Mobile YouTube
YouTube hat aktuell eine Site für mobile Geräte gelauncht, die ohne Flash auskommt. Eine gute Nachricht für alle iPhone und iPad Besitzer. Dank HTML5 können jetzt Video Inhalte in besserer Qualität empfangen werden. Auch das Web-App Interface wurde verbessert.
What if you could simply staple solar panels to your house rather than hiring a professional installation team? That’s not as far-fetched as it sounds — MIT researchers have figured out a way to print thin film solar cells on paper using a process that resembles a standard inkjet printer. If they’re able to gear efficiencies up to scale, the development could revolutionize the production and installation of solar panels.
MIT’s new semiconductor-coated paper features carbon-based dyes that give the cells an efficiency of 1.5 to 2 percent. That’s not incredibly efficient, but the convenience factor makes up for it. And in the future, researchers hope that the same process used in the paper solar cells could be used to print cells on metal foil or even plastic.
Of course, paper solar cells are a long way from commercialization. MIT researchers say that the technology is still in the research phase and it could take years before being commercialized. And once it is? There’s no telling how it could revolutionize the home solar industry, which currently relies on pricey professional installers to set up panels.
Gary Chang takes compact living to the extreme with his 330-square foot Hong Kong apartment that squeezes in over 24 different room configurations.
Meet Gary Chang, a Hong Kong architect who transformed his pint-sized living space — a cramped 330-square foot apartment typical for densely populated Hong Kong — into a super-efficient, 24-room bachelor pad with the help of an ingenious system of sliding walls, panels, and gizmos.
The interaction designers at Teague have unveiled their newest experiment: The Radio Ball, a geodesic sphere that offers a new way of exploring radio channels.
Designed by Benoit Collette and Adam Kumpf, the Radio Ball attempts to add some haptic novelty to the process of finding a radio station. Each facet of the ball corresponds to a different radio channel. To change the channel, you simply rotate the ball to another face. Tiles that plug into the gaps allow you to mark those that you like.
As they write:
Touchscreens make devices simple and sexy, but in doing so, they also become visually similar, haptically monotonic, and uninviting to natural discovery. Thinking back to the days of old analog radios, the magic of finding unexpected stations in the midst of fuzz was both enchanting and evocative.
For sure, interesting!
Copenhagen Parts proudly presents: the Bike Porter – an integrated handlebar and basket.
Old-school basket weave is fine if that’s your thing, but what real choice is there if you care about how your bike looks, and your style is more urban than country cottage? What if you ride a stylish single-speed but you also want to carry bags and groceries? Our response? The Bike Porter.
The Bike Porter combines cool aesthetics with practical function without corrupting the clean, simple lines of your ride.
By integrating the basket into the handlebar, the Bike Porter offers a sublime transport option which works as part of your bike as well as introducing an evolution in style.
More info here
2 Kommentare » | Allgemeines, Industrial Design, Industrial Design
Multithump is a special multi-player version of marek bereza’s music sequencer iphone application thump. this special installation for seeper was installed at the v&a museum in london and executed in a tabletop format with graphics by david sweeney. the project utilizes a square grid like other music sequencers, but is manipulated digitally by the multiple users. the table set up allowed multi-touch interaction from the users, who are able to manipulate the sounds by pressing the squares on the grid. each user is assigned different sounds so that the culmination of all three created a balanced composition.
via: designboom
Citroën has revealed the spectacular new Citroën Metropolis Concept - a sleek and muscular concept car that pays homage to China’s extraordinary development. Created by Citroën’s international design team - based in Shanghai since 2008 - Citroën Metropolis will be on show in the French Pavilion at the Shanghai World Fair from 1st May to 31st October, 2010.
via Fubiz
Here are some images of the impressive UK pavillion at the Expo 2010. For sure the result is amazing and impressive, but where does sustainability stand in this construction ?
Nike Music Shoe is an awesome ad for the Nike Free Run+ shoe.
In the video you can see Hifana doing a live performance by using the shoes as controllers. By bending the flexible sole of the Nike Free Run+, they can control different sounds
Tomoaki Yanagisawa of 4nchor5 la6 was responsible for the hardware part. He added flexible and accelerometer sensors to the shoes.
Daito Manabe of Rhizomatiks did the sound programming with Max.
If you depend on your creativity for your living, then your most valuable piece of equipment is not your computer, smartphone, camera, or any other hi-tech gadget. “In a modern company 70 to 80 percent of what people do is now done by way of their intellects. The critical means of production is small, gray, and weighs around 1.3 kilograms. It is the human brain.”*
So what are you doing to maintain this precious resource? You probably give it plenty of stimulation – books, movies, music, nights out, interesting conversations with offbeat people.
But I’m not talking about stimulation, quite the reverse. I’m talking about qualities such as focus, calmness, clarity, and insight. They may not sound so sexy, but they are at least as important to your creative process as the glamour and stimulation side of things. And amid the bustle of daily life and the chatter of social media, they are the qualities most easily lost.
What works for me is daily meditation. Every morning, before I start work, I spend 20 minutes sitting on a mat, focusing on the sensation of breathing, doing my best to be present and aware, and trying not to get tangled up in my thoughts. It makes all the difference for the rest of the day. And I’m convinced it makes me a better writer.
“Qualities such as focus, calmness, clarity, and insight are as important to your creative process as glamour and stimulation.”
I received my initial instruction in meditation from Buddhist monks. I’ve also been on a few meditation retreats, which I highly recommend. But you don’t need to disappear into a monastery to take up meditation. And you don’t need to be a Buddhist, or adopt any religious beliefs. You can do it right here in the middle of your daily life.
The Benefits of Meditation Practice for Creatives:
It’s important to note that there’s a lot more to meditation practice than simply “boosting your creativity.” If I were to promote meditation as some kind of creative thinking technique, the monks would be rightly appalled – or amused. So the benefits I’m going to describe, while very real, are really side effects of meditation – if you approach meditation looking to “get” any of these things, you’ll probably be disappointed. On the other hand, if you just practice it for its own sake, you may be pleasantly surprised to discover yourself experiencing some or all of the following:
Focus. Concentration is essential to outstanding creative execution and performance. The simple act of focusing on your breathing day after day, will gradually improve your powers of concentration.
Patience. Meditation can be incredibly boring. For once in your life, you’re not trying to do anything or think anything, just sit there and pay attention to your immediate experience. And you will encounter all kinds of resistance to doing it. Zen priest Steve Hagen says, “If you can get past resistance to meditation, nothing else in life will be an obstacle.”
Calmness. At first, you’ll be surprised, maybe even horrified, to discover how busy your mind is – a non-stop stream of mental chatter. But if you stay with it, you should gradually find that your mind settles down as the months go by.
Clarity. Like calmness, this can be gradual and intermittent to begin with. But you are likely to notice moments and even periods of mental clarity, when you see things clearly and your mind is sharper than usual – which makes problem-solving and decision-making easier.
Insight. You’ve probably had the experience of suddenly realizing the solution to a problem, even though you haven’t been consciously thinking of it. Or you may have experienced a moment of inspiration, when a new idea flashes into your mind unbidden. If you’re practicing meditation regularly, expect this to happen more often.
Perspective. When you spend time just being present and observing your breath, thoughts, feelings, and moment-to-moment experience, you start to realize how trivial most of our daily worries really are. Even in the midst of the daily grind, you can let go of the small stuff, and keep the big picture in view.
Article by Mark McGuinness
