artcodes.com - emily chang

Clever car

Friday, April 28, 2006

Researchers in England have been working on a prototype for a “clever” (Compact Low Emission Vehicle for Urban Transport) car. The car has three wheels and tilts for easy manueverability.

The prototype is purely a research project and is unlikely to come to market in its present form.

But the researchers hope that car companies may build on its ideas, and that the design may even pave the way for a new class of city vehicles somewhere between motorbikes and cars.

“You can imagine that they could re-jig the [London] congestion charge to just allow motorcycles and Clever vehicles, but not cars,” said Mr Drew.

“The idea is to showcase the vehicle and start the process of laying down the groundwork for this third way.”

Full story “Green mini-car to beat congestion” by Jonathan Fildes, BBC News science and technology reporter

Posted by emily chang on 04.28.06
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Jenny Holzer: For London

Friday, April 07, 2006

As part of the Beckett Centenary Festival at the Barbican, American artist Jenny Holzer presents a series of light projections on the Barbican and buildings around London including City Hall and Somerset House. Writings from Beckett and a selection of works by celebrated poets, are cast onto well-known London landmarks, allowing light and text to flow over the cityscape, creating an extraordinary visual experience.

Full story and more info about the festival at the Barbican Gallery website

Posted by emily chang on 04.07.06
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Pleo: designer life form

Pleo is a “designer life form” created by Caleb Chung, the creator of the Furby. The Pleo looks like a miniature dinosaur toy, but it’s much more - stuffed with 38 sensors to detect light, motion, touch and sound, it can respond with fluid movmenets and its skin is smooth and stretchy. I’ll be looking for one of these when they’re released this fall. Story at CNN or see the more link for full text.

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Posted by emily chang on 04.07.06
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Pouf

Saturday, April 01, 2006

I first saw a pink pouf in the window of Friend SF. When I got closer, I loved the idea even more: a waterproof, all weather, durable but lightweight stool/bench/table made with foam. Solid but light. Precious but durable. Thanks to m+d for the amazing gift that’s now in my living room - a perfect orange pouf.

Designed by Arne Quinze of Quinze & Milan—the same award-winning company that provided Rem Koolhaas’s Seattle Public Library with its much-talked-about furniture—the Primary Pouf invites use as either a stool or a side table. Enabling the pouf’s dual function is a large cube of all-weather, patented foam, which provides enough cushioning for comfortable seating but is firm enough to hold drinks and plates. QM FOAM™ is designed to resist fading or degrading. A polypropylene base supports more than 300 pounds. Base and foam are attached. Contract quality. Made in Belgium.

More info at Design Within Reach.

Posted by emily chang on 04.01.06
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