« think thought view: January 2007 | Main | think thought view: March 2007 »
February 25, 2007
Revision Revolt
The challenge: how would you intelligently power a city block in a sustainable manner? Think big idea. Think small environmental impact. Think about ways to make a difference in how we fuel our future. Re:Volt is your chance to flip a switch on the status quo on dirty energy. To use the sun, wind or even people in an inventive way. To make a positive impact on our environment. For the next three months, we're looking for your revolutionary plan. Wherever you are, whatever you do, you could be the one to empower the next ideas about power. Imagination is a force so think about it and enter the competition. The deadline is April 1st.
more info here
Posted by tranism at 9:10 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Fire Emblem Goddess of Dawn
The SRPG (strategy role playing game) Fire Emblem series have always enthralled me. The gameplay and story lines are always been executed extremely well. Still, this is a Nintendo developed title and despite Fire Emblem's occasional tip-toe into adult oriented themes, they've have always remained age friendly or at least until now.
Fire Emblem Goddess of Dawn for the Wii looks to change all that with the opening intro suggesting rape and depicting throat violence. I hope this is a sign that Nintendo is exploring ways to visually "age-up" some of their franchises. Aside from that, Fire Emblem uses a beautiful 3D cell shaded look. The screenshot above is an example of how they've blended anime cell shading within the word of 3D. I can't wait to see more. For now, I'll have to live with the game's trailer and opening intro until its release stateside.
more in-game screenshots after the jump
Posted by tranism at 2:29 AM | Permalink | Comments (5)
February 19, 2007
Shoe Addictions
Hi, my name is Electro and I have a shoe addiction. I buy shoes even when I don't need them. I buy shoes and may never even wear them. Worst of all, I buy shoes in the wrong size because that's all they had.
I know I know. I got issues. Between shoes and being gadget obsessed, you can imagine my bank account gets hit hard. So now, I do sell my shoes and try to recoup some of the money and I've restricted myself to only buying when it's on sale.
Tips
- Try to do your shoe shopping at smaller stores. Be a frequent visitor. Befriend the owners. In time, you'll be working that sale discount way before the shoe officially goes on sale.
- Men are usually forced/required to be more conservative in dress for whatever reasons so shoes are about all you have that can really express your personality.
On that note, I wanna give a shout-out to shoe stores Undefeated, Yoox, and Oki-ni.
Shoes (from left to right)
- DIESEL elastic stretch sneaker
- DIESEL techno hi-top sneaker
- Y-3 silver laminated leather sneaker
- Raf Simmon miltary green nappa leather sneaker
- Puma Rudolf D. Schuhfabrik ankle boot
- DID leather and suede sneaker
- Adidas Everest ski inspired suede boot
- Adidas classic Marathon TR
- Glory gentlemen's distressed leather brogue boot
Posted by tranism at 12:43 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
February 16, 2007
This Dolphin Thanks Bridgestone Tires
This is a touching story about a dolphin name Fuji at the Okinawa Churaumi Aquarium who got a second lease on life thanks to the most unlikely of friends; the Bridgestone Corporation. You see, Fuji suffered from a debilitating form of fin rot - a bizarre and rare case of localized necrosis. To keep the disease from spreading, Veterinarians had to amputate most of her fin. Dolphins need to play in order to be happy but without her fin, Fuji was unable to keep up with her brethren, thus she grew depressed and withdrawn.
That's when an $83,000 research grant from Bridgestone gave this dolphin a second chance. Made from the same rubber used in Formula 1 race cars, Bridgestone crafted a custom fin fitted for her body. The prosthetic has given Fuji full range of motion and within weeks, she was jumping in the air again.
It sounds like an easy task but making rubber as smooth as dolphin skin is incredibly difficult. Not to mention making a rubber fin light enough to wear for the rest of her life and one that will resist corrosion. Congratulations and many thanks to the research team, Bridgestone and the Fuji's caretakers for not giving up.
YouTube video
via neatorama
Posted by tranism at 10:15 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Maybe a MacBook Nano?
First don't take the image too seriously. It's just a mockup - a fantasy of mine for an ultra-portable Macbook. AppleInsider has reason to believe Apple is indeed looking to release such a computer, hitting store shelves in 3 months. They believe in a smaller, wider MacBook with solid state memory in lieu of an optical disc drive. The former dramatically increasing battery life; the latter enabling the computer to go as thin as 3/4 of an inch. But why would Apple build such a computer?
Apple does tremendously well in almost all markets. For them, it's not about being number 1. It's about seeing consistent growth year after year and there's one market where Apple continues to slip - Japan. The Japanese are obsessed with ultra-portability and miniaturization. Even the thin MacBook isn't thin enough. With subbie notebooks from Sharp, Fujitsu and a slew of others - it's a tough market to crack but Apple has a huge advantage. There's cache behind their name and excellent hardware/software synergy. Even Time Cook (Apple's second in command) recently told analysts;
"The market in Japan is among the weakest in the world for us. However, having said that, we're not pleased with our performance and we've got a number of activities underway to improve them"
They can't be talking about the iPod since it does pretty well over there. All that's left is OS X adoption and that requires machines to run them. The Japanese are not about desktops. They're not about notebooks. They're all about ultra-compact sub-notebooks and Apple is not a company to segregate their hardware line up by region so rest assured, if the Japanese get a sub-notebook, so will we.
So what kind of specs could one expect from a machine like this? Ultimately to shed weight - some newer expensive tech would have to be implemented OR cuts would have to be made to meet the new profile. For Apple and because of how Apple operates, I believe both rules will apply. Here is my realistic wishlist.
MacBook Nano
- Intel Core 2 Duo processor
- 60 GB solid state memory
- No hard disc drive
- Optical superdrive located on bottom of notebook
- New 13" backlight widescreen LCD display
- Edge to edge screen with almost nonexistent bezel
- Integrated iSight camera
- Integrated graphics chip
- USB 2.0, Firewire, Bluetooth, 802.11n, mini DVI, HDMI
My reasoning;
- The Core 2 Duo processor is more than enough to "brain" this computer.
- Solid state memory is very expensive and this is where Apple will add newer tech to dramatically increase battery life and performance since solid state memory can be read and written much faster than a hard drive. Not to mention OS X's excellent memory management; solid state memory could even be used to supplement and/or assist RAM.
- In order to increase battery life and slim the notebook, there will be no hard drive. Using solid state memory means cutting other things out. Although solid state memory is not yet upgradable - external portable hard drives are getting cheaper and cheaper every month.
- Some believe Apple will eliminate the optical disc drive but I think doing so would undermine Apple's whole iLife mantra. iMovie and iDVD are both important aspects of the company's consumer friendly software and they both require an optical disc drive to be fully utilized. If anything, Apple will simply redesign its superdrive enclosure where it can be easily accessed but also out of the way. Since there's no hard drive, there's plenty of room for a disc drive.
- Aside from going thin, Apple's key strength is design. When you go smaller - the challenge then becomes how to make things look or remain bigger so they're still usable - things like the keyboard and screen. Japanese sub-notebooks suffer from squished keyboards and screens that are ultimately too small for long term use. I believe Apple will decrease the bezel enclosure around the screen making it look edge-to-edge. This gives the illusion of "bigger" while still maintaining the full sized keys on the keyboard. Not to mention the gawking and jaw dropping people will do when they see you flip up a screen that looks like it's encased in few millimeters.
- Although the screen will look edge-to-edge, there's still plenty of room for the integrated iSight camera. Similar to how the iPhone is designed.
- Going this small means no chance for uber-powerful graphics chips. instead, the MacBook Nano will follow its older brother's lead and utilize integrated solutions from Intel.
- Peripheral ports will be same 'ole, same 'ole with the addition of HDMI. Yes I believe (hope) Apple will embrace the standard sooner than later. Japan is HDMI happy and the rest of the world is starting to follow suit. If HD graphics and stereo sound can come out of one cable - it would make sense for Apple to embrace technology that will enable that, especially since they're now more keen on moving into other rooms of the house begging for Apple logo'fied electronics.
Posted by tranism at 2:13 PM | Permalink | Comments (5)
Andre Stubbe's Robotic Eyes
Computational Designer Andre Stubbe's thesis project consists of two robotic eyes, one blue - one red. They're really just painted webcams but interaction with each other and humans is what Stubbe is after. The eyes are able to move within their sockets and blink. They focus and react to each other but anytime a third person steps into their silent conversation, their behavior changes. They track that person's movement and may decide they're of no interest or they may become agitated and give you that "go away look". They may even pretend to be indifferent but just as you turn away, look at you from the corner of their eyes.
flickr photos of Andre setting up his eyeballs
via wmmna
Posted by tranism at 12:39 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
Annual San Francisco Pillow Fight 2007
What did you do this Valentine's Day? Candies, flowers and romantic dinners at swanky restaurants are passe. The city of San Francisco chose to celebrate by holding its annual Pillow Fight at Justin Herman Plaza right in the thick of the city. This year, over 1000 people gathered and waited for the bull horn to sound off at which a frenzy of overstuffed pillows went amuck with feathers and laughter ringing thru downtown.
I've lived in Dallas, New York and Los Angeles, but San Francisco holds a special place in my heart. People there really do march to a different drum beat. For a major metropolitan area, it's amazingly dense with people who share a similar outlook on civics, the environment, love and life. I really do "heart" San Francisco. When I lived there, I remember seeing a huge billboard that summed up the city's attitude;
"Superficial? Not us!"
more pictures after the jump
all photos via laughing squid
flickr photos of this year's pillow fight
Posted by tranism at 12:14 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
February 13, 2007
This Blog is Paginated!
So after numerous emails, a few death threats and lots of bribes from my gift list, I have finally paginated the site. In noOb terms, pagination will allow you navigate this site use "previous" and "next" buttons which in this case I've renamed them "older entries" and "recent entries". I've always thought it convoluted that "next page" on blogs meant going backwards to search older posts when the word "next" denotes more contemporary posts.
I digress. You can find them at the bottom of every page but just a note, you can not navigate thru my entire archive this way. It'll only go back back a month or so. If you want more than that, search via the category and monthly archives in my sidebar.
Enjoy!
Posted by tranism at 12:36 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
February 12, 2007
Mobile TV in U.S. Goes Against The Grain
So America is finally catching up in the mobile TV space with Cingular (now the new at&t) announcing MediaFLO will power their mobile TV networks. Sprint and Verizon have already signed on board. T-Mobile has yet to make a commitment. On the other side of the fence is the more widely accepted DVB-H which Europe and Asia uses.
Although I'm no expert as to why one is better than the other. I am again a little disappointed because that means all the cool phones from Europe and Asia will have one more major incompatible component. In any case, please don't charge us an arm and a leg and stop with the "downloading clips" thing. We want full programs just like real TV.
My rant is done.
via engadget
Posted by tranism at 12:41 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
OpenSky 2.0 Exhibition
Remember my post from back when about how mad-man (genius) Kazuhiko Hachiya was dead set on making Princess Nausicaa's glider a reality with his OpenSky 2.0 project? Well he's a lot closer than you think because his exhibition reveals the life-sized prototype for all to see and his plans on flying the darn thing.
pictures from the exhibition after the jump
I want to point out they're using Apple's Front Row. AWESOME!
Posted by tranism at 3:42 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)
February 11, 2007
Nike Japan Has Better Ads
Now I'm not saying North American Nike ads suck. They're quite good but the Japanese ads seem to take more artistic liberty and risk.
Commissioned as an animated viral short to promote the Nike Meta7 shoe, illustrator Paul Huang teamed up with animators Chris Riehl and Sean Starkweather to deliver a surrealist cell shaded fantasy. The story revolves around an anthropomorphized circle, square and triangle who escape their oppressive lives to be transformed into something better thru an encounter with the Meta7 shoe.
The animated short is accompanied by a print and sculpture campaign touring Asia. I wish I were able to see it in person. The art style looks fantastic - almost good enough to make me wanna run out and buy a pair of Nike Meta7's.
check out the video
via the awesome and fantastic blog; Neu Black
Posted by tranism at 2:46 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
February 10, 2007
My Top Nintendo DS Games
Of all the game platforms, the Nintendo DS is still my most played one. The games for it are vast and varied and it's the first time in a long time I remember playing games that define whole new genres. This top 16 list are DS games I currently own and are out in North America.
from left to right:
Super Mario Bros - Mario and friends are back in the Mushroom Kingdom reinvented in a side scrolling 3D platformer. Definitely as good if not better than the original.
Meteos - A manic puzzler that's great for passing time when standing in line for anything (ahem, a PS3). Sort of a cross between connect four and tetris.
Drill Spirits - Another great puzzler. You play a character the needs to drill down thru blocks and blocks of. . . well blocks. Throw in some strategy and you'll find it's not as easy as it looks. Great classic.
Metroid Pinball - I didn't like Metroid Hunters much but Pinball is totally up my alley. Samus is the pinball and the boards get harder and harder. The graphics in this one are purdy. Such a great casual game.
Hotel Dusk Room 215 - This is one of those "new genre" type games I mentioned. It sort of combines the old school click thru gameplay with an engrossing narrative. The art style is gorgeous and the story is sure to suck you in.
Animal Crossing Wild World - Live in a virtual world (it's online) where you have to pay for a house and suck up to neighbors by doing meaningless chores. I'll admit I was addicted and everytime a major Holiday rolls by, I sign on to see if Nintendo has left any collectable goodies.
Over The Hedge - Am I the only one that enjoyed the movie? You play as a bunch of animals planning an epic kitchen raid on those pesky humans. I had fun and it made me want to eat twinkies again.
Kirby Cursed Canvas - This was the first game where I saw innovation with touchscreen. Kirby's path is dictated by your stylus and where you stroke, he follows. An amazing platformer for sure.
Children of Mana - I'm still not done with the awesome RPG but I'm thoroughly addicted. Gameplay is straightforward and linear but the storyline, action and game sequences kept me coming back.
Mario & Luigi Partners in Time - It's sorta platformer meets RPG and the story is a little crazy. The brothers travel back in time to save Peach and run into younger versions of themselves.
Kirby Squeak Squad - He may be a pink puff but he pwns' in this game. Kirby kicks ass HARD and the platforming elements remind me of classic Kirby and why I love him so much.
Electroplankton - This non-game game is more like a musical interaction exhibition. Here imagination is all that matters and is what inspired this blog's name.
Trace Memory - Another one of those "new genre" games. The story is well written and plays out like a novella. It gets hard at some points but just like a difficult passage in a book, you go over it enough times and you'll get thru satisfied.
Final Fantasy III - This is a 3D remake of the classic Famicom game that never made it to the U.S. Re-imagined for the DS with typical Sqeenix quality, it's the RPG I'm currently playing and damn it's good.
Sonic Rush - Those of us who remember Sonic from his 2D side scrolling days know he once ruled as top dog right alongside Mario. His transition into 3D sucked but Sonic Rush takes him back to his 2D roots and all those good Sonic memories came flying back.
Mario Kart DS - A game that pretty much perfected the kart racing genre. It never bores me and whenever I don't feel like going to sleep, I hop online and challenge some cocky 10 year old before admittedly getting my ass kicked by him.
Posted by tranism at 6:56 PM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Smart Fortwo USA
Well there he is kiddies. The Smart Fortwo designed specifically for American shores will be showing up on American roads January of next year. The new Fortwo has slightly more aggressive lines to suit American tastes with a huge upgrade in safety features like four airbags, ABS and stability control. The American Fortwo grows slightly larger in size for increased cabin and trunk space and will come with an all new 1.0 liter 3-cylinder engine good enough for 84 bhp. That may sound like very little power but remember this car is very small. It doesn't take much to move it but don't worry. I'm sure the tuner market will release all sorts of goodies to make this baby go faster while still maintaining its 40 mpg rating.
The base model rings in at $11,000 with the top of the line convertible asking for $15,000. Smartusa plans on taking pre-orders this April so start saving now!
via new launches
Posted by tranism at 10:41 AM | Permalink | Comments (4)
Wear A Raptor
When I first saw the tv mini-series "Walking With Dinosaurs", I immediately wanted to know how they made all the CGI and animatronics. If you haven't seen it, I implore you to netflix it. A behind the scenes documentary followed and one particular scene amazed me - the raptors weren't robots at all. They were masterfully crafted costumes worn by people! A series of servos and hydraulics controlled the tail but the classic stalking gait came from very talented stunt people.
Here's a snippet from the documentary including the human raptors.
Posted by tranism at 2:05 AM | Permalink | Comments (1)
February 7, 2007
Honda Teaching Youngsters to be Environmentally Friendly
I've bought two cars in my life and oddly (maybe not that odd) I based much of that decision on the company's corporate philosophy. Honda has long been one of those auto companies I've identified with. They've made it clear they don't want to be the next GM, Ford or Toyota. They're interested in creating technology to better the lives of everyone and how that ultimately ties into their corporate business plans can be left open to debate. Point is, they're actually practicing what they preach and one of the things they have always preached is to be environmentally friendly.
They have an awesome program down in Alpharetta, Georgia called the Environmental Learning Center that gives off-roading instruction to kids. But these kids get more than learning how to carve on a dirt bike. They walk away conscious of how their off-roading activities affect the environment and learn how to ride motorcycles and ATVs in a safe manner without destroying our precious planet.
Although it can be argued getting rid of off-roading altogether solves one part of the problem but Honda realizes that's not going to happen. It's a recreational activity that is becoming very popular amongst kids so why not teach them how to ride safely and environmentally friendly in the hopes that once they grow up, they'll apply those lessons to their every day lives.
Learn more about Honda's Environmentology
Posted by tranism at 12:17 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
February 5, 2007
The Power Between My Legs
Looking like a cross between a crotch rocket and Confederate, the Ecosse Heretic Ti opens up a whole bunch of whoop ass to any challengers. With its titanium chassis, 120ci 135-hp engine (that's almost 1 horsepower per pound of body weight), carbon-fiber body work and six-speed transmission, this thing is FAST. . . or so I was told. I'm no bike-head so I had to rely on an associate to give me the skinny on this beast.
This particular class of motorcycle is called naked street bikes which is pretty self explanatory. It looks like a street bike but without its side panels, hence the "naked" part. I think it's pretty. Am I allowed to describe a bike like this as "pretty"?
Would be nice to have it parked in the front. Well anyways it costs $140,000 so I'm back in reality now. For that kind of money, I rather have a Confederate Hellcat or Renovatio.
Thanks Jeff!
via Uncrate
Posted by tranism at 12:35 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)
February 4, 2007
Jeff Deboer Armor
I've recently been obsessed with the work of Canadian artist Jeff Deboer. He excels in metal craft and his work is just stunning.
Instead of the plain old suit of armor we're all used to seeing, he applies a comical twist to it. His Cat & Mice exhibition plays up that old rivalry between feline and rodent in an honorable and medieval way. It may be armor for cats and mice but make no mistake about it, this is real stuff all meticulously crafted by Jeff's expert hands and looks decidedly dangerous. Now if there was only a way for me to get my hands on one of these beautiful creations. Any ideas Jeff?
Posted by tranism at 10:01 PM | Permalink | Comments (2)
Sharing Photos The Easy Way
Although I love iPhoto's organization tools, I find its sharing features sorely lacking. Sure you can upload to a .Mac account but that costs money so instead I choose Flickr. Flickr is great but it's just one too many clicks to get my pictures from iPhoto onto flickr. That's where PictureSync comes in.
PictureSync lets you upload individual photos and albums to many online photo sharing services. Not only that, it also lets you annotate each photo before upload. Never use those clunky online upload web pages again. Check out the list of services it's compatible with.
- Flickr
- Fotki
- Zoto
- VOX
- FotoTime
- 23
- Shutterfly
- Vimeo
- Buzznet
- Webshots
- Smugmug
- ImageStation
- Kodak Gallery
- Photobucket
- BubbleShare
- Club Photo
- Textamerica
To sweeten the deal even further, iPhoto isn't the only desktop app it's integrated with. Share photos from Apple Aperture, Adobe Bridge, Adobe Lightroom and Extensis Portfolio. The final reason why you need to download it is IT'S FREE. So what are ya waiting for? Give it a try.
Posted by tranism at 9:40 PM | Permalink | Comments (1)