Diverse environments that surround people every day through the movement of lives effect the emotion and

observed qualities experienced. In the spaces we live in such as, work, home, and recreation, happiness of life is largely affected but not fully perceived from the way an environment impresses itself upon us. As designers, it is important to personally perceive these qualities that are generally not understood by laypeople at large. As Guy Debord, a French Theorist expresses this idea: People are quite aware that some neighborhoods are sad and others pleasant. But they generally simply assume elegant streets cause a feeling of satisfaction and that poor street are depressing, and let it go at that. In fact, the variety of possible combinations of ambiances, analogous to the blending of pure chemicals in an infinite number of mixtures, gives rise to feelings as differentiated and complex as any other form of spectacle can evoke. (Critique of Urban Geography) This process of perceiving can be achieved through the concept of a Derive. A Derive is a journey through varied ambiances with no intentional destination or responsibilities. The thought and action of a Derive leads to a new awareness of perceptual qualities in a surrounding environment. A Derive includes an observation of Psychogeography. This term is coined as combining Psycho (thought and behavior as pertaining to the human mind) and Geography (physical features of a place) to ultimately relate the two for spacial design input. Urban planning results in a place that is either physchogeographically satisfying or displeasing to a population of people. A designer can use his/her understanding of these forces on the psyche to adjust the urban plan. Things such as placement of large and small structures, areas of recreation, and open spaces are influenced by the designers mind to be adjacent as opposed to distant to each other. Many other observed perceptual qualities effect the plan as well. In my own experience of a Derive, I experienced many elements that either attracted or repelled (either by choice or force) my personal way of journey. This Derive was executed in Denver, a city wellestablished over many years. There were both positive and negative experiences that altered my behavior. A large bridge crossing a highway into the city and a newly designed structure surrounded by a slum place gave me feelings of opportunity that drew me to the. I crossed the bridge and approached the structure in my interest. Natural and situational conditions changed my way out of interest as well: Light reflecting onto the ground from a structure and sports event closing a sidewalk are two of these as examples. As the Derive was being personally carried out, any alternating behaviors that I observed of myself or of my peers prompted me to stop and document my experience by photography. As with any other legitimate experiment though, there may be imperfect results in not capturing every natural behavior. Maybe that behavior was not apparent to me; my final product includes many different behaviors that affirmed my intention to document as much as possible. From the photograph, I was able to alter it using Adobe Photoshop to emphasize my emotional response to that situation. This Derive establishes my deeper understanding of special influence on my mind and allows a foundation of the background work that designers attempt to accomplish. Bibliography Introduction to Critique of Urban Geography. (n.d.) The Situationist Internal Text Library, Retrieved from http://library.nothingness.org/articles/SI/en/display_printable/2