Archive for July, 2010
It’s a trackpad for desktops that Apple just officially released today and it’s just what I need to make my work life a little bit better. In fact, I’ll go get one today because, like every other creative out there, Apple owns me and I love their stuff. But I will NOT start referring to Apple’s products as ‘magic’ or ‘magical’. This is the second time this year that they’ve referred to one of their gadgets using that term and, well, it’s just not OK. When exactly did Apple start to become a little scary? And has their marketing jumped the shark?
This video is part of a series produced by the RSA. The acronym, which is apparently a little outdated, stands for the Royal Society of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce. A fascinating organization, the RSA has been around for 250 years and is dedicated to the ideal of societal enlightenment. To that end, they’ve been producing this animated video series which combines lectures by top thinkers with a clean and distinctive style of animation using whiteboards and markers. The video above examines the biological foundations for empathy and is based on a lecture by author Jeremy Rifkin.
Do you like Sushi? How about Banksy? Did you catch any of the World Cup? Been camping lately? Excited about yesterday’s premiere of Mad Men? If you answered yes to any of these questions, there’s a pretty good chance you’re white. If you answered yes to all of them, you’re definitely white and, if so, you should really see this great blog that’s all about you… Stuff White People Like is a phenom of a blog, written by Carl Landry and, as you may have surmised by now, it’s based on wry observations about the stuff that makes white people tick. When Mr. Landry went to the University of Arkansas to speak last year, he was greeted by a wall plastered with a series of 129 posters, like the ones above, each referencing one of the posts on his blog. The posters, designed by two local design students, perfectly capture the spirit of the blog and have turned into a hit in their own right. In fact, they’re even for sale on Stuff White People Like. After the jump, we’ve got a whole bunch more of these posters for your enjoyment. (White people LOVE posters!) 
In developing his latest gag gift, the iPood USB Memory Stick, our friend, the entrepreneur Shed Simove, has made another hilarious parody video, shamelessly hawking the product with one clever (yet sophomoric) euphemism after another. Working under his new legal alias, HANS JOBS, Shed is blissfully self-deprecating, admitting to having made his “crappiest product to date.” (And probably his most disgusting, too.) Besides the fact that I can never quite tell if anything Shed does is for real, the funniest bit of this whole thing came from a line in the product’s press release:
Who knew? We like you, Shed. Thanks for continuing to make us laugh.
If you’ve got $40 and a week to spare, you too could have your very own doppleganger. For detailed instructions on how to build your facsimile-you, check out the original story. [Instructables via Make:Online]
Simply put, bottled water is the worst thing in the world. (If you want to know why, you can watch the excellent documentary Blue Gold.) Enter the water bobble – a simple, cheap and cool-looking solution to a very nasty problem. They cost 9.99 and those pretty colored parts are carbon filters, like the ones you’d find in a Brita. You can buy one here.
Below, check out 12 other must-haves from “Lost: The Official Show Auction,” which is taking place on August 21st and 22nd at the Barker Hanger in Santa Monica, California. Over 1,000 items are available. Download the full list here. *hint: use your keyboard to play, not your mouse. (arrow keys and space bar.)
If you haven’t already jumped right in and started playing, allow me to introduce you to Faith Fighter by Molleindustria, an Italian game design outfit. I have to confess, I’m exceptionally excited about this. You see, I’ve heard of the existence of an experimental video game community out there but I’d never seen anything of great quality or meaning produced by that community before. Today I stumbled onto Molleindustria’s site and I feel like I’ve hit the jackpot of counterculture gaming. Here’s how they describe themselves:
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