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In an apparent (if perhaps momentary) triumph of emotionally intelligent signage, New York City is trying to tap hidden reservoirs of empathy among pedestrians and drivers alike by using — get this — haiku. As NBC New York explains: “Colorful 8-inch square signs featuring safety messages in haiku are being installed at high-crash locations near […]

Each week PinkBlog readers send us lots of examples of emotionally intelligent signage they’ve spotted in their communities. Here are four recent submissions that caught our eye. The talented Michael Bungay Stainer sends this sign, which does a nice job of eliciting empathy in the viewer: P.K. Ware offers a stern but attention-getting way to keep […]

Taking a page from the civic-minded folk in Needham, Massachusetts, city officials in Bayside, Wisconsin, are enlisting emotionally intelligent signage to encourage drivers to slow down. Reader Scott Ehlke hipped us to this video:

Devotees of emotionally intelligent signage (yes, both of you) will recall that the original definition of the term hinged largely on empathy. Emotionally intelligent signs were those that either: a) empathize with the viewer and thereby improve the experience of a space (Example: A sign in a seemingly crowded museum cafeteria that reads, “Don’t worry. […]

Ever visit a place — Ypsilanti, Michigan, the Willamette Valley, the Ochlockonee River — and found yourself befuddled about how to pronounce it? Emotionally intelligent signage is here to help! Glenn Auerbach (via Lake Vermillion Real Estate) sends this sign, which graces the entrance to a peculiarly spelled town in northeastern Minnesota.

Todd Boudreaux sends this photo of an emotionally intelligent license plate, which he spotted in a parking lot in Lafayette, Louisiana. Would seeing this plate on the highway make you drive differently?

Yesterday’s post about signage on asphalt sparked an interesting response. We got some smart (and not entirely positive) contributions in the Comments section. And several readers offered their own contributions. For instance, Eileen Boswell sent this one, which originated here and which carries a tart political message. And a bunch of folks pointed out the […]

Last year, the folks at Volkswagen and Fun Theory devised an engaging (and musical!) way for people to exit a subway station. Now they’ve come up with a equally engaging way for people to enter a subway station. (Someone should do a story about subterranean behavior modification. There are lots and lots of examples – […]

Most of the time around here we highlight signage that we consider emotionally intelligent — that is, signage that either encourages empathy on the part of the viewer or demonstrates empathy for his or her situation. But sometimes signage can be simply emotional. It can shock and awe us into thinking — and occasionally into […]

Gary Lauder has a brilliant proposal to make traffic signs more emotionally intelligent — and to reduce energy costs and accidents in the process.  Just watch his four-and-a-half-minute TED Talk, which I’ve embedded below.