在上Coursera"设计原理"这门课的时候，第一节课作业要求举出违背distributed cognition 分布式认知的例子。对分布式认知其实在课上不是很理解，于是我在作业评论下提问，得到了这样的回答：
Cognition is distributed because of all that surrounds us: the environment, which includes things, humans, non-humans, everything that surrounds, affects, shapes us. Simply, cognition is always distributed, but with reference with particular things we may talk about affordances. We perceive the function of a thing immediately, in the same way we perceive colors and forms. Cognition is distributed because there are affordances. An affordance provides us with clues that help us to use a specific thing. The term "affordance" has been coined by Gibson in 1979, in his bookThe Ecological Approach to Visual Perception. Very important: he formulates a theory of direct perception! He states that the affordances of the environment are all about what the environment does offer, what it does provide us with, for better or for worse.
A sharp object invites us to cut, and we can use it as a knife. On the other hand, a knife is an object that not only invites us to cut, but it has also been thought and designed to cut.
我理解为，一个物品不仅仅是因为它的存在让人去想使用它，也因为它本就设计为诱导人们使用的样子，无论是颜色、形状、材质等等，有意让人们想到要这样使用。设计利用了人们的分布式认知，即我们周围的环境，包括事物、人为的、非认为的，都在影响和改变我们自身。从这点出发，人本身具有被物品可塑的性质，那就按照根本的需求去设计产品，让人们从直接感受中学会使用它，而不只是单向的被动的根据现成的想法来制造。
通过设计形成分布式认知，还可以减轻用户记忆的负担，让信息尽可能多地呈现在人们面前。
比如说呢，你能举出网页、app设计中分布式认知的正例或反例吗 :)
