The Woven Car

"Artists Ann Conte and Jeanne Wiley covered an MG Midget in a weave of overstock seatbelt material." The blogger at Core77 aptly made the connection to Seinfeld's joke about the plane and the black box. Why not make the plane out of the black box. Well, why not made the car out of safety belts. This could be an interesting design feature of new car models. The seatbelt material however, would have to be more durable and stain-proof than traditional seat belts. Being out in the elements the new material would have to be fray-resistant and ward of dirt. "The resultant Woven Car is part of Massachusetts' South Shore Art Center's Media Mix exhibit and will also be on display at Chicago's GreenBuild 2010 later this year."

Here Comes the Sun

NASA's SDO (Solar Dynamics Observatory) is on a five-year mission to capture data that will help scientists learn more about the impact of solar weather on the Earth. They developed a space camera that allows scientists to get a better look at the sun's surface. Now that colors have been changed (the blinding light pollution removed) the almost liquid nature of the sun's surface can be more readily studies. These images can later be used as inspiration for future design projects as well.

Future of Reading

Artist David Garcia has constructed a concept bookshelf made from plywood bent into a massive wheel. Aside from the potential hazards of this thing rolling on someone, I feel like it would be a great innovation if it were properly mounted to the floor. It would fit very well in the library of the future. It would be cool if there were bookshelves of smaller diameters inside the larger ones.

Coffee-Ground Cup

Manueldr's Coffee Cup is made from coffee grounds, pressed into a vessel by a special machine on the spot. A wax made from soy is mixed with the coffee grounds and pressed into a waterproof cup. This cup can later be thrown in a compost heap to degrade and also fertilize new plants. Coffee grounds are high in nitrates which is nutrient gold for plants. I just wonder how well the coffee cup can stand up to the uneven pressure of someone's hand as they hold the cup. I feel like a slight bend in the side of the cup would cause it to crack and spill hot lava coffee all over your lap. I would like to try it though!

Solar Tube

A sun tunnel is a certain type of skylight that is easier to install than a traditional sky light. The problem with them though what the ugly bright hole it left on your ceiling. But now Ross Lovegrove's new sun tunnel design for Italian manufacturere Velux incorporates a hanging orb that reflects and disperses the natural light throughout the room. Although it is a good idea, I do not like the idea of a sun tunnel. I'd much rather have my natural light come in through large windows at eye-level rather than from a tiny port-hole in the ceiling.

Wind Knitting

The world finally has a knitting machine that is powered by wind energy. The windmill-like apparatus is made by RCA grad Merel Karhof. Its quite a clever invention, which s a great example of generating passive income. The machine only requires upkeep and a constant flow of yarn, and it provides you with expertly made cloth. This person can now sell his cloth to manufactures or start their own clothing shop with the marketing zeal of clothes made from the very wind itself!!! Watch the video at Core77

Living Furniture

Arthur Bodolec's Jack chairs are furniture pieces that fold into different forms, and "come alive." The Paris-based designer has created something that I'd much like to have in my dorm room, the chair that folds out into a colorful flower. The chair that folds into a box is activated by the sitter's body weight.

Watch the furniture in action at Core77

Safe Box Cutter

The Easysafe is a new all-purpose box cutter designed by Martor. It has a little red tab near the blade that allows the material to be cut, but doesn't allow a finger to come in contact with the blade. This is a smart design because department store workers (namely stock workers who use box cutters heavily) can all use this safer product instead of a traditional box cutter, which is a potential lawsuit. A careless swipe of the Easysafe will not leave a scratch to the worker. Watch the video at Core77