The Brain and Technology: Brain Science in Interface Design

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What You’ll Learn

  • Human attention—in particular, how the brain decides what is most important and therefore what we should look at first
  • How to create effective designs, through basing them on how the brain manages and prioritizes the sensory information it receives
  • The link between intuition and the evolution of our brains, as well as how to apply this knowledge so as to build software that engages with human intuition
  • How to compose screens that work visually, by tapping into the brain science behind visual recognition
  • Human recollection, and its implications on designing documents and software that support memory
  • How to create products that cater to the brain’s feedback loop, as well as screen controls that tap into our sense of purpose
  • How to build technology that makes learning easier, thus becoming more successful
  • An understanding of how human and social factors affect technology—including future social and technical evolutions

How do you know if your next computer system, app or website will be a success? Well, if you look at all major technological advances in the last few decades, you’ll see that it heavily depends on whether it works well with people. Developments such as email, smartphones, and social networks have all involved some form of human-to-computer interaction and interface. The critical success factor for modern technology has therefore become not what it does but how it interacts with people. For example, can you even imagine life without your smartphone these days? Technology has interwoven itself not only into the human psyche but also quite literally—handheld devices can now be seen attached to peoples’ palms in virtually any setting.

When people use technology, a biological information processor (i.e., the brain) interacts with a mechanical information processor (i.e., the computer)—and this interaction will fail if there is no common ground. If you, as a designer, miss the mark between these two worlds of natural and artificial intelligence, they will collide jarringly. This course will therefore merge brain science and computer science in order to teach you the field of Human-Computer Interaction (HCI). You will learn optimal approaches to designing better software, mobile applications, and websites, including online communities, by learning how to create software that interacts with human intuitions. Such knowledge of HCI is now a critical skill—building new hardware and software goods will result in negative returns on investment (ROI) if users can’t or don’t want to use them. Designers must know the basics of brain science in order to practice computer science, not only for people but for communities, too.

The course is created and presented by Brian Whitworth, a registered psychologist who is also trained in computing and has a wealth of experience and qualifications in both fields: BA (Psych), BSc (Maths), MA (Psych), PhD (IS), and Major (Retd.). Each lesson highlights a particular brain-technology difference and uses it to explain what works—and what doesn’t—when people use technology. Every lesson is further divided into ten-minute video blocks, that you can watch independently, so as to fit your learning experience into a busy schedule.

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Is This Course Right for You?

  • You want to land a job in design – or get a promotion.
  • You want to learn real-world design skills that are valuable in any job and any industry.
  • You want timeless human-centered skills AI cannot replace and turn AI into your superpower.
  • You're tired of wasting time on influencers and want to learn from real experts.
  • You want actual career outcomes, like increasing your salary potential and job opportunities.
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View full testimonial from Phillip Dodson
Phillip Dodson
Phillip Dodson
UI/UX Web Developer

I wanted to thank you! IDF is just the best thing ever. Just ever! Making this information accessible and available at the high level of qua...

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Course Overview:

  • Each week, one lesson becomes available.
  • Study flexibly. Take as much time as you want.
  • 62h, 26m over 9 weeks (est.).

Lesson 0: Welcome and Introduction

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 1 hour, 43 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 0.1 An Introduction to Courses from IxDF (33 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 0.2 Get Help, Career Advice, and Job Opportunities (6 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 0.3 How to Get Your Course Certificate (19 mins)
  • Community-based learning and networking. 0.4 Grow Your Global Network and Build Your Brand (12 mins)

Lesson 1: Attention

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 9 hours, 38 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 1.1 Welcome to The Brain and Technology: Brain Science in Interface Design (3 hours, 22 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 1.2 Reality Levels (42 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 1.3 Control (46 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 1.4 The Illusion (55 mins)

Lesson 2: Context

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 5 hours, 52 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 2.1 The Parallel Advantage (41 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 2.2 The Senses (1 hour, 7 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 2.3 Encoding (1 hour, 4 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 2.4 Borders (59 mins)

Lesson 3: Intuition

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 9 hours, 15 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 3.1 Reliability (55 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 3.2 The Brain Onion (1 hour, 25 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 3.3 System Performance (1 hour, 59 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 3.4 A Society Of Mind (59 mins)

Lesson 4: Recognition

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 6 hours, 4 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 4.1 Recognition Is Cortical (25 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 4.2 The Visual Hierarchy (26 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 4.3 Border Ambiguity (41 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 4.4 Framing Ambiguity (57 mins)

Lesson 5: Thought

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 7 hours, 27 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 5.1 Access by Location (1 hour, 11 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 5.2 Language (1 hour, 44 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 5.3 Sensory Integration (48 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 5.4 Thought (54 mins)

Lesson 6: Feedback

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 9 hours, 53 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 6.1 Feedback Loops (44 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 6.2 Driving The Feedback Loop (28 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 6.3 Purpose (1 hour, 47 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 6.4 Feedback Elements (1 hour, 34 mins)

Lesson 7: Learning

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 9 hours, 55 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 7.1 Learning (50 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 7.2 Feedback Centers (1 hour, 37 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 7.3 Intellectual Learning (42 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 7.4 Emotional Learning (1 hour, 22 mins)

Lesson 8: The Future Is Us

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 4 hours, 23 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 8.1 The Future Is Us 1 (36 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 8.2 The Future Is Us 2 (1 hour, 9 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 8.3 The Future Is Us 3 (1 hour, 47 mins)
  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 8.4 The Future Is Us 4 (48 mins)

Lesson 9: IxDF Course Certificate and Course Wrap-up

To be scheduled. Estimated time to complete: 12 mins.

  • In-depth video lesson with experts, animations and templates. 9.1 How to Add Your IxDF Certificate to LinkedIn (6 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 9.2 Help Us Help You: Course Evaluation (4 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 9.3 Six Steps to Your Career Success (3 mins)
  • Multimedia lesson: E.g. templates, animations, illustrations, graphs, and text. 9.4 Get Your IxDF Course Certificate (2 mins)

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savvina simillidou
savvina simillidou

The strength of the course is that the instructor was speaking very clearly (this is important for a person like me where English is not my native language), also it was never boring. It is more interesting to listen someone that reading something.

Tony Russell
Tony Russell
UX Specialist

Instructor Brian Whitworth was really good. Course content was great and up to date.

Phillip Dodson
Phillip Dodson
UI/UX Web Developer

I wanted to thank you! IDF is just the best thing ever. Just ever! Making this information accessible and available at the high level of quality. Just awesome!