Interesting glimpse into a possible digital future…
[thanks, Duncan Riley]
Imagine a virtual world that is identical to the real world. Virtual Sphere has developed a locomotion sphere wherein users can move through a virtual space, as they would in real life.
I’ve already posted a video demo of tabletop technology, which relates to the recent announcement at D, which has been covered extensively elsewhere.
Now imagine if the table display integrated 3d holographic display technology like SeeReal Technologies is developing. So, you could essentially navigate and compute in a 3D space with your hands. Now imagine if this technology integrated seamless voice recognition and gesture recognition technology too. That would be a killer-app.
I watched Future Cars last night, a mini-series on the Discovery Channel, and there were several interesting concepts. For example, why not design a car frame or shell with an inner interior compartment that has a cushion surrounding it, so in a collision the cushion absorbs the impact and protects the inhabitants to a much greater extent than current airbags?
Also, why has there been no real innovation in the big trucks segment? There was a highly aerodynamic designed truck cabin featured that potentially increases fuel efficiency by 50% without any engine modification.
Also watched Future by Design this week, the documentary about Jacque Fresco I previously mentioned here. I’m still absorbing much of it, particularly Jacque’s vision of a resource based economy of abundance, but there were some really no brainer design concepts. For example, he demonstrated a type of material, a shape memory alloy, that could potentially be used in automobile exteriors, so in the event of a bump or collision, the frame simply fixes itself. Of course, there will be electronics that significantly reduce the chances of a collision in the first place.
Or, cargo ships with modular sections, so the ship never has to be unbalanced or inefficiently travel empty. And, Jacque raised the possibility to transport things underwater, where there is much less resistance than on the surface, with an air bubble system to further reduce resistance.
Or, homes that are slightly pressurized to eradicate dust.
Or, building a bathroom system, so sink and shower waste water is used to flush the toilet.
Each of his designs aren’t just whimsical visions of futuristic aesthetics, but really have a logical basis for function and improved interaction between different social and environmental factors. It’s an inspiring documentary. Check it out!
I once read that roasted coffee beans oxidize and become stale only seven days after roasting. Ground coffee oxidizes after only three days. So, bottom line is that most of us drink stale coffee, even if you use an airtight container. Meanwhile, green unroasted coffee beans stay fresh for up to a year. Home roasting is one solution for fresh coffee, but the conditions for optimal coffee roasting are extremely precise, and it’s easy to burn the coffee beans etc., and many are willing to sacrifice some taste for the convenience of store bought coffee.
Starbucks has done a good job of educating coffee consumers of the benefit of quality coffee, but the experience could certainly be improved. In the era of “you,” I believe there’s an opportunity to create a chain of Fire Roasted Coffee houses (the domain firecoffee.com was available at the time of this writing), where consumers can select among a variety of green coffee beans in canisters (so they could select Kona beans, or Columbian beans, or Kenyan beans, for example), and then select the type of fire roasting they want (ie french roasted, vanilla roasted, orange roasted etc.). During the roasting, consumers can watch the expert fire roasters, or meet with people, or read, or browse music or book selections. There could also be online ordering, so you can custom order your coffee from home and pick it up or have it delivered in time for optimal freshness and taste.
I love brick oven pizza, and believe a brick oven creates not only superior pizza, but also can dramatically improve the ambiance of a restaurant. A coffee house with a brick fire oven for coffee roasting would achieve a similar kind of experience, and also better tasting, fresher coffee to either consume at the shop or to take home.
[UPDATE: A variation of this, a more earth friendly approach: Solar roasted coffee]
Check out this short YouTube video of a home for sale in Hugo, MN. I could see Robb Report or Dupont Registry having an online video channel of luxury classifieds of homes, yachts, and automobiles. It would be especially good if it was narrated by Robin Leach!
Happy New Year!
I saw the “Horny Manatee” site, an entertaining (work safe) website devoted to raising funds and awareness for the endangered Manatee, and for some reason it got me thinking about my digg meets youtube meets the infomercial idea I wrote about back in June. I think a site that featured a series of 15 second infomercials of really ugly junk hosted by a theatrical host dressed in an ugly monster costume (the costume is key) would be huge! There is a market for obscure, ugly junk (junk that is hilarious, because it’s so ugly), but the real opportunity is creating a community of visitors who go to the site for its entertainment value. It wouldn’t be hard to initially find and arbitrage ugly junk from eBay and garage sales etc., but the site could easily design its own completely ugly junk too, which is more scalable!
[UPDATE 12-26-06: NY Times article on Horny Manatee here.]
I produced the following video for a first level video production class at Foothill College. Special thanks to Kristin Tripp Caldwell, and especially to my parents, without whom I wouldn’t have had the inspiration. I hope you enjoy it!
I think Fraser is dead on about the changing role of education, as a result of technology, from learning to remember to learning to understand. What percentage of all the details of your middle and high-school history or science or math classes do you remember? 2-3% maybe? I day dreamed through most of school, and believe I’m not the only person out there to do so, and much of my best learning was achieved via independent studies.
The future of education is experiential learning, and George Lucas is doing some really innovative things in this space. Different people learn differently, but I would wager a hypothesis that teaching is generally more effective via interactivity and engagement vs. passive listening. Teachers who have charisma and truly engage students are so rare.
It has been many years since I’ve played Where in the World is Carmen Sandiego, and maybe I should go find and play it so I’m better informed, but I think there’s a lot of potential for exponential improvement of the Carmen concept.
Imagine a website, in the vein of Second Life or The Sims, where students are avatars and have to travel around the world to discover clews and achieve goals. The game would not only incorporate Google maps and National Geographic videos (as I’ve already mentioned is happening in Google Earth), but also 3D simulated spaces, where students can meet and interact with historically significant characters and students from different places and even time. There could be a time machine, for example, where you scroll along a time line and the civilizations of the earth change, depending on where you locate the cursor on the time line , so you can explore the Mayan cities, or the pyramids in Egypt, or the great civilization of China, and learn about the technological and social advancements of the human race. Time and place can be manipulated, but does exist, so your avatar has to travel to the airport, board and travel on an airplane, and find taxis to move around foreign cities, which heightens the realism of the experience. Thoughts?
I was up in San Francisco today for the Red Bull Air Race, and Blue Angels exhibition. Someday soon I hope to have the capability to post video on the site - I captured some good footage, but in the meantime here’s some YouTube footage of a prior Air Race.
The Red Bull Air Race is really an amazing experience to watch live, and an incredible and very innovative brand building effort. The Jumbo-Trons, soundtrack, and commentary really add to the experience. They also had booths where you could play flight simulators, so you can experience the thrill of piloting a high performance aircraft through a Red Bull race course.
Something I’ve been thinking about for quite some time is the potential to assist brands create innovative branded entertainment at live events. For example, at hockey or arena football games etc., they have the dance cam, a half-time show etc., and I think there’s a lot of untapped potential here. For example, imagine seeing this girl and other circus de soleil caliber performers at basketball game halftimes, as a show presented by [choose your brand]. Or, there could be a team of fans playing against a “professional” team (of women in bikinis) in bouncy bounce volleyball, as a competition presented by [choose your beer]! Remember closely following the Bud Bowl during Super Bowl game commercial breaks? Now imagine watching during halftime — instead of generic commercials — real live branded entertainment from the venue! It would be great for brands and fans and sports franchises.
A friend of mine said this weekend that the things I have on SHARKRIDE! are “weird.” (I have good ears.)
When Alexander Graham Bell invented the telephone in 1876, it was at first greeted sceptically. The head of the telegraph company Western Union labeled it an “electrical toy.”
Nolan Bushnell, the legendary founder of Atari and Chuck E Cheese, told me that when he originally pitched the concept of Chuck E Cheese, most thought it ridiculous: “Why would people want to go to a restaurant with a huge RAT mascot?!” It was one of the fastest growing restaurant concepts of all time.
When Ruth Handler saw a doll of an alluring adult woman, essentially a perverted plaything for men, on a vacation in Switzerland, she immediately sensed opportunity. But her colleagues at Mattel were skeptical, “Why would a parent buy a doll with BREASTS?” “Children play with baby dolls - not adult sex toys!” More than a billion barbies have been sold.
Most people thought Ted Turner was crazy when he launched a 24 hour news channel. “Most people poo pood the idea,” he says.
Who would have thought that yet another search engine in 1999 would be a success, with AOL Search, Lycos, Excite, Yahoo, Go To (Overture), Alta Vista, Ask Jeeves, Infoseek, HotBot, LookSmart, MSN Search, Magellan, Web Crawler etc. already competing? Google couldn’t even license its search technology, so it was forced to go at it alone. Of course, in hindsight, Google’s technology was vastly superior, and the “simplicity” of its search page and purity of its results garnered incredible loyalty.
Beanie Babies?? An under-stuffed animal that looks like “road kill,” Ty Warner was told, “would never sell.” He’s now worth $4.5 billion.
So, are your innovative ideas “weird,” or “visionary?” (…or perhaps both?)
