who pass the bin everyday might get annoyed by the noice soon or at least won’t find it funny anymore to throw rubbish in it.