Monthly Archives: June 2015
The Imagination Whisperer
A picture is not only worth a thousand words, but now it can inspire millions of people of all ages.
Exhibit A: Robin van Persie’s diving header against Spain in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil was the best goal of the tournament. Surprisingly, this moment nearly/does rise to the same level as the imagery of the Germans triumphantly lifting the World Cup trophy. That’s powerful. When that goal is replayed on television, it instantly encapsulates the top-level talent of the players and teams in that glorious tournament last summer.
This goal was the sports highlight of 2014.
Exhibit B: The highly-anticipated Jurassic World was expected to be a summer blockbuster, reinvigorating the franchise that started with the 1993 cinematic masterpiece Jurassic Park. The 2015 film will be remembered for many things, including its dinosaur-sized, record-breaking box office domination. Or how about how John Williams was welcomed back into our hearts, as well as to the top of the Billboard charts after 22 years. Jurassic World was the sequel everyone had been waiting for since watching the helicopter safely fly into the sunset over the oceanic horizon in June of 1993.
Enter Chris Pratt/Owen Grady.
As seen in the film and the trailers, Owen’s prowess for cautiously wrangling velociraptors is a spectacular sight of a person trying to control nature. There are several memorable scenes from the movie, but none like the raptor whisperer. However, the photograph after the screenshot is not directly from the film, but is instead of a child’s interpretation of the aforementioned scene with some parental coordination. And this pose has been done by many, however, this adaption showcases the dinosaur-loving kid in all of us.
This is the pose of 2015.
(Wired)
“Thank you to the parents of this little one. You’ve made my day” (Chris Pratt’s Facebook)
The image gets your attention, like a certain cup of trembling water…
Happy Monday!
In the case of the British band below, a gang of wolves is a good thing.
Seeing Wolf Gang in that very same location (The Basement in Columbus, Ohio) last September, just 3 1/2 months after the video shows, they left a great impression because they have an original sound and they are fantastic live. This is their opener that gets everybody’s heart racing, which also plays well for kicking off the workweek.
Interestingly, they set-up and took down their own equipment. It was a refreshing sight and it’s just one of many reasons to see bands you like in small venues every once in a while. The energy is inspiring.
Have an Awesome Week!
Music’s Bridge to a Golden Past
TGIF!
The weekend is here as soon as our workday concludes this overcast Friday. Regardless of the gray clouds outside that appear to be on the fence with another downpour, the warm (yet desirable) temperatures for late June almost makes some pop-up showers a welcomed guest this evening. Keeping in tune with tonight’s likely rainstorm, the smooth voice of Leon Bridges and his old school voice and band seems like the ideal choice of music with his new catchy song, “Smooth Sailin'” and its nautical references describing a hopeful romance.
The clothing, lyrical and vocal style of Leon Bridges is a refreshing nod to the simplistically upbeat sounds of Motown. He and his fellow band mates let the music stand for itself, which is a rarity these days. While creative and elaborate music videos are an important extension of a band, it’s nice to look into a studio and just press play.
Leon Bridge’s debut album is called “Coming Home,” which is a fitting title because it sounds like a return to a defining era in music.
“I don’t really know her destination,
But I got a feeling I, I’m gonna be her passenger”
This may become the motto of his fans.
The Pursuit of Levitation
Apparently, now is the right time to hover.
Scheduling my ride on the first-ever hoverboard last Friday was born out of availability and great airfare. It never dawned on me that the subsequent week would reveal the first glimpse of the world’s second hoverboard: SLIDE.
Utilizing similar principals of magnetism, the specialized design group at Lexus has dipped its toe into the water (well, technically in the air) of hover technology following Arx Pax and their pioneering Hendo Hoverboard. Still, the specific components between the Hendo and Lexus hoverboards are distinguishable enough.
“Lexus said the test hoverboard in its “Amazing in Motion” campaign generates magnetic levitation by combining the effects of liquid nitrogen-cooled superconductors and permanent magnets” (USA Today).
Appearance wise, the hoverboard by Lexus is sleek and appears consumer-ready. Functionality wise, however, is still a lingering question. Looks like October 21st of this year will reveal that verdict, the same day Marty McFly quickly found out the answer to this question. Also, Hendo does not use liquid nitrogen-cooled superconductors, which is important to note for a couple reasons. First, both companies have legitimate claims to creating original hovering technologies, however similar the role magnets are to flotation. Second, it’s wonderful to see there is more than one way to build a hoverboard.
The creative minds at Hendo and Lexus, developing this desired mode of transportation out of nostalgia for the future (it makes sense), are in the alpha stage. Envisioning what the beta stage and beyond will produce is exciting as reductions in cost (Hendo’s board costs $10,000), battery life improvements and infrastructure will undoubtedly become focal points of business plans going forward. Perhaps this leads to a small skate park with magnets built underneath in the next few years (Lexus did that for the video above), then a long pathway around a park and then Marty’s daring and boundless flight throughout a town square will be reality soon thereafter.
Except over water.
The power of movies (and love for the BTTF fan) is inspiring for many reasons. Despite living in 2015 without most of the cool advancements featured in Back to the Future Part II, those scenes have clearly made a permanent impression on fans and innovators alike as a future to strive for and build towards. That’s incredible. The sparks of innovation can literally come from anywhere.
And Lexus seems to be opening a future debate: Will consumers buy a luxury car or a luxury hoverboard?
They may be surprised by the answer.
Jimmy's Daily Planet 