The Node power outlet, a refreshingly simple alternative to the power strip
It made its way around the block in just a matter of hours, but we wanted to make sure you saw this wonderfully simple idea for a power outlet from Metaphys in Japan. After plugging your devices in to the two notches that run all the way around the device, you can turn them all on or off through the button in the middle. Fantastic!
Thanks, Dave!
via Gizmodo
Synesthesia video from Terry Timely
We designers love almost any trick that shakes us from our traditional thinking patterns. Synesthesia, "a neurologically based phenomenon in which stimulation of one sensory or cognitive pathway leads to automatic, involuntary experiences in a second sensory or cognitive pathway [wiki]" is one such trick.
The latest short film from Terry Timely explores the theme of synesthesia with the richness of a 17c. natura morta painting and sprinkles on top.
Engage your senses here.
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Good Signage, Finally Getting its Due?
Sitting in on the sessions at the Society for Environmental Graphic Design's (SEGD) annual conference in San Diego last month, we were struck by how similar some of the concerns and discussion points were to those of other designers. Environmental graphics serve a crucial role in defining the character and navigability of public spaces -- especially big, complicated ones like museums and hospitals -- but frequently go unnoticed unless they're absent or poorly designed.
Imagine our joy, then, at the notoriety now being accorded SEGD Fellow David Gibson, not only from the professional organization that honored him last month, but from the design world as a whole. Gibson's recently released book on signage and wayfinding (pictured above) is the subject of an excellent interview in the May issue of Metropolis, and his studio, Two Twelve Associates, has been racking up awards over the past few years for its groundbreaking approaches to signage and wayfinding for clients like Radio City Music Hall , Johns Hopkins Hospital, and the City of Baltimore. The scale of such tasks both excites and unsettles us -- imagine your field of expertise requiring design solutions for an area hundreds of acres in size.
Signage and wayfinding in general seem to be gaining a higher profile in the US of late, perhaps as part of renewed interest in urban infrastructure, or a greater focus on alternative transportation brought on by economic and environmental concerns. This article in particular, by Alissa Walker for Fast Company caught our eye last week, pointing out how something as humble as cycle-oriented street signage can dramatically alter the viability of cycling in a city (Los Angeles) not historically known for its bikeability. It's just a proposal at the moment, by designer Joseph Pritchard, but it's got the advantages of clarity, low implementation cost, visual differentiation, and if all the above is any indicator, good timing.
NeoCon 2009: New from Humanscale--Diffrient World Chair, Element Task Light and Humanair
Humanscale introduced several new products at NeoCon this year, all incorporating new technology to make things lighter, brighter, more energy efficient and, in general, more effective. Though the technology was enough to impress us, Humanscale also demonstrated a tremendous attention to design, unifying the technology cleverly and simply with the form and use of the object. For example, in the Element task lamp (designed by Mark McKenna), the heat sink for the LED also forms the head of the lamp--it not only keeps the head (including itself) cool to the touch but also allows the user to re-orient it by hand, a mighty achievement considering that heat sinks are usually pretty unfriendly components. It should also be mentioned that this light uses a new technology developed in Korea that allows a single LED to produce a wide angle of bright light.
Diffrient World Chair, by Niels Differient (pictured above), takes advantage of recent advances in "dynamic recline technology", allowing the chair to recline using only "two frame components, the user's body weight, and the laws of physics," eliminating the need for a complex mechanism. This simplification reduces the number of components by about 75 percent, allowing for a lighter and more comfortable chair with a much more environmentally-friendly production process.
Finally, Humanair is Humanscale's first foray into the world of air purifiers, and focuses on providing very clean air (99% virus and contaminant free) to a "clean zone" around the head of deskbound workers. According to Tom Revelle, the idea has been bouncing around Humanscale for some time, but the technology that enables it is brand new.
Be sure to check out Humanscale's website for more information.
Follow the Designers Accord on Twitter!
@designersaccord is a great source of information and provocation on all things (and practice) sustainable. Won't overwhelm your client, and will give you some great links, inside info on upcoming events, and new content on the site. Adopters and lurkers all welcome!
NYPD Green
Despite the press announcement made back in April, it wasn't until yesterday that we finally spotted one of the New York Police Department's new Nissan Altima Hybrid Patrol Cars prowling the streets of downtown.
(Unfortunately the lead-footed copper was faster than our cameraphone, but click here to see some awesome captures by NYC's Flickr brigade.)
The Altima Hybrids have been assigned to areas of the city where their fuel efficiency presents the greatest economic and environmental benefit - both in precincts with a large coverage area and smaller precincts prone to heavy stop-and-go traffic."These new patrol cars will help fulfill the PlaNYC goal of reducing City government's carbon footprint," said Mayor Bloomberg. "Through savings in fuel, these Altimas can quickly cover their additional cost, from then they will save taxpayers money - another example of how going green is good for our environment and our pocketbooks."
...At $25,391 per vehicle, the Altima hybrids cost about $1,500 more than the conventional Impala. At 35 miles per gallon for city driving, the hybrid Altima gets double the gas mileage of the Impala, which gets only 16 miles per gallon.
2 Sustainable Minds upcoming workshops
Sustainable Minds will be holding two workshops in the next few weeks, titled "Mastering Environmental Impact Assessment in the Design Process." Here's what you'll learn:
1. Ecodesign principles and product innovation through ecodesign strategies
2. Life cycle thinking and a whole product systems approach to product design
3. To have a deeper and practical understanding of what life cycle assessment (LCA) is
4. How to conduct a Sustainable Minds, Okala-based LCA to produce quantifiable environmental impact results to support design decisions
5. How to consider integrating SM LCA in your design process and service offerings
The workshops will take place on June 26th in NYC with Joep Meijer and Terry Swack (Andrew Dent guest presenter!), and on July 10th in San Francisco with Philip White (lead author of Okala).
All info and pricing at the site.
Elliott Montgomery's MicroCycle Solar-Powered Sewing Kiosks
"How tightly can a product's lifecycle be compressed... and what are the ramifications of doing this?"
These are the questions Elliott Montgomery asks with his MicroCycle project--a mini manufacturing station-turned-public outreach kiosk that recently appeared on the south end of Union Square in New York City. Here, he and his posse created fabric shopping bags (made from salvaged materials, natch) but doesn't sell them. Instead, you can buy one by providing "an idea" for localized manufacture, materials sourcing, or the like. He designed and built the solar units for Solar1's outreach project I Heart PV.
@Jennifer van der Meer's a fan: "What's so fun about Elliott's installations is that he gets people to think in the immediate, about the waste streams available in their neighborhood, today, that can be recommissioned into something useful. He also thinks in terms of future reuse, plotting identified waste streams on a map, and posted online as an open source database.
Learn more about this project and Elliott's other work at epmid.com. Bonus for Core77 readers: Elliott's the creator of Aperture, entered in the 2008 Greener Gadgets Design Competition!
Core-Toon: Edible Containers
Artist:
lunchbreath
More: View all Core-toons
Pontiac Stinger - The Car That Could Have Saved Detroit
Pre-dating blockbusting lifestyle vehicles like the Honda Element by a full decade the Pontiac Stinger had the concept, look and the spec list of today's Gen-Y/Tween hits. Where would Detroit - and more importantly, American consumer culture - be today if it had been Green-lit?! Watch the video here.
New U.S. car company starting up
Speaking of cars, it seems like a helluva time to start up a U.S. car company, but that's exactly what San Diego based V-Vehicle (VVC) is aiming to do. With a factory going up in Louisiana, the well-funded V-Vehicle hopes to "reestablish American leadership in the global automotive industry," starting off with an as-yet-unseen vehicle designed by Tom Matano, the man behind Mazda's Miata. (Matano's blurry sketches, above, are taken from a promotional video. Note the in-dash iPhone dock.)
Few other details exist about the car, although it will reportedly be either electric or a hybrid that uses an unspecified alternative fuel. Production is slated to begin in 2010.
via fox news
Industrial design office workings in the Mad Men era
The most fascinating reading I'll have all day is Metropolis' "Nelson & Company: Iconic Workplace, 1947-86" which looks at the inner workings of George Nelson's office in its heyday:
The office was straight out of Mad Men, with men in crisp white shirts and ties, and the few women in black dresses--cigarette smoke everywhere, classical music in the background, and Nelson, ever the impresario, standing in the middle of the tumult with a camera dangling from his shoulders. "Everybody worked hard and late," [graphic designer Don] Ervin says. "We were all underpaid, but it was like going to a special camp."
The article interviews designers, architects, and even the former receptionist to paint a vivid picture of not only what it was like to work there, but of Nelson's free-floating process. Michael Graves, Lucia DeRespinis, Tomoko Miho, Irving Harper and others provide colorful anecdotes explaining how Nelson's "greatest genius may have been his skill in bringing them together."
"The 20 or so designers sat together in the same long studio at three rows of desks--architects, industrial designers, graphic and interior designers," explains designer Ron Beckman. "We were aware of what each was doing. It was a very democratic arrangement that encouraged collaboration across the various disciplines...."
Read the rest of the entertainingly lengthy article here.
OXO gives Universal Design a shot in the arm
While OXO products have been helping people open jars and peel carrots for years, they've recently focused their Universal Design prowess on a more prickly subject: Syringes.
Research done by biopharmaceutical company UCB showed that patients with rheumatoid arthritis have trouble administering self-injections. Seeking a solution, UCB partnered up with OXO, which identified six areas where they could make improvements (the five call-outs on the image above, plus easy-to-open packaging), and the Cimzia pre-filled syringe was born.
How different is the Cimzia from previous syringes? Extremely different; hit the jump to see an historical timeline of syringe designs.
Eastman Innovation Lab design videos
Eastman Innovation Lab has launched a series of design-inspired videos on their site, featuring the likes of Yves Behar of Fuse Project, Ravi Swhney of RKS Design, and Josh Nakaya of Art Center. The production values are pretty high on these, and if you're interested in the background, check out Gaylon White in Orbiting the Hairball.
The video with Ravi also features Eric Barnes, Founder & CEO of the KOR ONE water bottle we've gone on about.
Design Roundtable: What Will Cell Phones Look Like 10 Years From Now?
Core contributor Alissa Walker moderates a panel discussion of (Fast) Company Men as they discuss the future and impact of the holy cell phone. Here's a good bit courtesy of Robert Fabricant:
How have cell phones changed our behavior? It is remarkable to me how it has taken the iPhone to create this momentum in the U.S. market: to get people to engage with mobile experiences outside of basic communication. When I travel outside the U.S., particularly in the developing world, the engagement with mobile devices is so much higher. Mobile minutes are quickly becoming the most liquid currency in Africa and other emerging markets. Even in very remote regions, you see people using their devices to transact and fulfill a broader range of needs than we see here in the U.S. And that is with the most basic Nokia phone. Forget multi-touch.
10 Creative Rubik's Cubes
And finally, we've seen a few of these Rubik's cubes around before, but it's nice to have them collected into a sweet set of 10. Ignacio Pilotto's Rubitone (above) is the sentimental favorite around here; we're simply afraid of the Pentamix.
Thanks Victoria!
Special thanks to Xanthe Matychak and lunchbreath for their contributions to this week's newsletter.
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