Link About It: This Week’s Picks
South Korea’s toilet museum, Bond’s 3D-printed Aston Martin, facial hair fanatics and more in our weekly look at the web
1. 3D-Printed Aston Martin
Though the story called for a precious 1960 Aston Martin DB5 to be decimated, producers of “Skyfall,” the latest Bond installment, saved the rare icon by combining 3D printing with creative modeling. Propshop Modelmakers Ltd. employed a Voxeljet VX4000 large-scale printer to produce a series of model DB5s, which were built on a one-third scale out of 18 components.
2. Guy Fieri Kitty Critique
Early this week New York Times critic Peter Wells published his magnum opus of restaurant reviews with Guy Fieri’s city block-sized Times Square eatery in its crosshairs. To make light of the situation—or possibly make it worse—Eater positioned the harshest quotes from Wells’ writing as cute and cuddly questions from kittens.
3. National Beard and Moustache Championship
Facial hair fanatics converged on Las Vegas last weekend for the annual National Beard and Moustache Championships. Hundreds of hairy competitors took to the stage for a wide range of categories, including the full beard freestyle and the natural goatee. Some hefty prizes made all the itch worth it for a few lucky winners.
4. Skataviz
Developed by Design I/O, Skataviz is an experimental prototype designed to capture the exact motion of a skateboard by using the internal gyroscope and accelerometer within an iPod Touch. Check out the informative video, which visualizes the 3D motion data augmented over live skate footage.
5. Architecture for Dogs
Muji art director Kenya Hara recently curated a collection of DIY architectural arrangements for pooches as part of the global exhibition “Architecture for Dogs.” Enlisting the help of 11 famous architects, Hara’s project includes handsome hammocks, houses and mazes created for specific breeds. Building templates for each of the pieces are publicly available for download.
6. Venice Under Water
Soon after America’s East Coast was ravaged by Hurricane Sandy, Italy faced its own flooding woes as a result of heavy rains and strong winds. No Comment TV captured the record-high waters in Venice, where seemingly unfazed residents and tourists waded through the inundated plazas.
7. This Is What Democracy Looks Like
Unsatisfied with the visually-skewed poll maps from election day, MSNBC political correspondent and writer Rachel Maddow shares some of her favorite solutions for an accurate representation of red and blue voters. Maddow highlights several models, including author and illustrator Chris Howard’s density driven purple map of America as well as Princeton professor Robert Vanderbei’s spinning 3D version.
8. Orbit
Controlling the direction of a small helicopter using just your brain is the new genius project by Silicon Valley startup Puzzlebox. The small device, called Orbit, capitalizes on an individual’s brain waves to maneuver the helicopter from one point to another via a NeuroSky MindWave Mobile Electroencephalography (EEG) headset. Help get Orbit off the ground by funding Puzzlebox through Kickstarter.
9. Focus Forward: MAKASPADS
Filmmakers Francois Vaxelaire and Sara Fusco’s short film MAKAPADS is now a semifinalist in GE’s Focus Forward short film competition. The altruistic short centers on Ugandan doctor Moses Musaazi, who started a sanitary napkin company over 20 years ago in an effort to employ local women and
strengthen the community from within while also providing affordable access to hygienic products.
10. Fender Guitar for iOS
Musicians now have a smart and easy way to take their studio sessions on the road with the new Squire by Fender USB Stratocaster Guitar, a new model that allows for direct connection with iPhones and iPads. The simplified setup cuts out the mass of cords normally associated with traveling studios and live recordings. You can pick now one up exclusively from Apple for $200.
11. Yoskay Yamamoto
Societe Perrier sits down with talented multimedia artist Yoskay Yamamoto, who discusses how his Japanese heritage and West Coast upbringing influence his work. Fans of Yamamoto now also have the chance to win one of his “Still Thinking of You” limited edition sculptures by entering the celebratory giveaway on Facebook.
12. South Korean Toilet Museum
Potentially the first theme park in the world dedicated to the commode, Suwon, South Korea’s Toilet Culture Park is at once hilarious, scary and educational. Inspired by the city’s former mayor, who was instrumental in raising public health awareness in the 1980s, the “Park” includes multiple exhibits focused on public sanitation.
