2013 Galleries
The Spark Gallery pages are one of our most popular design destinations, with thousands of visitors each year. Check out some of the latest Spark entries, in the galleries below.
Galleries // 2013 Spark:Concept // GoLab
GoLab
Winner - Silver
Competition: Spark:Concept
Designer: Ms. Summer Chang
Design Type: Toy Design
Company / Organization / School: Academy of Art University
Website: http://www.behance.net/SummerChang
Team Members: Summer Chang & Sean Miller
The idea began from reading an article on the Voice of America.com. It stated, “In a science test given to 15 year olds in 65 countries, girls outperformed boys except in the United States. In addition, women represent less than 30 percent of the workforce and student enrollment in some scientific fields.” Golab is a simple version of a construction or building block type toy. The goal of the Golab is for the children to use blocks to make 3 towers in the shape of a cylinder, pyramid, and a rhombus. If completed correctly, the tower becomes a character in the story. Each character when assembled correctly creates a completed electrical circuit lighting an LED light in the body. When all three towers are finished an audio of the story will play for the children to enjoy. A working prototype was used with five children. It resulted in the following: 1) Enhanced problem-solving skills. The children were able to place the blocks in the correct locations to form a tower and connect the wires together to complete the circuit, lighting the LED light. They were able to explain why it lighted. 2) Built an interest in science. The kids enjoyed the toy and indicated that they would like to learn more about electricity. 3) Sense of accomplishment The children said that it felt good to complete the towers and the circuits because they were able to listen to the story, “Monkey: The Journey To The West".
