🌲Forest trampolines, tiny bug chefs and cosy games

A small, joyful update midway through my study sabbatical

I’m in the second month of a PhD study sabbatical! Highlights so far:

• Speaking with a NYT journalist about my research on youth & conversational AI 📝

• Meeting with cross-disciplinary researchers and mentors who are coaching me to think more rigorously, broadly and creatively 💖

• Receiving positive peer feedback on a paper submission; awaiting decisions 🤞

• Request for Book and Bot to feature in edition 2 of an international design textbook 🥳

• Swimming, sleeping in, woodworking, gaming (top pick below) & hitting reset after 4.5 years in a fast paced scale up.

Tomorrow I’m heading to Italy to attend the Bologna Children’s International Book fair, and spend time with author/illustrator friends dreaming up playful, creative worlds for kids. Let me know if you’ll be there!

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Get writing! Here's a prompt to spark new story ideas & bedtime tales.

Write a story about the most mundane action you can think of. Like a rock, digging a hole or a neglected pile of laundry. Take inspiration from this Japanese book ‘Hole’, by Japanese poet Shuntaro Tanikawa.

This book was described to me in Japan as:

‘On Sunday morning, Hiroshi has nothing to do so he started digging a hole. Soon the hole was deep enough for Hiroshi to sit in. He sat at the bottom of the hole and looked up at the sky. The sky looked different from the bottom of the hole. There is no purpose or reason, and it’s fine to have an adventure like this. ‘

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My favourite playful web picks for the month.

• Dragon box numbers: this game is old news, but the approach to visual math with monsters (nooms) and interaction design is inspiration for re-thinking AI text experiences.

• Strandbeests: again, old, but a helpful reflection as we think about new (and synthetic) forms of ‘life’.

• The Tiny Chef Show just won a children’s & family Emmy. The voice isn’t for everyone but the concept and stop motion are wholesome.

• Virtual dolphin teammates: early on at Canva myself and a small group pitched ‘disco mode’. A disco ball collaborator that would join, and literally jam, in your whiteboard. Sadly, it was never prioritised but I haven’t given up on small novelty moments like this that could, very well, boost creativity (and mood).

• Forest trampolines: Amongst the discussion about shutting down online space for children (i.e. social media) there isn’t enough discussion about opening up more spaces for play. I vote for public trampolines, like Switzerland.

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Mute distracting notifications, grab a warm cuppa and find a seat in the sun.

Usually this section has a read, but this month it’s a game: Wanderstop. It’s the perfect, cosy salve for burnout and as a non gamer it’s been a delight to play.

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Something well thunk and beautifully made!

When I was in Japan last year for SIGGRAPH I brought home a paper pet- Pépet. Created by fine paper distributer, Takeo, Pépets wiggly face and heavy paper base will warm your soul. From the creators:

The warmth you feel when you touch the paper, and the senses that are stimulated. The beautiful appearance of neatly stacked paper, and the charm of the colors of the layers. It was born from the desire to "create something that allows you to enjoy these things."

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