Cool Hunting

Piezoelectric Concept Backpack
Capitalizing on the friction and heat created by walking, running and even just wearing jeans, engineers from Michigan Technological University, Arizona State University and NanoSonic Inc. devised a way to use this type of generated energy in a concept backpack that can charge portable electronic devices, like iPods and mobile phones. Shoulder straps made of polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), a strong, flexible material that feels...

mShopper
Adding to the ever-expanding list of things you can do with your cell phone, a Boulder-based startup called mShopper recently debuted a mobile shopping platform that combines the visual and tactile pleasure of brick and mortar shopping with the efficiency and cost- effectiveness of online shopping. Using mShopper's free service, consumers can easily compare the price of an item they'd like to buy from...

ITP Winter Show
Mark your calendars because next Sunday and Monday is the Interactive Telecommunications Program Winter Show. The student work presented will include interactive art and sound, assistive technology, wireless devices and physical installations. ITP is a fantastic program that pushes the boundaries of technology mediated interactive experiences. It's also near and dear because some of us here at CH (myself included) graduated from there or...

Sensacell
Leo Fernekes is a bit of a mad scientist operating in the commercial art-technology realm. He's a master electrical engineer exploring physically immersive human interfaces. If you have ever been to Remote Lounge, the hyper-surveillance themed bar on the Bowery in New York, you've had a taste of what Leo can conceive. Last night I had a chance to experience Leo's latest, Sensacell, developed...

I Want You To Want Me Video
"I Want You To Want Me," an interactive piece on the subject of online dating and relationships by perennial CH fave Jonathan Harris and his collaborator Sep Kamvar, and one of the standouts commissioned for MoMA's recent Design and the Elastic Mind exhibit, is the subject of this m ss ng p eces produced video. For anyone who missed the show at MoMA, the short...

Monome
Since the multi-use controller Monome first came out a few years back, it's slowly gained a cult following thanks to its attractive and flexible design. If you're unfamiliar with the device, the Monome is an ultra-tactile, interactive and adaptable MIDI interface that takes advantage of open-source software to manipulate any number of musical parameters. With a pleasing grid-based design, the programmable buttons function as...