Wednesday, December 29, 2010
Tuesday, December 28, 2010
Saturday, December 25, 2010
Materia: Glowing Trees
Street lights are an important part of our urban infrastructure — they light our way home and make the roads safe at night. But what if we could create natural street lights that don’t need electricity to power them?
A group of scientists in Taiwan recently discovered that placing gold nanoparticles within the leaves of trees, causes them to give off a luminous reddish glow. The idea of using trees to replace street lights is an ingenious one – not only would it save on electricity costs and cut CO2 emissions, but it could also greatly reduce light pollution in major cities.
The discovery came about accidentally after the scientists were looking for a way to create high-efficiency lighting similar to LED technology, but without using toxic chemicals such as phosphor powder. Speaking about the development, Professor Shih-Hui Chang said, “Light emitting diode (LED) has replaced traditional light source in many display panels and street lights on the road. A lot of light emitting diode, especially white light emitting diode, uses phosphor powder to stimulate light of different wavelengths. However, phosphor powder is highly toxic and its price is expensive. As a result, Dr. Yen-Hsun Wu had the idea to discover a method that is less toxic to replace phosphor powder. This is a major motivation for him to engage in the research at the first place.”
By implanting the gold nanoparticles into the leaves of the Bacopa caroliniana plants, the scientists were able to induce the chlorophyll in the leaves to produce a red emission. Under a high wavelength of ultraviolet light, the gold nanoparticles were able to produce a blue-violet fluorescence to trigger a red emission in the surrounding chlorophyll.
http://materia.nl/563.0.html?&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=333&tx_ttnews[backPid]=534&cHash=a7df34b4e5
Functional Aesthetics: Wearable Technology: Materia
Functional Aesthetics: Parsons Explores Next Frontier in Wearable Technology. On November 19, Parsons The New School for Design will present Functional Aesthetics, a symposium, book launch, and electronic paper workshop that celebrates the next wave of design merging textiles and technology.
The series celebrates the launch of the Fashionable Technology Lab at Parsons, a research center that explores the intersection of design, technology, science and fashion.
"We live in a world that is extraordinarily dependent upon technology, and it is up to designers to harness the power of technology to create functional, aesthetically pleasing work," said Sabine Seymour, assistant professor of Fashionable Technology at Parsons and director of the lab, whose research focuses on functional aesthetics in fashion, media, and technology. "Through this series, we will illuminate the current landscape of projects that utilize technology in innovative ways."
The symposium will feature presentations by a series of designers whose projects blend form and technology in innovative ways. This includes Stacey Burr, a pioneer in the field of electrotextiles, who will discuss Adidas Wearable Sports Electronics; Jessica Floeh, an alumna of the MFA Design + Technology program at Parsons, presenting her thesis project Hanky Pancreas, a fashion line for diabetics that integrates their medical devices as fashionable accessories; Pascale Gatzen, a Parsons faculty member whose work focuses on the intersection of the body and the garment; Kate Hartman, a faculty member at Ontario College of Art and Design and creator of the StitchLits LED Sewing Kit; designer Adam Harvey, who will present his current project, the anti-paparazzi clutch; Sheldon LaPierre, director of New York's Droog Gallery; Katherine Moriwaki, a Parsons faculty member whose work explores wearable technologies as the means by which people develop and articulate social relations; Despina Papadopoulos, an interaction designer and founder of Studio 5050, which develops wearable appliances for fashion and home; Joseph Saavedra, an alumnus of the MFA Design + Technology program at Parsons, presenting his thesis project Citizen Sensor, a wearable device that collects environmental data; and Parsons Sourcemap, a student research project, will present its solutions for creating awareness and community around sustainability.
Many of the projects are featured in the Seymour's recently published book, Functional Aesthetics. A book launch and signing will immediately follow the symposium from 5-6 p.m. in the auditorium. Following the book signing, Parsons alumni Paola Guimerans and Cecilia Elguero will introduce participants to the ideas of paper electronics and circuit building during the Paper Electronics Workshop.
The event, which is free and open to the public, will be held from 2 p.m. to 7 p.m. at the Sheila C. Johnson Design Center at Parsons The New School for Design. The Paper Electronics Workshop will be held in the 10th Floor Lab at 2 West 13th Street. Space is limited, and RSVP is required by emailing lab.material.lab at gmail com. A closing reception will be held from 7-10 p.m. at Eyebeam Studios, 540 West 21st Street, New York. During the reception, many of the projects discussed in the symposium will be on view, including Gluejeans by Droog, fabrick.it, miCoach by Adidas, and work focusing on Paper Electronics.
Original article: dexigner http://materia.nl/563.0.html?&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=335&tx_ttnews[backPid]=534&cHash=5893942c01
Wednesday, December 22, 2010
Sunday, December 19, 2010
Sunday, December 12, 2010
Saturday, December 11, 2010
Painting: 'Real Life Counterparts'
The painting is called:
'Real Life Counterparts'
Oil on Linen 282cm x 400cm
Paining: which features my friend Sam, he is the guy crouching.
We are also working with cutting-edge lighting design specialists Foundry to give away a quirky Rabbit table lamp by Moooi. One of a three-piece collection of animal furniture pieces,
the Rabbit lamp is a fun yet functional light - perfect for a mad hatter’s tea party.
Above picture -'14 Series' from Bocci. The 14 series pendant is a family of low-voltage pendant lights. Designed to be clustered in groups, each pendant features varying imperfections and bubbles that ensure each casts a unique light. Prices start from £245 for a single pendant.
Film: Tron Legacy
Went to the pre-screen preview today - was awesome a great film - just so different and great sound track by daft punk.
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