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Interweaving a Material and a Mission: Beacon Alley Bamboo Skateboard

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Industrial designer and professor Lance Gordon Rake previously shared the story behind the Semester bamboo bicycle, developed with Pamela Dorr and various collaborators in Hale County, Alabama. Now, less than a year later, HERObike is pleased to present its second project on Kickstarter, the Beacon Alley Skateboard, which represents Rake's further research into bamboo as a versatile, renewable raw material for the socially conscious organization. Once again, he was willing to share the story and process behind the project.

Since the beginning, I have been working with John Bielenberg at Future Partners and the graphic design partnership Public Library to develop the products and the business. Ultimately, all we ever wanted to do was create some nice jobs making well-designed products using the resources and people of rural Alabama. The bamboo was there. Traditional craft skills were there. We used design to put these things together in a way that could make a sustainable small enterprise that might serve as a model for developing rural communities all over the world.

The MakeLab shop in Greensboro Alabama has become a kind of research center for bamboo fiber composites. Many of the materials that are in a Semester bike—bamboo, fiberglass, carbon fiber—are also in a Beacon Alley Skateboard. The skateboard is a product with a very demanding user group who expect incredibly high performance at a fair price. The Semester bike is in a demanding, competitive category as well. And if your product doesn't look good, it's a non-starter.

The past 11 months have been a bit crazy: We had a successful Kickstarter campaign that finished last August and we managed to deliver all 45 bikes and frames by our promised date in February. Since then, our little shop has been building about ten Semesters per month, in addition to our standard "Gilligan" bamboo bike and our Gilligan kits for the DIY crowd. We are developing international markets for Semester—we've already shipped them to seven countries and this seems to be an area of rapid expansion. Right now, I am working on ways to dramatically lower costs so we can make a bike that delivers the look and ride quality of bamboo for less than half of the current price.

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UK Rocket Scientist Designs Hyper-Efficient Cookware

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In recent years we've seen some neat re-thinks of basic cookware, from a self-stirring pot to Mike Whitehead's CNC-milled cast iron skillet. Now a rocket scientist from the UK, Dr. Tom Povey, has designed a line of pots and saucepans that boast astonishing efficiency.

Oxford professor Povey knows all about influencing temperature changes, as his day job in the Osney Thermo-Fluids Laboratory involves thermodynamics and jet engines. And whilst engaged in his hobby of mountain climbing, Povey ran into the problem of trying to boil water at high altitude, which takes longer than it does at sea level, burning more of the precious fuel you've hauled up the mountain. After realizing that much of the heat in conventional cooking is wasted, he set about designing a more efficient pot with this assistance of some fellow lab brainiacs.

"The problem with the current shape of [existing cookware] means a lot of the heat is dissipated into the air," Povey told The Telegraph. "So, it is an aerodynamic and heat transfer problem and we applied the science used in rocket and jet engines to create a shape of a pan that is more energy efficient."

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Povey's radical-looking cast-aluminum Flare line, which UK kitchenware brand Lakeland began selling last week, employs something you see on turbines: Fins. These carry the heat from the base to the sides more efficiently, reportedly cooking food some 44% faster than a conventional pan. And a conventional pan requires 40% more energy to achieve the same results as you'd get with a Flare pan, making it ideal both for camping—less gas to carry—as well as appealing to kitchenbound consumers for both the energy savings and the evenness of the cooking.

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From the Outlandish Claims Dept: PocketScan Wants To Scan Your Life

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The PocketScan's Kickstarter campaign is just about done, having blown by its goal and first two stretch goals, but its larger than life development might just be starting. Billed as "the world's smallest wireless scanner," this little widget wants to freehand scan anything you can imagine, from the predictable photo-preserving and media digitizing to uploading functional spreadsheets, text recognition and even language translation. It will sport Microsoft Office integration and Bluetooth compatibility with Windows, Mac and iPad operating systems, and now iPhone and Android too. It promises to deliver higher resolution than 400 dpi, with an internal lighting system that keeps colors accurate and without glare even in low-light rooms.

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Alien & Monkey's Sandy Packaging Concept and Other Designs Built Not to Last

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There at least two items in my apartment that I can count on including in my will someday and I'd bet the same goes for most people if they take a stock of their most prized possessions. Alien & Monkey express the opposite sentiment with a handful of their ephemeral designs. As writer/illustrator Daishu Ma and industrial designer Marc Nicolau explain on their website, "These products can be used for a long period of time and, due to the elements, crumble back to sand dust at the end of its life cycle." Making sand stick together in mind-bending ways is nothing new. We're just accustomed to seeing it in some form of sand art or architecture—not necessarily as functioning products.

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Most notably, the Barcelona-based design duo has introduced a crumbling sand package design that has been making waves on the blogosphere. Tiny objects can be hidden within the solid walls of the package and are supported by loose sand inside of the chamber. A cut across the object directs the opener to the best spot to crack open the brick.

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"Casa Futebol" Concept to Turn World Cup Stadiums into Public Housing

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No Brazilian can be happy with their national team suffering two crushing defeats in a row, and now the country is dotted with brand-new stadiums that can only serve as a painful reminder. But now that the World Cup is over, perhaps those stadiums, so expensive and controversial to build, can be put to more enduring use.

Architects Axel de Stampe and Sylvain Macaux have put forth a proposal called Casa Futebol, whereby the twelve stadiums would be reappropriated for housing. The concept calls for the design of prefabricated apartment modules of 105 square meters that could be inserted into the periphery of each stadium's shape, along with "colonizing the outside facade" to give them a different look.

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What Kind of Footprint Will You Leave as a Footwear Design Intern With Timberland in Stratham, New Hampshire?

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Work for Timberland LLC!

Working for Timberland is challenging. And rewarding. And fun. Plus a lot of other things you'd associate with a company that's all about the great outdoors. Working at Timberland is really about bringing 4 simple ideas alive: People, Value, Purpose and Passion. This is what makes them a global leader in the design, engineering and marketing of premium-quality footwear, apparel and accessories for consumers who value the outdoors and their time in it.

How would you like to gain valuable experience as an Intern working with a senior level Designer to present footwear concepts per seasonal product briefs for Timberland? All you need is a great attitude, a bit of experience, excellent computer skills and a desire to learn at one of the most recognized footwear brands around. If this sounds like a dream opportunity, Apply Now.

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Framing the Internet: Physical Display for your Digital Art from Electric Objects

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It should come as no surprise that the marriage of art and technology has had some difficulty finding a place in the institutional white cube exhibition spaces of most contemporary galleries and museums—after all, many practitioners reject the traditional art-object format on principle. Indeed, the incorporation of technology in art has vastly expanded the realm of creative possibilities, both aesthetically and with respect to distribution—auction house Phillips recently held the second edition of its forward-looking "Paddles On!" digital art auction—yet the modes by which it is bought, sold or displayed continue to shift and evolve.

The recent Kickstarter campaign for Electric Objects marks a noteworthy attempt to streamline the presentation of Internet and digital art into more conventional means. Electric Object's first major product run, the EO1, is essentially a wall-mountable, high-definition screen with Wifi connection for control from their handy mobile app. The EO1, framed in your choice of white, black or wood, displays your collection of Internet art without drawing away your attention from daily activities. The EO1 supports static images, animated GIFs and javascript-based visualizations.

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The EO1 serves only as an object for passive engagement, i.e. it's not a computer per se: The screen has no keyboard, mouse, speakers or docs to confuse its sole use as an art viewing device. These limitations of interaction may well be its greatest strength. These constraints represent Electric Object's commitment to freeing the 'trapped' art of the Internet from our smartphones, laptops and other 'devices designed or distraction,' such that the EO1 is a proverbial blank canvas for creativity. By clearly delineating the boundaries of functionality for the EO1, Electric Objects has managed to come up with a domestic screen-based object that is passive enough to not make us feel like we live in the Corning "A Day Made of Glass" concept video.

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Electric Objects founder Jack Levine has recruited Zoë Salditch, formerly of Rhizome and Eyebeam, as Director of Artist Relations, to further establish to the EO1 as the premier platform for digital art by commissioning original works from notable artists through their Artist-in-Residency Program. Additionally, Electric Objects has a handful of partners including New York Public Library, Digg and Museum of Moving Images, whose partial collections will be available for the EO1. Currently, a number of works are available (most appropriately) through the Electric Objects Tumblr. Since the platform can technically access any work with a URL, it is entirely feasible that you could display anything on the Internet. Neverthless, besides registered collection and commissioned works through Electric Objects, we look forward to seeing how the team manages a viable monetization model for purchase or sale of preexisting digital works.

The EO1 looks promising in its fledgling stages, attracting over 400K in funding in its first week. The Kickstarter campaign still has a little over three weeks to go and can be seen here or on the Electric Objects website.

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PaleoBarefoots: Chainmail Shoes For Better Back to Basics Running

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I come not to praise the Paleos, but to understand them.

Our story starts with the premise (which we will not unpack here, for reasons of brevity and taste) that running barefoot, or as close as possible to barefoot, is a more healthy means of locomoting. Under this premise, being immediately in tune with one's physical terrain is beneficial to the body and mind, requiring greater intentionality and physical dexterity in order to cover rough ground without injury. For those who cringe at the idea of walking barefoot to the mailbox, this might be a lost point, but the "natural running" school of thought has seen major conversion over the last ten years. While the overall claims seem understandable, there are some basic logistical difficulties with barefoot running. Namely, that the bottoms of feet are pretty smooth. This means that wet/uneven/slick surfaces can be dangerously low traction, and hard textured surfaces like rocky paths and concrete can chew you up after a while.

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Tonight at Curiosity Club: Jaclyn Hudak - Failure Is Inevitable

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Tonight at Hand-Eye Supply's Curiosity Club, we're getting real positive about less loved photographic techniques. Jacklyn Hudak of Huzz Art Shop presents Failure Is Inevitable: The Unpopularity Of Alternative Photography, a talk about what historical and alternative photographic processes are and why almost nobody uses them. Jaclyn will be speaking about a few different alternative processes, with a more in depth look at gum bichromate; a colorful but fickle process that she uses on a regular basis. Being mostly self taught, she's made countless mistakes over the years and will share why she embraces failure.

Jaclyn Hudak is a Portland-based graphic designer and artist who often uses historical photographic processes to make work. She has a degree in Photography and Graphic Design from Texas State University and has been working with alternative photographic processes for over six years.

6pm PT tonight, July 15. Come by the Hand-Eye Supply storefront or check in as we stream online!

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IKEA Creative Director Mia Lundstrom on Tracking Societal Trends and Designing the Concept of Home Furnishing

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This is the latest installment of our Core77 Questionnaire. Previously, we talked to the Italian designer Luca Nichetto.

Name: Mia Lundström

Occupation: Creative director, IKEA Sweden

Location:Älmhult, Sweeden

Current projects: I'm working with long-term home-furnishing priorities, in terms of how people live their everyday lives—their needs and their frustrations and the opportunities and so on. That's a quite big project that goes on all the time, but it needs to be updated and we need to have a product range for it and we need to make sure that the people developing and designing IKEA concepts really, truly understand the latest trends in society, so that we can cater toward them in a good way.

I'm also working quite a lot on some questions around the meeting with the customers in our stores. We want to create a much more vital interaction; we feel that we have been a little bit slow on the uptake with our showrooms and the impression of home-furnishing—that IKEA is a creative company and that we are in tune with society and trends and all that.

Mission: To create a better everyday life for the many people

MiaLundstrom-Ikea-2.jpgA cabinet and pendant lamp from IKEA's new PS 2014 collection. (Last March, we interviewed six of the young designers behind the collection.)

When did you decide to pursue a career in design? Well, I'm not working with product design specifically—I'm working with, in a sense, designing the concept of home furnishing. And I've always been very interested in this. I started in the retail sector and one thing sort of led to another.

Education: I would say life and experience is my main education. Other than that, I went to Swedish primary and high school and took a couple of courses at art and design school. But no university; I have gone to IKEA university.

First design job: To design the bedroom department of a store in Stockholm

Who is your design hero? There are many. Estrid Ericson and Josef Frank are, of course, two of my favorites. I also admire some of the Danish and Finnish designers like Arne Jacobsen and Alvar Aalto. Among contemporary designers, I like Paola Navone and Ilse Crawford. There are a lot of women in my favorites, and I think that we sometimes have too few women in design. I could name many, many more.

MiaLundstrom-Ikea-3.jpgAlso from the PS 2014 collection: a wardrobe by matali crasset (left) and a storage table by Rich Brilliant Willing. (Read more about their contributions here.)

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Wax Poetic: Ren Ri Studies the Interaction of Humans and Nature with His Hive Sculptures

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Much like urban gardening, beekeeping seems to have inspired renewed interest among hobbyists around the world. Sure, it's got a certain appeal for DIYers who have graduated from pickling and homebrewing, but its also got the ecological upshot as a response to the precipitous decline in the global bee population (we've previously seen a design solution that addresses the issue scientifically known as Colony Collapse Disorder, which was the subject of a recent Op-Ed in the Times). Ren Ri is a Beijing-based bee enthusiast who falls into that beekeeper population, but he's also an artist—and it's safe to say that he's not your average honey harvester.

Ri started studying honeybees back in 2008. After a couple of years spent learning the art of beekeeping and observing how the hives function, he developed a strategy that turns the hive's beeswax into semi-calculated sculptures. Ri lets nature run its course for a large part of the second installment of the series, titled "Yuansu II," but does provide a few prefabricated touches of his own—plastic vessels to house the hives and a weekly 'rotation' schedule for the constructions.

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By housing the queen bee in the center of each structure, Ri was able to 'engineer' the architecture of the hive: Worker bees naturally began to build out from her location in all directions, leaving a waxy hexagonal structure in their wake. He rotated the plastic cases every seven days—a biblical reference—to give the queen and her workers a new center of gravity to work from, resulting in an undulating final form. Ri never planned which way to turn the sculptures—a roll of the dice made that decision, introducing a nice touch of spontaneity to a highly ordered process of nature.

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With +Pool Targeting NYC's East River, Floating City Beach NYC Proposal Aims for the Hudson

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Those of you who attended the Core77 Conference probably caught Dong-Ping Wong presenting +Pool in a talk entitled "Doing Rad Shit Where Nobody Asked You To Do Rad Shit." For those that didn't, +Pool is the crazy, successfully-funded, currently-in-development project to hatch a floating swimming pool in NYC's East River.

Now comes a project proposal with both similarities and contrasts to +Pool. Entrepreneur Blayne Ross also wants to provide New Yorkers with some river-based respite from the summer heat, but Ross' scheme is targeting the Hudson River rather than the East, and using IndieGogo rather than Kickstarter. City Beach NYC, as the project is called, is a proposal to turn a barge into a floating beach.

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The plan calls to cover the barge in 1,200 cubic yards of sand, creating an artificial beach. The barge would be further kitted out with beach chairs, restaurants, a children's science lab exhibition and a waterfall.

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Unfortunately, there's a huge catch...

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Wax Poetic: Ren Yue Studies the Interaction of Humans and Nature with His Hive Sculptures

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Ed. Note: This post has been updated with the correct name of the artist. His name is Ren Yue, not Ren Ri.

Much like urban gardening, beekeeping seems to have inspired renewed interest among hobbyists around the world. Sure, it's got a certain appeal for DIYers who have graduated from pickling and homebrewing, but its also got the ecological upshot as a response to the precipitous decline in the global bee population (we've previously seen a design solution that addresses the issue scientifically known as Colony Collapse Disorder, which was the subject of a recent Op-Ed in the Times). Ren Yue is a Beijing-based bee enthusiast who falls into that beekeeper population, but he's also an artist—and it's safe to say that he's not your average honey harvester.

Ren started studying honeybees back in 2008. After a couple of years spent learning the art of beekeeping and observing how the hives function, he developed a strategy that turns the hive's beeswax into semi-calculated sculptures. Ren lets nature run its course for a large part of the second installment of the series, titled "Yuansu II," but does provide a few prefabricated touches of his own—plastic vessels to house the hives and a weekly 'rotation' schedule for the constructions.

RenRi-CloseUp.jpg

By housing the queen bee in the center of each structure, Ren was able to 'engineer' the architecture of the hive: Worker bees naturally began to build out from her location in all directions, leaving a waxy hexagonal structure in their wake. He rotated the plastic cases every seven days—a biblical reference—to give the queen and her workers a new center of gravity to work from, resulting in an undulating final form. Ren never planned which way to turn the sculptures—a roll of the dice made that decision, introducing a nice touch of spontaneity to a highly ordered process of nature.

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The Latest Kickstarter Smash: Smash Cup, a Collapsible Travel Mug

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Coffee drinkers: How many disposable coffee cups do you go through a year? Some of you might carry a travel mug on your commute, but the bulk of you probably get your caffeine hits out of paper or plastic cups, which then go into the trash or recycling. Ben Melinger, the founder of NYC-based Smash Cup, claims that you worker drones each throw away some 500 cups per year.

Melinger, by the way, is essentially a self-taught industrial designer who quit his corporate job to make stuff. "A few years ago, I went on an adventure off the corporate track," he writes. "I had always loved the idea of making physical products, so with a product in mind... and some expert mentors, I learned 3D CAD modeling, protoyping, manufacturing sourcing, IP drafting, and so much more—all the ins and outs of making a great product."

And now he's got his first successful Kickstarter. Melinger came up with the Smash Cup, a collapsible travel mug that "smashes" from five inches to less than two, so it doesn't take up much space in your bag when it's not in use.

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Here's the pitch video:

Since going live last week, Smash Cup has easily blown past its $10,000 target, with nearly five times the funding at press time. While the $12 buy-in units are all gone, there's still 23 days left to get yourself a Smash Cup at $15 or more.

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Flotspotting: Puzzle-Inspired Flat-Pack Furniture by Konstantin Achkov

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Throw yourself back a few years and you may remember Konstantin Achkov's flat-packed plywood furniture—we captured it as a standout at the 2012 Sofia Design Week. While he's obviously known for his breakdown-focused furniture, his Coroflot portfolio boasts a number of impressive—more recent—designs that don't skimp on complexity in lieu of its simplified flat-packed nature. Take the Electron Chair, for example. Achkov describes the shape as incorporating a "puzzle principle," and that's one description that doesn't get lost in translation with this work.

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Electron is made out of beech plywood cut with a CNC router. There isn't a single screw or drop of glue used in the chair's construction—instead he chose to use pin joints—falling even more to its puzzle-like nature. This is the first time we're seeing a textile element in Achkov's work, with the bold fabric seat and back of the chair. Tip the seat on its side and you might notice a familiar shape: "The side-view of the symmetrical geometric form looks like electron symbol," Achkov says. The lace-up detail on the underside of the seat is a nice touch, too.

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Movie Theater Seats Moving in the Opposite Design Direction from Airplane Seats

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As airplane seats get narrower, shallower, closer together and even unable to recline, movie theater seats are getting fatter, deeper, further apart and increasing their reclinability. Both The Wall Street Journal and The New York Times have picked up on cinema chain AMC's $600 million investment to re-seat some 1,800 of its theaters (out of 5,000 total), providing absurdly posh recliners at a cost of $350,000 to $500,000 per venue.

Yes, as airlines are seeking ways to cram more seats into their fuselages, AMC's re-seated theaters will actually decrease capacity. With seats being bumped up from 44 inches wide to 60 inches wide, and with full reclinability including elevating the legs La-Z-Boy-style, rows will need to move further apart and will be able to fit less bodies per row.

The motivation is financial. In a trial run conducted earlier this year, AMC saw ticket sales increase by 60% in the re-seated venues. Even with less capacity, this is hoped to lead to increased profitability, assuming moviegoers can swallow the $1 to $2 ticket price increase that the seats will eventually bring.

The question for us was, who designed/manufactured these new seats? Are these custom jobs for AMC or off-the-shelf? Unsurprisingly neither of the aforementioned newspapers mentioned it, since no one gives a damn about our profession. But by poring over the Journal's shots and comparing them to hundreds (okay, dozens) of product photos from companies that make home theater seating, we tried to uncover the source.

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Airbnb's New Logo is an Absolute Home Run

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And we are not intending a pun in the title at all. The thing is perfect.

We were excited to attend the press preview of Airbnb's new identity last week in Tribeca and have to say that the new marque is pretty brilliant. Co-founder and friend Joe Gebbia kicked off his remarks with a shout out to Core77 as "the first site to ever write about Airbnb"(!)—back when it was "Air Bed and Breakfast"—and then took us through the evolution of the brand to its new birth this morning.

The heavy lifting was done by DesignStudio, a London-based shop who basically embedded themselves at Airbnb HQ for months (and is now led in SF by immensely thoughtful founding partner Paul Stafford).

All we can say is that if they wanted something completely universal, instantly memorable, drawable, customizable, and hackable by every homeowner, front lawn sign maker, and (we're guessing soon) restaurant and shop window, DesignStudio and the folks at Airbnb have hit it out of the park... and, well, right through your bedroom window.

They're launching a Create Airbnb site today to let you make your own version, so we figure by tomorrow this logo will have worked its way around the world into myriad interpretations and some pretty smart embodiments...especially since this is such a beloved brand with countless fans with Photoshop, phones, tablets, and painting apps in their arms.

Ready, set, go. And congrats to the team.

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Morphable Drag-Reducing Surfaces, Inspired by Golf Balls

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If I had to guess, I'd say that a smooth surface is better than a rough one for cutting wind resistance. And I'd be wrong. There's a reason golf balls have dimples: The dimples decrease the drag caused by wind, by a significant amount. In the middle ages Dutch men used to hit spherical pebbles with a stick to play what became golf. Later in the 1600s they started using wooden balls. And it was in the late 1800s when players noticed that that beaten up balls went further than the smoother, newer versions.

Now researchers have created a material that—when triggered by wind—can automatically morph into a dimpled surface similar to that of a golf ball. It sort of also resembles pruning of finger tips after soaking in water (in fact, the inspiration for this new material came from dried prunes.) See the video below from the MIT team led by Pedro Reis, who developed the "Smorph" (Smart Morphable Surface).

The Smorph operates on fairly basic mechanics. In fact, the useful function comes from a common mechanical failure that most engineers need to prevent at all costs: Buckling. The prototype is a hollow silicon ball covered in a thin and stiff layer of polystyrene. When the pressure lowers within the hollow ball the exterior automatically shrinks, and this creates the dimples. The key thing is to have a pattern of dimples—and not something random.

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Skylights for Everyone: Productivity-Boosting Optical Illusions for the Office (and Beyond)

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SkyFactory-Lead.jpgAn installation at Kingwood Medical in Houston, Texas

For those of us who live on the top floors of the pre-war walk-up buildings that line the streets of certain New York neighborhoods, a skylight can be a perk—not enough to make up for the five flights of stairs, perhaps, but at very least a welcome source of light. But the upshot of a skylight isn't just illumination: Not only has it been scientifically proven that natural light boosts productivity levels, it's also good for morale and mental health. Unfortunately, most office buildings weren't designed with white collar vitamin D deficiency in mind. This is where Sky Factory comes into play with their "embedded" skylights.

SkylightFactory-OfficeComp.jpgThe impact of Revelation SkyCeiling in an office space

Sky Factory is based in Fairfield, Iowa—and take it from an Iowa native, no one knows the big blue better than the those of us who live against a backdrop of never-ending corn fields. The cerulean ceiling projections are designed to produce psychophysiological relaxation responses. In other words, the simulated natural light may well get you through that moment of midday work panic or waiting room purgatory.

Measuring in at 8’×8’, the company's recently launched Revelation SkyCeiling features their biggest panels to date. The light is comprised of four layers: a fluorescent lighting system, an acrylic tile featuring a photographic reproduction of the sky, "elevators" that gives the system structural depth into the ceiling, and a customized ceiling grid to top it all off (see the exploded view of a similar product here). While diaphanous clouds and a blue sky are a given, scenes can also include sunlit trees, which fauna-deprived New Yorkers might appreciate more than anything.

SkyFactory-WaitingRoom.jpgThe COSEM Auber reception lounge in Paris, France

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Slow Factory: Satellite Images Printed on Silk Scarves

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Look up at the sky on even the clearest, most perfect summer night here in New York City and you might realize that something is missing. Sure, the moon hovers brightly above the skyline, but the stars are getting harder and harder to find. Just check out this Yahoo Answers thread from a girl growing up in Queens: The stars are gone and it's all your fault.

Maybe it's not entirely your fault, but the folks at Slow Factory want you to take a minute and take note of the light pollution taking place in some of the world's largest cities. With their latest series, "From Above," the silk scarf company aims to draw attention to the light pollution caused by manmade luminescence, the electric twinkle from dusk until dawn outshining the distant cosmological beacons of yore. The scarves feature satellite images of the U.S.A., New York, Paris and London at night, printed on silk to show the illuminated urban sprawl in all its glory.

Founded by Celine Semaan Vernon, Slow Factory is a company based in Brooklyn that prints satellite images taken by NASA onto silk scarves. After her family left their home in Beirut, Lebanon, Vernon was always on the move and found the stars to be a source of guidance and comfort. "Another reason why I began Slow Factory is because as I have grown up, I can see fewer and fewer stars in the sky," shares Vernon. "Considering that we traveled a lot and that I never really felt grounded or connected to a home, I felt the need to look at telescope and satellite images of the stars."

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