Lifestyle

While branding oneself takes time and effort to spin out a new product, re-branding can take several washes to redefine that same brand. Take for example the work United Airlines had to accomplish after breaking someone's guitar. Let alone the number of Twitter apologies issued forth by Chris Brown and Kanye West. But when others do it in reverse and run their good-guy image through a darkside wash cycle, the task might be a little easier. Such is the case with the re-engineering of one Mickey Mouse.

Did the "voice of jihad" just get a little louder? Afghan tribalism has origins that date back 1400 years to the early Muslim and Islamic civilizations. With a lifestyle based on jihad and an economy that thrives on opium trade, who would have thought that these warring factions in Afghanistan and Pakistan would ever embrace social media as a means to communicate.

The health care reform debate this current legislative season has been more about who could shout the loudest versus who really had something to say. Earning their label as the "Party of No" the GOP's push back on health care has been perceived as protest-for-protest sake.

In the traditional preppy sweater and scarf style of the Big Men On Campus with a few modern twists, Mascot (Stay Lucky) has re-designed the studly college sweater and scarf for dogs.  Big Mascot On Campus, perhaps?

For wordsmiths the world over, a rejection notice is the common denominator shared by the entire literary community whether you are the next Hemingway or a weekend poet. However unwelcoming, those "we regret to inform you" letters have become a right of passage for writers. On the flip side, all an author really wants to see is his or her words in print. To that end Fictionaut, an online social network for fiction writers addresses that need.

Michael Arrington from Techcrunch wrote a very insightful article titled "Scamville: The Social Gaming Ecosystem of Hell," exposing Zynga and its scam-laden lead gen-type offers devised for their ever-popular Facebook games of Farmville and Mafia Wars. I challenge one of the more ethical game developers to actually use Arrington's expose to develop the real thing - an actual Facebook game called "ScamVille!"

Art, maps,imagery and graphs add context and a visual component to numbers, locations, and information. With as much influx of data we contend with on a daily basis, visualization tools allows our brains to take a rest while perceiving content in a different light. In essence, visualization allows us to stop and smell the pixels, in spite of the fact we might learn a few things along the way.

With the Holiday Season fast approaching, you might want to consider "making your list and checking it twice."Lists are the new order of business in Twitterville. Some say it will take the place of "Follow Fridays." Others think its jumping on the the Google Wave and Enterprise Microblogs' bandwagon.

This year in addition to influences from the movie industry's horror flicks, the financial decline in the US appears to be just as scary, if not more horrifying than "Paranormal Activity" and "Saw 2,3,4,5,etc." Let's take a look at how our current financial crisis might be affecting "All Hallows Eve" this year!

If you love modern and want to give your dog strain-free access to his food, the Doca Pet bowl stands are some stunners! Their creative designs are by Luke Wong, the Studiowai furniture designer in Chicago. He joins a number of other interior designers with a eye for pet ware. Here are three dog feeding stands in sizes that should fit the Yorkies, the Corgies, and the Danes.

For those familiar with the TV Show "Survivor," one knows you have to "outwit, outplay and outlast." And while that same philosophy is sometimes jokingly applied to failing marriages, LousySpouse.com's slogan of "endure, survive and prevail" plays it a little closer to the vest. Yes, there is a social network for those in the thralls of divorce, whether it be pre-, post or during.

Claiming to be the world's first flexible e-reader, this new device from Bridgestone provides a little extra durability and pop to your virtual books.

Ubiquitous Google is out there once again speeding past anything it finds in its way on what we use to call the Superhighway! This time its taken to the gadget world by transforming their Android phones into mobile GPS navigation systems - and its free!

What is so hot about the Volvo's XC60 coupe? Described on their Web site as a cross-over "with a big attitude," one would expect a car of this type to be owned by soccer moms driving their kids to practice. With a couple of well-placed product placements in a hit teens' & 20-somethings' movie, that same car is going to be on a lot of Christmas wish-lists this holiday season.

Created by Nissan and AIST, this personal mobility device combines the function (and hazards) of the motor, rollerblades and skis. We don't anticipate anyone will actually get very far on them.

The catch-phrase that transformed Las Vegas' failed attempt at becoming a 'family destination' back into its original 'Sin City' image is now taking another turn. "What Happens in Vegas, Stays in Vegas," was not only a brilliant ad campaign slogan, it also became a pop culture mantra used every time someone wanted to alert someone else about keeping things on the DL.

Like Mahalo, ChaCha, Eurekster and a few other social search engines before them, adding humans to the search function seems to be having a resurgence in popularity. After all when Google jumps into the fray, people do stop and listen.

The Yike Bike is an outside-the-box electric bicycle designed for urban commuting. It's not for everybody (or much of anybody), but it certainly is interesting to look at.

While the Fail Whale comes and goes. - sometimes its absence is missed as much as its presence. Ever wonder why the ubiquitous Fail Whale cannot disappear forever? Here's the rationale of some of the top thinkers on the subject.

Odd that Foursquare, the Location-Based Social Network with it roots in Manhattan should strike its first transit deal with the Bay Area Rapid Transit in San Francisco versus the New York Subway system. Is the new location-based social network attracting a narrow demographic of West Coast clique-ish gamers?