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Some Gifts That Keep On Giving

Posted: December 8th, 2006, 1:52am PST by June

Tags: [edit]

Last year, our offices were inundated with gift baskets. And while we definitely enjoyed the treats, it got us thinking-- there is a lot of costs associated with sending these item -- money that could be more meaningfully spent.

So we came up with a website for the holiday season that offers up some gift alternatives to the traditional gift basket. It's called NoBasketsPlease.com. The items featured on the site were chosen because they promote sustainability and social responsibility.

But we are super excited about a very special holiday song that you can download for free on the website. Its a song for the season, specially written by our friend and bandleader Ethan Lipton, aptly titled "Gift Basket".

We encourage you to share the website with your colleagues, friends and family and give a gift that may or may not fit under the Christmas tree, but will definitley last well into the New Year and beyond

Delete
Some Gifts That Keep On Giving

Posted: December 8th, 2006, 8:52pm PST by June

Tags: [edit]

Last year, our offices were inundated with gift baskets. And while we definitely enjoyed the treats, it got us thinking-- there is a lot of costs associated with sending these item -- money that could be more meaningfully spent.

So we came up with a website for the holiday season that offers up some gift alternatives to the traditional gift basket. It's called NoBasketsPlease.com. The items featured on the site were chosen because they promote sustainability and social responsibility.

But we are super excited about a very special holiday song that you can download for free on the website. Its a song for the season, specially written by our friend and bandleader Ethan Lipton, aptly titled "Gift Basket".

We encourage you to share the website with your colleagues, friends and family and give a gift that may or may not fit under the Christmas tree, but will definitley last well into the New Year and beyond

Delete
Some Gifts That Keep On Giving

Posted: December 8th, 2006, 5:52pm PST by June

Tags: [edit]

Last year, our offices were inundated with gift baskets. And while we definitely enjoyed the treats, it got us thinking-- there is a lot of costs associated with sending these item -- money that could be more meaningfully spent.

So we came up with a website for the holiday season that offers up some gift alternatives to the traditional gift basket. It's called NoBasketsPlease.com. The items featured on the site were chosen because they promote sustainability and social responsibility.

But we are super excited about a very special holiday song that you can download for free on the website. Its a song for the season, specially written by our friend and bandleader Ethan Lipton, aptly titled "Gift Basket".

We encourage you to share the website with your colleagues, friends and family and give a gift that may or may not fit under the Christmas tree, but will definitley last well into the New Year and beyond

Delete
Google To The People!

Posted: November 1st, 2006, 11:55pm PST by June

Tags: [edit]

Huzzah! The Populace will own Google! And in a mere 202,345,125 years. At least that is the estimate that the folks behind Google Will Eat Itself have calculated for the Imperial Search Engine to be completely bought out.

GWEI is a web project created by the collective Ubermorgen featuring Alessandro Ludovico and Paolo Cirio. Here is how the project works in the artists' own words:
We generate money by serving Google text advertisements on a network of hidden Websites. With this money we automatically buy Google shares. We buy Google via their own advertisement! Google eats itself - but in the end "we" own it!

All shares are held under the name GTTP, Ltd. [Google To The People] and redistributed to the public. GWEI is a critique of the Google's growing information monopoly as well poking a whole, miniscule though it may be, into the economic bubble that Google Adsense has created for itself.

In a similar "War of the Web" vein, Epic 2014 is a flash movie that was created in 2004 by Robin Sloan and Matt Thompson about a hypothesized future where the prevalence of public information from sources like Google and NewsBot come head to head with traditional news media like The New York Times.

But, GWEI points out that the downfall of these giant corporations is not equally giant corporations but rather "...the parasite. If enough parasites suck small amounts of money in this self-referentialism embodiment, they will empty this artificial mountain of data and its inner risk of digital totalitarianism." (-GWEI Press Release, 2005)

Delete
Google To The People!

Posted: November 1st, 2006, 6:55pm PST by June

Tags: [edit]

Huzzah! The Populace will own Google! And in a mere 202,345,125 years. At least that is the estimate that the folks behind Google Will Eat Itself have calculated for the Imperial Search Engine to be completely bought out.

GWEI is a web project created by the collective Ubermorgen featuring Alessandro Ludovico and Paolo Cirio. Here is how the project works in the artists' own words:
We generate money by serving Google text advertisements on a network of hidden Websites. With this money we automatically buy Google shares. We buy Google via their own advertisement! Google eats itself - but in the end "we" own it!

All shares are held under the name GTTP, Ltd. [Google To The People] and redistributed to the public. GWEI is a critique of the Google's growing information monopoly as well poking a whole, miniscule though it may be, into the economic bubble that Google Adsense has created for itself.

In a similar "War of the Web" vein, Epic 2014 is a flash movie that was created in 2004 by Robin Sloan and Matt Thompson about a hypothesized future where the prevalence of public information from sources like Google and NewsBot come head to head with traditional news media like The New York Times.

But, GWEI points out that the downfall of these giant corporations is not equally giant corporations but rather "...the parasite. If enough parasites suck small amounts of money in this self-referentialism embodiment, they will empty this artificial mountain of data and its inner risk of digital totalitarianism." (-GWEI Press Release, 2005)

Delete
Google To The People!

Posted: November 1st, 2006, 3:55pm PST by June

Tags: [edit]

Huzzah! The Populace will own Google! And in a mere 202,345,125 years. At least that is the estimate that the folks behind Google Will Eat Itself have calculated for the Imperial Search Engine to be completely bought out.

GWEI is a web project created by the collective Ubermorgen featuring Alessandro Ludovico and Paolo Cirio. Here is how the project works in the artists' own words:
We generate money by serving Google text advertisements on a network of hidden Websites. With this money we automatically buy Google shares. We buy Google via their own advertisement! Google eats itself - but in the end "we" own it!

All shares are held under the name GTTP, Ltd. [Google To The People] and redistributed to the public. GWEI is a critique of the Google's growing information monopoly as well poking a whole, miniscule though it may be, into the economic bubble that Google Adsense has created for itself.

In a similar "War of the Web" vein, Epic 2014 is a flash movie that was created in 2004 by Robin Sloan and Matt Thompson about a hypothesized future where the prevalence of public information from sources like Google and NewsBot come head to head with traditional news media like The New York Times.

But, GWEI points out that the downfall of these giant corporations is not equally giant corporations but rather "...the parasite. If enough parasites suck small amounts of money in this self-referentialism embodiment, they will empty this artificial mountain of data and its inner risk of digital totalitarianism." (-GWEI Press Release, 2005)

Delete
Iceland Chooses Darkness

Posted: September 29th, 2006, 8:15am PDT by Andrew

Tags: [edit]

This is profound and poetic:

The lights are going out in Iceland this week so people can gaze at the night sky.
Authorities in the capital Reykjavik will turn off street lights on Thursday evening and people are also being encouraged to sit in their houses in the dark, writer Andri Snaer Magnason said on Wednesday. While the lights are out, an astronomer will describe the night sky over national radio.
The event is part of a film festival taking place on the small north Atlantic island, which gets most of its electricity from abundant thermal energy. The lights are due to go off at 10 p.m. (2200 GMT), about two hours after nightfall, for half an hour.
Magnason said the capital's population of around 250,000 might be able to see the Northern Lights, a flickering curtain of light often seen in northern climes which is caused by solar particles being caught in the Earth's magnetic field. Two other Icelandic towns will also turn off their lights.
I wonder what it would take to get Americans to do the same thing?

Delete
Iceland Chooses Darkness

Posted: September 28th, 2006, 4:15am PDT by Andrew

Tags: [edit]

This is profound and poetic:

The lights are going out in Iceland this week so people can gaze at the night sky.
Authorities in the capital Reykjavik will turn off street lights on Thursday evening and people are also being encouraged to sit in their houses in the dark, writer Andri Snaer Magnason said on Wednesday. While the lights are out, an astronomer will describe the night sky over national radio.
The event is part of a film festival taking place on the small north Atlantic island, which gets most of its electricity from abundant thermal energy. The lights are due to go off at 10 p.m. (2200 GMT), about two hours after nightfall, for half an hour.
Magnason said the capital's population of around 250,000 might be able to see the Northern Lights, a flickering curtain of light often seen in northern climes which is caused by solar particles being caught in the Earth's magnetic field. Two other Icelandic towns will also turn off their lights.
I wonder what it would take to get Americans to do the same thing?

Delete
Iceland Chooses Darkness

Posted: September 28th, 2006, 1:15am PDT by Andrew

Tags: [edit]

This is profound and poetic:

The lights are going out in Iceland this week so people can gaze at the night sky.
Authorities in the capital Reykjavik will turn off street lights on Thursday evening and people are also being encouraged to sit in their houses in the dark, writer Andri Snaer Magnason said on Wednesday. While the lights are out, an astronomer will describe the night sky over national radio.
The event is part of a film festival taking place on the small north Atlantic island, which gets most of its electricity from abundant thermal energy. The lights are due to go off at 10 p.m. (2200 GMT), about two hours after nightfall, for half an hour.
Magnason said the capital's population of around 250,000 might be able to see the Northern Lights, a flickering curtain of light often seen in northern climes which is caused by solar particles being caught in the Earth's magnetic field. Two other Icelandic towns will also turn off their lights.
I wonder what it would take to get Americans to do the same thing?

Delete
Carbon Positive, Carbon Negative, or Carbon Responsible?

Posted: August 28th, 2006, 2:25am PDT by Cordelia Lindgren

Tags: [edit]

To some the glass is half empty, to others half full. It appears this question of perspective is also afflicting those looking at going beyond carbon neutral. Two terms are being used interchangeably despite being opposites: carbon positive & carbon negative.
In both cases people are referring to offsetting or sequestering more carbon dioxide than is emitted. To date, neither Wikipedia nor Google definitions has weighed in on this matter.

As the point is to leave less CO2 in the atmosphere than you put in, we at Z+ think it makes sense to call it carbon negative.

We are however willing to concede that offsetting beyond neutrality is a positive thing to do!

Delete
Carbon Positive, Carbon Negative, or Carbon Responsible?

Posted: August 28th, 2006, 10:25pm PDT by Cordelia Lindgren

Tags: [edit]

To some the glass is half empty, to others half full. It appears this question of perspective is also afflicting those looking at going beyond carbon neutral. Two terms are being used interchangeably despite being opposites: carbon positive & carbon negative.
In both cases people are referring to offsetting or sequestering more carbon dioxide than is emitted. To date, neither Wikipedia nor Google definitions has weighed in on this matter.

As the point is to leave less CO2 in the atmosphere than you put in, we at Z+ think it makes sense to call it carbon negative.

We are however willing to concede that offsetting beyond neutrality is a positive thing to do!

Delete
Carbon Positive, Carbon Negative, or Carbon Responsible?

Posted: August 28th, 2006, 7:25pm PDT by Cordelia Lindgren

Tags: [edit]

To some the glass is half empty, to others half full. It appears this question of perspective is also afflicting those looking at going beyond carbon neutral. Two terms are being used interchangeably despite being opposites: carbon positive & carbon negative.
In both cases people are referring to offsetting or sequestering more carbon dioxide than is emitted. To date, neither Wikipedia nor Google definitions has weighed in on this matter.

As the point is to leave less CO2 in the atmosphere than you put in, we at Z+ think it makes sense to call it carbon negative.

We are however willing to concede that offsetting beyond neutrality is a positive thing to do!

Delete
Carpet Invaders

Posted: July 6th, 2006, 8:30am PDT by Andrew

Tags: [edit]

Polish artist Janek Simon blends the narrative and aesthetic form of two media, one ancient, one merely nostalgic: Caucasian carpets and late-70's videogames. This line, from project's accompanying text is particularly illuminating, even in mixed English:

The collector carpet furnishing the ethnic-design, world-cuisine magazine becomes a new shopping item for the homecoming marines and the kid back home. It is the Oriental rug for your portable arcade mosque. Follow the voice of the Joystick prophet.

Delete
Carpet Invaders

Posted: July 5th, 2006, 4:30am PDT by Andrew

Tags: [edit]

Polish artist Janek Simon blends the narrative and aesthetic form of two media, one ancient, one merely nostalgic: Caucasian carpets and late-70's videogames. This line, from project's accompanying text is particularly illuminating, even in mixed English:

The collector carpet furnishing the ethnic-design, world-cuisine magazine becomes a new shopping item for the homecoming marines and the kid back home. It is the Oriental rug for your portable arcade mosque. Follow the voice of the Joystick prophet.

Delete
Carpet Invaders

Posted: July 5th, 2006, 1:30am PDT by Andrew

Tags: [edit]

Polish artist Janek Simon blends the narrative and aesthetic form of two media, one ancient, one merely nostalgic: Caucasian carpets and late-70's videogames. This line, from project's accompanying text is particularly illuminating, even in mixed English:

The collector carpet furnishing the ethnic-design, world-cuisine magazine becomes a new shopping item for the homecoming marines and the kid back home. It is the Oriental rug for your portable arcade mosque. Follow the voice of the Joystick prophet.

Delete
Brainstorm's Best Quotes

Posted: June 29th, 2006, 12:24am PDT by Andrew

Tags: [edit]

At the 2006 Fortune Brainstorm conference in Aspen, CO, corporate approaches to climate change, ecological sustainability and carbon neutrality are all at the forefront of the conversation. Here are the two best quotes from the meeting:

"Socialism failed because it couldn't tell the economic truth; capitalism may fail because it couldn't tell the ecological truth."

- Legendary environmental thinker Lester Brown, of the Earth Policy Institute and the WorldWatch Institute

And in response to a question from GBN's Peter Schwartz on why some green thinkers neglect to mention nuclear energy as a viable renewable energy source:

"Don't get me wrong: I love nuclear energy! It's just that I prefer fusion to fission. And it just so happens that there's an enormous fusion reactor safely banked a few million miles from us. It delivers more than we could ever use in just about 8 minutes. And it's wireless!"

- Leading ecological thinker, architect and Cradle-to-Cradle author William McDonough

Delete
Brainstorm's Best Quotes

Posted: June 29th, 2006, 8:24pm PDT by Andrew

Tags: [edit]

At the 2006 Fortune Brainstorm conference in Aspen, CO, corporate approaches to climate change, ecological sustainability and carbon neutrality are all at the forefront of the conversation. Here are the two best quotes from the meeting:

"Socialism failed because it couldn't tell the economic truth; capitalism may fail because it couldn't tell the ecological truth."

- Legendary environmental thinker Lester Brown, of the Earth Policy Institute and the WorldWatch Institute

And in response to a question from GBN's Peter Schwartz on why some green thinkers neglect to mention nuclear energy as a viable renewable energy source:

"Don't get me wrong: I love nuclear energy! It's just that I prefer fusion to fission. And it just so happens that there's an enormous fusion reactor safely banked a few million miles from us. It delivers more than we could ever use in just about 8 minutes. And it's wireless!"

- Leading ecological thinker, architect and Cradle-to-Cradle author William McDonough

Delete
Brainstorm's Best Quotes

Posted: June 29th, 2006, 5:24pm PDT by Andrew

Tags: [edit]

At the 2006 Fortune Brainstorm conference in Aspen, CO, corporate approaches to climate change, ecological sustainability and carbon neutrality are all at the forefront of the conversation. Here are the two best quotes from the meeting:

"Socialism failed because it couldn't tell the economic truth; capitalism may fail because it couldn't tell the ecological truth."

- Legendary environmental thinker Lester Brown, of the Earth Policy Institute and the WorldWatch Institute

And in response to a question from GBN's Peter Schwartz on why some green thinkers neglect to mention nuclear energy as a viable renewable energy source:

"Don't get me wrong: I love nuclear energy! It's just that I prefer fusion to fission. And it just so happens that there's an enormous fusion reactor safely banked a few million miles from us. It delivers more than we could ever use in just about 8 minutes. And it's wireless!"

- Leading ecological thinker, architect and Cradle-to-Cradle author William McDonough

Delete
A Gamer's Guild Self-Trademarks

Posted: June 21st, 2006, 11:40am PDT by Andrew

Tags: [edit]

Game designer Ralph Koster provides the latest indication that the metaverse and meatspace are being ground into indisinguishable pulp. A group of gamers (collectively known as a guild) who are currently playing World of Warcraft and Ultima Online, have decided to trademark their guild The Syndicate "with regards to all things online gaming related". If you and your friends want to call play by that name, you could presumably find yourself forking over more than gold pieces.
Of course, this really only works on a metaphorical level only -- The Syndicate isn't an incorporated commercial venture, it's membership is fluid, and its unclear whether or not playing a game is intrinsically a commercial activity on behalf of the gamer -- but it's another indication of the widening chasm beween existing law and contemporary practice in gamespace. As Koster points out, this is certainly a harbinger of things to come: as more gamer/user-generated activity and "Virtual IP" is monetized, we'll see all kinds of novel (and occasionally half-baked) uses of the legal system by gamers to self-legitimize.

(I wonder what the equivalent of "business process patents" will look like: "Nobody can press UP UP LEFT ABUTTON DOWN RIGHT" without paying The Mighty Minions Guild a royalty!")

Delete
A Gamer's Guild Self-Trademarks

Posted: June 20th, 2006, 7:40am PDT by Andrew

Tags: [edit]

Game designer Ralph Koster provides the latest indication that the metaverse and meatspace are being ground into indisinguishable pulp. A group of gamers (collectively known as a guild) who are currently playing World of Warcraft and Ultima Online, have decided to trademark their guild The Syndicate "with regards to all things online gaming related". If you and your friends want to call play by that name, you could presumably find yourself forking over more than gold pieces.
Of course, this really only works on a metaphorical level only -- The Syndicate isn't an incorporated commercial venture, it's membership is fluid, and its unclear whether or not playing a game is intrinsically a commercial activity on behalf of the gamer -- but it's another indication of the widening chasm beween existing law and contemporary practice in gamespace. As Koster points out, this is certainly a harbinger of things to come: as more gamer/user-generated activity and "Virtual IP" is monetized, we'll see all kinds of novel (and occasionally half-baked) uses of the legal system by gamers to self-legitimize.

(I wonder what the equivalent of "business process patents" will look like: "Nobody can press UP UP LEFT ABUTTON DOWN RIGHT" without paying The Mighty Minions Guild a royalty!")

Delete