http://www.psfk.com Your Go-To Source For New Ideas And Inspiration Wed, 15 Feb 2012 19:00:27 +0000 en hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.2.1 http://www.psfk.com/2011/03/national-geographic-lets-fans-find-real-treasures-in-tiny-world.html Wed, 16 Mar 2011 15:00:47 +0000 Deeplocal has partnered with the organization to build an innovative "real-world application" for fans to explore.]]> http://www.psfk.com/2010/04/the-proximeter-an-instrument-for-ambient-social-proximity-awareness.html Tue, 20 Apr 2010 15:44:34 +0000 MIT masters student John Kestner has conceptualized the Proximeter, an instrument that takes location data and presents it in a meaningful way.]]> http://www.psfk.com/2010/04/postcode-wars-london-is-your-game-board-with-nike-grid.html Thu, 15 Apr 2010 07:05:03 +0000 Recently, popular apps like MyTown, Gowalla, and Foursquare have turned life into a game. Underneath this is a deeper cultural trend towards expressing oneself and exploring in public spaces.]]> http://www.psfk.com/2010/01/nike-does-local-social-with-true-city-for-iphone.html Fri, 15 Jan 2010 15:25:46 +0000 Nike is giving us their taste in mobile marketing with True City, an iPhone app with the tagline 'Making the hidden visible.' It combines social elements with current mobile technologies to create a next-gen city and travel guide for six European cities.]]> http://www.psfk.com/2010/01/shark-triggered-sms-alerts-present-life-guards-with-ambient-awareness.html Tue, 05 Jan 2010 15:52:01 +0000 Scientists in Western Australia have tagged over 70 great white sharks for a trial that will send beach lifesavers a text message when one gets too close to shore.]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/12/mag-conceptualizes-the-future-of-digital-magazines.html Thu, 17 Dec 2009 16:44:37 +0000 Through joint efforts, London's BERG and Bonier R&D have been designing the future of digital publishing.]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/12/samsung-seeds-mobile-charging-stations-across-americas-future.html Tue, 15 Dec 2009 07:01:01 +0000 Samsung recently announced that it will be installing mobile charging stations across several major American universities.]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/12/fedex-embraces-environmental-sensors-with-senseaware.html Thu, 10 Dec 2009 17:42:02 +0000 fedex senseaware FedEx is making its move into the Internet of Things with a new package tracking service under the name SenseAware. ]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/09/the-long-tail-of-coffee-adds-to-starbucks-identity-crisis.html Mon, 21 Sep 2009 14:27:24 +0000 Over the past year we’ve noticed experimentation in Starbucks’ marketing, a reflection of an identity crisis in the industry as “mass-market powerhouses” McDonald’s and Dunkin’ Donuts use the recession to rise from below. On the opposite front gourmet coffee startups are beginning to present the premium quality Starbucks once used as its primary selling point. ]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/09/infographic-the-most-frugal-cities-in-america.html Wed, 16 Sep 2009 13:36:39 +0000 Mint, the newly acquired financial startup, crunches user data to reveal which American cities cut spending the most in 2009. ]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/09/pics-selfridges-london-displays-abcs-of-the-future.html Wed, 16 Sep 2009 13:03:46 +0000 To celebrate 100 years of existence, Selfridges London put products from a century into the future on window display. Each object was assigned a letter and formed the ABCs of tomorrow.]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/09/brands-buy-media-to-save-consumers-from-advertising.html Tue, 15 Sep 2009 15:14:35 +0000 Dropping a total of $2.2 million dollars, South Korea's Hyundai Card has bought out all media space in the newly opened subway station just outside their building. ]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/09/robotic-lawn-mower-affects-human-machine-relationship.html Mon, 14 Sep 2009 07:01:30 +0000 New York City Hall is testing a robotic lawn mower that is able to self steer and charge its own battery. Having the potential to relieve union workers of their current responsibilities, it could be a new page in the human-machine relationship.]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/09/pics-artist-re-imagines-suburbia.html Tue, 08 Sep 2009 14:34:19 +0000 Contributing to the discourse taking place around the state of the suburb artist Ross Racine has created a series of fictional renderings. ]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/09/pics-stencils-create-miniature-abandoned-neighborhood.html Wed, 02 Sep 2009 15:58:19 +0000 The latest work from German street artist EVOL uses layered stencils to create the illusion of an abandoned cityscape. ]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/09/youth-music-box-acts-as-training-wheels-for-future-musicians.html Wed, 02 Sep 2009 14:45:21 +0000 Silent Studio’s Youth Music Box is a fully interactive musical sandbox where up to four or five people can perform using instruments like keyboards, drums, and a DJ style interface.]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/09/pics-coke-zero-x-neighborhood.html Wed, 02 Sep 2009 07:01:34 +0000 To reach Hong Kong’s hip urban demographic Coke Zero is teaming up with Japanese streetwear brand Neighborhood Denim. ]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/09/contact-lenses-display-information-using-leds.html Tue, 01 Sep 2009 18:30:26 +0000 Scientists at the University of Washington are working on a new breed of contact lenses with embedded LEDs which allow information to be displayed to the wearer.]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/08/community-grows-around-extreme-pogo-stick-action.html Mon, 31 Aug 2009 21:32:06 +0000 A small but vibrant community is developing around the extreme pogo stick.]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/08/london-looks-to-the-public-for-brand-advice.html Fri, 28 Aug 2009 20:24:28 +0000 In an attempt to consolidate London’s multiple identities into a more unified package the Greater London Authority has opened up the ideation process to all. The official invitation hopes that contractors will help engage stakeholders in order to develop London’s narrative post-2012. Independent agency Moving Brands is already putting social media to work with its blog, A Brand for London, and Twitter account @we_are_london. These initiatives are designed to open up commentary on subjects such as London’s design DNA, architecture, and people who live there. [via brandnew] Related on PSFK: Quirky Crowdsources Product Design Crowdsourcing Instant Noodle & Beverage FlavorsRead more...]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/08/brand-culture-shock-ikea-retail-experience-adapts-to-beijing.html Thu, 27 Aug 2009 07:05:27 +0000 The LA Times has published an interesting gallery of images showing Beijing consumers using their local IKEA store as a space to relax and socialize. Beyond shopping, the store has become a destination for Saturday afternoon family outings, naps, and photo shoots. Only with China’s recent economic growth have branded retail experiences become more common. For most Chinese the concept is still fairly foreign, making visiting these locations a form of entertainment. [via LA Times]]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/08/googles-arterial-traffic-data-makes-us-more-efficient-or-does-it.html Thu, 27 Aug 2009 07:04:11 +0000 To make planning your next trip across the city a little smoother, Google Maps has implemented live traffic information for arterial roads. The service uses GPS enabled smart phones with the Google Maps application to crowdsource its data. With many devices telling HQ how fast they are traveling, a fairly accurate picture of where congestion is or isn’t can be presented. The ability to view traffic history also makes it easier to predict future conditions. Tools like this make life easier, but there are concerns that if large numbers of drivers all try to optimize their route at once, evenRead more...]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/08/pitchforks-social-history-of-mp3-presents-the-big-picture.html Tue, 25 Aug 2009 14:24:15 +0000 For the past decade or so capitalists have struggled to maintain control over the distribution of music. We’ve seen the trend reports, multitudes warning about the demise of the industry. We’ve also seen artists like Radiohead and front man Thom Yorke demonstrating a little optimism by facing the situation head on; see paywhatyouwill pricing and their decision to quit the album format cold turkey. Innovation is present, Mos Def’s T-shirt marketing, leak strategy, and new perspectives on album art included. Quite simply, the business of music is evolving and it is important to remember it always has been. The mostRead more...]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/08/pics-romain-laurents-tilt-photography.html Tue, 25 Aug 2009 07:03:25 +0000 French photographer Romain Laurent is known for his superb work, and is often contracted by ad agencies. His latest concept features everyday New Yorkers standing at nauseating 20 degree angles. [via today and tomorrow]]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/08/aspiring-batmen-sonar-ruler-proves-theres-an-app-for-that.html Mon, 24 Aug 2009 07:00:04 +0000 For under a dollar Laan Labs is making measuring distances in a bat-like fashion entirely possible. iPhone app Sonar Ruler uses click sounds, or “sonar” pings, via the phone’s speaker then listens and measures the time it takes for the sound waves to return to the microphone. The application gets technical taking into account air temperature and allowing the user to tweak units of measurement as well as sonar settings which can then be saved for measuring different environments. According to the app store description, sonic distance measurement can be done up to 60 feet. Sonar Ruler Demo from ccRead more...]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/08/san-franciscos-lombard-street-becomes-candy-land-game-board.html Fri, 21 Aug 2009 15:23:44 +0000 In an extreme bit of experiential marketing, and to celebrate Candy Land’s 60th anniversary, Hasbro transformed San Francisco’s winding Lombard Street into a life-size version of the board game. Two teams of children competed in a round of the game, those from UC San Francisco Children’s Hospital versus Friends of the Children. The reward waiting at the finish line was dessert by Debbie Does Cakes. [via laughingsquid]]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/08/emigre-no-70-celebrates-25-years-in-graphic-design.html Thu, 20 Aug 2009 07:05:28 +0000 The legendary California type foundry Emigre Graphics, founded by Rudy VanderLans and Zuzana Licko, is releasing a “best of” book. This will be the first from the influential design magazine Emigre since it stopped publishing in 2005. 512 page Emigre No. 70: The Look Back Issues – Celebrating 25 Years in Graphic Design will cover the best from a quarter century of the magazine’s content. They explain the story: During the late 1980s and throughout the 1990s, graphic design was experiencing one of its most exciting and transformative periods. The Apple Macintosh computer had been introduced, design schools were exploringRead more...]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/08/16-million-jewel-beetles-unite-to-form-ceiling-masterpiece.html Thu, 20 Aug 2009 07:00:53 +0000 Flemish artist Jan Fabre has created the ‘Heaven of Delight’ using 1.6 million Buprestidae beetles. Fabre and his team of thirty people took 4 months to glue all of the beetle shells to the ceiling of the Royal Palace in Brussels. The jewel beetles were obtained from universities and connections Fabre had in the open market. They are a non-protected species that are abundant in certain countries like Thailand where the beetle is fried and eaten. Jan Fabre on his creation: As far as the ceiling is concerned, I first created a wide variety of forms and patterns by gluingRead more...]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/08/bi-axis-fridge-speaks-for-change.html Wed, 19 Aug 2009 15:07:49 +0000 Good design solves problems and can sometimes even make a statement about changing human behavior. This refrigerator concept for Samsung by Netherlands’ GRO Design attempts to do just that. It presents itself as a piece of furniture rather than an appliance to be hidden in the kitchen. Many people simply don’t have room for a traditional refrigerator and may center food consumption around the living room coffee table. GRO also designed the fridge to be as flexible as possible allowing both vertical and horizontal setups, suiting the potential buyer’s individual needs. Fast Company has more on how it reflects changeRead more...]]> http://www.psfk.com/2009/08/tapeography-renders-the-alphabet-using-old-cassettes.html Tue, 18 Aug 2009 15:20:04 +0000 Turkish designer Ersinhan Ersin recently presented to the typography community an alphabet made from cassette tapes. He cleverly calls the project Tapeography. Perhaps it’s innate, the desire of artists to create alphabets from objects. They have been made of stones, human bodies, and even tire tracks. Or could it be the popularity of alphabet soup? [via behance] Related on PSFK: Manhattan Font Reminds Us Why We Heart NY Toyota IQ Designs a New Font for Itself]]>