is wind turbine placement becoming like web advertising?

In reading today’s NYTimes’ article about corruption and wind power, I got to thinking: is wind power a physical example of web advertising?

The model seems to be that separate houses/farms/properties/entities host turbines. They are paid to host turbines. The energy goes into the grid.

The people making money are those with the turbines and those with the grid, while those who have to endure the equivalent of flashing ads get doubly screwed: They endure noise, shadows, and whatever else, losing peace and quiet, and they still have to pay for power.

This doesn’t seem right.

When I traveled to Denmark and Sweden last year, there were turbines–but not so much near occupied land. They seemed to be way out on remote crop farms–and out to sea.

Out to sea. Offshore where there is plenty of wind. 

Yes, they are visible, but they are also sculptural. Go to Copenhagen and have a look.

As long as they don’t disturb aquatic life–the ocean is the place for them. They aren’t leaky like oil rigs.

When turbines are offshore, they are silent, they are helpful and they don’t make people crazy with shadows and noise.

However, if they are going to exist on PUBLIC SPACE (like the sea) (and NO I don’t think they belong in National Parks) — there should be an energy savings for EVERYONE who has to LOOK AT THEM. This translates to a cost savings in energy bills. For EVERYONE.

Once again, we don’t get it. We try for individual gain at the expense of the group–capitalism. Maybe its time to rethink that a bit for quality of life?

For once, can’t we distribute the wealth and stop barraging everyone else with the advertising?

Trend: More turbines near you. This is potentially a really good thing, but craft legislation and vote carefully or that blaring internet ad could show up as the turbine next door to your dream house.

Remember: there are no spam filters for giant turbines so they should be placed with consideration for all creatures.

Watch Out, City Boys are Goin’ Mobile

 

The headline in the London news a few weeks ago was “Tube bosses angered by City Boy craze of attaching Oyster Card chips to their watches.”  It went on to say that “The new fad allows commuters to swipe their wristwatches on ticket barrier and top-up machines–without having to fumble in pockets to find their travel cards.”

I think this is a marvelous example of “innovation in context.” These City Boys aren’t doing anything illegal–they’ve bought their cards and paid the fare. What they have done, is shortened the bottleneck in their process of commuting. Instead of being angry–Tube bosses should be thrilled. They have the opportunity to create a faster commute for people. 

In fact, the Tube bosses themselves did a pilot study last year with 500 “Oyster Card” wristwatch prototypes. The flaw there, is in making someone buy something issued by them. The brilliance in what the City Boys have done, is they retain their own style, but soup up their commute.

Japan seems to be way ahead of the West again with this technology. People have been able to flash their cell phones for train fare for a long time now. It works well.  The phones in Japan do way more than they do in the West with regards to commerce, travel and communication–why is the West so…slow?

I applaud the City Boys. They have figured out a way to make their commute faster, without losing their personal style. 

If I were the Tube office, I’d collect them all and bring them in for a fully catered focus group.

 

Trend: its all Goin’ Mobile. With high fuel prices, mobility is the new status. Look for all things to be as mobile and tiny. We’re channeling our nomadic roots and catering for them with as much innovation as possible.

 

Let’s Get Small-er

As the ration world from WWII subsided, as a new generation of Americans travelled overseas, many of them would visit Europe and complain about the “smaller” portions of food, the tiny cars, and tiny living spaces. They didn’t understand the value of “small.” After all, they came from America: Bigger is Better!

WIth the gas prices and the associated issues related to them (food and consumer goods costs, etc.), I think that Steve Martin’s 1977 idea of “Let’s Get Small” might befit us as a new slogan. 

Steve said, “Let’s get small while driving.” We’re starting to do that. I haven’t seen a Hummer on the road around here in months and it seems that more and more cars on the road are mileage conscious. The waiting list for the Prius in San Francisco is over 200 people long.

How else would “Let’s Get Small-er” apply to us? Let’s live in smaller, more energy efficient homes! Let’s eat food that is local! Let’s eat less of it! Let’s make ourselves smaller!

In technology, the trend seems to be “Let’s Get Small-er” as well. Nanotechnology? Small. Web applications running on phones? Small. Micro loans? Small. Even Girl Talk, that I wrote about previously is sampled from: small clips of other music. Girl Talk? Small.

Small things add up to savings in money, resources and in general–well, bigger things.  Bigger compositions like Girl Talk, bigger savings, bigger impacts overall.

 

Trend: “Let’s Get Smaller!” its Bigger!

Whoop, there it is!

Okay, so its completely full of curse words and its, as someone said, a “legal nightmare” –but Greg Gillis’s brilliant mash up of 1970’s power rock, 1980’s Cure + all else is incredible. Each song is like getting into today’s rap rocketship to visit the past. Rapping the old style of how he rocks the mic with Big Country and Kraftwerk in the background. 

(That said, the lyrics are offensive and racist. He’s sampling them from other places, but they are offensive, be warned.)

Sonically, its incredible genius. This man has a great pattern ability.

Cam Lindsay on Exclaim.ca reviewed Mr. Gillis by saying “ ’his’ music isn’t so much of a mash-up but a complete deconstruction/reconstruction of past and present pop/rock, hip-hop and dance with an upwards of 20 well- and lesser-known favourites crammed into one new composition.”

Agreed.

Put the needle on the record.

“Girl Talk” AKA Gregg Gillis, “Feed the Animals” 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girl_Talk_(musician)

Trend: The Beastie Boys are back in one man in Philly. Old Skool. Don’t miss it. (Even though the language is beyond filthy.)

“Classey-Lady” and Other Global Travels at the Mall

Last week, my friend and I went to check out the Giant Mall in Milpitas. We thought we’d take in the bargains and see what there was. The stores range from high end (Neiman Marcus Last Call and Saks Fifth Off) to low end–Steve & Barry’s, where everything was $8.98.

The first experience we had was at Steve & Barry’s. Steve & Barry’s has just filed for bankruptcy and the store really showed it. Many items weren’t where they were supposed to be. It was as if the store had suffered from some sort of wave that had pushed all the merchandise to a giant pile outside of the fitting room and swept the rest to the floor or the lower shelves. Most garments weren’t that well made, but there were a few things that were surprising. The womens’ jeans were cut superbly and had a great fit, the right amount of stretch and a nice dark wash. Everyone had figured this out who was under a size 14 because the smaller sizes were missing–except for those that had washed up by the dressing rooms, which is where I had found a pair in my size to try on.

I purchased a pair of extremely well made and durable Khaki shorts. The tag said that they were made in Kenya.  After flagging down a clerk to pay for the shorts, we left the shop.

As we traversed the mall, we noticed that there seemed to be a lot of those little carts that are in the middle of the walkways. The carts are rented out for a smaller sum than a retail floor space and have flourished in the past decade. They are a halfway point between brick & mortar and an online presence and are very common at malls these days.

We stopped at one cart because it featured a long plastic pad with fake rocks embedded in it, resembling a river bottom. (I could really diverge here and talk about that the environment is wrecked so badly that portable river bottoms are now being manufactured, but I’ll save that.) The New York Times had an article on these fake river bottoms recently and one of the things it had mentioned was that for older people, stone walking helped build balancing skills. I asked the woman who was minding the cart if she had read the article in the New York Times. She did not understand me. She nodded, but could not reply. My friend noticed that she sold cupping glasses, which are used for a type of massage therapy style treatment. My friend asked her how the cups work. The woman pointed to a sign in a foreign language with an English sentence that said something like “Cups for healthy lifesyle.”  I realized that it was no different from being overseas. The general language of commerce, minus the questions, is all that is necessary for a transaction. One doesn’t need to speak the language, if one can initiate and repeat the pattern. This cart reminded me of an online cart–for an online transaction. The system was the same, and just like online, there was no phone number to call or email address for questions. This fascinated me. Live, but virtual–all in one!

We continued to walk the perimeter of the mall. We came upon a shop called “Classey Lady” that had a large “50% OFF!!” sign displayed prominently in the doorway. My friend thought it was an ironic joke that the proprietors were in on. It wasn’t likely. It is more likely that as the cart was, the store was owned by someone without English skills, but who understood and had good connections with cheap manufacturing and could offer the clothes at a substantial discount.  Spelling didn’t matter–why not “Classey Lady,” indeed.

When I got home, I showed my husband, who has a background in supply-chain and manufacturing, that the shorts I’d purchased were from Kenya. He said something to the effect that it was interesting, and that he suspected it was still Asian/Indian manufacturing because they are so entrenched in the garment trade and that they have begun to purchase land and trade into Africa. He offered that it was purely a speculation on his part, but in a few hours, he’d mailed me an article that Steve & Barry’s clothing was made by Rising Sun (K) Epz. Ltd. 

I cannot source this company. Is “rising sun” a common term in Kenya? Is it part of the Indian garment manfacturing company called “Rising Sun Garments Pvt. Ltd.” or one of the nine or so Rising Suns sourced in China?

It just doesn’t seem that Kenya would develop this industry–one of the big garment manufacturers has not got to be “offshoring” to Kenya.

I have no evidence of this, but it makes sense. As countries that the US has “offshored” to, become prosperous–it becomes too expensive for them to do their own labor, so they are subcontracting to Kenya, to Thailand, to Korea, to Vietnam, etc…

Maybe this isn’t news.

Trend: The countries we offshore to must make so much money now that they have to offshore. What happens after Africa? Will people ever offshore back to us because we’ve become such a bargain?

the refreshing taste of a “synthetic blood nourishment beverage”

“Synthetic blood products contain varied cellular content than actual blood. Please consult a Tru Blood Cellular Specialist for specific nutritional information”

There is a new drink that is marketed as a “synthetic blood beverage.” This is fascinating: we buy water in bottles now, why not “blood”? It isn’t blood, though, its a blood beverage. (Actually water is a blood beverage too. In fact, technically, all beverages might be able to be called “blood beverages” in that they are metabolized and contain fluid, but I don’t want to spoil the party yet.) 

Anyway, the website for this stuff reveals vampire/vampyre type of sales pitch where the site asks you when you “turned” before letting you log in. 

The product is divided into 4 different “types” of  ”blood” — and visitors take a “quiz” to find out their “Type” which is divided into O, A, B, AB–the same as blood types, minus the positive and negative.

The quiz asks such riveting questions as “How often do you get the urge?” (for what?) and “What is your type?” with pictures of men and women in silhouette. At the end of the quiz it tells the participant what “Type” they are and what “types” they are compatible with. (Don’t vampires like all types of blood? Do they discriminate? Do they have favorites?)

For example, the AB type is “The Cerebral Architect,” who apparently prefers to mingle with “all the other types” while drinking a “synthetic blood nourishment beverage” that “boasts a succinct combination of sophistication and judiciousness.” However, the B type is “The Cheerful Go Getter,” who is “most affable” with type A’s and drinks a beverage containing flavors that are “painstakingly imagined inducing an overall calmness.”  Let me get this straight: a type A (vampire) is a “Cheerful Go Getter” that needs to have calmness induced. Perhaps they are–if they haven’t had blood in awhile and they are on the prowl that would certainly kick in the “Go Getter” in any vampire.

But wait! There’s more! They sell underpants!  (They are sold out now, as are the “onsie” for babies. Seriously.) But you can still find the Tru Blood Coffee Mug. (A coffee mug? For vampires to use whilst drinking their “synthetic blood beverage”?) Some people do think that coffee runs in their veins so it could be spun that way, but it still seems well, sort of…silly.

I think this is branding gone very very very wrong. Its also worth noting that the website never tells you what is in this drink–they just refer to it as a “synthetic blood beverage.”

Trend: Besides the HBO show, there are probably there are some vampire/vampyre movies coming to the big screen near you–including Twilight, the adaptation of the popular young adult book. Be wary, those vampires may need “calmness induced.” Let’s hope they are wearing their underpants.

dust bowl chic

I like to speculate on what the next big fashion trends are going to be and I have to say this time I figure that we’re going to be revisiting the dust bowl. 1930’s depression era colors, styles, patterns. Minimal jewelry, longer hair (cheaper to maintain), natural fabrics. Worn looking shoes, maybe with different tones in the toe and back and perhaps laces and hooks will come back. 

The trend could come from the Great Depression–the obvious choice. However, with Global Warming, parts of the planet are going to be hotter, drier and dustier.

Trend: hot, dry, depression = retro clothing and styling of hot dry depressed times.

desperation is the mother of innovation

Maybe its just me, but in the last week or so I’ve had this awareness of more innovation. Things like vertical farming, which I heard about in 1998 and was mentioned in this week’s New York Times and also things like the reanimation of one of the car dealership graveyards on El Camino in Menlo Park. For many years now, they’ve been vacant and I’ve been wondering what might take their place. Today I found out. At least one is going to be a Tesla electric car dealer. Its a smart place to put it–lots of moneyed technology types interested in the latest high priced electronic car to get them from A to B in a higher than Prius status– will certainly support the Tesla’s 80k+ pricetag. There’s talk that this newer all electric car will usher in the new era of radically different transportation. They’re finally taking steps to create a *real* high speed rail from San Francisco to San Diego, too. 

Trend: My prediction is that the current economic downturn and the oil crisis is going to set in motion way more and faster innovation than we’ve seen in a long time. I expect to see more commercial ships that are hybrids of power and sail–or at least sporting solar panels!

trading down

I think there is a trend undercurrent going on. I’m in it though, so it makes it more difficult to write about. Its also on the cusp, so not quite yet defined.

It goes something like this:

It feels, at least here in Silcon Valley, that there is some sort of _shift_ happening. I noticed it when I was out of the country for a month or so earlier in the year. Its this transition–from bags being given out at the store, to bags that one brings to reuse; from high end luxury cars, to small gas saving vehicles; from opulence to reduction.

In the New York Times today there was an article on one of the women who had been a founder of the Kate Spade line of fashion merchandise. The company was subsequently sold, and this person is now semi-retired, living with her three or so kids in a 4 million dollar New York townhouse. What is interesting about it, is the return to ruin of her style. She covered her antique sofas in white muslin and invited her children and their friends to draw on them–she painted dried twigs and strung them with Christmas lights to make lighting for her main rooms and used very cheap sconces from a local shop for her stairway lighting. Stacked vintage luggage serves as a bedside table. Her whole home seemed to be decorated in, and functioning as a “reuse, recycle” sort of home, not the showpiece architect designed sample of perfection, which so many aspire to, and which she herself lived in with her husband (now-divorced) several years prior.

Another article, also in the Times, focused on how even those with private jets are “sharing” them with friends, as one would share a taxi ride uptown.

Okay, admittedly these are very high-end examples.

To put my finger on it, it seems that priorities are shifting which in turn are changing some internal values. The economy has got to be a factor, but its also as if the neighborhood collectively woke up one morning and decided that they had entirely too many possessions and weren’t being smart about how they were using what they had.

Trend: not sure what it is, but it feels like there is some sort of values resorting going on…

iPhone but i don’t vote

“Ben Thomas, 27, had his own explanation for iPhone mania. ”It’s a chick magnet,” he said. (AP newswire)

The most interesting thing about this for me–is the volume of people worldwide who want the device. Wanting it enough that they will wait outside for hours including overnight to be among the first to have it. 

I wish we could get that kind of voter turnout in the US come election time.

 

Trend: Status over Civics