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Aston Martin's Lagonda SUV Concept Spies Well-Heeled Chinese Drivers
by China.new
Aston Martin Lagonda Limited, famed for its high performance GT sports cars favored by the likes of James Bond, reckons its future lies far to the east of MI6 headquarters in the garages of China's rich and famous. The super-luxury 4x4 Lagonda SUV is expected to cost a pretty moneypenny and would likely leave 007 shaken, not stirred.
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Add new comment Coin Laundry Calls When Your Clothes Are Clean
by Steve Levenstein
Kyoto Laundry Service announces "Hello Call”, Japan's first coin-operated laundry voice information service. Got things to do and people to see? No problem, your machine will phone when it needs more detergent, more change or more repairs.
1 comment Facebook's IPO Morality Tale: If The Green Shoes Fit, Wear Them?
by Ron Callari
Facebook's reversal of fortunes in such a short span of time has played
out almost like a modern-day morality tale. The fall-out of the social
network post-IPO, after such an enthusiastic build-up was telling. While it lined the
pockets of some (namely investment bankers), it deprived the 99
Percenters (or Dumb F*cks
as Zuckerberg so adroitly labeled them back in 2004) full-disclosure,
resulting in a subsequent short-fall on their FB investment.
Chengdu's Love Zebra Crossing: Street Hearts for Sweethearts!
by China.new
Cross your heart and hope to... live? In an effort to ensure the often bumpy road to romance gets off to a smooth start, the Chinese city of Chengdu has provided a Love Zebra Crossing painted up in lovely red & white.
Peak Download: Internet Access Arrives at Remote Tibetan Village
by China.new
A pilot project to provide network services for a tiny Tibetan village has allowed residents to connect to a wider world many did not know even existed. The project, sponsored and funded by China Telecom, also provides villagers with internet-ready computers, Tibetan-language web development and skills training.
Chinese RoboCop Keeps An Electric Eye On Crime
by China.new
A robot policeman equipped with a CCTV cyclops eye and a navel-mounted panic button is the new face of crimefighting in China. Though fixed to the pavement and unable to chase feeling suspects, the ersatz RoboCop nonetheless has brought peace to the mean streets of Kunming.
Do You Have Enough Klout To Fly The Friendly Skies Or Land The Perfect Job?
by Ron Callari
Klout is to 'personal influence' what Google is to 'page ranking.' While
the Big G's algorithms determine the relevance of the Internet's every
web page, Klout supposedly ranks the influence of every person online.
As a 3-year old start-up, it's raison d'être is to measure influence
based on the digerati's ability to drive action.
How Many "Dumb F*cks" Will Rock Facebook's IPO Like It's 1999?
by Ron Callari
The term "Dumb F*cks" has hung over Mark Zuckerberg like a dark cloud during the course of the last 8 years. Not because his nickname "Zuck" rhymes with the expletive, but because the CEO of today's largest social network derided his early FB users as such. In 2004, when first percolating the idea of FB in a Harvard dorm room and asked how he attracted so many followers so quickly, he off-handedly responded they were following him blindly, like "Dumb F*cks."
KDDI's Concept IIDA Smartphone Features a Manual Analog Clock
by Steve Levenstein
Look Ma, hands! Japan's KDDI is showcasing a curiously retro smartphone that's a real blast from the past. The phone's bezel features a manually-wound analog clock, thus creating a fusion of elegance and technology.
KFC Japan Serves Beer & Booze Beside the Bucket
by Steve Levenstein
Forget that Happy Meal, at KFC Japan it's Happy Hour! Want a double with that Double Down? Perhaps a cocktail with your cock-a-doodle-doo? Tokyo's newly opened KFC Route 25 restaurant has begun serving beer & booze by (or at least, beside) the bucket.
From "This Land Is Your Land" To "99 Percenter Song" OWS Guitarists March On NYC (Music Video)
by Ron Callari
Legions of guitarists, string players, troubadours, and DIY-shaker makers will converge on Bryant Park May 1, 2012 for Occupy Guitarmy,
as part of the Occupy Wall Street May Day initiatives for social and
economic justice. And you're all invited. Just show up at the Gertrude
Stein statue at 12 Noon on that date and get ready to jam all the way
down to Union Square.
China's Taobao Internet Mall Offers Beautiful Girl Delivery Service
by China.new
Special delivery indeed: China's Taobao internet mall is boosting their business with the aid of “beautiful girls” who personally deliver customers' orders for a small extra fee.
Burger King Japan's Bakin' Up a Big Bacon Bargain
by Steve Levenstein
Got a yen for bacon? Got a hundred yen? Then get your appetite to Burger King Japan! For a limited time only, the popular fast food chain is offering customers a whopper of a deal: 15 strips of bacon on almost any Burger King Whopper for just 100 yen.
Bioengineered Stem Cells Produce Hair On Bald Mice
by T Goodman
A recent experiment by the department of organ technologies at the Tokyo University of Science was successful at bioengineering hair follicle growth in bald mice. Though these images may look small in the scheme of bioengineering organs, the development is very important, both for those who would like to replace their 'rugs' with something more credible, and for the future of other bioengineered organ replacements.
Music Keeps "Occupy" Movement Humming Along (Videos)
by Ron Callari
On March 17th, the 6th month anniversary of Occupy Wall Street,
hundreds of 99 Percenters chose to return to their original stomping
grounds on Wall Street. But this time they were pushed back by NY City
cops, and as tensions rose, one activist was actually punched in the
head by officers several times, while others were subdued and arrested.
Social Media's Dark Side "Is Anyone Up" Is No Longer Up!
by Ron Callari
The number of followers who had joined "Is Anyone Up"
might not have been in the hundreds of millions like some of the more popular
social networks, but it sure was capitalizing on the profiles that were registered on Facebook and Twitter, nonetheless. Entrepreneur
Hunter Moore had taken Chatroulette to a whole 'nother level to what some were defining as "revenge" or "identity" porn.
FDA Approves Radioactive Dye In Brain Scan For Alzheimer's
by T Goodman
It was a great Friday for those folks waiting for the radioactive dye Amyvid to be approved. The dye, which allows doctors to see the toxic protein amyloid plague in the brain via a PET scan, has been waiting for approval since it was turned down by the FDA one year ago. On Friday, April 6, 2012 the FDA approved the use of Eli Lilly's Amyvid, and Lilly announced that the dye will be available for use this summer, in small supply.
Enigma: Puzzling Wooden Floor Design By Jamie Beckwith
by Toby
Floor tiles have moved up a few notches since the vinyl foam tiles first
lined the nursery. And, though these tiles may remind you (somewhat)
of those jigsaw like EPA pieces, nowhere have I seen floor tiles so
elegant that they must be the center of attention in any room they are
laid - the hand-crafted wooden puzzle floor tiles of Jamie Beckwith.
An Old Simple Gadget Made New By Biomimicry
by Must Love Gadgets
The thumbtack, or 'drawing pin' as it was first named by the British, was invented more than a century ago. It is so simply designed, it's hard to think of how it could be improved... unless you happen to stick a few fingers into a box of these pins to try to pick one out just one from the pack. Ouch!
Social Media's Court Of Public Opinion: Zimmerman vs Martin Blurs Vigilantism & Censorship
by Ron Callari
When a neighborhood watch group escalates from its watchdog origins to
outright vigilantism, is nothing to be done to protect the lives
innocent citizens? So is the question asked by the Trayvon Martin camp. However, in their fervor to prove their point, they have assumed the
same extreme behavior online as that which they are condemning on the
streets.