thoughts

Larry Lessig: How creativity is being strangled by the law

Posted by _tango! on November 9, 2007
Posted in: art, design, entertainment, ideas, information, inspiration, me, tech, thoughts. Leave a Comment

One of the most inspirational lectures from TED2007 is finally out for sharing!!! Stanford Professor Larry Lessig give his take on digital copyright and how laws are strangling creativity. (his books here)

“Larry Lessig gets TEDsters to their feet, whooping and whistling, following this elegant presentation of “three stories and an argument.” The Net’s most adored lawyer brings together John Philip Sousa, celestial copyrights, and the “ASCAP cartel” to build a case for creative freedom. He pins down the key shortcomings of our dusty, pre-digital intellectual property laws, and reveals how bad laws beget bad code. Then, in an homage to cutting-edge artistry, he throws in some of the most hilarious remixes you’ve ever seen.”

Afterwards, watch some of my favorites from TED2006 here.

Flying Human: Base jumping craziness!

Posted by _tango! on November 9, 2007
Posted in: entertainment, inspiration, thoughts, wacky. 6 comments

I posted this insane base jumping video previously but now have some food for thought for it. In the video, the base jumper mentions how they first tried to get as far away from walls as much as possible, but overtime they got bored, so now they play around, getting as close as possible to walls and roads, nearly touching the cliffs as they fall.

My point is, that sometimes in design, doing a total 360 180 from the norm can turn out better. The grass is always greener on the other side… i.e: everyone uses white so use black, everyone makes it thin so make yours thick, everyone adds features and you subtract features, everyone makes them organic looking so make yours industrial, etc. Happy disrupting!

Fuerzabruta in New York City

Posted by _tango! on November 1, 2007
Posted in: art, design, entertainment, experience, fun, ideas, inspiration, music, style, thoughts, wacky. Leave a Comment
Fuerzabruta show

Woa! People crashing through dry walls, flying boxes, and debris while gliding through slimmers of water above you on a transparent surface, stomping furiously through rooms, pumping their arms and feet to music, under, over, and on all sides of you! Very cool! Check out their video above, hit up their website, and go get tickets for their brief NYC visit!

“Att: New Yorkers. Get your credit cards ready, and book your standing space at ‘Fuerzabruta’, one of the most unique shows you’ll ever see. ‘Fuerzabrutaâ’ is a celebration of pure physicality, where performers move seamlessly between three stages – ground , air and underwater – to a thumping score that’ll make you feel as if you’re in an experimental Paris nightclub. Sexy, exhilarating and breath-taking to say the least. “There are people who see the show that dance and stomp and get caught up in the physical parts, while some just watch with their mouths hanging open” says co-creator Diqui James. The audience is obliged to stand during the performance, but really, you’d be giving the same amount of standing ovations anyway. Fuerzabruta is on at the Daryl Roth Theatre until February 17. Tickets are $70 but a limited quantity of $25 rush tickets are made available at the box office 2 hours before show time (cash only)” via coolhunter

More pictures via Flickr
Youtube Videos.
www.fuerzabrutalondon.co.uk
NYC tickets at Daryl Roth Theater.

Design is the Problem (in sustainability)

Posted by _tango! on October 30, 2007
Posted in: design, experience, green, information, inspiration, thoughts. Leave a Comment
Design is the problem nathan shedroff

“Design is a big part of the sustainability problems in the world. Design has been focused on creating meaningless (often), disposable (though not responsibly so), trend-laden fashion items—all design. Graphic design is particularly bad, though paper materials, at least, have a huge potential to fix this problem.”
Presentation given at IDSA Connection Congress, San Francisco 2007

Very interesting! Check out the PDF presentation and watch out for his upcoming book “Design is the Problem“.

via nathan.com
Design is the Problem PDF Presentation.

Karl Zahn: Energy Savings

Posted by _tango! on October 28, 2007
Posted in: art, design, fun, green, ideas, inspiration, tech, thoughts. Leave a Comment
oboiler slot loading power

“A very simple modification to a standard electrical coverplate changes its function from one of consumption into conservation. A standard junction box behind the face plate catches your coins and saves them.”

Neat! I’d probably need a cash or credit card slot, but I like the concept. I wonder if there are any electrical metering attachments, somewhat like the iSave water meter concept. This almost makes me want to make a piggy bank for the green, sustainability, aids, foundations etc…take all that pocket change that pile high monthly and donate it. A Donation Piggy bank.

via oboiler

Oleana Restaurant

Posted by _tango! on October 27, 2007
Posted in: experience, information, me, thoughts. 2 comments
Oleana restaurant

I just experienced one of the most unbelievable meals at Oleana in Cambridge MA run by chef and owner Ann Sortun who also has a book “Spice: Flavors of the Eastern Mediterranean“. Rustic, warming, vibrant, calming, and damn tasty down to the minuscule details. Chef Sortun’s creations are inspired from her travels and experiences from France, Spain, Italy, and Turkey for an Arabic-Mediterranean intersection of surprising flavors along with their superb personal staff in a very charming space!

Oleana is located in a quiet residential street side in Inman square with an outdoor porch space many have raved about though my first experience was inside. At first I expected an overly lavish pristine space based on all the reviews and consistency in most high end restaurants in Boston which I personally do not like as much, but Oleana’s was my exact cup of tea. Very casual, a humble friendly staff, and a tiled warming environment in a comfy space as if walking into a village side restaurant bustling full of conversations during a sunset somewhere far away from all the chaos most of us are use to.

The staff initiated the Oleana experience, servicing a few tables while greeting customers with smiles and stories while never seeming to be rushed allowing me to pester them with curious questions about their ingredients and unique flavor combinations (I’ll blame my questions on the cheerful bottle of wine). The menu changes often and the wine list is as diverse as their dishes. Plates were fantastic while the attention to details in sauces, blends, and accents on the sides delighted me the most. I’d usually keep finds like this a secret, but the experience was wonderful and one surely to share with others. I’ll post a pictures of the dishes I tried after the jump. If your in the area, seeking a sensational meal and experience, I say go to Oleana!

More Oleana dish pics at BostonChefs.com

Oleana website

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Gadgetoff 2007 Recap

Posted by _tango! on October 17, 2007
Posted in: art, design, entertainment, experience, food, fun, ideas, information, inspiration, materials, me, misc, tech, thoughts, wacky. 4 comments
rocket bike jet bike gadgetoff 2007

Woa, bang, boom, yikes, aha! That about sums up my experience at Gadgetoff 2007. What a mind torching adventure with a surplus of surprises, ear wrenching explosions, curious minds, and a safari into a wonderful world of gadgets we all love to geek about! Everything from flame throwing bbq’s, rocket bikes, robotics on wheels, and hybrid cars roamed every corner while gaming devices, weird toys, numbing food items, interactive screens, musical instruments, and hot air balloons filled up the rest of this landscape of greatness with people from all ages and disciplines.

Gadgetoff’s spontaneous flow of events kept you on your feet, jumping from boats, to buildings, into a rustic railroad house, and a cool science museum while somehow getting us all to sit calmly in an auditorium for several intellectually stimulating lectures. We were a geek fest storming the town in fashion with electronics in every pocket, Segways leading the crowd, and individuals rifling with excitement on anything cool and usually out of the ordinary.

I’ll post a few pictures on my adventure after the jump with notes, otherwise, hit up Gadgetoff.com, their blog, or a bunch of their YouTube Videos thanks to Michael (co-founder)

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TEDTalks Master List

Posted by _tango! on October 15, 2007
Posted in: art, brand, design, entertainment, experience, food, fun, ideas, information, inspiration, materials, me, misc, style, tech, TED, thoughts, wacky. Leave a Comment
Ted Talks Poster List

“Two weeks ago, TED.com hit a milestone: posting our 150th TEDTalk. To help you keep track of all the TEDTalks you’ve watched and want to watch, here’s a simple, low-tech tool: a list of all the TEDTalks posted to TED.com so far, in the order they were posted.”

Nice, a master list! via TED

Other inspirational conference video sources:
– GEL videos
– POP!TECH PopCasts
– GadgetOff
– All Things Digital 

GM Test Drive Experience: Detroit Proving Grounds

Posted by _tango! on October 12, 2007
Posted in: brand, design, entertainment, experience, fun, ideas, information, inspiration, materials, me, style, tech, thoughts. 9 comments

GM test drive detroit driving

A few weeks back I was invited by GM to fly out to their Proving Grounds in (Milford) Detroit to test drive their new 2008 cars, take a “Drivers Skill Enhancement Course” (stunt school), interview some VP’s in Design and Energy, and have some fun. I’ve grown up driving Japanese cars but took this opportunity to dive into GM’s world with an open designers mind and to scope out all of their brands; Pontiac, Hummer, Saab, Cadillac, Saturn, Chevrolet, Buick, and GMC.

I’d like to thank GM for funding this gathering and would welcome this adventure again though I’d suggest a few changes which I’ll address throughout.

If ya don’t like to read, check out the video I composed from hundreds of pictures taken during the journey above.The entire journey and story after the jump.

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Pultius Remote

Posted by _tango! on October 5, 2007
Posted in: brand, design, fun, ideas, inspiration, style, tech, thoughts. Leave a Comment
art.lebedev pultius remote control

Art Lebedev Studio brings to us the Pultius Remote Control, an ingenious simple remote control with over 100 buttons allowing users to have 1 touch access to the first 100 channels and easy access to all 300. Some might find this design bizarre and odd, but I love it even though you can probably use it to press the buttons on the actually TV from your couch.

Sometimes it takes complexity to make things simple and the color gradient I find delightful and reminds me of candied dots. Access any channel instantly… no more channel surfing or button pressing guessing.

I think this Pultius Remote is just a concept, but put me first in line when it’s available… or go buy their overpriced but uber cool Optimus OLED keyboard that took too long to come out. Also, the whimsical “folderix” folder icon usb stick.
More images after the jump.

via gizmodo

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RISD by Design 2007 Weekend Extravaganza!!!

Posted by _tango! on October 4, 2007
Posted in: art, design, entertainment, experience, food, fun, information, inspiration, me, thoughts. 2 comments
RISD by Design weekend 2007

It’s that sweet time of year again when RISD takes over Providence with their 3 day RISD by Design Weekend festival hosting a variety of events including the very popular Alumni Sale with Live Music, good food, good times, arts&crafts, the Waterfire, and frantic dizzy freshmen RISD students wondering “What did I get myself into” while rubbing their dusty rusty charcoal mustaches off and stressing over their chess set projects, 200 self-portraits, gouche projects, Chuck Close paintings, and more while prancing through the alumni sale after an all nighter or three seeking the Balls(Basketball), Nads(hockey), or Sacs(Soccer) games!(RISD sports) RISD Rocks!

I’ll be there, rock’n out the sale, digging the fire, partying in the museum, and meeting a ton of friends for our 2002 five year reunion!!! If you’ve been planning to visit RISD, this is the weekend to do so!

RISD by Design 2007 Webpage and PDF Brochure!