Jan

SOS: Save Our Skeuomorphs!

by Joyce McGreevy on January 4, 2021

A smartphone on a sailboat contains a compass app, a skeuomorph that carries a cultural memory of an ancient invention, the nautical compass. (Photo by TheHilaryClark and Pixabay)

What smartphone app resembles a 12th century nautical tool? The answer’s due south!
TheHilaryClark/ Pixabay

Skeuomorphs “Net” Cultural Memory

As we sail into a new decade, a titanic debate continues to rock the boat from port to computer port. On one side, designers who’ve jettisoned skeuomorphs. On the other, those who are still on board with them.

Should skeuomorphs be set adrift? Or treasured because they’re anchored in cultural memory? What are skeuomorphs, anyway?

Someone holds up a digital tablet with a compass app, a skeuomorph that incorporates a cultural memory of an older compass. (Photo by TheHilaryClark and Pixabay)

Some designers dislike skeuomorphs’ ties to the past, as in this digital version
of a nautical compass.
Geralt/ Pixabay

Say, That Looks Familiar

Even if you’ve never heard of them, you know them. In computing, skeuomorphs are digital images that mimic older, physical objects. The nearest examples are probably on your cellphone:

a retro telephone handset (digital phone app)
a postage stamp (email program)
a manual camera with lens and shutter button (photo app)
a cassette tape, as invented in 1963 (audio-record app)
a 1970s style pocket calculator (faster, high-capacity calculator app)

I say “probably” because neoumorphists are working hand over fist to replace such apps.

“Neou-whatzits?” Neoumorphists. This group practices a design style that features minimalistic, one-dimensional flat shapes. Moreover, they prefer either solid colors or no color at all. In short, they create neuomorphs.

The term neuomorph is itself a kind of skeuomorph. It mimics the old word to convey the idea of the new word. Maybe that’s why some practitioners prefer the term “Flat Design.”

A Flat Design compass shows that, unlike skeuomorphs, neoumorphs preserve little cultural memory of the older, physical object. (Photo by Villareallevi)

Flat design took apps in a new direction.
Villarreallevi/ Pixabay

Skewing Away from Skeuomorphs

Why have flat-friendly designers given the heave-ho to skeuomorphs?

For starters, it’s been 35 years since Apple featured skeuomorphs on the first personal computer. Imagine seeing an icon of a floppy disk on the device that made floppies obsolete. So why was it there? Because it made something new look comfortably old and familiar.

Like the cassette tape, floppy disks were physical objects manually inserted into a computer for the purposes of saving information. By contrast, the new computer required no disk. Instead, it showed a picture of one to help you transition into saving info digitally.

At the time, that seemed bold. It was a shot across the bow of cantankerous word processors. (I called mine “Old Ironsides.”)

However, to a young digital native, someone who’d never encountered a physical floppy disk, the digital image became the more real of the two. It evoked, not an object, but only an action: “save.”

Meanwhile, a new wave of designers, considered skeuomorphs clunky, their purpose lost at sea. Skeuomorphs were scraping the bottom of the barrel, they said. And they were not about to pipe down.

Gradually, the skeuomorph trend hit the doldrums. Mainstream designers, certain they’d keel over if they had to develop one more fake trashcan, file folder, or bookcase, began abandoning ship. They changed course, bound for the uncharted waters of start-ups.

By 2012, there was no stemming the tide. To put it pictorially . . .

A speeding jet ski symbolizes how rapidly Flat Design apps, or neuoumorphs, overtook the popularity of skeuomorphs. (Photo by Herbert 2512 and Pixabay)

Flat Design went full steam ahead . . .
Herbert2512/ Pixabay

A man paddling a barrel in the water symbolizes how skeoumorph apps, with their cultural memory-based images of older physical objects, seemed clunky compared to Flat Design apps. (Image by Pxhere)

. . . leaving skeuomorphs in its wake and over a barrel.

Ships Shapes that Pass in the Night?

Skeuomorphs were dead in the water, declared “Flat” fans. Old as the (Silicon Valley) hills. Some even claimed that before the Mac, skeuomorphism could not have existed, since there was no graphical interface.

Now wait just one oh I see moment: While not all skeuomorphs endure, skeuomorphism is no passing fad. It’s freighted with centuries of cultural memory.

Going Old-Skeu

The term skeuomorph was coined in 1889 when a scholar combined two Greek words—skeuos, meaning vessel or tool, and morphê, meaning shape or form. Archaeologists applied the term to ancient artifacts that carried “memories” of even older objects. Classic examples include:

ancient clay pottery from Zaire molded to resemble the straw that was used in earlier, woven containers
ancient Greek stone buildings that preserved the functions of their wooden precursors

In short, skeuomorphs were never just digital. That urge to imitate, to preserve, to artfully smuggle something older into the hull of something newer, has always been with us.

An antique coffeepot features skeuomorphic elements that reflect the cultural memory of woven vessels. (Image by Auckland Museum)

Vintage skeuomorph, this antique coffeepot looks woven and has “tree branch” handles.
Auckland Museum, CC BY 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons

Skeuomorphs Are Everywhere

Common household skeuomorphs include:

battery-operated or LED “candles”
window shutters that are purely decorative
shoes with ornamental buckles over functional Velcro fasteners
“wood-grain” laminate flooring

Lighting on a table includes skeoumorphic elements that preserve the cultural memory of older, physical objects, such as LED “candles” and a “wooden” plastic table. (Image © by Joyce McGreevy)

Unlike the wall, the “wooden” table is skeuomorphic. So are most of the “candles.”
© Joyce McGreevy

Skeuomorphism is roadworthy, too. For example, it includes:

Logos of horses on cars—visual reminders of “horsepower,” itself a verbal skeuomorph
The first trains and cars, modeled after horse-drawn carriages
Electric cars with front grilles. That’s utterly skeuomorphic. No internal combustion engine? No need for cooling air-intake!

Skeuomorphs go beyond the visual:

Taste: meatless burgers and tofu turkey
Texture: furniture in one material that imitates another material
Scent: air freshener imitating an “ocean breeze” or “lavender field”

Vintage cars feature skeoumorphic elements that preserve the cultural memory of horse-drawn carriages, such as wood paneled chassis and wheels with spokes. (Image © by Joyce McGreevy)

Cars with wood paneling and wheel spokes are . . .

Wagon wheels exemplify how skeuomorphic design embeds the cultural memory of older objects, such as wheel spokes, into newer objects, such as cars. (Image by British and Pixabay)

. . . skeuomorphic of old-fashioned wooden carriages.
Britlish/ Pixabay

Speaking of Skeuomorphs

There are, I think, echoes of skeuomorphism even in language. It’s in the way we knowingly or unknowingly imitate linguistic elements of the past.

That’s why, for the sake of experiment, I packed this post with vintage nautical terms, stem to stern. Did I go overboard? Aye, to prove a point: As old artifacts are “re-designed” for new users, the updated version retains vestiges of cultural memory. It’s as true of language as it is of technology.

So, even though you’re not an old-timey pirate, sea captain, boatswain, coxswain, rum smuggler, sea-shanty composer, or Viking explorer, every seaworthy idiom I used made sense to you. Like the digital native assigning new meaning to a graphical icon, you simply use it differently than its originators did.

That for me, is also the beauty of a skeuomorph. Be it digital or physical, visual or verbal, by intention or by-the-way, the best kind preserves cultural memory and takes on new meaning.

Don’t get me wrong. Flat Design has a vital role in language, too. If I need an ambulance, I’ll state my home address, not describe its architecture. I’m an idiom lover, not an idiot.

However, rather than choose one design style over another, I’ll navigate the best of each—the abstract and the pictorial, the streamlined and the layered. If neuomorphs make for plain sailing, skeuomorphs net cultural memory. Happily, there’s room onboard for both.

A smartphone screen whimsically depicting a 3-D figure navigating a body of water shows that apps like neoumorphs and skeuomorphs may one day only a cultural memory of old-school design. (Image by PixelLoverK3 and Pixabay)

What’s next in digital design? Wait and sea!
PixelLoverK3/ Pixabay

Did you spot all the nautical terms? Some are less obvious than others! Plumb their watery word depths, here and here.

Comment on the post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Joyce McGreevy Comments

Cultural Symbols/Language & Culture

Dec

In the Kitchen with OIC: Cooking with Spice!

by Joyce McGreevy on December 21, 2020

Nistha Trehun teaches an online class on cooking with spices, using Indian tradition as inspiration for any cuisine you like. (Image © by Nistha Trehun, The Kitty Party)

Live from Berlin, Nistha shares the art and science of spices with people around the world.
© Nistha Trehun, The Kitty Party

Nistha’s Top Ingredient: Indian Tradition

What’s in your spice collection? And how long has it been there? Even confident home chefs can feel intimidated when it comes to cooking with spices. Sure, we regularly summon familiar favorites into culinary action. But are they favorites because they’re familiar?

Meanwhile, turmeric, cardamom, fenugreek, and other spices may languish in a cupboard, their magic wasting away, if we’re not sure how to use them.

Cue Nistha to the rescue. The India-born, Berlin-based chef (whose name in Sanskrit means “trust”) helps people around the world spice things up—from everyday cooking and eating to their health and even how they learn.

Oh, I see: Inspired by the Indian tradition of cooking with spice, Nistha Trehun is on a mission to enhance our appreciation of food in general.

An array of spices shows why the Indian tradition of cooking with spices helps create a variety of tastes, flavors, and colors. (Image by Veganamente and Pixabay)

Beyond bottled lookalikes: Spices reflect a rich variety of form and function.
Veganamente/ Pixabay

Kitty in the Kitchen

As with many chefs, Nistha’s fascination with cooking began early. Growing up in northern India, she lived in a 20-room house with her extended family and a kitchen that offered the lively appeal and rich aromas of a restaurant.

“When I was really young, I used to tell my mom, ‘I want to cut onions,’ and she would give me a very small knife, not that sharp. I would have tears the whole time, but still I wanted to cut them.”

Despite her keen interest, “Kitty,” as her family called her, was mostly kept out of the kitchen, as were the other children. Why?

“In [my mom’s] generation, parents always wanted the girls to learn cooking. But while I was growing up times had changed, and for my parents, education became the only thing that mattered. So, I studied. A lot.”

Nistha’s discipline earned her a gold medal, graduation at the top of her class, and a degree in business administration.

“In my college, everybody would say, ‘I want to be an engineer or a doctor.’ And I was saying, ‘I want to open a culinary business and name it The Kitty Party.’”

Today, The Kitty Party is a flourishing, moveable feast that mirrors Nistha’s love of travel. She actually launched the business in South Korea when she and her husband transferred there for work. She quickly fell in love with Seoul. “I went walking every day and know every street in the city.”

A close-up of students in Nistha’s class shows how the Indian tradition of cooking with spices extends to desserts and pastries. (Image © by Nistha Trehun, The Kitty Party)

With on-site classes like this on pause, Nistha creates hands-on experiences online.
© Nistha Trehun, The Kitty Party

So Many Questions

As her in-person culinary events proved popular with locals and travelers alike, a common theme emerged.

“People had so many questions about spices! Because it was my first time out of India, that came as a surprise to me.” Until then, Nistha had assumed that everybody grew up with daily exposure to the traditions and techniques of cooking with spices.

For example, many people know cumin as a powder that they sprinkle, last minute, into Western adaptations of cross-cultural dishes. But in India, cumin is so much more—a virtuoso seed that produces numerous flavors depending on its origin and variety, and how it is stored, heated, crushed, milled, measured, and combined.

A supper dish beautifully presented shows the creative possibilities of cooking with spices using Indian tradition as inspiration. (Image © by Nistha Trehun, The Kitty Party)

“Combining spice with another ingredient builds dimensions of flavor that did not exist before.”
© Nistha Trehun, The Kitty Party

Nistha also discovered that she loved answering people’s questions. Combining scholarly drive with her passion for spices, she redoubled her research and experimentation and set out to share her mission: “To teach that whatever your style is, whatever your taste, you can still use spices in your own cooking. You do not need to cook Indian for that.”

Spices, she says, are something that everybody should eat, not because they’re Indian, but because they are healthy. And she enjoys dispelling misconceptions about spices, such as the notion that “spicy” always equals heat.

“People often assume that by spices, I mean chilies, but there are also many spices that help preserve the flavor of food.”

After Seoul, Nistha, her husband, and The Kitty Party, moved to their current home in Berlin. When the pandemic put customer foot traffic on pause, Nistha didn’t miss a beat. She simply moved the party online.

Nicknamed “The Dancing Chef,” she enlivens her online events with dance breaks and personal stories. Recently, she hosted a celebration of Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, with students who logged on from Mexico.

Nistha sporting a vivid turmeric-colored shirt shows how cooking with spices based on Indian tradition also feeds her creativity. (Image © by Nistha Trehun, The Kitty Party)

“This is my turmeric shirt.” Nishta invites students to wear their favorite spice colors.
© Nistha Trehun, The Kitty Party

Worldwide Spice Advice? Nice!

This combination of cultural tradition, culinary insight, and sheer fun has made Nistha a top-rated presenter on Airbnb Online Experiences.

Her audience represents almost every continent. It includes couples and college students new to cooking, families enjoying togetherness across time zones, Fortune 500 employees engaged in team building, travelers from Brazil to Taiwan to Kuwait, professional chefs across Europe, and even a chef’s assistant from Antarctica.

Nistha’s events cover a wide range, too. Students can opt to cook a full meal, prepare traditional Indian beverages or desserts, or explore a single seasoning. Or, under Nistha’s guidance, they may combine spices they already have with foods so simple (bread, cucumber, a steamed vegetable) that anyone can easily participate.

Regardless of topic, unlocking the power of spice always takes center stage.

A turmeric latte garnished with star anise and edible flowers show why cooking with spices based on Indian tradition involves more than just adding a dash of powder. (Image © by Nistha Trehun, The Kitty Party)

Star anise and edible flowers garnish an elegant turmeric latte.
© Nistha Trehun, The Kitty Party

“People are especially fascinated by turmeric, but often have no idea how to use it,” says Nistha.

She recalls the man who kept turmeric in his cupboard for 17 years because it seemed too precious to use. The woman whose friends believed turmeric pills and health drinks could substitute for foods. The people who bought chain-store lattes sprinkled with turmeric and were disappointed with the taste.

Nistha smiles. “You can’t just sprinkle on turmeric. It needs to be gently heated in good fat for a few seconds to release curcumin, a powerful anti-inflammatory. This also removes bitterness. In India, people call turmeric a ‘holy spice’ because it helps keep disease at bay.”

As for subbing supplements for food, Nistha wonders why anyone would deny themselves the social practice, celebration, and sensory experience of cooking and sharing a good meal.

“When we eat something, we are not just mechanically satisfying our nutritional need like an appliance charging its battery. We smell the aroma, see the colors, feel the textures, and most important of all we satisfy our tastebuds.”

A cook booklet, The Simple Spice Box Recipes, by Nistha Terun, sums up the art and science of cooking with spices based on Indian tradition. (Image © by Nistha Trehun, The Kitty Party)

Nistha’s new recipe booklet is a tribute to her favorite Indian spices.
© Nistha Trehun, The Kitty Party

Nistha also emphasizes that cooking with spice from the Indian subcontinent does not apply only to recipes based on Indian tradition. After all, she says, people who like olive oil don’t use it only for Italian food.

“I’m not here to teach you complicated menus. I want to teach the power of each ingredient.” What you cook, she says, can be as simple as a one-pot meal.

In short, any day’s the right day to spice up your life. Says Nistha, “We can’t afford to lose these small pleasures of life if we want to thrive as humans.”

Nistha teaching by Zoom from Berlin combines the festivities of December with the fun of cooking with spices based on Indian tradition. (Image © by Nistha Trehun, The Kitty Party)

Need a “seasonal” gift with lasting appeal? Click here.
© Joyce McGreevy

Follow Nistha on Instagram and Facebook. Explore The Kitty Party here.

Comment on the post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Joyce McGreevy 2 Comments

Cultural Heritage & Traditions/India/The World's Chefs

Dec

Happy National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day

by Meredith Mullins on December 15, 2020

Chocolate covered strawberries, showing the cultural traditions of Chocolate-Covered Anything Day. (Image © iStock/5second.)

Celebrating chocolate in the best possible ways
© iStock/5second

Savoring the Cultural Traditions of Chocolate

All you need is love. But a little chocolate now and then doesn’t hurt.
—Charles M. Schultz

Have you ever had a craving for chocolate-covered bacon? How about chocolate jalapeños? Could you resist a chocolate-covered mushroom?

Despite the challenges of the year 2020, we should rightfully honor any national day that delivers pure joy. One of those days that rises to the top of the bliss list is National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day (December 16). So, let’s celebrate its cultural traditions.

Boy with a chocolate mouth, showing the cultural traditions of chocolate on National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

Someone who knows how to celebrate chocolate
© Meredith Mullins

Just how this accolade came about, no one really knows. And I’d venture to say, no one really cares about the origins when the tribute involves such sweet reward for both chocoholics and chocolatiers.

A chocolate elf workshop, showing cultural traditions of National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

Chocolate artisans take full advantage of the holiday spirit
(in this case, a chocolate elf workshop by Paris master Patrick Roger)
© Meredith Mullins

Every Chocolate Has Its Day

Life is good when there’s a day when you can dip anything you want in chocolate and drizzle or cover familiar and unconventional edibles with the “food of the gods” (which is how chocolate has been known since its early days in Olmec/Aztec/Mayan civilizations when it appeared as a spicy drink).

hot chocolate, showing the cultural traditions of National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day. (Image from PxHere.)

From Mayan spicy cocoa to the souped up American version of today
Photo courtesy of PxHere

There are other national chocolate days that try to compete—at least one every month. For example:

Chocolate-Covered Cherries Day (January 3)
Chocolate Soufflé Day (February 28)
Chocolate-Covered Raisins Day (March24)
Chocolate-Covered Cashews Day (April 21)
Chocolate Mousse Day (May 2)
Chocolate Pudding Day (June 26)
Milk Chocolate Day (July 28)
Chocolate Chip Cookie Day (August 4)
Chocolate Milkshake Day (September 12)
Chocolate Cupcake Day (October 18)
Bittersweet Chocolate with Almonds Day (November 7)

It’s fitting to give each of those days justifiable attention, but only the egalitarian Chocolate-Covered Anything Day embraces diversity and welcomes experimental pairings of all kinds. There are no rules. You have a blank canvas. Chocolate anarchy.

Brownie covered in chocolate sauce, showing cultural traditions of National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day. (Image by PxHere.)

There are no rules about chocolate on chocolate.
Photo courtesy of PxHere

Dipping Favorites

The most common “anythings” to be dipped in chocolate are favorites, such as ice cream, donuts, and things that are already chocolate, like brownies or the enigmatic morsels in the traditional chocolate box where speculative theory and intuition about what is hidden inside often lead us astray. (How do you put the dreaded toffee back after you’ve taken a bite?)

As Forrest Gump learned . . .

Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you’re going to get.

A box of chocolates, showing the cultural traditions of National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day. (Image from PxHere.)

Life’s eternal mystery—what lies within
Photo courtesy of PxHere

Gaining favor at reception chocolate fountains and chocolate fondue parties is the fruit world. Just about every fruit works well with a little chocolate coating—from everyday apples, oranges, and bananas to exotic kiwi, mangos, and watermelon.

chocolate fondue and fruit, showing cultural traditions of National Chocolate-covered Anything Day. (Photo © iStock/margoullatphotos.)

Some food historians say that chocolate covered cherries were the first fruit to be enrobed in chocolate. This innovation arrived in the 1700s, when the French covered cherries with chocolate and kirsch (cherry brandy).

chocolate-covered cherry, showing the cultural traditions of chocolate for National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day. (Image from PxHere.)

Sweet chocolate-covered cherries, with a bit of cordial as an added bonus
Photo courtesy of PxHere

Chocolate lore gives a Chicago woman credit for the first chocolate dipped strawberries—in the 1960s. The two main ingredients were imagined aphrodisiacs, so it’s no wonder they became popular right away (and remain so today).

Chocolate-covered watermelon, showing cultural traditions of National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day. (Photo © Meredith Mullins.)

Opposites Attract

As in human nature, odd pairings often make the most interesting experiments. Partnering sweet chocolate with salty and crunchy friends works well in taste and texture.

Try potato chips, pretzels, biscotti, French fries, peanut brittle, coffee beans, and pickles with a coat of chocolate. Nuts are a no brainer. They are perfect as a chocolate-coated treat.

chocolate-covered pretzels, showing cultural traditions of chocolate for National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day. (Image from PxHere.)

Partnering sweet and salty can be a successful friendship.
Photo courtesy of PxHere

As part of the creative culinary chocolate path, rubbing chocolate on steak or creating a chocolate wine sauce for beef is surprisingly good.

Mexican cultures have always used chocolate in their cooking, for example in the delicious molé sauce that combines chilies and chocolate. And don’t forget your daily servings of vegetables.

Chocolate-covered vegetables, showing cultural traditions for National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

Although we let National Chocolate Covered Insects Day (October 14) slip by without much fanfare, we can add crunchy ants, scorpions, and crickets to the mix, since they clearly fall into the category of “anything.”

Skewered scorpions, showing cultural traditions of chocolate for National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day. (Image by PxHere.)

These scorpions are just begging to be dipped in chocolate.
Photo courtesy of PxHere

If all this insect talk has made you hungry, you can order your own chocolate covered insects from several online suppliers. My favorite is Educational Innovations (a teacher supply site) that offers edible, farm-raised, chocolate-covered insects to give brave students (and you!) a taste of another world.

Chocolate covered insects, showing the cultural traditions of National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day. (Image courtesy of Educational Innovations.)

A tasty spread of farm-raised (edible) insects
Photo courtesy of Educational Innovations

International Flare

While the idea of “national days” is associated with U.S. culture, that doesn’t stop other countries from experimenting with chocolate coverings—from chocolate-covered edamame and chow mein noodles to a range of Kit Kat chocolate bar flavors in Japan, including adzuki (red bean), hojicha (green tea), and roasted corn.

Pancakes with chocolate sauce, showing cultural traditions of chocolate for National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day. (Image by PxHere.)

Start National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day with a breakfast drizzled with chocolate.
Photo courtesy of PxHere

Celebrating the Day

Chocolate is not only versatile, but can provide health benefits. It can introduce manganese, copper, and iron into your nutrition regimen and, some experts say, can relieve stress and supply antioxidants.

So, in the spirit of the holiday season and for chocolate lovers everywhere, why not celebrate National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day in style.

Chocolate and holiday boxes in a store window, showing the cultural traditions of chocolate on National Chocolate-Covered Anything Day. (Image © Meredith Mullins.)

Sit back with a chocolate rimmed margarita and decide what inventive creations you can smother in chocolate on this special day—to pay tribute to old and new cultural traditions.

Even the chocolate carving is smiling.
Photo courtesy of PxHere

Oh, I see. With a “food of the gods” and a treasure that some say releases the same chemicals as happens when falling in love, what have you got to lose?

For ten fun chocolate facts, see the OIC chocolate story here.

Comment on this post below, or inspire insight with your own OIC Moment here.

Meredith Mullins 4 Comments

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