Thrilling Towers of Humanity in Spain!

How crazy cool is this?


Casteller from Mike Randolph on Vimeo.

Power giants rule, or Why didn't I think of this?

Just the clothes on my back

How cool is this Jacket/Sleeping Bag/Tent combo?  I want it, but I'm a little worried about the usefulness of the screening though. . . .and where do those support pole thingies get stored when you're a jacket?  Still.

Thru coolmaterial.com 

UPDATE:  also really really want!!  Also from COOLMATERIAL

 
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Sand artist in Union Square

Came upon this in Union Square yesterday . . . everybody loved it, from the youngest to the oldest passer-by.  All done in carefully poured colored lines of sand . . . I'll have to check in on it today if I have time.  Two more pix after the jump . . .

China plans high-speed rail to Europe. Really? I'm jealous.

They've already got the most advanced high-speed rail system in the world, and now the Chinese have announced plans to extend it to Europe.  This means a two-day trip from King's Cross to Beijing!!  Detractors say this is the modern Imperialist equivalent of the Via Publicae -- a move to cement China's supremacy across the continent -- but others doubt it will ever come to fruition . . . the perceived benefits beyond passenger service being somewhat limited for the cost.  The US, for all it's "security" spending abroad, could take a page from this strategy book and strengthen our domestic infrastructure in a similar way to vast benefit. FULL STORY from the Edmonton Journal.
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Meter Mades - a bike rack revolution

New York continues in its move to make the city an awesome place to bicycle, by announcing that it will turn 225 parking meters into BIKE RACKS!  It's hardly enough, with the biker to rack ratio at 30/1, but it's an improvement, and welcome!  The hoops will aparently bolt to the existing meter posts, and replace every other meter on certain streets.  The process saves $200/meter removal and sidewalk mending, so it's a cool design decision too.
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Bike Lanes Around the WORLD

Some good, some great, some not so much:  GALLERY HERE

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Heroes of PS 8 in Brooklyn!

If these tiny humans get it, why can't all the big ones?

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37% and rising in Copenhagen!

Under the scrutiny of the world's greenies, Copenhagen is shining brightly as a biker's paradise.

"Tens of thousands of people from nearly every nation on earth have descended on Copenhagen this month for the UN climate summit. As the delegates try to piece together a framework for reducing greenhouse gas emissions, they're also absorbing lessons from one of the world's leading cities in sustainable transportation. In Copenhagen, fully 37 percent of commute trips are made by bike, and mode share among city residents alone is even higher."

Great video HERE. Shows some cool advances like bike counters, innovative lane updates, and the SUV's of Denmark (they're bikes). 

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Update on the Bike Lane Bandits - Video!

He he he, they're so revolutionary, they have a PR department. I'm out of town for the ride on Sunday, but I wish I wasn't!!!!!!

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Karma karma karma karma

How cool is this? Chameleon/Artist's Gallery from Hi-fructose HERE.

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Fire at will

Normally I'm more of a traditionalist when it comes to fireplaces, but this is kinda cool, no? It swivels.

Obama, the Super-project Void, and Me

See that iconic bridge there? It wasn't always there. It seems like it was, but in fact it was one of our great nation's greatest public projects -- one of many Super-projects the likes of which we rarely see now. It was not built by WalMart or Microsoft (although private investors historically chipped in). Along with umpteen railroads, canals, roads, parks and monuments, the Golden Gate Bridge was an undertaking so grand we could only realize it as a nation. A step forward of such massive length, that the states had to snap together like Voltron to take it.

Actually, the US Post Office I'm seeing out the window in front of me (the historic James Farley Building) is the product of just such government bravery. Here's a pic I just took:

Cool, right? It boasts the longest giant order Corinthian colonnade in the WORLD. Of course it now faces the craptastic Madison Square Garden (great job aces), but nevertheless, the Post Office stands as an anchor in a struggling neighborhood.

Ok, back to the Super-project Void. Louis Uchitelle writes in this ARTICLE in the NY Times,

"So what are we missing, exactly? Huge public works — or more precisely, their historic absence — didn’t cause the recession any more than their renewal would quickly draw the country out of it. But their effect on the economy is almost always noticeable if not easily measured. Some economists argue that the continual construction of new megaprojects adds a quarter of a percentage point or more, on average, to the gross domestic product over the long term. Again, cause and effect aren’t clear, but the strongest periods of economic growth in America have generally coincided with big outlays for new public works and the transformations they bring once completed.

If their absence creates a void, particularly in a recession, what can fill it? "

The article is a quick read, and it again opens debate about Obama's commitment to lifting us out of this recession with down-payments (and jobs) on similar projects. Here's

MY GREAT IDEA:

• High-speed rail lines link Detroit with Pittsburgh, Philly, and Chicago.
  
  
• The Detroit auto industry is encouraged (read: forced) to transform itself into the national center of manufacturing and R&D for wind turbine technology and photo-voltaic innovation.
  
  
• Automobile production in Detroit ceases.
  
  
• China, India, Canada, Mexico and Russia begin ordering our super-fantastic green energy products like mad.
  
  
• The idea of the Super-project is re-imagined as Detroit becomes the first Super-Urban-Project, and Obama leads us merrily into the 21st Century with Detroit the shining green flourishing city.

You listening, Mr. O?

Dallas' future looks green (?)

Way to go Dallas! Check out the renderings HERE.

People's Design Award 2009

The 2009 People's Design Award goes tooooooo . . . this cool city bike for, well, anybody.

"A simple city bike with an upright riding posture, the Lime uses Shimano's Coasting automatic three-speed transmission (a pretty complex system with a very simple user interface) and a back-pedal brake rather than hand levers."

I'm kind of uncertain whether I could count on an automatic transmission and pedal brakes when I'm flying and weaving down Second Ave., but that's why we need those 100 plus new miles of bike lanes that Janette Sadik-Kahn has proposed (and it just might happen since Bloomberg's still here and if the City Council doesn't sit on her all year).

Librarian not wanted

What started as a community lending library -- a bunch of beer crates and used books -- became a fully stocked and self-sufficient outdoor public library. The facade of an old warehouse, and plenty of greenspace carve out a block of quiet community in the former East Germany.

Full gallery HERE

I love these projects that serve the community in a still, calm, democratic way.

The Story of Stuff

So this is not new news, or a new video, but it remains one of the best reminders of the death-grip stranglehold consumerism has on us. Simple and clear.

"THE STORY OF STUFF"

It should be required viewing for every American. It should pop on the television every night as a public service announcement, brought to you by the Dept. of Homeland Security. Al Gore didn't win the Nobel for Peace because there is no Nobel for Film, he won it because dwindling resources are a global security issue, and addressing massive American consumption is the first step we can take to ease tensions.

Sweet Sunny Italian Train

Very cool people-mover/ped. walkway/solar field in Bologna.

" . . .designed to speedily move people from the main train station in Bologna out to the airport with only one intermediate stop at Lazzaretto. It crosses over one major highway, spanning the stretch of road in a graceful arc. At each station a metal screen covered in vegetation protects passengers from the elements, and also helps filter the air, provide natural insulation and shade the platform."

Or they could all just drive separately and park in huge asphalt lots.

White Night

This is the color of the majority of space . . . and were it not for the continued expansion of the universe shifting light away from the visible spectrum, the night sky would be this color.

short explanation here

Unless of course the universe is just 6,000 years old and Jesus just made the sky black at night when the sun goes to bed so we could get some sleep!