Modular Clothing Created By DARPA Technology

Betabrand has partnered with two scientists, Jonathan Bachrach and Saul Griffith of Otherlab, to create a new clothing item called the DARPA Hoodie. Bachrach and Griffith had earlier received a grant from DARPA to develop software that can convert 3D objects into 2D pattern pieces which can then be fabricated out of any material and fastened together to create a physical object. After the defense organization encouraged the duo to find non-military applications for their technology, they teamed up with Betabrand to create this unique hoodie.

Boing Boing published an interview with Bachrach about the DARPA Hoodie:

The bend and joinery mechanisms are completely customizable for the particular material type and desired look such as pop rivets, welded seams, and press fit. The tool creates the opportunity for greatly lowering the time of manufacturing and for creating a unique algorithmic design quality. For clothing, the automatic panelizer opens up the possibility for custom clothing and better fits for stiffer materials. The hoody was created algorithmically from a 3D triangular mesh for an average six foot male, downsampled to 100 triangles, deconstructed into 12 panels of high grade nylon, and finally sewn together with externally visible red thread.

Flirting Staff Fight ‘Social Media Isolation’

A London-based pizza shop is putting their staff through a new form of training to relax customers and bring back the art of conversation.  In the lead up to the opening of their new concept store, The Living Lab in Richmond, Pizza Express is utilizing the services of theatre director, owner of The Dialogue Project and professional conversationalist Karl James, to teach their staff how to flirt and create ‘great conversation’ with customers.

Attempting to “feed great conversations” James is reportedly educating staff on “how to flirt (subtly)    with customers so they feel more comfortable and relaxed.”

According to a source of The Telegraph, the venture also stems from society’s significant lack of interpersonal interaction – a product of social media:

With social media and texting    reducing our face-to-face interaction, Pizza Express has enlisted the help    of a conversational expert who is incorporating flirting and unique    conversation techniques … into its new staff training scheme to help    completely redefine the restaurant experience for customers

LED Dandelion Chandelier

Blending organic elements with industrial materials, Ralph Nauta and Lonneke Gordijn’s dandelion chandelier offers a meeting point between man-made and natural ecologies. Fragile from inception, elements of the dandelion are outfitted with LED bulbs and then placed on a frame in an attempt to illicit the image of a growing construction:

The story about the amalgamation of nature and technology. In the distant future these two extremes have made a pact to survive. Fragile Future III combines an electrical system with real dandelions in a light sculpture that is predestined to overgrow a surface.

Wired Looking Glass

The Cybertecture mirror has an inforgraphic display, measures 800 × 500 × 50mm, has stereo speakers, a WiFi connection and even fog-resistant glass. The mirror will connect with a cloud based digital profile so it can relate contextual information such as the local weather before you leave in the morning – or readings presented from a scale will help you monitor how your weight watching program is doing (via a display on the mirror or a web-based portal).

But is this yet another student concept? Engadget says that this isn’t just more ‘vapor-rich ware’ (nice phrase!) – but the Hong Kong based inventor, James Law, plans to ship 2 million of these in the next three years at a price tag of around $8,000.

Cybertecture Mirror

Pixel Art: Physical Fiction’s LEGO Letterpress Prints

In a novel mash-up using classic toys and an archaic printing technique, Physical Fiction creates pixel art letterpress prints using LEGO pieces.

Physical Fiction
[design work life via Coudal Partners]
PSFK

Docomo’s Garden Sensor

Japanese mobile operator Docomo has created a device that can help gardeners care for their plants.

Straightforwardly named for its sole purpose, the Garden Sensor is inserted into the soil to measure sunlight and moisture levels. The information gathered is then sent to Docomo, where their gardening consultants will then offer expert advice to the user via e-mail on how to properly care for the plants.

Tentatively priced between 20 to 30 dollars, the Garden Sensor will be released on a soft run to the general public by 2011.

Docomo

ShopWell: Helping You Make Better Nutritional Choices

ShopWell is a new website that scores foods on their nutritional values and allows shoppers to customize shopping lists based on their unique dietary needs. The site’s scoring system evaluates a product based on a users’ age, gender and how well it meets their nutrition preferences, so that they can focus on simply buying at the grocery store, instead of having to scrutinize the nutrition labels of each food product.

The company has also released a new tool called Personalized Nutrition Labels, that uses needs your age, gender, height, weight and activity level to provide you with a personalized nutrition label for any of the foods in their database. This is important, as the common labels we see are not applicable to everyone. Shopwell explains on their blog:

Most people don’t know that the Nutrition Facts Panel is for an  18-year-old adult with a 2000 calorie diet.  Hey, I didn’t even know  that until recently…and I work at a food-related startup!   Without even  knowing it, this nutrition information is probably being misused by  both your 30-year-old female neighbor and your 59-year-old male  coworker.  Hey, admit it, you are probably not getting everything out of  the Nutrition Facts label that you could.  I know I don’t.

North America’s Largest Indoor Living Wall

Last week saw the unveiling of North America’s largest green wall in Pennsylvania’s Longwood Gardens. Designed by Kim Wilkie and installed in the garden’s new East Conservatory Plaza, the green wall measures over 4,000 square feet and hosts a mind boggling 47,000 plants. The wall’s maintenance is fully automated with remote operated irrigation and sensors to ensure a long life for plants and will act as a green lung for the conservatory by removing over 15,000 lbs of toxins each year from the environment.

Kim Wilkie
Longwood Gardens
Inhabitat
PSFK

The 54th BFI London Film Festival In Partnership with American Express began with the European gala premiere screening of Never Let Me Go. Based on the much beloved novel by Kazuo Ishiguro (The Remains of the Day) and directed by Mark Romanek (One Hour Photo), the film features some of the UK’s brightest young talent in the form of Carey Mulligan, Keira Knightley and Andrew Garfield. This first of the festival’s daily vodcasts features all the film’s key talent and creative team as they arrive at the Leicester Square event.

Judges have chosen their seven finalists who will now go head to head in voting to decide winner of first ever Electric Shorts competition.

This summer saw thousands of film makers submit their short film pitches to a panel of film industry experts in a bid to win the first ever Electric Shorts prize supported by Mercedes-Benz and in association with Empire magazine. Designed to mark the 100th anniversary of London’s iconic Electric Cinema the competition targeted past and future filmmakers, challenging them to submit pitches that encapsulated the theme of ‘desire’ and be set in a Soho House venue.

Seven talented finalists have now been chosen and each received £5,000 to produce their short film.
As of October 4th 2010 the seven finalist’s films will be posted on www.electricshorts.com for the public to vote for their favourite.

The judging panel, whose expertise spans the film and entertainment industry include: Kris Thykier – Producer of The Debt, Kick-Ass and Harry Brown, Warner Bros Executive Vice President & Managing Director Josh Berger; Andy Harries – British Director and Producer who has produced a number of films for the large and small screen; Rebekah Gilbertson of Rainy Day Films and Oscar-nominated producers Amanda Posey and Finola Dwyer.

Others on the panel, include Claudia Winkleman – television & radio presenter recently announced as the new presenter for Film 2010, talent agent Duncan Heath who represents Michael Caine, Sam Mendes and Maggie Smith, Mark Dinning, Editor-in-Chief of Empire Magazine, Soho House Founder Nick Jones and Andrew Roberts Corporate Communications Director of Mercedes-Benz.

Soho House founder Nick Jones said: ‘We are so excited about what Electric Shorts has become. It feels like the perfect way to celebrate 100 years of this cinematic institution. We have seen some brilliant ideas and I am intrigued to see what the public think of the 7 finalists – I have a couple of favourites but it is a tough decision!’

Andrew Roberts the Corporate Communications Director of Mercedes-Benz added: ‘It’s been a century since the Electric Cinema first opened, but the quality of the work I’ve seen proves that contemporary film-making is an art form as relevant today as it ever was. The seven finalists have created exceptional work, and identifying one overall winner will be an exciting challenge for the public.’

Voting will close on October 27th and the winner will be announced at a star studded, screening event at the Electric Cinema on November 1st. All finalists will have their film screened across the Soho House sites, Aubin cinema and the overall winner will receive a two-year complimentary Soho House Everyhouse membership.

View them all at www.electricshorts.com

Soho Beach House is now open!

The site has been entirely redesigned and expanded to include a 16-story oceanfront tower. Soho Beach House includes 50 rooms, a screening snug, 2 pools, a beach club, as well as an expansive Cowshed spa and a Cecconi’s restaurant open to non members.

Find out more at www.sohobeachhouse.com