There was a chapter talking about pronunciation in our linguistic course. We learned about all parts of articulation and how each part works to create phonemes. Almost dozing off (All right, linguistic is really not my area, but I always get inspired by it), I started trying to read those sentences in the text book, which were still alien even with phonetic symbols, with the fellow next to me. We found that some words were impossible for us to pronounce with our clumsy tongues.

That’s because there were no such consonant in our language. So, mouth was not used to use the muscle which was needed for pronouncing the consonant. This is the control to body by the “design” of language. Same concept can be also applied to product deigns in our everyday life. The products we used every day will train the users to get used to the design.

When designing a product, designers must do experiment and observe how the product is used. Whether it conforms to human intuitive reaction and behavioral habits? What is the design of the “ancestor” of this product? Has it shaped the habits of users? Should this design be modified or be remained the same? Both functional operation and visual imagery will affect the user’s perception and acceptance of the product.

Through training and practice, I probably can pronounce the word that almost made me bite my tongue. However, the design of a product should be as simple as better, like speaking in your mother tongue. Users should be able to operate the product without trouble instead of studying the instructions and user manuals like studying text books.

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