Doug's Gray Matters

ADHD is often framed as a disability. I personally do not feel that way. For some people, it is—but that experience is shaped heavily by environment. There are theories that different cognitive styles evolved for different roles—some oriented toward structure and order, others toward movement, adaptation, and uncertainty. Both are valuable. But modern systems tend to reward only one. When the environment aligns with the wiring, performance changes. This is about ability—and f

I recently had the opportunity to join Chris Moore of Aging in Place Is a Team Sport  for a conversation about aging, independence, adaptive design, caregiving, and the reality that ability is not binary. It’s a curve. We covered a lot of ground, but the heart of the conversation was simple: most people do not think about adaptation until it becomes personal. That might happen through age, injury, caregiving, fatigue, or a sudden change in health. But when it does, the proble

Sometimes when you appear as a guest on a podcast, you get the pleasant surprise of discovering something about yourself. This conversation on ADHDifference  with Julie Legg was that moment for me. What started as a discussion about being diagnosed with ADHD later in life turned into something much bigger. I realized, in real time, that my diagnosis wasn’t a closing chapter — it was permission. Permission to stop apologizing for how I’m wired. Permission to go all in. If you’

Walk into any kitchen store or scroll through online product reviews and you'll find endless comparisons. Sharpness. Edge retention. Steel hardness. Chef preference. Aesthetics. Price-to-performance ratios. What you won't find — almost anywhere — is a structured evaluation of functional inclusion. How much grip strength does this knife require? How much wrist deviation occurs over thirty minutes of prep? Can it be used effectively from a seated position? How does it perform f