In his People and Design course, Dr. Berman has explored graphic design and interactive maps with his students. In the 2010 course, students completed a City Comforts exercise where each student chose to either create an individual poster or contribute to an interactive class map. The class map uses Google Maps, original photographs, images and videos from the web and hyperlinks to create an absorbing story of the details that make Philadelphia uniquely comfortable from attractive new trash cans to decorated parking lots.
City Comforts Class Map
Browsing the map reveals the aspects of Philadelphia that different students found noteworthy, and the student comments reflect individual attitudes and perceptions of city life. In his 2010 assignment for the City Comforts exercise in the People and Design course, Dr. Berman discusses geotagging, use of cell-phones and the joy of finding the best aspects of city comforts.
