Good Life Research

Brain Training, Dopamine and Internet Porn

2011-11-07T15:39:00.001-05:00

"Your Brain On Porn" is a fascinating site that explores the mental and physical effects of ubiquitously available Internet porn.

Interesting enough on it's own, but let's expand the definition of porn to all of the insane amounts of novel info candy on the Internet (lol cats, design "porn," gossip, dumbed down info-tainment etc) and what kind of implications do you see?

Your Brain On Porn (mildly NSFW because of subject matter)

A Map of the Future

2011-11-07T15:07:00.002-05:00

From Lapham's Quartely's "The Future" issue - a map of change that is predicted to happen around the earth by the year 2050.

Reading List: "Spaces Speak, Are You Listening?: Experiencing Aural Architecture"

2011-07-25T18:51:00.003-04:00

Looks very interesting.

We experience spaces not only by seeing but also by listening. We can navigate a room in the dark, and "hear" the emptiness of a house without furniture. Our experience of music in a concert hall depends on whether we sit in the front row or under the balcony. The unique acoustics of religious spaces acquire symbolic meaning. Social relationships are strongly influenced by the way that space changes sound.

In Spaces Speak, Are You Listening?, Barry Blesser and Linda-Ruth Salter examine auditory spatial awareness: experiencing space by attentive listening. Every environment has an aural architecture.The audible attributes of physical space have always contributed to the fabric of human culture, as demonstrated by prehistoric multimedia cave paintings, classical Greek open-air theaters, Gothic cathedrals, acoustic geography of French villages, modern music reproduction, and virtual spaces in home theaters. Auditory spatial awareness is a prism that reveals a culture's attitudes toward hearing and space. Some listeners can learn to "see" objects with their ears, but even without training, we can all hear spatial geometry such as an open door or low ceiling.

Integrating contributions from a wide range of disciplines--including architecture, music, acoustics, evolution, anthropology, cognitive psychology, audio engineering, and many others--Spaces Speak, Are You Listening? establishes the concepts and language of aural architecture. These concepts provide an interdisciplinary guide for anyone interested in gaining a better understanding of how space enhances our well-being.

Aural architecture is not the exclusive domain of specialists. Accidentally or intentionally, we all function as aural architects.

Spaces Speak, Are You Listening?: Experiencing Aural Architecture

Daily Links of Interest

2011-07-25T18:05:00.008-04:00

1) "The Fund for American Studies found that most people would not be willing to give up the Internet for $1 million."

2) “Çurface is the brainchild of two British makers who’ve figured out how to make a durable, beautiful, malleable material out of melted plastic coffee cups and compressed coffee-grounds.”

3) There’s something interesting about this:

“Gossamer is a web browser for the TI-83+ through TI-84+SE calculators and, through the use of a number of fairly interesting network protocol APIs, it lets you see the text of almost any website right on the calculators tiny, pixelated screen.”

4) Sky Orchestra

5) "Less-populated areas or cities with a strong small business presence are relying more and more on cost-effective mass-communication tools for business news, customer support and acquisition, as well as networking,"

6) With a little beta augmented reality app magic, Public Ad Campaign and The Heavy Projects have turned billboards and phone booth ads of Times Square into art.

7) Meet the world’s first sport-utility bathrobe (via ACL)

8) Homeless Guy Magazine

9) The word "community" is derived from the Old French communité which is derived from the Latin communitas (cum, "with/together" + munus, "gift"), a broad term for fellowship or organized society.

Links: Instant Nostalgia, Vanishing Smells & Introvert Urbanism

2011-07-22T15:17:00.006-04:00

"Drawn to organic and inorganic order, she constructs concrete hives for cities."

Jung Typology Test apparently I'm a INFJ

Divorce Lost Its Groove
Sex, love, and loneliness on the Internet.

The dangers of designing away risk

The art and science of carrying things

"When smells vanish, we lose a whole dimension of the world. Now there’s a movement to change that."

A way for writers to actually make money?

All counterfeit everything

Introvert Urbanism in Bangkok

"The Global Lab is a podcast about cities, global connectivity and the impact of technology produced by the UCL Centre for Advanced Spatial Analysis (UCL-CASA). Each episode features the latest news and perspectives from urban analysis, social complexity and innovation, as well as interviews with cutting-edge researchers from UCL-CASA and guests from further afield."

The power of instant nostalgia

The late adopter advantage

How they come to Hong Kong with literal bags of cash

2011-07-01T10:26:00.000-04:00

Mind blowing and important:

I asked one of the sales kids if A Bathing Ape saw any customer backlash from being bought by I.T. He laughed and said no, in fact it’s the opposite. Bape is bigger than ever here in Hong Kong. Later, our local friends told us that’s true to an extent – Bape IS growing in popularity here but it’s not with the HK crowd, it’s the rich mainland Chinese who come here to buy up all the cool fashion to take back home. We heard stories of how they come to Hong Kong with literal bags of cash (because credit cards have a limit). They’ll walk up and down the luxury brand row, throw their bags on the counters, and snag the best of Chanel, Gucci, and Cartier with little care or consideration of price-tags. Another story of a guy walking into a Toyota dealership and buying 20 cars set at $70,000 USD each, all with cash. And it’s not just clothes and cars, it’s housing and property. There’s an actual term for it, the practice of mainland Chinese visiting Hong Kong realty, asking for the best residence on the market, and blindly purchasing with cash without visiting the pad first. The world is turning in this direction, not just economically, but culturally, as a by-product of the gold rush. Just look how much the U.S. news talked about Chinese artist Ai Wei-Wei this week, whom I previously only ever really heard about when I was in Hong Kong. It’s history in the making every day here.

via The Hundreds

Package-Free

2011-06-24T17:41:00.001-04:00

A very fresh idea:

Soon to be the newest addition to the well-oiled Austin, Texas grocery store community — the town where Whole Foods was born — is the country’s first zero-waste, package-free grocery store, In.gredients. In.gredients is the product of a group of Austin-based entrepreneurs that envision a world without single-use food packaging; where you bring not only your own grocery bags to the store, but your own reusable containers to purchase your food from In.gredients’ bulk inventory. In their video (which you can watch after the jump) the group points out that in just making cookies, you throw away 13 pieces of non-recyclable single-use packages. And this is just a small part of the 570 million pounds of food packaging that Americans toss each day.

via

BACK IN BUSINESS

2011-06-22T14:57:00.001-04:00

POLYTOPIA

2008-10-28T13:00:00.001-04:00

POLYTOPIA. I like this concept - just want to start spreading the idea.

http://spacecollective.org/Wildcat/4133/POLYTOPIA-the-emergence-of

Better Than Free

2008-02-04T14:33:00.000-05:00

Kevin Kelly on the economy of free.

When copies are free, you need to sell things which can not be copied.

Well, what can't be copied?

There are a number of qualities that can't be copied. Consider "trust." Trust cannot be copied. You can't purchase it. Trust must be earned, over time. It cannot be downloaded. Or faked. Or counterfeited (at least for long). If everything else is equal, you'll always prefer to deal with someone you can trust. So trust is an intangible that has increasing value in a copy saturated world.

There are a number of other qualities similar to trust that are difficult to copy, and thus become valuable in this network economy. I think the best way to examine them is not from the eye of the producer, manufacturer, or creator, but from the eye of the user. We can start with a simple user question: why would we ever pay for anything that we could get for free? When anyone buys a version of something they could get for free, what are they purchasing?

From my study of the network economy I see roughly eight categories of intangible value that we buy when we pay for something that could be free.

In a real sense, these are eight things that are better than free. Eight uncopyable values. I call them "generatives." A generative value is a quality or attribute that must be generated, grown, cultivated, nurtured. A generative thing can not be copied, cloned, faked, replicated, counterfeited, or reproduced. It is generated uniquely, in place, over time. In the digital arena, generative qualities add value to free copies, and therefore are something that can be sold.

Wet benches will be a thing of the past

2008-02-04T14:14:00.000-05:00

Electro Plankton via Geekologie

No more packaging!

2008-02-04T14:07:00.000-05:00

Eliminating packaging by using it as part of the product design. Great ideas here.

What if you could simply reuse packaging as part of a product rather than sending away for disposal or recycling? Some industrial designers have taken up the challenge with varied results. Like creative flat-pack designs, the constraints of the projects become opportunities for self-expression and to (literally) think outside the box.

Via WebUrbanist

Crowd Farming - Harvesting Human Energy

2008-01-24T11:46:00.000-05:00

This is an older article, but goes well with the one below.

Two graduate students at MIT's School of Architecture and Planning want to harvest the energy of human movement in urban settings, like commuters in a train station or fans at a concert.

The so-called "Crowd Farm," as envisioned by James Graham and Thaddeus Jusczyk, both M.Arch candidates, would turn the mechanical energy of people walking or jumping into a source of electricity. Their proposal took first place in the Japan-based Holcim Foundation's Sustainable Construction competition this year.

Link

Electricity From RAIN!

2008-01-24T11:30:00.000-05:00

Piezoelectric materials produce an electric charge when under physical stress. Researchers have developed a way to use this effect to harvest energy from falling rain.

Researchers who study energy harvesting see energy all around us – we just need to find a way to capture that energy. One of the latest energy harvesting techniques is converting the mechanical energy from falling raindrops into electricity that can be used to power sensors and other electronics devices.

Via Physorg, thanks to a tip from New Scientist

We've Come Full Circle - Freight Ships Now Using Sails Again

2008-01-24T11:04:00.000-05:00

A German company has developed a new accessory for freighters, sails.

On the way out of the harbor, it lofted a kite-like sail that will be deployed any time the winds are right, cutting 10 or 20 percent or more off the fuel use for the trip, possibly saving as much as $1,500 a day in fuel costs, according to officials at Beluga Group, the owner of the vessel. Of course, this would also reduce carbon dioxide emissions.

Via NYT

Movement Enhances Thinking

2008-01-15T21:18:00.000-05:00

Image Credit: waldmeistergeschmack

Food for thought:

"The brain is often envisioned as something like a computer, and the body as its all-purpose tool. But a growing body of new research suggests that something more collaborative is going on - that we think not just with our brains, but with our bodies. A series of studies, the latest published in November, has shown that children can solve math problems better if they are told to use their hands while thinking. Another recent study suggested that stage actors remember their lines better when they are moving. And in one study published last year, subjects asked to move their eyes in a specific pattern while puzzling through a brainteaser were twice as likely to solve it.

The term most often used to describe this new model of mind is "embodied cognition," and its champions believe it will open up entire new avenues for understanding - and enhancing - the abilities of the human mind. Some educators see in it a new paradigm for teaching children, one that privileges movement and simulation over reading, writing, and reciting. Specialists in rehabilitative medicine could potentially use the emerging findings to help patients recover lost skills after a stroke or other brain injury. The greatest impact, however, has been in the field of neuroscience itself, where embodied cognition threatens age-old distinctions - not only between brain and body, but between perceiving and thinking, thinking and acting, even between reason and instinct - on which the traditional idea of the mind has been built."

Boston Globe via Mental Floss

New Air Jordan 23 Is Very Eco Friendly

2008-01-15T19:57:00.000-05:00

Don't be alarmed, you didn't accidentally click on Hypebeast or Sneakerfreaker. Nike is pointing towards a better future with it's latest and possibly last edition of the iconic Michael Jordan sneaker. The shoe is part of a collection known as Nike Considered.

"To be qualified as CONSIDERED, is must maintain these benchmarks:
1. Must be made from recyclable materials. (i.e., 100% recyclable plastics or veg-tanned leathers.)
2. Zero Toxins. Zero chemical adhesives. (no glue.)
3. Mechanical vs Chemical. (using mechanics and engineering to put the shoe together instead of chemical solutions.)
4. Closed Loop Technology. (the shoe must be able to come back 100% as another shoe or something else. Nothing goes to waste.)"

I'm happy to see someone as mainstream as Nike using "cradle to cradle" design principles. C2C in a nutshell, is design considering the entire life cycle of a product. My only question and concern is who's making the shoes? Eco friendly design is a great start, but if they are being made by any kind of "sweat shop" labor then the value chain gets weaker.

Via Jeff Staple

Texas High Schools To Teach Parenting

2008-01-15T19:09:00.000-05:00

How do we deal with the problem of teenage pregnancy and unprepared young parents? The Texas State Board of Education has decided to take preventative measures by introducing parenting skills to the health curriculum.

"Sandwiched between lessons on counting calories and staving off disease, high school health teachers will offer hefty doses of parenting advice in the next school year.

A new state law requires that parenting and paternity awareness be included in the high school health curriculum by 2008-09. The State Board of Education plans this week to adopt a curriculum developed by the Office of the Attorney General, an agency charged with, among other duties, cracking down on fathers who fail to support their children."

Via The Houston Chronicle

Stress Is Bad For You - Relax

2008-01-15T11:59:00.000-05:00

New research shows just how bad stress can be on your wellbeing.

"If you're worried about your health, stop. You're only making it worse. Stress takes its toll on your body, and new research reveals it is even more dangerous than thought.

Stress causes deterioration in everything from your gums to your heart and can make you more susceptible to illnesses ranging from the common cold to cancer, according to a review essay in the Dec. 2007 issue of the Association for Psychological Science's magazine Observer. Thanks to new research crossing the disciplines of psychology, medicine, neuroscience and genetics, the mechanisms underlying the connection are rapidly becoming understood."

Via Live Science

Shopping Carts, Now With Advertising!

2008-01-14T16:30:00.000-05:00

My first reaction to this device was "oh no, not more ads". At second glance though, I really like what this thing has to offer. Scanning each item as I put it into the cart and keeping a running total is really useful. Anyway, it should be pretty easy to just ignore the ads and get on with my shopping.

Via Yahoo News

"Microsoft Corp. is bringing digital advertising to the grocery cart. The software maker spent four years working with Plano, Texas-based MediaCart Holdings Inc. on a grocery cart-mounted console that helps shoppers find products in the store, then scan and pay for their items without waiting in the checkout line."

And a related story, the rise of digital coupons:

Supermarket chains are trying out paperless, or digital, coupons, to help the thrifty-minded save time while saving money. Shoppers load the online discounts onto their store loyalty cards, receiving the credit at the checkout.

Grocers see the innovation as a way to build customer loyalty, drawing consumers who are increasingly spending time online to their Web sites and ultimately, their stores. The move could increase coupon use by attracting shoppers who don't bother with paper coupons. It offers convenience for the companies in reducing handling, tallying and shipping of coupons, as well as cutting paper use.

Whisper To Your Audience

2008-01-14T16:02:00.000-05:00

Faith Popcorn is spot on in this Adweek interview. She drops the knowledge with a handful of trends that I can completely agree with. She calls for advertisers to start whispering and stop shouting. More honesty and less empty hype and boasting.

Please explain what you mean by branding in whispers?
It is not boasting how great your products are, but showing how your brand can help people. It could be through services your company offers, or doing things for your community or the manner in which you sell your products. During the holidays when there were all these long lines and crowds, Apple's message basically was: "Here are these things and they really work." That's a whisper. When a store delivers something to your house or a bank gives you a ride to the local branch, those are whispers. When Mini gives people all these ways to buy their cars, the company is whispering to its audience.

The other gem here is "cashing out". It's a kind of lifestyle minimalism. This is the growing desire to simplify life. The goal is to scale back any and all unnecessary baggage and commitments

We call it "cashing out." Workingmen and women are questioning their personal and career goals and opting for a simpler way of living. We see it in people of all ages and especially among those in their 20s. These young people are so tired of everything; they sound like they are in their 90s.

Try Disconnecting

2008-01-14T14:45:00.000-05:00

While watching Jane Austen's Persuasion on PBS last night my girlfriend asked me "Wouldn't you feel so unconnected and alone back then, without electricity or the internet?" I explained that a few summers ago I was at the Omega Institute, (way out in the middle of nowhere) and that there was no cell phone signal and very limited access to the internet - and I loved it. There is something so peaceful about being UN connected to the world at large and being fully present where you are.

Check out this fantastic article by The Idler's Tom Hodgkinson, questioning the value of social networks:

And does Facebook really connect people? Doesn't it rather disconnect us, since instead of doing something enjoyable such as talking and eating and dancing and drinking with my friends, I am merely sending them little ungrammatical notes and amusing photos in cyberspace, while chained to my desk? A friend of mine recently told me that he had spent a Saturday night at home alone on Facebook, drinking at his desk. What a gloomy image. Far from connecting us, Facebook actually isolates us at our workstations.

Early Adaptors Not So Freaking Important

2008-01-13T14:56:00.000-05:00

All of you lame, "viral marketers" please take note:

"Science News has a remarkably clear and concise article on a study that looked at how ideas spread through social networks. It found that under most circumstances a critical mass of more easily influenced people, not 'opinion leaders', are key to making ideas popular."

This is key:

The upshot of the study, Dodds says, is that "in the end, you don't have control over how people spread your message." The best way to increase the odds of person-to-person transmission of an idea is to make it a good idea and to give it "social worth," he says. "Some things are just fun to talk about."

Science News via Mindhacks

A Silver Lining To The Coming Cloud Of Recession

2008-01-13T14:14:00.000-05:00

"The positive side of this impending downturn is that people now have a psychological excuse to stop spending in an effort to find happiness - which still eludes them - and instead to get back to the things that really matter: relationships. In other words, to find happiness in investing time and effort into family, friends, neighbours and colleagues.

Although we are cash-rich, we are increasingly time-poor. Britain has the longest working hours in Europe and among the highest in the developed world. I anticipate that consumers will now try to organise a reasonable working week so that they can spend time where it matters - which will not mean non-stop shopping. A work-life balance revolution is on the way, and it may not be a bad thing for society."

Via Guardian Unlimited

Nuclear Renaissance, WTF?

2008-01-13T12:47:00.000-05:00

Surfing Google reader this morning I came across an alarming number of references to nuclear power. Nicolas Sarkozy was reported signing a nuclear co-operation deal with the United Arab Emirates. The AP also describes nuclear as a "fashionable" alternative to oil.

Oh, and attention all college students - hot new job market ahead...

"The industry's boosters (and many environmentalists) talk boldly of a "nuclear renaissance," driven by growing demand for energy and concern over emissions. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, 60 new reactors could be on line in the next 15 years, many in countries that had once forsaken nuclear energy as an option. The British government last week announced plans for a new generation of reactors, the first in more than 10 years. In the United States, 20 new plants have been proposed. France last month began work on a new reactor; Ukraine—site of the 1986 Chernobyl disaster—plans to build 11 more by 2030."

BAD idea. Nuclear power's track record speaks for itself. It's a inefficient, messy dangerous technology that needs to be eliminated. Does nuclear waste, three mile island or Chernobyl ring a bell? The risks truly outweigh the rewards.

NYC's Futuristic Pay Toilets

2008-01-11T10:58:00.000-05:00

Via NYT & Newsday

Energy from trash

2008-01-11T10:44:00.000-05:00

"I’m not sure if I’m watching a magic trick, or an invention that will make the cigar-chomping 64-year-old next to me the richest man on the planet. Everything that goes into Frank Pringle’s recycling machine—a piece of tire, a rock, a plastic cup—turns to oil and natural gas seconds later. “I’ve been told the oil companies might try to assassinate me,” Pringle says without sarcasm."

Via Popsci

Get Responsible

2008-01-11T09:19:00.000-05:00

Interesting new study about a proposed new stage of life called "emerging adults".

In a study done by three BYU professors, it was discovered that 80 percent of parents do not consider their 18-25 year-old college students to be adults. The students agree.

The time period for which parents are responsible for their children is lengthening and parents have new expectations for their children once they reach their 20s.

The study shows evidence that a distinct life stage has emerged between adolescence and adulthood. Larry Nelson, associate professor in the school of family life, and lead author in the study refers to students in this stage as "emerging adults."

What this looks like to me, is a further artificial extension of childhood.

This is not a new trend. Keeping people helpless and unable to take responsibility for their lives has been going on for a long time. The news in this story is that it's only getting worse.

How do we fix this? Where is the root cause?

Oh, I don't know, perhaps school?

Via Boundless
Image credit: marriedtothesea.com

Listen, take this fake pill with nothing in it, and you'll be better. No, really!

2008-01-10T10:57:00.000-05:00

"Can your perception of your exercise habits change your weight? Harvard psychologist Ellen Langer performed an experiment with hotel maids. She found that the maids didn’t consider what they did as exercise, although their daily work activity exceeded recommendations. Half the maids were told their activity levels met the surgeon general’s definition of an active lifestyle. One month later, the group that had the information was found to have lower weight, lower blood pressure, and smaller waists! However, there was no indication of changes in the group’s overall activity."

Courtesy of the always awesome Neatorama

But does it play video?

2008-01-10T10:49:00.001-05:00

"India's Tata Motors unveiled the Nano--the world's cheapest car yesterday. The Nano is about 10 feet long, 5 feet wide. The 2-cylinder petrol engine delivers 33 horsepower and a top speed of just over 60 mph. The $2500 basic model has no radio, air-conditioning or air bags, but it does have seat belts, a catalytic converter to reduce air pollution and gets 50 miles to the gallon."

via Reason

These Are The Nicest "Projects" I've Ever Seen

2008-01-09T22:39:00.000-05:00

"welcome to alt-erlaa, a social-housing complex in vienna.

built between 1973 and 1985, this incredible, government funded 27-storey complex accomodates approximately 10′000 low-income residents amongst a healthy amount of greenery. as you can see, the blocks are topped with outdoor swimming pools (used regularly by 70% of residents), but the facilities available don’t end there. others include: indoor swimming pools, fitness rooms, solariums, saunas, tennis courts, schools, 2 medical centres, church, shopping mall, restaurants, 3′400 underground parking spaces and a metro station."

via Deputy Dog

Making The Invisible, Visible

2007-12-06T20:16:00.000-05:00

Link

Hardcore toothbrush innovation

2007-12-06T20:10:00.000-05:00

I was thinking the other day about how expensive quality toothbrushes are. The idea occured to me that a brush with a replaceable head would be ideal. You get the performance and sterility of a new toothbrush without all the excess material. So, after patting myself on the back for this stroke of genius and trying to figure out how to capitalize on this "revolutionary" invention, wouldn't you know it - Radius has already done it.

This is what I'm talking about!

2007-12-06T19:57:00.000-05:00

"Utopía realizable" Image credit: Geusus

Quick, stop that door! Look again at your yellowing photos, search for a clue. Do you not see it? Do you not feel it, the touch of the possible? You have witnessed the potential for a higher life: you hold the fading proof in your hands. Don’t throw it away. In the attic of your mind, reserve a drawer for the notion of a higher state of being, and in the furnace of your heart keep at least one aspiring ember alive.

Letter from Utopia by Nick Bostrom
via J. Orlin Grabbe

Making Oil From Turkey Guts & Used Tires

2007-12-04T08:23:00.000-05:00

Live Science posted their top 10 emerging environmental technologies. Hate to spoil the surprise, but my favorite is #1 - thermo-depolymerization.

Any carbon-based waste, from turkey guts to used tires, can, by adding sufficient heat and pressure, be turned into oil through a process called thermo-depolymerization, This is very similar to how nature produces oil, but with this technology, the process is expedited by millions of years to achieve the same byproduct. Proponents of this technology claim that a ton of turkey waste can cough up about 600 pounds of petroleum.

Oslo Metro Trains Put Power Back Into The Grid

2007-12-04T08:17:00.001-05:00

“When a train’s operator applies the brakes, the four 140-kilowatt, 750-volt dc electric motors are engaged as generators that use the kinetic energy of the turning wheels to send current back into the metro’s power grid. This technique, called regenerative braking, allows the trains to recover up to 44 percent of the energy used to bring the trains up to speed.”

Link