Archive for January 2008

Is the Tipping Point Toast?

In Books, Business on Jan-30-2008 with
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Duncan Watts has an interesting article at Fast Company calling into question the theory that a small group of influential people are responsible for triggering trends as outlined (and made famous) by Malcolm Gladwell’s The Tipping Point.

If society is ready to embrace a trend, almost anyone can start one—and if it isn’t, then almost no one can,” Watts concludes. To succeed with a new product, it’s less a matter of finding the perfect hipster to infect and more a matter of gauging the public’s mood. Sure, there’ll always be a first mover in a trend. But since she generally stumbles into that role by chance, she is, in Watts’s terminology, an “accidental Influential.

Perhaps the problem with viral marketing is that the disease metaphor is misleading. Watts thinks trends are more like forest fires: There are thousands a year, but only a few become roaring monsters. That’s because in those rare situations, the landscape was ripe: sparse rain, dry woods, badly equipped fire departments. If these conditions exist, any old match will do. “And nobody,” Watts says wryly, “will go around talking about the exceptional properties of the spark that started the fire.

Spore: Release The Darn Thing

In Gaming on Jan-27-2008 with
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Spore is a video game being produced and designed by Will Wright, who is famous for maybe the two most popular games of all-time, SimCity and The Sims. Spore is a multi-platform god game that allows a player to control the evolution of a species from its beginnings as a multicellular organism, through development as a sapient and social land-walking creature, to levels of interstellar exploration.

The Art of Jim Denevan

In Art, Photography on Jan-27-2008 with
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CBS Sunday Morning two weeks ago had a wonderful story on Jim Denevan. Denevan’s art is staggering in both its size, scope, and style.

Namibian Ghost Town Reclaimed By Sand

In Art, Photography on Jan-27-2008 with
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Via Boing Boing:

Kolmanskop is a ghost town in southern Namibia, a few kilometres inland from the port of Lüderitz. In 1908, Luederitz was plunged into diamond fever and people rushed into the Namib desert hoping to make an easy fortune. Within two years, a town, complete with a casino, school, hospital and exclusive residential buildings, was established in the barren sandy desert.

But shortly after the drop in diamond sales after the First World War, the beginning of the end started. During the 1950’s the town was deserted and the dunes began to reclaim what was always theirs.

Jeff Jarvis Live Blogging Davos

In Business, Technology on Jan-24-2008 with
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Jeff Jarvis on his blog BuzzMachine, is live blogging the Davos World Economic Forum. Jeff is an associate professor and director of the interactive journalism program at the City University of New York’s new Graduate School of Journalism. He has founded, run, or worked at numerous national and international media outlets. Heck, he has forgot more about interactive communications, journalism, and blogging than most people know. His live blogging of the event is some of the most interesting and insightful stuff I’ve read in years.

My Book Stack

In Books on Jan-24-2008 with
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Jimmy Corrigan: The Smartest Kid on Earth by Chris Ware

The Great Deluge by Douglas Brinkley

His Dark Materials (The Golden Compass; The Subtle Knife; The Amber Spyglass) by Philip Pullman

Spook Country by William Gibson

McSweeney’s Quarterly Issue #23 by Dave Eggers

Zorro: A Novel by Isabel Allende

Tons of TED Videos Online

In Technology, Video on Jan-23-2008 with
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TED, which stands for Technology, Entertainment, and Design is one of the most outstanding conferences around. If you’ve never had a chance to attend you are really missing out. But it would appear you can see much of what you’ve missed, maybe 50 hours plus, of videos/presentations on their site. Some of the ones I highly suggest include: J.J. Abrams’ Mystery Box, Isabel Allende Tells Tales of Passion, Larry Lessig Says the Law is Strangling Creativity, Will Wright Makes Toys That Make Worlds, Seth Godin on Sliced Bread, and Malcolm Gladwell on Spaghetti Sauce.

My Cat Files Herself for Attention

In Potties on Jan-22-2008 with
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Foliage Covered Botanical Building

In Design on Jan-21-2008 with
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This just might be the darn coolest building I’ve ever seen. Designed by architects Minsuk Cho and Kisu Park he is located in Seoul, South Korea. More pictures located here.

Stunning Shower Design

In Design on Jan-20-2008 with
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This shower might not be so darn functional if you have somebody in your home that takes baths (I don’t), but my gosh this is beautiful. He was designed by Matteo Thun & Partners for Pluviae. If you are an industrial design fan check out their examples they have online. Stunning in every way possible.