From Artful Design Chapter 5, I would like to reflect on something Ge learned from the design of the instrument, Coffeemug. Ge states that “everyday artifacts make amusing instruments.” I completely agree with this statement. I love seeing everyday objects repurposed to transform into something else. Whether it be a nice liquor bottle turned into a vase, an armor set made of old beer boxes, or roses made out of soft drink cans, this transformation strips away any preconceived notions about what either of the objects were before. What I mean by this is that a trumpet does not need to look like a trumpet. It does not have to be made out of brass and it doesn’t even have to be blown into. By turning the mug into a trumpet, the user is invited to think of the trumpet as transcended from its form - a trumpet is merely the sum of its sounds. This realization is a consequence of Ge’s teaching about how “computer instrument design demutualizes form decoupled from function.” It also piggybacks off of principle 5.6 which states, to design a new interface one must “determining the input, craft the output, and create the mapping.” This entire discussion reminds me of the debate between Plato and Diogenes when Plato tried to define a chicken as a featherless biped and Diogenes plucked the feathers out of a chicken and declared “BEHOLD, A MAN.” One could design a guitar that made flute noises and the timbre could be determined by how hard one plucks the strings. This chapter has also made me wonder how one could make an alternate version of an instrument to surpass hurdles posed by its original form. In one of my first reading responses, I commented how I played impossible chords on the piano the first time I downloaded a DAW because I wanted to see what it would sound like. I wonder in what ways designing an electronic instrument completely different from its original form could enable artists to create more varied music. For example, possibly taking away the need to pluck the strings of a guitar strips the user’s ability to change the volume / tone of each note but it would free the user’s hand to play more notes at once and gain practice using two hands to make music on guitar. Finally, I would like to reflect on the importance of principle 5.7, “instant music, subtlety later”. There have been many times where I adjust a setting incorrectly on my DAW and it takes forever for the actual music to come in. It made me feel frustrated and want to just play the instrument. In order to make reimagined instruments that people will actually want to use, as many frustrations as possible must be avoided.