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TuneGlue visual musicmap

Here’s another pretty sweet interactive visual music map suggester(TuneGlue). You type in a band name, expand to see “like-bands”, delete a few, lock down the primaries, and after a few clicks you have a dozen more bands to check out.

The interface is simple, the branching is nice, and the suggestions are pretty good. It would be cool if a “listen” button was incorporated into the pod options rather than seeking a sound sample on your own. Be awesome if you could use this software for your own desktop mp3 collection as well..fun times at parties if ya ha a big touch screen for guests.(Microsoft Surface Table, or Jef Hans multi-touch wall)

Everyday Edisons pbs tv show inventions

“Everybody has a great idea that could change the way we work, the way we live or the way we play. Everyday Edisons documents the development process of 14 inventions and the parallel stories of the people who invented them as they are taken from a sketch on a napkin to a store shelf.”

If your the type that craves to see, watch, and understand the creative methodology of a product idea to market, take a glimpse at the new documentry invention show Everyday Edisons on PBS (a Bouncing Brain Production), which follows a handful of inventors through their journey to bring their ideas to shelves for everyone to buy. Unlike some reality shows, there are no winners or losers and no cheesey competitions. This show follows and documents the story behind each individual over the time of a year working with a large team of people to make their products a reality with the real prize being a spot on store shelves.

The series started a few weeks back, so check out your pbs listings for your local air times(usually on Saturday). Even though the first season has not finished, it seems the show has licensed through some pretty good channels, skymall, and a few of the inventions have popped up on Amazon though not available at the moment.

update: They have their very own YouTube Channel to watch and subscribe to!!!!

risd collections apparel fashion show 2007

I’m off to the fabulous RISD Collections Apparel Fashion show (2007 press release here) over the weekend displaying over 150 outfits from 50 select students. If your in the area, there might be a few tickets (2pm and 7pm shows), but from previous years, it’s pretty jam packed during both walks. If your around on sunday may 20th, the one-of-a-kind outfits are for sale in the market square. Off to RISD!!! Whoohoo!!!



pong watch John Maushammer

This is way too geeky cool! I want one! In fact, I’d really like a Pong Belt Buckle as well! Creator John Maushammer has a documentry of his homemade creation on his site here. I don’t think he has any current plans to mass manufacture this watch yet, but when it does, I’m sure it’ll be a hit at gatherings.

Watch the video above or YouTube video here.

voiceprints

“Voiceprints is an experiment in the translation of audio information to visual imagery. Artist Pierre Proske records a person’s voice into a microphone, analyzes the audio file for frequency content, loops the sample, and then generates a variety of textile patterns arranged according to the individual’s vocal frequency imprint.The basic acoustic unit in human speech is called a phoneme. The visual equivalent is called a “viseme,” a basic speech unit in the visual domain. Interested in the audio to visual translation, Proske developed software that describes sound using basic visual units to represent recorded frequencies.

Proske reminds us that the use of computing in textile design is nothing new. Woven textiles actually form part of computing history, through Joseph Marie Jacquard’s automated patterned textile weaving machine in 1804 which led to the use of punch cards in computing devices.”
via TransStudio

idsa shift conference risd

I’m off to this years IDSA conference “Shift” over the weekend which is being held at the wonderful campus of RISD. I have not been to an IDSA conference for some time so I have no clue what to expect though I’m doubting it will as diverse as TED, GEL, or Poptech. Otherwise, I do look forward in seeing the students portfolios and seeing how digitalized, web savvy, and smart they are….hopefully none have fallen into the the “cool rendering” trap as good ideas! I’m seeking more of a real problem solving, storytelling, global changing, methodology type. If your near RISD this weekend, swing by…I think tickets are still available.

GEL conference videos

If your brain hasn’t overloaded in inspiration and knowledge from the TED TEDtalks or PopTech PopCasts video archives, check out the GEL conference Videos! I attend these 3 incredibly stimulating, overcharging, brain shaking events yearly and now their lectures are avaliable online for everyone to absorb! GEL’s coming up this week, so catch up while you can before the next batch of speakers goes online!

joshua bell

“Can one of the nation’s great musicians cut through the fog of a D.C. rush hour?”

Here’s an astonishing experimental story that questions talent, location, knowledge, culture, perception, a bit of marketing, and displacement. What happens when you take a world famous musician, Joshua Bell, and put him in the morning DC metro posing as a street performer seeking extra change? Do people stop and listen, do strangers acknowledge his talent, does a crowd form in awe, does he cash in, does talent simply pass by ones ears because of his environment, or are people too busy to stop and listen?

Read this incredible experiment after the jump along with videos. (mirrored from WashingtonPost.com)

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