What I Discovered From Google Reader

How Businesses Approach Infographics

2012-04-12T21:06:00.003-07:00

The Washington Post asked three "young entrepreneurs" how their company uses infographics. They responded with similar sentiments. The first one said:

Infographics can be great as part of presentations, newsletters or other research content. It keeps people's interest by lending a storytelling and visual element to what can be sterile research.

The second said:

Infographics are outstanding for bringing life to content that would otherwise be dry, uninteresting or unshareable.

And the last one, who to be fair, seems to know more than the first two, said:

At the end of the day, the main use for infographics is to create content that can potentially go viral and drive traffic, links and exposure to a Web site and the brand.

If I were new to these infographic things, my main takeaway here would be that they're used to make boring material interesting. Shouldn't it be the other way around though? Information graphics are interesting because their foundations of data and um, information are worth looking at in the first place. Don't fall into the trap of trying to make something "visually compelling" without anything to compel with.

How businesses approach infographics:

Google testing heads-up display glasses in public, won't make you look like Robocop

2012-04-12T20:30:00.000-07:00

The good news: Google has started testing those augmented reality glasses we heard about earlier in the year. The bad news: if the artsy shots of the test units are to be believed, they won't make you look like some '80s cinematic anti-hero.

In fact, the things wouldn't look too out of place in a New York Times style story. The software giant let it be known that, while it hasn't quite got a sale date on the wearables, it's ready to test ProjectGlass amongst the non-augmented public.

The company is also looking for feedback on the project, writing in a post today, "we want to start a conversation and learn from your valuable input." Want some idea of what ProjectGlass might offer the public? Sure, it's not quite as good as strapping a pair on your own eyes, but interested parties can check out a video of Google's vision after the break.

Continue reading Google testing heads-up display glasses in public, won't make you look like Robocop

Google testing heads-up display glasses in public, won't make you look like Robocop originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 04 Apr 2012 12:25:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Hilarious memoirs from the HR Department: chapter 15 of "Let's Pretend This Never Happened"

2012-04-12T20:13:00.002-07:00

Jenny Lawson, creator of the Bloggess blog, has posted a long and extremely funny excerpt from her forthcoming book Let's Pretend This Never Happened: (A Mostly True Memoir). The excerpt, from chapter 15, details Lawson's bizarre experiences working in a corporate HR department, coping with the terrible behavior of the employees, the awfulness of the corporate bureaucracy, and the absurdly bad job applications she received.

When I was in HR, if someone came to me about a really fucked-up problem, I’d excuse myself and bring in a coworker to take notes, and the employee would relax a bit, thinking, “Finally, people are taking me seriously around here,” but usually we do that only so that when you leave we can have a second opinion about how insane that whole conversation was. “Was that shit as crazy as I thought it was?” I would ask afterward.

It always was. Sadly, HR has very little power in an organization, unless the real executives are on vacation, and then watch out, because a lot of ass-holes are going to get fired.

There are three types of people who choose a career in HR: sadistic assholes who were probably all tattletales in school, empathetic (and soon to-be-disillusioned) idealists who think they can make a difference in the lives of others, and those of us who stick around because it gives you the best view of all the most entertaining train wrecks happening in the rest of the company.

People who aren’t in HR always assume that people who are in HR are the biggest prudes and assholes, since HR is ostensibly there to make sure everyone follows the rules, but people fail to realize that HR is the only department actively paid to look at porn.

Sure, it’s under the guise of “reviewing all Internet history to make sure other people aren’t looking at porn,” but people are always looking at porn, and so we have to look at it too so that we can print it out for the investigation.

This is also the reason why HR always has color printers, and why no one else is allowed to use them. Because we can’t remember to pick up all the porn we just copied. This is just one of many secrets the HR department doesn’t want you to know, and after sharing these secrets I will probably be blackballed from the Human Resources Alliance, which is much like the Magicians’ Alliance (in that I don’t belong to either, since I never get invited to join clubs, and that I’m not actually sure that either of them exist).

Regardless, almost immediately after starting work in HR, I started keeping a journal about all the fantastically fucked-up stuff that people who aren’t in HR would never believe. These are a few of those stories:

Last month we decided to start keeping file of the most horrific job applications handed in so that we’d have something to laugh at when the work got to us.

We now officially have twice as many applications in the “Never-hire-these-people-unless-we-find-out-that-we’re-all-getting-fired-next-week” file than we have in the “These-people-are-qualified-for-a-job” file. What’s the word for when something that started out being funny ends up depressing the hell out of you? Insert that word here.

UPDATED: Excerpt of Let’s Pretend This Never Happened: A Mostly True Memoir

Let's Pretend This Never Happened: (A Mostly True Memoir) [Amazon]

(via JWZ)

Hilarious memoirs from the HR department: chapter 15 of "Let's Pretend This Never Happened":

Making Big Decisions about Money

2012-04-12T19:53:00.001-07:00

We're bad at it. And marketers know this.

Consider: you're buying a $30,000 car and you have the option of upgrading the stereo to the 18 speaker, 100 watt version for just $500 more. Should you?

Or perhaps you're considering two jobs, one that you love and one that pays $2,000 more. Which to choose? Or...

You are lucky enough to be able to choose between two colleges. One, the one with the nice campus and slightly more famous name, will cost your parents (and your long-term debt) about $200,000 for four years, and the other ("lesser" school) has offered you a full scholarship.

Which should you take?

In a surprisingly large number of cases, we take the stereo, even though we'd never buy a nice stereo at home, or we choose to "go with our heart because college is so important" and pick the expensive college. (This is, of course, a good choice to have to make, as most people can't possibly find the money).

Here's one reason we mess up: Money is just a number.

Comparing dreams of a great stereo (four years of driving long distances, listening to great music!) compared with the daily reminder of our cheapness makes picking the better stereo feel easier. After all, we're not giving up anything but a number.

The college case is even more clear. $200,000 is a number that's big, sure, but it doesn't have much substance. It's not a number we play with or encounter very often. The feeling about the story of compromise involving something tied up in our self-esteem, though, that feeling is something we deal with daily.

Here's how to undo the self-marketing. Stop using numbers.

You can have the stereo if you give up going to Starbucks every workday for the next year and a half. Worth it?

If you go to the free school, you can drive there in a brand new Mini convertible, and every summer you can spend $25,000 on a top-of-the-line internship/experience, and you can create a jazz series and pay your favorite musicians to come to campus to play for you and your fifty coolest friends, and you can have Herbie Hancock give you piano lessons and you can still have enough money left over to live without debt for a year after you graduate while you look for the perfect gig...

Suddenly, you're not comparing "this is my dream," with a number that means very little. You're comparing one version of your dream with another version.

Making big decisions about money:

Google+ is everywhere: First Reader, now Blogger, soon everything else

2011-11-11T21:57:00.000-08:00

Google+ social features are coming to Blogger, the company’s web-based blogging software. Soon, Blogger users will be able to replace their profiles with their Google+ profiles, and that’s just the beginning.

Last week, Google+ social features popped up on Google Reader, the company’s RSS parsing product.

Google is gradually integrating Google+ features into all its web products. We heard it at Google’s Mountain View campus last week from the Google+ team, and it’s fast becoming a reality.

Googlers see Google+ as “more than a social network or a collection of communication tools; it’s Google’s plan to bring social information into everything you do on the web, from shopping to search to email and beyond,” the team told us.

The new profile-editing tools show an upcoming integration with Google’s new social tools. Although those features can’t currently be activated, a dialog inside Blogger’s user profile editor reads, “Connect Blogger to Google+: Use your Google profile and get access to upcoming Google+ features on Blogger.”

We’ve reached out to Google for confirmation and more details on the Google+ and Blogger integration and will update this post as more information becomes available.

For the Google Reader integration, Google engineer Alan Green wrote on the company blog, “We’re going to bring Reader and Google+ closer together, so you can share the best of your feeds with just the right circles.” Where existing Reader features were duplicated by Google+ features, the company decided that it would let old things pass away and all things become new; original Reader mechanisms such as friending and following will be retired this week.

We can imagine the same will be true of a Blogger integration: The tools will likely make it easier to share your posts with relevant circles and might duplicate current Blogger social features.

In the meantime, it’s interesting to note that Google is starting its Google+ infiltration of the Internet with web-nerd-heavy products like Reader and Blogger rather than “normal” user-heavy products such as Gmail and YouTube. We’re anxious to see where Google+ will pop up next — and whether users will enjoy the new integrations.

Filed under: social, VentureBeat

Google+ is everywhere: First Reader, now Blogger, soon everything else:

How to Shoot the Night Sky (Introduction to Astrophotography)

2011-11-11T21:54:00.000-08:00

The following post on photographing the night sky is by jgomez65 – one of dPS’s forum members.

Several people asked me to post a simple tutorial on how I took some night sky pictures. I am not an astrophotographer in any way, shape or form, nor do I have any expensive equipment. I simply read several tutorials, picked a dark spot on the beach and tried to do my best.

Anyway, here is how I did it.

1. What you need:

You need a camera that has manual exposure mode. Most SRL camera come with a feature called Bulb which does exactly that.

You will also need a remote control or a shutter release cable in order to minimize shaking the camera when taking the pictures.

You will definitely need a tripod

2. Selecting the spot to take your picture

The darker the place, the better it is. Taking stars pictures in your back yard is possible, however for better results select a place away from city lights. Those lights tend to pollute the image and make the stars less visible.

3. Camera settings

First, try to use a lens with a large aperture. In my case I used a Sigma 28 mm lens at f/3.5

Next, set your camera at a high ISO. I tried with both 1,600 and 800 ISO and I got good results.

Finally, in order to avoid the star trail (that is avoiding capturing the movement of the stars as the earth rotates) you have to use the RULE of 600 which is very easy:

Divide 600 by the focal length of the lens you are using. In my case I divided 600/28 = 21.42 ( I can leave the shutter open for 21 seconds and avoid capturing the star trail)

Finally, put your lens in manual focusing and turn it to infinity focus (that would be the symbol at the end of the numbers on your lens)

4. Taking the pictures

Set the camera in your tripod and take at least 5 consecutive images at the stars using the correct exposure time (using the RULE of 600) Do not move the camera to a different spot or change the settings unless you are done with that series of pictures.

Tip: Every time I am done with a set of pictures, I place my hand in front of the lens and take another picture. That way I know that the picture where everything is black is where the series end.

5. Editing the images

Don’t be disappointed if you don’t see any color in your images. This is normal. You will need to bring the colors up in PS or any other editing software.

The first step is to stack the images. That is to superimpose one image on top of the others (not all the images, but pictures belonging to the same series). You can do this with a free software called Deep Sky Stacker. Just use the default settings on the software.

The final image will be a large TIF file that you will use to bring up the colors in Photoshop.

Next open your TIF file in Photoshop and edit the curves and levels. You can follow this easy tutorial on this video:

I also edited the blue, red and green colors in the level in order to make the nebula more visible.

That’s it.

Here is the original image and the final result:

Original Image:

Final Image:

Post originally from: Digital Photography Tips.

Check out our more Photography Tips at Photography Tips for Beginners, Portrait Photography Tips and Wedding Photography Tips.

How to Shoot the Night Sky (Introduction to Astrophotography)

How to Shoot the Night Sky (Introduction to Astrophotography):

Google+ launches Pages for businesses and brands

2011-11-11T18:31:00.000-08:00

It may have taken a while, but Google has now officially opened up Google+ to business and brands, not just individuals. It's calling the new feature Google+ Pages, but there appears to be little difference between a Page and an individual account in practice -- you're able to add Pages to any of your regular Circles, and Page owners are able to post as usual and take part in Hangouts. Pages also naturally turn up in Google search results, and the company's introduced a new Direct Connect as well that lets you search specifically for Google+ Pages -- just type "+Google" or "+Angry Birds" in a Google search box and you'll be taken directly to the respective page. Both features are rolling out on a limited basis starting today, but Google's promising they'll be open to everyone soon.

Update: Well, that certainly didn't take long -- Google has now opened up Pages to everyone. You can circle us at +Engadget if you like, and find Distro at +Engadget Distro.

Continue reading Google+ launches Pages for businesses and brands

Google+ launches Pages for businesses and brands originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 07 Nov 2011 13:22:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Google+ launches Pages for businesses and brands:

iPod fathers unveil their next project, the Nest Learning Thermostat (hands-on)

2011-11-05T16:16:00.000-07:00

Over the summer, we got word that a couple of unnamed ex-Apple engineers were getting ready to unveil an unnamed product, under the guise of an unnamed startup. As it turns out, that startup was Nest Labs, and those Apple alums were none other than Tony Fadell, longtime SVP of Apple's iPod division, and lead engineer Matt Rogers. And yes, the product they had to share makes fine use of a click wheel.

But if you thought they'd be cooking up a next-gen music player, you'd be wrong. Instead, the pair have been designing a thermostat, of all things, dubbed the Nest. In addition to being the most stylish model ever to grace a dining room wall, it promises the kind of intelligence we've come to expect in other household appliances -- just not thermostats, per se. It'll go on sale next month for $249 in places like Best Buy, but we managed to snag an early sneak peek. Find some photos below and when you're done, join us past the break where we'll explain how it works.

Gallery: Nest Learning Thermostat

Gallery: Nest Learning Thermostat hands-on

Continue reading iPod fathers unveil their next project, the Nest Learning Thermostat (hands-on)

iPod fathers unveil their next project, the Nest Learning Thermostat (hands-on) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 25 Oct 2011 09:36:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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iPod fathers unveil their next project, the Nest Learning Thermostat (hands-on):

Amazon Prime adds new reading option with Kindle Owners Lending Library

2011-11-05T15:34:00.000-07:00

Amazon's home page has a new message for Prime members from CEO Jeff Bezos, indicating that their membership plan has a new bonus: free books. The Kindle Owners Lending Library service offers up to one book per month from a selection of thousands of titles, including "over 100 current and former New York Times Bestsellers" with no due dates. That's in addition to the free two-day shipping and access to TV shows and movies offered through Prime Instant Video as a part of the $79/year package. Of course, it also serves to the platform lock-in tighter between a suddenly very compelling subscription entertainment service, and its hardware (you will need a Kindle device, from what we're reading the apps won't work), including the upcoming Kindle Fire. Fans of the E inked word can check out the press release after the break for a few more details.

[Thanks, Straton & Abbas]
Continue reading Amazon Prime adds new reading option with Kindle Owners Lending Library

Amazon Prime adds new reading option with Kindle Owners Lending Library originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Nov 2011 23:50:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Amazon Prime adds new reading option with Kindle Owners Lending Library:

Cordon multi-target photo-radar system leaves no car untagged (video)

2011-11-05T15:32:00.000-07:00

Go easy on the gas, Speed Racer, because Cordon is on its way. Developed by Simicon, this new speed sensor promises to take highway surveillance to new heights of precision. Unlike most photo radar systems, which track only one violator at a time, Simicon's device can simultaneously identify and follow up to 32 vehicles across four lanes. Whenever a car enters its range, the Cordon will automatically generate two images: one from wide-angle view and one closeup shot of the vehicle's license plate. It's also capable of instantly measuring a car's speed and mapping its position, and can easily be synced with other databases via WiFi, 3G or WiMAX. Plus, this device is compact and durable enough to be mounted upon a tripod or atop a road sign, making it even harder for drivers to spot. Fortunately, though, you still have time to change your dragster ways, as distributor Peak Gain Systems won't be bringing the Cordon to North America until the first quarter of 2012. Cruise past the break to see some footage of a field trial that's currently underway -- cars tagged with a green dot are traveling below the speed limit, those with a yellow marking are chugging along within an acceptable range above the limit, while vehicles with a red tab are just asking for trouble.

Continue reading Cordon multi-target photo-radar system leaves no car untagged (video)

Cordon multi-target photo-radar system leaves no car untagged (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 31 Oct 2011 09:37:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink | Peak Gain Systems | Email this | Comments
Cordon multi-target photo-radar system leaves no car untagged (video):

First manned multicopter takes flight, brave human sits amidst blades (video)

2011-11-05T15:31:00.000-07:00

What could have ended in human chop suey, instead resulted in victory for German engineers at e-volo as they successfully completed the first manned flight of an electric multicopter. The multicopter uses multiple mini helicopters to lift the passenger upwards -- who's snuggled in the center of the carnage, firmly strapped to a squishy exercise ball. Like an UAV, the hovering device is controlled via radio control from the ground -- talk about trusting. The passenger was able to hold on for one minute and 30-second of flight victory, causing raucous celebrations from the Wright brothers in aviation heaven. Click past the break for the video.

Continue reading First manned multicopter takes flight, brave human sits amidst blades (video)

First manned multicopter takes flight, brave human sits amidst blades (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 01 Nov 2011 21:19:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink DIY Drones | e-volo | Email this | Comments
First manned multicopter takes flight, brave human sits amidst blades (video):

Man builds turbine-powered Batmobile, brags about having the only one (video)

2011-07-14T23:55:00.000-07:00

So you think you're a huge fan of the Dark Knight, huh? Not so fast. Do you own a full-sized Batmobile? Yeah... we didn't think so. But, auto restoration guru Casey Putsch does, and to launch himself further into super-fanboy status, he upgraded the engine with a Boeing turboshaft -- snatched out of a naval drone helicopter. According to him, this makes his collector's item one of a kind, in true Bruce Wayne fashion. Sure, these discarded movie props are usually powered by a standard 350 (especially the older models), but that wasn't enough for a dude's dude who appraises and designs all types of vehicles for a living. Mods were also made to the interior, including an iPad in the dash which serves as the avionics system and keeps track of the important GPS coordinates -- you know, stuff you'd expect Lucious Fox to toss in to track villains and such. For a look at this beast in action, check out the video after the break; meanwhile we'll try to figure out how to cram a jet engine into a Tesla Roadster. source Man builds turbine-powered Batmobile, brags about having the only one (video): "

Continue reading Man builds turbine-powered Batmobile, brags about having the only one (video)

Man builds turbine-powered Batmobile, brags about having the only one (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 14 Jul 2011 06:51:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Autoblog, Tood Cooperider | Putsch Racing | Email this | Comments"

This makes me very happy. Especially the...

2011-07-10T04:24:00.000-07:00

This makes me very happy. Especially the wigs.

archiemcphee:

“There’s nothing about this that isn’t completely awesome.”

We couldn’t agree more!

Sea World, Orlando, Florida, mid 1970s

[via I’ve had dreams like that.]

"This makes me very happy. Especially the...: "

20 incredible creative cake sculptures

2011-07-10T04:18:00.000-07:00

Forget the Black Forest cake your mom bought you for your birthday, or the simple white multi-layered wedding cake on your special day. These cakes are so awesome you don’t even want to eat them.

Cake sculpting first began as a hobby and is now a full-fledged career option with artists competing for creativity and cake prices climbing a never ending ladder.

Here are 20 examples of some of the most creative cake sculptures you’d never want to cut.

Some photos are copyrighted and only used with the artist’s permission.

Giant octopus cake

An incredibly detailed giant octopus by Highland Bakery. Photo used with permission by: Karen Portaleo.

Sumo wrestler cake

An angry giant sumo wrestler cake by Highland Bakery. Photo used with permission by: Karen Portaleo.

Rhino cake

Beautiful rhino cake by Highland Bakery. Photo used with permission by: Karen Portaleo.

Pegasus cake

A Pegasus cake happy to have won the first place in a cake contest. Photo by snarkygurl.

Punk Zombie cake

Probably the goriest and scariest cake I've ever seen. Photo used with permission by: Barbarann Garrard.

Tangled cake

Just make sure you fork doesn't get all tangled in this one by Debbie Does Cakes. Photo used with permission by: Debbiedoescakes.

Diet Coke cake

Not sure about the zero-calories but it sure looks like a real can, by Debbie Does Cakes. Photo used with permission by: Debbiedoescakes.

Computer desktop cake

Don't focus on the little white cake, it's just a distraction. The whole desktop computer is actually a cake. Photo used with permission by: Debbiedoescakes.

R2-D2 cake

Perfect for the Star Wars fans. Photo by: The Uncommon Cakery.

Steampunk cake

If you're a Steampunk junkie like I am, you'll probably love this one. Photo by: Kelsay Photography.

Pirate ship cake

Put on your eye-patch and loot this pirate cake. Photo by: mdimmic.

Building cake

A cake replica of the Bodleian library. Photo by: sally_monster.

Briefcase cake

Celebrate your birthday in a cubicle with this awesome briefcase cake. Photo by: dahliascakes.

Mario cake

Older gamers will feel nostalgic with this Mario cake by Su-Yin. Photo used with her permission.

Dragon cake

Probably the most impressive cake I've ever seen. Perfect for Role-playing geeks. Photo by: Astro-Lopithecus.

Angry Birds cake

The popular Angry Birds game now brought to you in the edible world. Photo by: snarkygurl

15th anniversary cake

The 15th anniversary cake of Fluid Design, an interactive design and branding agency. Photo by: Fluid Design.

Digital SLR camera cake

I'd love to get this cake for my birthday. Now if I only got the real lens too, it would be perfect. Photo by: Barron.

Sewing kit cake

An amazing real-looking sewing kit made of cake. Photo by: bunchofpants.

Wall-E cake

Very impressed by the amount of detail in this Wall-E cake. Photo by: Donbuciak.

"20 incredible creative cake sculptures: "

Prince William & Kate's Night at the BAFTA Brits To Watch

2011-07-10T04:16:00.000-07:00

Stepping out for the lone black tie affair of their Stateside visit, Prince William and Kate Middleton were the main attraction at the BAFTA Brits To Watch event in Los Angeles, California on Saturday night (July 9).

With Kate clad in a lilac Alexander McQueen gown and William in a black tuxedo, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge received a warm welcome at the Belasco Theatre as they joined a star-studded guest list including Hollywood mainstays and young stars such as Nicole Kidman, Jennifer Lopez, Blake Lively, Jennifer Garner, Ed Westwick, Elizabeth Banks, Jack Black, Zooey Deschanel, Chris Evans and Tom Hanks, among many others.

During the swanky affair, William opened the gala with an instructional speech about 'what he hopes to achieve for the evening' before he and the duchess briefly met the 42 honorees in a private reception area.

Of Will partaking in the event, the organization's chief executive, Amanda Berry, said, 'What he does for us is when he can attend an event he absolutely does, and he couldn't be doing more for us this weekend being part of this event. He's very philanthropic, so we meet regularly to try to support each other. He's lovely and a very down-to-earth, easy individual to get on with.'

Continuing to detail the purpose of the BAFTA Brits To Watch event, Miss Berry added, 'Some of the people we're honoring have more credits who are just starting to have an international career, but many are students we've identified with a real spark. Directors will sit next to directors, actors will sit with actors, and hopefully they'll make introductions. We've given them all briefing packets and they're very excited. We've got the most fantastic industry audience in the room that it's a real opportunity for them to meet inspirational people who can impact their careers.'

"Prince William & Kate's Night at the BAFTA Brits To Watch: "

Double Platinum again!

2011-07-10T04:13:00.000-07:00

While ‘Gee’ Chaka Uta (Japan) already went double platinum a few months back. As of July 8th, SNSD’s first full Japanese album ‘Girls’ Generation‘ has also been certified double platinum by the RIAJ! (Recording Industry Association of Japan)

Within the first 2 weeks of the album’s release on the 1st of June, ‘Girls’ Generation’ had already been certified platinum by the RIAJ moving more than 250,000 units. Now, SNSD has reached another milestone with the album being certified double platinum for selling over 500,000 copies!

With the girls working so hard in Japan, it’s simply heart warming to see them get acknowledged for their efforts.

Sources: fanwonder.com, www.riaj.or.jp, Yurui912@twitter

Double Platinum again!: "

Airigami: The Fine Art of Balloon Sculpture by Larry Moss.

2011-06-11T03:53:00.000-07:00

above: James Abbot McNeil's Whistler's Mother recreated in balloons by Larry Moss.

Balloon sculptor Larry Moss has many installations, fashions, and designs crafted of colored latex balloons to his credit.

above: The balloon Spinosaurus is a recent example of Larry Moss' large sculptures

Amongst his many unusual balloon sculptures, which he has termed Airigami*, is a series of famous pieces of fine art recreated with latex balloons.

Boticelli's Birth Of Venus, recreated in balloons by Larry Moss:

Birth of Venus in balloons (details):

Grant Wood's American Gothic recreated in balloons by Larry Moss:

Cezanne still life, recreated in balloons by Larry Moss:

Leonardo DaVinci's Mona Lisa recreated in balloons by Larry Moss:

Andy Warhol's Campbell Soup Can recreated in balloons by Larry Moss:

Jackson Pollock painting recreated in balloons by Larry Moss:

MC Escher's Self Portrait in Reflecting Sphere recreated in ballons by Larry Moss:

Leonardo DaVinci's Vitruvian Man recreated in balloons by Larry Moss:

A video which shows some of the original paintings morphing into Larry's balloon versions:

You can purchase these images and more as cards, posters, t-shirts, limited edition prints and more here at the Airigami gift shop.

*Airi•gam•i (\’er-?-’gä-m?\ n : the fine art of folding air) stands at the crossroads of three ancient art forms: sculpture, puppetry and origami.

About Larry Moss:

Larry Moss began his career 25 years ago as a NYC street performer, but has gone on to display his amazing air-filled art in 12 countries on four continents. His achievements have been recognized by The Wall Street Journal, the Associated Press, CNN Headline, PBS, Smithsonian Magazine, American Profile and Ripley’s Believe It or Not! Moss has appeared on The Martha Stewart Show, NBC’s “Today” and at the White House, and has held the Guinness World Record for the largest non-round balloon sculpture since 2000. The author of many published ballooning books, Larry also has a degree in applied math and computer science, as well as a master’s in elementary education. Building community through his large-scale art creations is of particular interest to Larry, and was the focus of his 2009 TEDx talk in Rochester, NY.

Kelly Cheatle, Designer and New Media Marketing Director for Airigami

Kelly Cheatle loves creating in any medium. She received her design degree from the Rochester Institute of Technology with a minor in Illustration, and a major interest in every studio elective she could find. She utilizes her diverse knowledge of traditional materials and image-making techniques daily in her work as a graphic designer/illustrator. She became Larry’s design partner upon informing him that she was going to help whether he wanted her to or not. While Kelly initially focused on non-balloon aspects of Airigami projects, the opportunity to work in a new medium was simply too much for her to resist.

http://ifitshipitshere.blogspot.com/feeds/posts/default?alt=rss

Airigami: The Fine Art of Balloon Sculpture by Larry Moss.: "

Tasso naping with his favorite toy

2011-06-08T09:33:00.000-07:00

Tasso naping with his favorite toy: "

Tasso naping with his favorite toy - ** The "leg" at the bottom left corner was anti-climate indeed!

One Glass, Seven Layers of Tea

2011-06-08T09:24:00.000-07:00

: Christopher Shay for The Wall Street Journal; Mr. Gour and his layered tea.

Bangladeshis will travel hours to the sleepy town of Srimongol, in Bangladesh’s northeast, just for a cup of Romesh Ram Gour’s famous tea. In a country of avid tea drinkers, Mr. Gour is the inventor behind a seven-layer tea which, he claims, no one else has been able to replicate. Copycats in the region have succeeded in creating five-layer teas, but none have been able to unlock the secret to Mr. Gour’s rainbow brew.

Mr. Gour invented his colorful layered teas 10 years ago, when he was selling tea from a bamboo shack. He says he realized that teas from different leaves have slightly different densities. It took a year of experimenting before he could sell teas with more than two layers. Over the years, he learned to expand to seven.

The kind of layer tea Mr. Gour makes is unique to the Srimongol area. An iced three-layer tea has become popular in the Malaysian state of Sarawak, but those drinks include one type of tea and are typically layered with palm sugar on the bottom, evaporated milk in the middle and tea on the top. What makes Srimongol’s special are the discrete layers of tea blends.

One Glass, Seven Layers of Tea: "

By Christopher Shay from WSJ’s Scene Asia blog:

Continue Reading on Scene Asia.

knewdrew: reverse graffiti.instead of using actual spray...

2011-06-08T09:19:00.000-07:00

instead of using actual spray...: "

knewdrew:

reverse graffiti.

reverse graffiti.

instead of using actual spray cans…some artist are just cleaning dirt off of certain areas to make their masterpieces. and they are calling it reverse graffiti. kind of brilliant.

Set of Musical Glasses

2011-06-08T09:05:00.000-07:00

These glasses would be excellent to have at your next dinner party, wouldn’t they? The graphics are musical notations for the correct level of liquid to produce the perfect pitch when a user runs their finger along the rim of the glass. As the price is for a set of 2, you’ll need to shell out a fair amount of dough to get a complete octave.

Comes as a set of two.

Also available directly from Luna & Curious for £23.50.

"Set of Musical Glasses: "

When in Rome…

2011-06-08T08:52:00.000-07:00

When in Rome, ~~do as the Romans~~ be a total hypocrite.

When in Rome…: "