Words and expressions 

aesthetic adj. 美学的 

unobtrusive adj. 不引人注目的，不显眼的

restrained adj. （行为）克制的，有节制的 

arbitrary adj. 任意的 

conserve v. 节约（水，能源等） 

Proper names 

Dieter Rams 迪特尔·拉姆斯（1932 –，德国著名工业设计师） 

Braun 博朗（德国公司）

Dieter Rams’ 10 Principles of good design 

Design is everywhere. The alarm clock that wakes you up every morning, the toothbrush you brush your teeth with, the bike you ride to school, or the high-speed train you take when travelling … Have you ever observed designs in your life and wondered, what designs are good designs? And what designs are ineffective? 

You may come up with different ideas. There is a famous guideline called 10 principles for good design. These principles were developed by Dieter Rams, a German industrial designer. He was the guiding force of Braun, a 3 famous consumer products company. 

Now let’s look at these principles. 

1. Good design is innovative. Innovative design always develops in line with innovative technology.

2. Good design makes a product useful. A well-designed product should fulfill its functions. 

3. Good design is aesthetic. Most products are used frequently and their aesthetic quality influences the emotional well-being of the user. 

4. Good design makes a product understandable. Ideally, it should be self-explanatory. 

5. Good design is unobtrusive. Products are usually used as tools, not works of art. Their designs should therefore be both neutral and restrained, to leave room for the user’s self-expression. 

6. Good design is honest. It does not attempt to manipulate the consumer with promises that cannot be kept. 

7. Good design is long-lasting. It is supposed to last for many years and make a product durable. 

8. Good design is thorough down to the last detail. Nothing can be arbitrary or left to chance. Care and accuracy in the design process show respect toward the consumer. 

9. Good design is environmentally friendly. It conserves resources and minimizes pollution throughout the lifecycle of the product. 

10. Good design is as simple as possible. Less, but better, because it concentrates on the essential aspects

Words and expressions

vertical adj. 垂直的；直立的      tablet n. 平板电脑

manual n. （尤指机器的）说明书，使用手册

measuring jug 量壶；量杯       milliliter n. 毫升（液量单位）

heat-proof adj. 抗热的；耐热的

Proper names

Malik 马利克       Don Norman 唐·诺曼（1935 –, 美国设计师）Norman door 诺曼门（由唐·诺曼提出，指设计不佳，让人搞不清楚如何开的门）

 The following sentences will help you evaluate product design. Translate the Chinese in brackets into English using the words and expressions you’ve just learned, and then record each sentence. 

1. A good design is __________(创新的), long-lasting, environmentally friendly … And the most important one, I think, is that it should make the product ______________ (易于理解的) .

2. He doesn’t believe in designs that have a lot of unnecessary  ________(特点，特征).

3. Norman says doors are really simple  ___________(设备，装置). 

4. We shouldn’t need written ________(操作指南) like “pull” or “push” to ___________ (理解) what to do – it should be obvious from the design.（innovative ；understandable；features；devices；instructions ；figure out )