While we design wonks are out here trying to make wheels without spokes happen, real bike nerds are busy doing their own heavy-hitting BS engineering, from the labs at SRAM to the humble local bike shop. 

If you aren't crouching on the vanguard of the bike industry you may not have heard that the end is nigh for front derailleurs, (and you may not have heard of them at all if that new Ikea bike appealed to you,) but there's blood in the water around the clunky half of bike shifting. Anticipating the inevitable rush to toss our filthy old derailleurs, Fairdale Bikes has announced their Front Derailleur Repurposing Division in hopes of giving these noble components another chance:

Highlights include pinball flippers, a cat brusher (great for folks with allergies) and a skateboard that walks. Truly innovative! 

These creative solutions were designed by Taj Mihelich, owner of both Fairdale Bikes and a considerable record as a pro BMX rider... with some time spent at the design team for Odyssey BMX. While his design chops might pale in comparison to our own (I didn't see a single Coroflot link or Bianchi Pista in this video), we'll give him the benefit of the doubt since he's clearly enthusiastic about bikes and has probably met a few proper designers along the way. Check out their other R+D reel and other videos for more fun.

Via PinkBike.

With over half a million visitors descending on Milan each year for the festivities associated with the oldest (and arguably most important) design event on the calendar, there's really something for everyone to see. Beyond the Salone del Mobile at Rho Fiera, exhibitions at the Triennale Design Museum and the super design district of Ventura Lambrate, our editors took time to explore satellite shows held in the city's more adventurous locations ranging from an abandoned shopping arcade to breathtaking palazzos dotting the city. 

In this photo gallery we take a look at the shows at Casa Vitra, Hay at La Pelota, Lexus Design Awards, Spazio Rossana Orlandi, Palazzo Litta, Palazzo Clerici, the Wallpaper* Arcade and more. 

Hidden Vases by Chris Kabel for Valerie Projects at Palazzo Litta

Developed for the Spanish publication The Plant, the jewel-toned glass centerpiece of Chris Kabel's vases give the illusion of functioning as a vessel when in fact, they are drip feeding water into the base of the vase. The wire frames create a silhouette of an archetypal vase while providing support for the stems of the flowers.

Photo credit: LinYee Yuan

Muller van Severen for Valerie Projects at Palazzo Litta

Photo credit: LinYee Yuan

Cutlery by Koichi Futatsumata for Valerie Projects at Palazzo Litta

Black brushed stainless steel combines a flat surface with an octagonal section.

Photo credit: LinYee Yuan

Chair from the Malawi Collection by Hettler Tullmann at Palazzo Litta

Working with the NGO People of the Sun, the Berlin-based design duo created a collection of design objects combining basket weaving and lathe techniques.

Photo credit: LinYee Yuan

Jan Kath rugs at Palazzo Litta

These handmade modern carpets are made of hand-combed and hand-spun Tibetan highland wool, Chinese silk and stinging-nettle fibers.

Photo credit: LinYee Yuan

Physix by Alberto Meda for Vitra at Palazzo Litta

The design story behind the Meda's most recent project the Physix chair is told in this exploded view.

Photo credit: LinYee Yuan

Chaos by Politecnico Di Milano

Part of the first year Master's course headed by Andrea Branzi and Michele De Lucchi, the students were asked to "think about the living spaces of people today, where habitats tend only to be partially organized according to traditional domestic functionsl instead, they're places of unexpected, changeable situations and activities.

Photo credit: LinYee Yuan

Chaos by Politecnico Di Milano at Palazzo Litta

Part of the first year Master's course headed by Andrea Branzi and Michele De Lucchi, the students were asked to "think about the living spaces of people today, where habitats tend only to be partially organized according to traditional domestic functionsl instead, they're places of unexpected, changeable situations and activities.

Photo credit: LinYee Yuan

Pienievuoti by Clique Editions at Palazzo Litta

Made of carrara marble and realized by T&D Robotics, the collection highlights the limits of processing marble.

Photo credit: LinYee Yuan

Pienievuoti by Clique Editions at Palazzo Litta

Made of carrara marble and realized by T&D Robotics, the collection highlights the limits of processing marble.

Photo credit: LinYee Yuan

Pets love cardboard boxes, you love great design. Pets love cozy nooks and majestic napping, and you love your pet. 

Taking these critical factors into consideration, the cat fans/designers at Poopy Cat are launching a series of pet palaces you can both enjoy. 

The flat-packing pet forts are styled after seven of the most stately structures from around the globe. The designs include graceful options like the Eiffel Tower and the Taj Mahal, and political buildings like the White House and the Kremlin... so you can put someone you trust in the capitol.

Though somewhat smaller than their reference buildings, they're covered with excellent graphics and interesting 3D design elements. They're made from thick recycled cardboard, assemble in under 5 minutes, and can withstand a good amount of weight and clawed onslaughts from occupants. 

The assembly seems well thought out and the forms each incorporate space for rest and play. The only question I had was whether the Eiffel Tower style would stay upright once in use, but they said the same thing about the original so what do I know.

Already known for their biodegradable litter box service and modular pet houses, the Amsterdam-based Poopy Cats is no stranger to real uses and abuses by our small animal friends. They point out that in addition to looking extra cute curled in your shipping refuse, pets get stress relief from a cardboard getaway and a space of their own.

They also happily note that these powerful buildings are readily occupied by many other small pets, from guinea pigs to purse dogs to snakes with exceptional taste. 

Whether your small pet is a benevolent dictator or a wrathful overlord, and no matter what noble lineage they can claim, there's a good chance they would appreciate a temple in their honor.

If successful, this campaign will produce detail printed versions of these prototypes, and begin shipping by June. Check it out now through May 20, 2016.

Seeking designers with 3-5 years experience that can concept, create sketches, models, renders, and full-size mock-ups. They'll conduct product research, 2D/3D data, computer graphic illustrations, and interpret and confirm styling trends. Must have thorough understanding of how engineering and manufacturing impact styling, consumer preferences, product market goals and technical requirements.

As we saw with Jay Bates' excellent workbench build, you can create an inexpensive vise using pipe clamps. But just out of curiosity I looked into the high end to see what's on offer, and it appears that Iowa-based Benchcrafted makes some of the most highly prized U.S.-built vises on the market.

Benchcrafted's designs, created by company founder Jameel Abraham and his father John, are both beautiful and highly functional. They've eschewed the standard T-handle in favor of a much more efficient wheel, which might seem an odd choice until you see the videos below. "I just want to make something because I think it's neat. My interest is to create useful things and hope they sell," Jameel told Popular Woodworking. 

"When I'm in the shop working I want tools that are highly refined and work well. That's what appeals to me and that's how I approach products for Benchcrafted." Take a look at their sexy tail/wagon/end vise:

Moving to the front of the workbench, Benchcraft offers this gorgeous Glide leg vise, which features three handles (so that one never needs to reach down too far) and a St. Peter's Cross mechanism to keep it parallel:

These are manufactured in the U.S.A. to high tolerances and don't come cheap. The hardware for the cast version of the tail vise will set you back $295, whereas the machined version will run you $369; the Glide leg vise rings in at $369 for the cast version, $479 for the machined. I'm going to start saving up now.

When Walkmen became popular in the '80s, there were NYC news reports showing people wearing headphones and obliviously walking in front of moving vehicles. But you didn't hear about too many Walkmen-related deaths. Nowadays with smartphones, however, there are entire supercuts on YouTube—far too graphic for us to embed here—showing people walking straight into traffic while texting, then BAM, a car slams into and kills them.

Some cite Darwinism, and one could argue that the folks getting killed had it coming—but what of the faultless driver who has now had their life altered forever? What's to be done? Most municipalities don't go further than PSAs, but the German city of Augsburg is attempting to prevent "distracted walker" deaths through technology. After a 15-year-old girl lost her life for paying more attention to her phone than an oncoming tram, the city installed LED traffic lights in the ground at a highly-trafficked tram crossing. The idea is that by placing the lights down below, smartphone users wouldn't need to lift their heads.

Hell in a handbasket, folks.

If you were the omnipotent ruler of a metropolis, what would you do to solve the problem?

For the past few years, the '80s Memphis Group has experienced an unrivaled resurgence. The signature quirky, geometric patterns, bright colors and asymmetric, graphic forms have inspired a host of contemporary designers in their own work while archival pieces have been reissued and the subject of many international exhibitions. There is a very contemporary attitude in the way Memphis approached design—an energetic yet light-hearted liberation of the terms that define the discipline which remains exciting today. 

Now, two of the movement's founding members, Nathalie Du Pasquier and George Sowden are reinterpreting Memphis's relevance for our contemporary moment with a new collection of home textiles created for the Swiss company ZigZagZurich. Under the name CoopDPS, the label features a range of colorful fabrics, including wool throws, pillow covers, duvet covers, sheets, and curtains. 

We caught up with the designers about how their collaboration came about, how their approach to design has changed since the '80s and why patterns stir our emotions. 

Why was the collaboration with ZigZagZurich the right opportunity to launch CoopDPS?

George: Nathalie and myself were looking for an opportunity to start a collaborative design organization through which we could work together. 4Spaces and ZigZagZurich (ZZZ) contacted us at just that right moment when we were ready, impatient to start and had some time.

Nathalie: George introduced me to textile design in the 80s, and this is our first time working together since then. In a sense, working on this project together represents coming full circle.

Where did the name come from?

Nathalie: CoopDPS is a COOPeration between Du Pasquier (Nathalie) and Sowden (George), abbreviated it is COOPDPS.

How has your design approach evolved most significantly since you first began working together in the 80s?

Nathalie: Back in the 80s, and now too, we look to capture the air of our times. These patterns have nothing to do with our work from the 80s, they were designed specifically for 4Spaces and ZigZagZurich, thinking of what is appropriate now under our collaboration. The work may be different, but our approach is the same.

"Plastic Fantastic is a unique fabric we developed which has special light transmitting properties. When the light shines through the drapery, a vitrage effect like a church window takes place, transmitting the room full of color."

The first collection is the "post-crisis" collection and the names for the patterns are often geographic locations/cities/planets. What emotions do you hope to evoke with the textile designs?

George: Through the "post crisis" collection, we want to reflect the shift in our consumption post the 2008 crash. Today, there's an acute awareness of the damages caused by mass production, waste and pollution. We now make our decisions based on sensitivity towards our planet; conscious and calculated decision making around our needs. Our collection is an expression of these ideas using geometric and all-over prints, in color combinations that create a fresh identity for the customer.

When designing patterns, how does the material and usage (in this case, cotton bed linens and wool throws) influence the design?

George: There are technical limitations when weaving fabrics such as the number of colors and the shape of the motifs, but with modern computer-controlled looms, possibilities are many. Of course, if we are weaving only two colors it goes without saying that it influences the drawing! Printing is different; few limitations on the number of colors and no limitations with shapes and this means infinite possibilities when starting a drawing! Our drawings and patterns are the result of our sensitivity and feelings about contemporary decoration. We do not look to the past for our inspiration. Pattern adds emotional interest and identity to interiors; with our drawings and designs we are not specifically thinking 'bedroom' or 'living' but the collection is broad enough and allows personal choice to decide the final effect of the patterns used.

Ott-chil is a type of Korean lacquer technique that is done by adding the secretions of the ott tree, released as a protective response to wounds. Collecting this from the ott tree is an intricate and difficult process that can be done only by experts. The lacquer produces incredibly durable finishes in most of the materials. It offers an antibacterial effect and its color is very elegant. This is why it has long been treated as the very best material for tableware in Korea.

As many future-loving designers know, "food forests" are an old (old old) idea that may be valuable today. Before the development of single crop agriculture and our subsequent rise to become Internet-dwelling earth-destroyers, hungry humans understood that some beneficial plants grow especially well together without much tending. 

Urban food forests are an intriguing way to bring ancient permaculture to the table of modern eaters, and Swale NY is floating an idea to make good produce more financially and physically accessible. 

The Swale NY project wants to put a food forest on a barge, and barge that barge all around the public waterways of NYC. It would be built from reused shipping containers, planted by seasoned habitat designers and farmers, and used as a mobile park to showcase what public spaces could potentially provide to the public.

Why? In addition to increasing interest in the efficiency of urban food production, food deserts and community disconnection from healthy options is a persistent problem in many urban areas. Poor nutrition can have multi-generational effects, as it increases negative health outcomes and decreases chances of strong academic or economic performance.

Swale is the most recent iteration of a series of water-dwelling environmental design projects built to demonstrate permaculture techniques and educate about (urban) ecosystems. Prior projects housed self-sufficient occupants who survived using solar power and food raised entirely within the habitat.

In the current version, Swale will be made from an existing 80-foot by 30-foot barge platform, installed with a series of decommissioned shipping containers. It will feature ~20 fruit trees partner planted densely with smaller produce-producers from starts and seed. Once established, the barge would dock at different public points around New York, as a floating self-sufficient vegetable garden open to the public. 

The project has already acquired its barge, met with Forestry Service members, designed systems for solar energy and water reclamation, begun work with digital installation artists, and teamed up with local schools to engage students in planning and implementing designs for the Swale.

A gray water swale system designed and built in Julie Welch's Parsons School of Design class

If that sounds like a lot, it's because it is. A ton of artists, community groups, and experienced hands are involved, including Karla Stinger-Stein who is handling the project's partnership planting, Casey Tang who is designing the entire surface of Swale to be planted with edibles, Biomarts, and Marisa Prefer, who is spearheading educational programming. 

Whether or not you've personally dreamed of building a food-barge, projects like Swale NY can make an impact on us simply as members of a better-informed community. Though the key value is clearly in its educational and creative use, rather than as a tool for feeding the wild masses of NYC, but that is a crucial place to occupy on the path to more environmentally diverse cities. 

Hopefully designing the future of urban areas will never be left solely to the Trumps and trade groups of the world, because scientists and artists ask good questions and pose unusual (and sometimes buoyant) answers. 

You can check out Swale NY's funding campaign here, and if you're in New York City, keep your hungry eyes on the Hudson this summer. 

I first spotted the work of Samuel Amoia two years ago during New York's Design Week. Glittering and glorious, the cast crystals and coffee grounds embedded in concrete at AMMA's booth caught my eye and I've been enraptured ever since. (Great pro-tip for all you designers trying to catch the eye of press during Design Week: Add crystals.)

Amoia — who now works independently as AMOIA Studio— has continued his mixed media castings, shifting his focus to natural materials ranging from blue calcite sourced from India to jasper from the Congo. Collaborating with his youngest brother, Dominic (previously a sculptor at AMMA), Amoia will be showing a new line of limited edition pieces, made exclusively for DeLorenzo Gallery in New York.

"The series came about summer 2015 when I began working with Adriana Friedman (director of DeLorenzo Gallery) and Tony DeLorenzo," Amoia says. "My intention was to create a new collection of pieces that blended both my world and DeLorenzo's. I work with minerals and naturals materials in a very innovative way that is fresh and new. DeLorenzo represents the greatest designers and exhibits timeless works of the 20th century. So, the idea was to create unique pieces that were distinctive, innovative and could eventually be a part of major collections, enduring the test of time."

As with each collection, Amoia starts by sketching out each piece and creating a storyboard of designs around themes. For the DeLorenzo Gallery, the designer explored themes of delicacy and lightness of weight — a stark contrast to the heavy cement stools for which Amoia is best known. For this collection in particular, Amoia notes, most of the designs were dreamed up in his sketchbook over long plane rides traveling for work. "I get most my work done on planes," he says. From there, Amoia edits down his designs, honing in on a few.

"My work is often masculine and pretty bold, and I lean towards a soft palette with strong geometry," Amoia says. "For my collection for DeLorenzo, I explored softer and more feminine forms with bright tones using the natural color of the stones and minerals. In terms of form, I wanted more fluidity and juxtaposition while maintaining strength and sharp lines." 

Amoia cites the collection's console made up of amorphous curves and the coffee table for its repetitious sight line as examples of this. "We played off the form and shape of the actual materials themselves as well," he says. "You will notice the Italian onyx looks like it's cracked everywhere and also the brass shavings have an irregular and organic shape to them. The form of both of these is where I see inspiration for the design of the console. So it's nice to have this reflection to the design and material. All in all there is a nice narrative between the distinctive forms and designs and the materials themselves."

Amoia presented his final ideas to Friedman and DeLorenzo, who made selections and helped choose the final minerals and material pairings for the collection. "We then fabricated our first prototype, a small end table made of crushed malachite from the Congo," Amoia says. The small end table Amoia describes is one of the headlining pieces of the collection. Standing on five legs, the table is penetrated by ten rods, each spaced equidistant with alternating connections at their base.

For this series, Amoia started by cleaning and washing the minerals before crushing all the stones by hand, a laborious first step to many of the designer's projects. "This takes the most time because they are done by hand and done one by one," Amoia says. Friedman, DeLorenzo, and Amoia settled on malachite, lapis lazuli, Pyrite, black tourmaline and red jasper as their palette of minerals, looking to Brazil, Mexico and Africa, where the minerals are sourced, for inspiration.

"We also use brass, aluminum and nickel shavings, as well as beautiful slabs of white onyx from Italy," Amoia says. "I want to use unexpected and over-looked materials — and it worked out!" For the shavings used to coat the surfaces of some of these pieces, Amoia collected fallen scraps and discarded bits of metal from the floors of his own studio. "We collected them and cleaned them to use on the pieces in pair with minerals and slabs," he says. "We also experimented with casted and sculpted bronze. There is a nice narrative between all the materials and minerals used, which is also reflected in the designs and forms as well."

Aluminum and brass were welded to create the underlying structure for many of the objects, making them relatively lightweight and easy to transport — an added benefit of the refined, sleek designs. "In previous collections, I didn't think about the heavy weight and the costs to ship and transport things," he says. "So that definitely played into factor here." The frames were then lightly coated with the materials — minerals and metal shavings — using a delicately applied binding epoxy, adhering them to the form. After several layers, Amoia applies a finishing spray. For the bronze pieces, Amoia and his team mold a drum out of clay, casting in bronze to create the final form, before adding a patina by hand.

The final result are eight limited edition pieces across lighting, seating and accessories, beginning at $15,000. 

The AMOIA collection will be on display at DeLorenzo Gallery beginning Thursday, April 28 and continuing through New York Design Week.

Milan's annual design fair Salone del Mobile always provides a platform for a vast diversity of talent—whether you visit a booth of a major player like Kartell or a little guy showing her first full collection, the range of offerings at this giant exhibition fairground promise something for everyone. Over 300,000 people visit the Salone del Mobile each year and as the anchor event for Milan's Design Week, it is the main show for anyone who is interested in the trends and ideas that will dominate interiors in the coming year. At this year's show, highlights included strong debuts from emerging studios at SaloneSatellite, the premier exhibition space for young designers, as well as high production installations from companies like Carl Hansen & Son and Artek. 

As a bonus, we even took a short tour of the other, more fantastical and traditional side of Salone (needless to say, it was head-swirling, garish and eye-opening). 

Marcel Wanders for Poliform

Photo credit: Allison Fonder

Patricia Urquiola for Zantilam-Zant

Part of the "VERY WOOD" Installation exhibiting excellent examples of chairs utilizing bent wood techniques.

Photo credit: Allison Fonder

Carl Hansen and Son

The installation space by Carl Hansen & Son was an elegantly well-considered visual delight.

Photo credit: Allison Fonder

Carl Hansen & Son continued

Photo credit: Allison Fonder

Carl Hansen & Son continued

Photo credit: Allison Fonder

Carl Hansen & Son continued

Carl Hansen & Son have ties with Hans Wegner that span over 50 years. For Salone, a craftsman was seen in the booth building one of the designer's classic creations to demonstrate how the handcrafted element of production in Wegner's chairs lives on even today.

Photo credit: Allison Fonder

Carl Hansen & Son continued

A comfy rendition of a classic dining chair by EOOS in the Carl Hansen & Son booth

Photo credit: Allison Fonder

Carl Hansen & Son continued

A beautiful example of plywood bending in Ejner Larsen and Aksel Bender Madsen's Metropolitan chair

Photo credit: Allison Fonder

DL PROTOTIPI Furniture at Salone Satellite

Beautiful furniture silhouettes in black by Daphna Laurens.

Photo credit: Core77

Crane Lamps by Animaro at Salone Satellite

Designer Matthew Gilbert gave a demonstration at Satellite of these fun walnut lamps, which can be height and position adjusted according to your needs.

Photo credit: Allison Fonder

Jerry Miculek is a professional competition shooter who holds world records for speed and accuracy. To create the latest video for his well-trafficked YouTube channel (510,000-plus subscribers), he commissioned an impressive-looking replica of Captain America's shield. Miculek went with titanium since the "vibranium" it's made from in the comic books is of course fictional. Then he decided to test it out with live fire:

The titanium holds up pretty well, though the same can't be said for the paint. Which makes me wonder: In the movies you occasionally see battle damage on Captain America's shield, but they never show us how he touches it up between battles. What do you think he uses?

"Well, ONE of you jerks has my red Sharpie. And we're not leaving 'til you hand it over."

The knock on today's children is that they no longer play outdoors. Instead they're inside four walls and glued to screens, with programmers doing the imagining for them. Maybe that's why ex-game-designer and multitalented artist Craig Davison's paintings are so striking: They recall a time when children's imaginations were exercised in fresh air, often using DIY props to support their fantasies.

UK-based Davison once worked as an animator and computer game designer, then moved into sculpting reference figures. Incredibly, he didn't start painting until his 40s, when he tried his hand at it in order to enter a contest held by art publisher Washington Green.

For the paintings I'm currently producing [shown here] with Washington Green, the inspiration is obvious; my childhood! I try to capture the endless summer holidays spent out on my bike with friends, rescuing Mexican villages from bandits!

The details are fantastic: Toilet-paper tubes become laser pistols, a steering wheel club becomes a laser rifle; shoelaces are often untied; the family dog moves up to co-star status. 

You can check out more of Davison's work here and here.

Seeking experienced interior designers who have software/licenses and are proficient in Photoshop and floor planning software (CAD, SketchUp, etc.) You'll source furnishings/decor from a variety of retail, trade and wholesale vendors so you should be comfortable designing in many styles, familiar with popular retailers/vendors, and create interesting style forward designs.

While some GIFs get boring, this one doesn't cease to fascinate. With each repetition you can focus on a different person in the crew to see what they're doing:

Once upon a time Formula One pit stops were closer to 10 seconds. But in 2010 refueling was banned, and without the need to break out the hose and pump petrol into the tank, pit stop time has dropped to the sub-3-second range (assuming tire changes only) as seen in the GIF above.

Here's a crazy sub-2-second pit stop:

While the following one is a tad longer at 2.05 seconds (jeez, what a bunch of slugs), you'll see something interesting as it's shot from the driver's point of view:

From that angle, you can see some UX thought has been put into the front jack. As seen from the driver's perspective, the bright graphics make it highly visible and indicate precisely where the driver is meant to put the centerline of the nose of the car. 

Looking again at the GIF up top, you'll now notice a bright orange arrow performing the same function on the front jack.

Lastly, you're bound to get a kick out of this: It's a video showing a 1950s open-wheel racing pit stop (1-minute-plus!) contrasted with a Team Ferrari pit stop of today. Note how the 1950s dude is hammering the lugs off:

One way to help keep a home or workplace less cluttered is to have appropriate wastebaskets, trash cans and/or recycling bins in every spot that can use one.

The 45-liter butterfly trash can from Simplehuman gets raves from purchasers, despite the relatively high price, because there are so many good design features. It's a fairly narrow can, at 10.4 inches, so it can fit into tight spots. The butterfly lid allows it to fit under counters where other cans won't work. And the lid stays open until the end user chooses to close it. 

Purchasers noted that this can keeps their dogs, cats and one-year-olds out of the trash—with the exception of one person whose dog kept his paw on the pedal. Another purchaser noted that the hinges on other cans scraped the paint on her walls, but since this can has internal hinges she had no such problem. 

And the can is designed to last. Simple human says the steel pedal is engineered to last over 150,000 steps—more than 20 steps a day for 20 years.

Another step trash can with an interesting design is the Tip can from Authentics, designed by Konstantin Grcic. Grcic says: "A good deal of attention went into the design of the lifting mechanism of this waste bin. Most pedal-bins on the market are built with a complicated assemblage of wires, rivets, washers and pieces of plastic. We started the design by breaking the existing construction down into its essential parts. By the end we were able to build the entire mechanism (including the pedal) with just two pieces of metal rod and a rubber hinge." 

However, purchasers noted a few problems with these bins. With no inner liner bin, this polypropylene trash bin is pretty lightweight—and some users had problems with it tipping over when opened. One placed a heavy doorstop in the bucket, and then it worked fine. Also, some had problems with the lid closing properly; they had to adjust it manually. 

The Swing Bin, designed by Shigeichiro Takeuchi, was originally launched on Kickstarter. It has an ABS body and a veneered MDF lid, and that's it. Well, almost.

Because so many people wanted to use a liner bag with this bin, Takeuchi revised the design to include a cylinder of thin PVC inside; a bag can be attached to that. (And those who don't care about using a liner bag can just remove the PVC cylinder.) That's a nice example of a designer listening to user feedback and adjusting accordingly.

The Hideaway bin from Muuto, designed by Mika Tolvanen, also has an unusual (and useful) lid design; the lid has a clip that allows it to be hung on the side of the bin. 

Another interesting lidded trash can comes (again) from Simplehuman. The touch-bar cans use that bar instead of a pedal; the end user presses the bar—or bumps it with a hip, knee or elbow—to open the lid. As with the butterfly can, the lid stays open until the end user closes it. 

This design is especially nice for end users who have problems with foot pedals. One purchaser mentioned buying it for her mother with advanced arthritis; pedals were a problem for her, but she found this can easy to open.

The Umbra Couplet, designed by David Green, is a bin for an office or other space without pets or small children. One half (with an inner plastic bin) can hold wet items, while the other half works for dry things. However, this won't work for anyone who discards small things like staples or paper clips.

RE.BIN launched on Kickstarter and is now active on Indiegogo. The bins are made from recycled plastic and are sized to hold a paper grocery bag. RE.BIN is promoted as a way to make recycling easy—and a way to provide recycling bins that don't totally ruin the user's decor.

One thing worth noting: I now pay 25 cents for every paper bag I get at the grocery store. For any user in the same situation, this makes RE.BIN a slightly less attractive option than if the bags were still free—although the contents of those paper bags could perhaps be dumped and the bags reused. (And my 25 cents is still much cheaper than buying the liner bags that RE.BIN sells at $20 for a 30-pack.) But it's useful when designing for recycling to remember that recycling/reuse rules differ from place to place, and keep evolving. 

Totem from Joseph Joseph, designed by PearsonLloyd, is a system intended to accommodate all the end user's waste and recycling needs. 

The top section is a general waste container. There's also a small food caddy that can perch in that section (or in the drawer, or just on a kitchen counter). 

The bottom drawer can hold any type of recycling. The divider can be removed if it's not needed. (Some areas have single-stream recycling, where sorting is not be required.)

While this design could work well for many end users, I see two potential problems for some of them. The first is that some locales may require more than two recycling sorts: paper, plastic, glass and cans, for example. Such items could be combined in the drawer, but that would lead to more work later on. The second is that bending down to access the recycling drawer may be difficult for some end users. However, the drawer is on wheels, and it moves in and out easily.

Ueli was designed for Trunz by Alfredo Häberli, back in 2001. It's an interesting design that combines a waste basket with a paper collector, designed for office use.

I can see a design like this also being used in a home, especially for end users who still get daily newspapers. Having it on wheels would make it easy to roll under (and out from under) a desk or table.

Curt Herzstark had to overcome quite a bit to make his little pocket calculator.

The portable calculators of my childhood are now largely obsolete. Students still tote around TI-83s, though I have a feeling that they are not long for this world. Our phones have sophisticated calculators, as does just about everything else with a screen. The ability to make quick calculations mindlessly with the aid of a computer has become normal. Our fully taking for granted accessible number crunching machines really began in the early 70s when digital calculators became widely available. 

Before the advent of cheap pocket calculators, one either had to work the problem out on paper, use a bulky and limited desktop adding machine, or have access to an extremely expensive large computer usually found at wealthy corporations or universities (One could buy 25 Chevy sedans for the price of 1 Bendix G-15 computer). The only really viable option for a fast handheld computer was the Curta mechanical calculator. There were two models, the Curta I and the Curta II. The I was capable of calculating results 11 digits long including decimals. The II was capable of 15 digit results. The Curta can be used to multiply, divide, subtract, add, find square roots, and a number of other complex functions.

Operation of the Curta takes practice and is a bit confusing, but for professionals, from Engineers to race car drivers, it was a boon for rapid calculation. My great uncle, a self-taught engineer and architect, kept his Curta on his living room mantle to show off to visitors. It really is an impressive little thing. It's surface is covered in sliders, a crank, dials, and little number wheels that swing around as the operator uses it. My uncle reveled in his guests astonishment as he whirled the crank on his little calculator and solved complex mathematical problems. I once asked if I could hold it. He said no.

Just as impressive as the machine itself is the man who invented it. Curt Herzstark was a Austrian Jewish engineer who came from an engineering family. He grew up to run his father's company, Rechenmaschinenwerk AUSTRIA Herzstark & Co, which specialized in making and selling calculating machines. Most calculators were large hefty desktop devices, the most famous perhaps being Burroughs Adding Machine (invented by the grandfather of writer William S. Burroughs). By the outbreak of WWII, Herzstark had developed what was to become the Curta calculator but was unable to put it into production before the Nazis forced his family's company to cease normal operations to manufacture precision instruments for the Third Reich.

Herzstark himself was in a very risky position, his father being a liberal Jew and his mother a Catholic. Despite this, things went relatively smoothly for his company for a few years. Production came to a halt in 1943 when some of his employees were caught by the SS listening to English radio programs and transcribing them with a typewriter. The employee who owned the typewriter was executed. Herzstark was thrown into a series of horrendous prisons before ending up in the Buchenwald Concentration Camp. Herzstark, though deemed an "intelligence slave" was first assigned to hard farming labor, where his health began to fail.

Herzstark was able to recover somewhat when transferred to the Gustloff forced labor factory where he made precision tools. He was ordered to create the finest calculating machine, which would be presented to Hitler upon Germany's triumph. Herzstark realized that this project would make him valuable enough to keep alive and began working on Sundays and evenings with pencil and paper to draw meticulous plans for his calculator. By the time the camp was liberated in 1945, he had nearly completed the plans for the complex machine, all from his memory.

He took his plans to a factory near Weimar, Germany. Due to the intense detail of his plans, the company was able to make three working prototypes in just eight weeks. Unfortunately, the factory was in what would become the Russian occupied zone. Herzstark was rightfully frightened of being detained and sent to Russia, as had already been done to other skilled people, so he fled to Vienna. Before traveling, he completely disassembled the three calculators so they would appear to be nothing more than miscellaneous parts. After a few years of setbacks, including his investors (the prince of Lichtenstein among them) trying to steal his machine from him, the Curta calculator finally went into production in 1948.

Herzstark settled in Lichtenstein, where his calculator was produced, and lived there until his death in 1988. The Curta was manufactured until 1972, when cheap digital units made it obsolete. Not much is known about Herzstark's later life, as he was a very private man. By the end of their production run, 140,000 Curta calculators had been manufactured. Near the end of their production, a Curta could be had for around $135. They are perhaps one of the only adding machines of their era that have become substantially more valuable with age, fine examples now selling for well over $1000.

Written by Luke Murray, originally for Hand-EyeSupply.

For the third year in a row, Core77 is partnering with WantedDesign to present the sixth annual Design Schools Workshop during New York Design Week. Over the course of an intense four days, students from Centro (Mexico), Art Center College for Design, Pasadena, Aalto University (Finland), ENSCI Les Ateliers (France), Escuela de Comunicación Monica Herrera (El Salvador) and Pratt Institute will be working in collaboration to explore different materials and bring a sense of playfulness back into design through this year's theme, Playtime. 

Led by ENSCI Les Ateliers, students participating in this year's workshop are tasked with developing a viable product around the idea of play—whether by creating an object purely for entertainment or by injecting a sense of humor into an object to increase our connection to it. Core77 spoke with designer and professor at ENSCI Les Ateliers, Matt Sindall, about humor, what it takes to understand materials and finding synergy in collaborations. 

Core77: What are some of the different ways in which a sense of playfulness can be manifested in design objects? 

There many ways that 'Playfulness' can be found in design, where humor can be imbued within object. It could be present in the form or function, the assembly, a playful use of color and texture or the detournement of an object. This quality within an object is synonymous with the human condition.

In this year's challenge, students can incorporate different materials in their work and will have access to mentors who specialize in glass, textiles and wood. What do you think will be the biggest challenges for students as they work with multiple materials and techniques? 

I think the hardest thing will be to create a coherent discussion between these materials. For the students to understand the fundamental difference between the phases of design—between "the idea" which manifests on paper, in models or on the screen, and the materiality of the final object where physicality is paramount.

You emphasize the importance of ultimately creating a physical, viable product at the end of the workshop, not just a concept. Why is this a crucial step for the students to take? 

Each material has its own personality—soft/hard, flexible/rigid, mat/brilliant etc. These qualities are not easy to apprehend if a designer cannot manipulate them and merely relies on projecting ideas in a virtual manner. Over time, a designer can gain experience and accumulate an understanding of what these materials are, and which processes are used to create a form. This understanding covers a wide spectrum, from crafts to sophisticated production techniques. These techniques are undergoing constant evolution and a designer has to be aware of them.

What are your expectations for the workshop? In your mind, what would make it a success?

Workshops are about people, the exchange of ideas, discussion, a certain intensity, laughter and working hard. The success of a workshop is based upon chemistry between people; through collaboration and hard work we can attain the best results. I have carried out workshops in France, New Zealand, China, Mexico, and the UK. This workshop is the first time, for me, where students from many different cultures assemble to work on a common theme; this concept is a success, even before the workshop has started. I hope to encourage the students to create a synergy within each group so that they can get the best out of the experience.

The final public presentation with the Jury will take place at the Conversation Lounge at WantedDesign Manhattan on 11th Avenue between 27th and 28th Street on May 16th.

Over on the woodworking showcase site Lumberjocks, a fellow named Don W. was showing some pictures of a handplane he restored. The handle and the tote were in lousy shape, so he made his own replacements:

The handle, particularly the etched crosshatching, drew strong interest among viewers. Don thus provided a demonstration of how he does it. We'll give you a greatly condensed version here:

First you need the files, or gravers. Don uses "a 4 line cutter, a 2 line cutter, a rough single and a finish single."

Once you've got your sanded part, you lay out the border.

Next it's a matter of choosing your angle and cutting that first line, or first two lines in this case, as Don is using the two-line cutter.

Then, still using the two-line cutter, he uses the last line as a guide to cut a fresh line.

Rinse and repeat.

Using the single cutter allows him to extend each line to the border.

Then it's a matter of choosing the opposing angle and doing the other direction.

After painstakingly going over each line with the rough single and fine single, he can get the checkers "almost to a point."

Looks pretty good! Click here to read all the details.

To give you a sense of how painstaking a process this is, check out this video of another fellow checkering his rifle stock:

The Hover Camera is a small, dual-camera-equipped quadrotor drone that can be programmed to follow you. In the interest of safety, the entire thing is enclosed inside a carbon fiber cage; in the interest of portability, it folds in half, breaking down to "about the size of a VHS cassette tape," according to Engadget. Take a look at this thing:

Obviously there are some kinks to iron out. The noise produced by the drone will preclude it from becoming, say, NY1's go-to camera, not to mention the video quality sure doesn't look 4K. But at just 238 grams (about half a pound) it's quite the technical achievement. Developed by a Chinese startup called Zero Zero Robotics, the Hover Camera is a breath of fresh air because it's a Chinese product that made the news not for being a cheap copy, but an intelligent original. Indeed, this is something others will try to copy, though the company CEO figures they've got their bases covered:

MQ Wang, CEO of Zero Zero Robotics and a PhD graduate at Stanford University, isn't worried about his product being copied. "It's a lot harder to build things of this size versus bigger things. Something of this size needs to be built from ground up... We use a completely proprietary algorithm [to fly it], as we're squeezing every single drop of juice out of the Snapdragon 801 [mobile processor]; and we don't use open source code because it's not good enough."

If they can get the video stabilization worked out, I think in a couple of years I won't be seeing so many idiots walking down Broadway with selfie sticks. Instead they'll have one of these tracking and shooting them.