some kinda magic dragon...

It's true that the technology and concept behind Seadragon is absolutely phenomenal--it's hard to imagine the ability to access that much information, that quickly, and all in one place. Ben's also brought up a good point in that the Seadragon and Photosynth technology could definitely be used for things like facial recognition. Talk about design that has the potential to do something really good!

Potential is a big word, though, and there's something about Seadragon that kind of worries my tech-wary side. How many other potentially Orwellian uses does Seadragon have? Anyone who's able to be photographed--really, anyone at all, considering the power of our satellites--has to deal with the possibility of being tracked in a hyper-linked, super quick, high-res database, for whatever reason the user deems acceptable. Kind of scary.

With the possibility for completely virtual walk-throughs and tours of thousands upon thousands of cities, tourist attractions, and the like, what becomes of our non-virtual world? Will Seadragon become an incredible catalyst for physically getting to know the world and actually traveling, or will it allow us to cocoon ourselves even further into our huge HD monitors and custom-made comfy reclining leather desk chairs? Does this kind of technology put us on the path to a world where social networking is the only real socializing we do?

Wait and see.

rubix cubes are delicious...

Stop-action animator PES has put together a number of fantastic and twisted short films, and has done commercials for such big-shots as Nike, Barcardi, and Sprint. But the one I stumbled upon today, Western Spaghetti, blew my mind. I don't think you'd really ever mistake Pick-up Stix or dice for anything edible, but the way PES puts all of his "ingredients" together for this is really stunning. And totally inspiring. I want to do this, too!

Also, check out his Roof Sex. Absolutely hilarious and very, very well done.

[image source: http://www.veryshortlist.com/video/?email_key=31cbb084-dfde-4bef-af6d-4eb12692d3f9]

silly question...

To be a successful communication designer, do you need to know what is happening in the world around you?

Well, um...yes! As the world becomes even more interconnected, it becomes increasingly important to be aware not only of world news and events, but also of the different cultures that are part of our global economy. As Bruce Mau puts it, design is invisible, and has become second-nature to us. Everything is designed. As communication designers, our reach in the world is boundless. Having a firm grasp on global news, economics, and cultures doesn't only enrich our designs, it provides us with the opportunity to do a whole lot of good for our global community.

a little late, but...

I cannot nap. Every time I try to get some sleep during the day when my brain's shutting down sporadically and I'm utterly exhausted, I become so guilt-stricken that I have to get up and do something school-related. It's kind of disgusting. And if I do somehow manage to fall asleep, I wake up completely groggy and sleep-stoned and can't manage to become coherent for at least an hour. Some of us, however, have mastered the art of napping and can successfully sneak in a few solid hours during the day—I'm jealous of you guys! And so, in my sleep-deprived, drowsy, braindead state, I've been doing some research on getting proper day-sleep (which may be pointless, considering I'll be getting copious amounts of sleep after next week), and came across an article with some great tips and even greater info graphics. Check it out.

[image source: http://www.boston.com/bostonglobe/ideas/naps/]

creative contents...

I don't know about any of you, but I don't generally get super-excited about tables of contents (anyone actually know what the plural of that is?). This post completely changed my mind about the possibility for creativity in something as mundane as a table of contents.

It's certainly true that the simple and expected form of a table of contents doesn't usually spark a huge outpour of creativity in most of us, and maybe that's a good thing--an over-designed table of contents might completely take away from the entire purpose of the thing: legibility and ease of use. But that shouldn't deter us from doing something usable and interesting--after all, the table of contents is one of the first pages we flip to in a new book. Why not do something that'll generate even more interest in the book, right off the bat?

[image source: http://flickr.com/photos/hypowren/412742697/]