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Interesting ideas I research or read about worth exploring further.
🔎 Introduction to colour contrast and accessibility
Colour is one of the most underestimated yet critical areas of design, especially when designing with accessibility in mind.
Most designers are familiar with the colour contrast of texts on the background. However, there is much more to colours in relation to accessibility. We have rules for link colour vs text colour, focus state, adjacent colours for UI elements and interface elements that convey information, etc.
“Colour contrast is one of the areas where we designers can have a significant impact on accessibility. While accessibility is much more than that, a series of measurable variables make colour contrast one of the perhaps easier aspects to address.”
Javier Cuello
The WCAG guidelines, while comprehensive, are not necessarily easy to follow. Luckily, we can learn from folks like Javier Cuello, who summarised the important colour-related accessibility requirements in a more digestible form.
In his article, Javier explains key considerations that designers should keep in mind when dealing with colours. The article is a good read for anyone looking for an easy-to-understand introduction to colour contrast and accessibility.
🗒️ Full Article: Intro to colour contrast by Javier Cuello
🔎 Science is our remarkable but imperfect attempt to explain reality
Science is a system of understanding created by humans, and as such it is contained within reality. Reality doesn’t follow science, but itself only.
“Science is our remarkable but imperfect attempt to explain reality. Quantification is exact not into reality, but into itself.”
When we observe or measure something, the very act of doing so alters the observed reality. In some ways, our measurements and observations, even when conducted scientifically, are nothing but our “imperfect” attempts to quantify reality.
📚 Source: 101 Things I Learned® in Engineering School by John Kuprenas & Matthew Frederick