毕业生 | Maggie Walsh：用民族志研究科技
Maggie Walsh：用民族志研究科技
经过四年的“冒险”，2017届的Maggie Walsh说，自己已经为未来的旅程做好了准备。这位互动媒体艺术专业的学生，分享了自己的故事——她为咖啡店打造互动装置，用民族志研究科技，以及对成功进行重新定义，从而追寻内心真正的激情。
Q: 为什么选择来上海纽约大学读书？
我原以为我的生活会是一连串方向清晰的“下一步”，未曾设想自己的生活会是一个冒险。在纽约参加校园活动日时，我相信，自己有能力迎接这一挑战。在那里，我遇到了将来会一起去上海的小伙伴，并欣喜地发现，我的经历和很多人不同。当时，我被互动媒体艺术教授Clay Shirky的示范课深深吸引，听完这门课，深受媒体所带来的变革力量的启发。来上海的主要原因，是我对这里充满好奇；来到中国，也让我突破了对人生选项的预期。
Q: 在上纽大学习生活，最让你喜欢的是什么？
我喜欢和当地人接触交流。我认识了在世纪大道跳广场舞的阿姨，并邀请她们来学校，给我们上了一堂舞蹈课；我在深圳结识了农民工子女，帮孩子们设计了一堂科技工作坊。
我学习研究如何利用科技影响社区。所以在伦敦和纽约进行海外学习时，我选择在纽约大学新媒体平台HashtagNYU实习，为纽约大学全球教育体系做了很多内容。
Q: 为什么选择互动媒体艺术专业？
我最喜欢互动媒体艺术这门课，最让我感兴趣的并不是编码或技术，而是隐藏在科技背后的一切：人们如何使用某类科技，以及为何使用它等文化、心理层面的原因。在科技中使用民族志，是我最喜欢互动媒体艺术的原因。建立一个原型时，重要的是去追问为什么要建立它？为谁而建？你是否见过他们？他们是否会真的使用这个产品？当你尝试了解这一科技所针对的用户时，才能真正明白他们的需求与用户体验，而不是去设计自以为对方所需要的。
Q: 请介绍一下你目前的研究项目。
我的毕业项目是研究、定义一个社区，并为该社区创建一个互动装置。我选择研究上海正在快速繁荣发展扩张的咖啡店，主要研究对象是Seesaw Coffee咖啡店。我采访了咖啡店客人、咖啡师，观察店内情况，了解最受客人欢迎的咖啡，他们最常坐的位置，以及何时会光顾咖啡店。
我联系了Seesaw咖啡店，就围绕他们的品牌创建一个社区，提出了几个想法。他们选择的一个创意，是让客人扫桌上摆放的二维码，下载一个应用程序。通过这款应用程序，客人可以上传发送一张照片，并在Seesaw位于上海的其他咖啡店打印出来，贴在店内展示板上。我将Seesaw的静安店和世纪大道店连接了起来。
Q: 毕业后有什么打算？
来上海纽约大学对我来说算是一次冒险，而现在，我希望能继续挑战自己，迎接未知。这样的旅程给我惊喜，让我在途中发现自己，迅速成长。我可能会去德国工作，去一家名为“Digital Imaging”的公司担任数字战略经理，他们希望我能带去最新的技术与理念，共同迎接21世纪数字时代的挑战。
Q: 有什么心得体会要和同学以及学弟学妹分享？
我想对每个人说，不要因为觉得自己还不够好，就不敢尝试某些事。不要因为没得奖，就羞于展示自己的论文。你必须展现出自己的激情，要相信自己的作品。如果你相信自己做的是正确的事，人们就会聆听你，追随你。用你的激情推动你的事业。
Maggie Walsh: Spirited Ethnographer
After four years of ‘adventure’, Maggie Walsh ‘17 says she’s ready for whatever comes next. The IMA major from Syracuse, New York talks about taking on interactive coffeeshop installations, her passion for ethnography, and how to make the most of one’s passion by redefining ideas of success.
Q: Why did you choose to study at NYU Shanghai?
I never used to think of my life being an adventure as much as a series of obvious “next steps.” But being at Candidate Weekend in New York, I was convinced I could handle an adventure. I met the students who would be my future classmates in Shanghai, and I liked that a lot of people hadn’t come from the same situation as me. I also was taken by Interactive Media Arts Professor Clay Shirky’s sample class; I remember coming back from that class and being so inspired by the transformative power of the media. Finally, the main reason I wanted to come to Shanghai was because I didn’t know what it was going to be like; coming to China was broadening my experience over choosing something socially expected.
Q: What do you enjoy the most about your studies?
I love learning about different communities, from the ladies who meet every week to dance on Century Ave--whom I have got to know and even invited to our campus to give a dance lesson--to the children of migrant workers in Shenzhen for whom I designed a tech workshop.
One of my main areas of study is how technology influences communities, so while studying away first in London then in New York, I interned at HashtagNYU. My internship was about creating and curating content about NYU’s global sites.
Q: And you ended up majoring in Interactive Media Arts.
My favorite part of IMA isn’t the coding or the tech, it’s everything behind the tech: how do people use it, why do people use it--the cultural and psychological things. Using ethnography in tech has been my favorite part of IMA. When you’re building a prototype, it’s important to me to ask why build it? Who are you building it for? Have you met them? Are they actually going to use it? When you begin to know the people you are building for, you really begin to understand their needs and user experience--not just designing what you think they need.
Q: Tell us more about your research.
My Capstone project involved defining a community, studying it and creating an interactive installation for it. I chose to get to know Shanghai’s burgeoning coffee scene, specifically Seesaw Coffee--where I interviewed customers, baristas, and observed what was going on, from what customers ordered most to where they would sit and when.
I reached out to Seesaw with a few different ideas for building a community around their brand, and the one that they chose was an app that customers would discover through scanning a QR code displayed on each table. The app allows you to upload a photo which is then sent and printed out in another Seesaw location in Shanghai--to be hung up on a display board. I connected the stores in Jing'an and on Century Ave.
Q: What are you looking forward to after graduation?
I really look forward to taking more risks. Just like choosing NYU Shanghai, I want to continue challenging myself with what I’m uncomfortable with--it makes me happy to use unexpected moments as a way to find out more about myself and to continue growing. There’s a possibility I’ll accept a job offer in Germany, where I’ll be a digital strategy manager for Digital Imaging. They want me to guide them through the processes of bringing their tech up to speed with the 21st century.
Q: Any advice for peers and underclassmen?
I’d say to everyone: Don’t shy away from something because you think your work isn’t good enough. Don’t hold back from submitting a paper you wrote to a conference just because you aren’t a major award winner. You’ve got to sell your own passion. You have to believe in your own work. If you believe that what you’re doing is the right thing, people will listen and follow you. Let your passion shine through your work.
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