Added 1 July, 2013
By carefully planting different colored rice plants, Japanese farmers have created a series of rice paddy art
called "tanbo." No dyes are used to create the different colors and hues, rather farmers use various rice strains in their tanbo canvases. Often, hundreds of villagers work together to plant the rice by hand and create these massive works...
Added 1 July, 2013
From biofeedback bracelets to smart socks that help wearers run most effectively, wearable computing the all the rage. Now the technology is being used for diagnostics that may actually save the lives of wearers. The Oxitone armband continuously monitors heart rate and blood oxygen levels -- two of the core vital signs used to monitor patients...
Added 29 June, 2013
Transparency has been a huge by-word in the trends world for some time now. But how do you take advantage of this trend when you run a sushi restaurant? Robert Ruiz, chef of two-unit Harney Sushi in San Diego and Oceanside, Calif. Ruiz uses edible ink to print the QR codes on rice wafers he serves with sushi. Customers with smartphones can follow...
Added 28 June, 2013
In Brazil, demonstrations against huge spending on football while many of the country's citizens lack basic services are attracting hundreds of thousands of protesters. Against this backdrop, Champagne Taittinger has just announced that is has secured "official Champagne" status for its namesake brand at next year's FIFA World Cup football...
Added 28 June, 2013
Bitcoin is getting another real-life boost at the Pembury Tavern in Hackney, east London, as well as its sister pubs in Cambridge, Norwich and Peterborough, all of which are now accepting the virtual currency. Pub founder Stephen Early, a former computer scientist, created a Bitcoin payment system that is now in use at the pubs. The bar staff...
Added 28 June, 2013
Last week a 17-meter (56-foot) sperm whale was beached close to Cutty Sark Gardens on the south side of London. This super-real art installation is the work of the Belgian arts collective Captain Boomer, created in collaboration with Zephyr Wildlife Reconstruction. This beaching is a reminder that the sea is always a presence in London and is part...
Added 27 June, 2013
Artist Doug Aitken is gathering a group of artists and musicians and then sending them off cross-country for three weeks this September on an Amtrak train. "Station to Station: A Nomadic Happening." is a traveling expo will make ten stops in cities like Chicago, San Francisco and Los Angeles. In each they will stage unique cultural events...
Added 26 June, 2013
Despite recent economic wobbles and political shake-ups, Australian consumers continue to spend more when eating out than those in the US, Japan, France or the UK. When adjusted to US dollars, Australians spent an average of US$8.81 when eating out during the first quarter this year, a 4.4 percent rise on this time last year. In contrast the...
Added 26 June, 2013
When New York State legalized gay marriage almost two years ago, many in Niagara Falls saw the potential to rekindle its image as the “honeymoon capital.” New York was the sixth of 13 states to allow same-sex marriage
Niagara Falls is still benefitting from the afterglow of the positive image as the site of the state’s first same-sex weddings....
Added 26 June, 2013
Has the Metrosexual era finally gone middle-America mainstream? Designer Tom Ford announced the launch later this year of his first men's grooming line. The new grooming collection, Tom Ford for Men, will launch in the fall and features nine skin-care and grooming products, including a face cleanser, moisturizer, eye treatment, purifying mud mask...