Bathroom Data
How can going to the bathroom help improve your life?
Made by Kevin Lee
Going to the bathroom is an inevitable part of life. People only go when they have to and try to spend as little time there as possible. It's an inconvenient speed bump in our daily routines and there's nothing really to gain from going. But what if there was some benefit? Like blood tests, urine tests are often conducted at doctor's appointments to reveal different things about a person's health at a glance. What if toilets conducted urine tests every time a person went to the bathroom and offered that data to people in an easy to understand way?
Created: September 14th, 2014
Going to the bathroom is an inevitable part of life. People only go when they have to and try to spend as little time there as possible. It's an inconvenient speed bump in our daily routines and there's nothing really to gain from going. But what if there was some benefit? Like blood tests, urine tests are often conducted at doctor's appointments to reveal different things about a person's health at a glance. What if toilets conducted urine tests every time a person went to the bathroom and offered that data to people in an easy to understand way?
This reminds me of those urinals in Japan that make a game out of peeing. The closer you pee to the bullseye, the higher your score! Of course, your project has a little more practical usage.
Like you mentioned, on the surface this seems like a silly idea but after a little more thought I agree that this could be very useful as it allows for regular, quick, and simple health tests that could be useful for detection of medical issues. It also seems to be well designed, if something is designed for use with a toilet it has to be quick, simple, and private, points that I think you addressed already.
This is awesome. My favorite part about it is that there's no downside to its implementation - if someone doesn't care about this data they don't have to look at it. This is very well thought out and I don't have any criticisms!
I think this is a great idea in terms of technology and a good pitch for a project. However, I feel there is a not that much emphasis on the visualization itself.
I think this is an interesting idea, but I agree with Eric that there is not much focus on the visualization. I'm a decision science major, and we talk about "nudges" which are ways that you try to get people to make good decisions. In this case, a good decision you want to get people to make is to stay hydrated. I'm sure there are ways you could come up with imagery that creates incentives for people to drink enough. Perhaps something with color or sound. I think I'd be quite amused if, for example, every time I went into a public restroom I was applauded or treated to the infamous Fay Wray scream, depending on whether I was hydrated or not. This would add a bit of competition (because the people in the stall or urinal next to you would hear whether you got the good sound or the bad sound), which would add an extra layer of incentive. The visuals that accompany the sound would support and add extra information to it.
I agree with your comment feedback, there is not much of a visual component to this project. And, going a little deeper, consider connecting the project to the people that will be using it. Your project is technically similar to the Wind Map, but why does the Wind Map display this information, and why is the Wind Map's representation of weather different from the Weather Channel? What is the ultimate goal.
This said, the project has gotten much more defined since lab. Great job of clarifying your ideas!
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