Speed dating is a unique, high-speed approach to meeting potential romantic partners. In just a couple of hours, a single adult can end up with a list of several possible dates, screened via face-to-face conversation.
How does it work?
A group consisting of equal numbers of male and female participants meet at a predetermined location, such as a bar or coffee shop. Once everyone has arrived (and gotten slightly buzzed), each sits at one of the stations (i.e. tables) located around the room. One man and one woman are assigned to each station. Once the activity begins, each pair is given 2-7 minutes to get to know each other. After the time is up, each man rotates to an adjacent station and spends the next few minutes in conversation with the next woman. This continues until everyone has had the opportunity to meet all the singles of the opposite sex.
After the event, each participant indicates who they would be interested in going out with again. This is usually done from the safety and emotional security of the participant's own home via a web interface. Once everyone has completed his or her selection, matches are made. If two people have both indicated that they would like to go on another date, they are notified of their mutual interest and given each other's contact info.
Some variations on this model exist, including events that cater to homosexuals or to specific ethnicities or social groups. However, these all follow the same basic premise as the model noted above.
Building Better Speed Dates
In this first section of our project, we perform a task analysis to fully explore the process of speed dating, and discuss the current systems and aids used by speed daters. Then we discuss the problems with speed dating, contrasting it to other dating methodologies and examining the personal and environmental factors that contribute to those problems. Finally, we detail our priorities in building a solution and conclude with a summarization of our solution's goals and constraints.
