Central Perk

sâmbătă, 4 iunie 2011

Damn Cool Pics

Improv Everywhere – The Mute Button
50 Incredible Examples Of Urban Photography
The Largest Water Lily in the World
Graduation Day: China Style
If The World Were A Village Of 100 People

Posted: 03 Jun 2011 11:20 PM PDT

For latest mission of Improv Everywhere 23 actors and 2 dogs infiltrated a public space and went on "mute" at coordinated intervals. The mission took place near the northern entrance to Prospect Park in Park Slope, Brooklyn. The Mute Button was produced by Improv Everywhere as part of the Guggenheim Museum exhibition stillspotting nyc.

50 Incredible Examples Of Urban Photography

Posted: 03 Jun 2011 10:32 PM PDT

Cities can be a great source of inspiration. They're a melting pot of different cultures, religions, businesses… Some artists try to capture the city's spirit in photographs or graphic design. This often leads to amazing results.

In this post you'll find various photographs from urban environments. There's also a diversity in photography style between these photographers. Don't forget to post a comment if you've found another great photo.

The Largest Water Lily in the World

Posted: 03 Jun 2011 10:21 PM PDT

Victoria amazornica is the world's largest genus of water lilies. Its leaves reach up to 3m in diameter. It floats in the shallow waters of the Amazon River basin.
These water lilies support up to 70 pounds. This giant water lily was called Victoria regia after Queen Victoria of the UK when it was discovered by explorer Robert Schomburgk in 1836.

Graduation Day: China Style

Posted: 03 Jun 2011 10:04 PM PDT

Chinese students do their best to make their graduation day the most memorable one.

If The World Were A Village Of 100 People

Posted: 03 Jun 2011 09:24 PM PDT

Another great series of data graphics sets for watching by Toby Ng Design in a series entitled "If the world were a village of 100 people". "If the world were a village of 100 people, how would the composition be? This set of 20 posters is built on statistics about the spread of population around the world under various classifications. The numbers are turned into graphics to give another sense a touch – Look, this is the world we are living in. Designer Toby Ng graduated from Central St.Martins, London in 2008. Ng overwhelms people with his innovative designs that turn disorder into delight. His designs outstand the crowd with a genuine combination of creativity, experience and a sense of humour."

Weekly Address: Growing Manufacturing with the Auto Industry Turnaround

Your Daily Snapshot for
Saturday, June 4, 2011

Weekly Address: Growing Manufacturing with the Auto Industry Turnaround

Speaking from a Chrysler plant in Toledo, Ohio, the President commends the work of America’s dedicated autoworkers, who have helped reinvigorate the domestic auto industry.

Watch the video

Weekly Wrap Up

A quick look at the week of May 30th on WhiteHouse.gov:

Joplin: President Obama visits Joplin, MO to meet with those in the community who lost so much in the tornados last week and participate in a Memorial Service at Missouri Southern University.

Small School, Big Dreams: Labor Secretary Hilda Solis delivers the Commencement address at Bridgeport High School in Washington, one of the top three finalists in the Race to the Top Commencement Challenge.

West Wing Week: "One Step at a Time" takes you to Joplin, Poland, Arlington and inside the Situation Room with President Obama.

LGBT Pride Month: Kicking off Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) Pride Month, the Office of Public Engagement has launches a new webpage. And here's the Presidential Proclamation.

What's on Your Plate?: First Lady Michelle Obama and Surgeon General Dr. Regina Benjamin unveil the U.S. Department of Agriculture's new food icon, MyPlate.

Cutting Red Tape: The U.S. Department of Energy encourages cities to cut the red tape that can push up the price tags on solar energy projects.

Youth Round Tables: The Office of Public Engagement wraps up the "100 Youth Round Tables" Initiative, ensuring that young people's voice is heard in government.

Memorial Day: The President honors our nations fallen, speaking at a Memorial Day Service at Arlington National Cemetery: "Honor the Sacrifice of Those We've Lost".

Get Prepared: The Federal Emergency Management Agency announces June 1st as the start of hurricane season, and gives tips on how to keep you and your family safe.

Get Updates

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Seth's Blog : Are you a scientist?

Are you a scientist?

Scientists make predictions, and predicting the future is far more valuable than explaining the past.

Ask a physicist what will happen if you fire a projectile like this in that direction, and she'll know. Ask a chemist what happens if you mix x and y, and you'll get the right answer. Even quantum mechanics mechanics can give you probabilities that work out in the long run.

Analysts who come up with plausible explanations for what just happened don't help us as much, because it's not always easy to turn those explanations into useful action.

Take the layout of Craigslist. Just about any competent online designer would have predicted that it would fail. Too clunky, undesigned, too many links, not slick or trustworthy... Or consider a new r&b artist, or a brand new beverage.

After the fact, it's so easy to say, "of course it worked..." and then make up a reason for whatever it is that just succeeded.

The practice, then, is to start making predictions. In writing. You don't have to share them in public, but the habit will push you to understand your instincts and to sharpen your ability to see what works (and what doesn't) without the easy out of having to explain what already happened.

Look at startups or political campaigns or new products or ad campaigns... plenty of places to practice your predicting skills.

I predict you'll learn two things:

It's really difficult to make predictions, because success often appears to be random
Based on #1, it's probably smart for you to initiate more projects that aren't guaranteed winners, because most winners aren't guaranteed.

And a bonus... the more you practice your predictions, the better you'll get at discerning where the science is.