Link About It: This Week’s Picks
Abortion funds, robo-fish that collect microplastics, the architecture of the National Juneteenth Museum and more from around the web
Abortion Funds and Support Groups Accepting Donations
While many people will be racing to donate to Planned Parenthood right now, Jezebel has created a thorough list of other funds and support groups to send your money to in the wake of the Supreme Court’s egregious overturning of Roe v Wade. Not only is Planned Parenthood already well-funded, it’s also faced criticism “for not providing abortions in several abortion-hostile states, and for its regional health center systems trying to bust their staff unions.” From abortion funds to local clinics, groups fighting criminalization, volunteers at hotlines providing much-needed information and answers, this list is a useful resource for those wanting to take action—and put their rage to good use. Read more at Jezebel.
Image courtesy of Jezebel/Karl Gustafson
A Guide to Navigating Abortion Rights Post-Roe in the South
The US Supreme Court has officially overturned Roe v Wade, with a ruling that erroneously places authority to regulate abortion in the hands of individual states. While the decision will jeopardize and upturn the lives of millions, those in the South, where nearly every state has an anti-abortion ban on the books, will be especially affected. To help navigate these uncertain and distressing times, Reckon South has compiled an exhaustive and clear guide to understanding the new landscape. They break down how each Southern state is likely to respond, what this means for abortion clinics right now and the specifics to what is outlawed or criminalized for each state. Read the full guide at Reckon South.
Image courtesy of Abbey Crain/Reckon South
An AI-Powered Paint Tool Creates Custom Colors Through Vocal Descriptions
Sherwin-Williams recently launched Speaking in Color, a new AI-powered, voice-controlled tool that translates audio descriptions into custom colors. To do so, the paint brand partnered with the Wunderman Thompson agency to create a React Web app that decodes languages and turns it into colors using third-party and proprietary code. Phrases like “make it dimmer,” “make it more retro,” or “add warmth” are translated through the tool’s custom algorithm to produce the necessary mathematical adjustments. Users can even start with a broader reference, like the colors in a New York sunset, and get more specific from there. Currently, the tool is exclusive to architects and the company itself in order to create one of the world’s largest color libraries, but it could be open to all customers down the road. Read more about the creative innovation at Fast Company.
Image courtesy of Jon Tyson/Unsplash/Sharon McCutcheon/Pexels
The Architectural Design of the National Juneteenth Museum
In Fort Worth, Texas, the forthcoming National Juneteenth Museum intends to become a focal point for discourse and education surrounding the annual date that honors the emancipation of African Americans. Designed by Bjarke Engels Group (BIG) in collaboration with the Black-owned design and build firm KAI Enterprises—though originally imagined by Opal Lee, known as “The Grandmother of Juneteenth”—this 50,000-square-foot cultural epicenter blends the gabled silhouettes of the Forth Worth’s Historic Southside neighborhood with a “nova star” layout that surrounds a central courtyard (which will be open to the public). “As a Black architect, this project is one of the most rewarding experiences of my career,” BIG partner Douglass Alligood says in a statement. “After nearly 40 years in this profession, I have the opportunity to lead a design for a project that is focused on African American culture. Our engagement with Ms Opal Lee and members of the community, to really understand their needs, is what informed a lot of the design principles.” Read more about the meaningful architecture and materiality at designboom.
Image courtesy of Bjarke Engels Group, KAI Enterprises and Atchain
Scientists Create Robot Fish That Collect Microplastics
Scientists at Polymer Research Institute of Sichuan University have invented tiny, self-propelled robot fish that can be programmed to remove free-floating microplastics from the sea by latching onto and absorbing them into its self-healing body. Inspired by nacre, commonly referred to as mother of pearl, researchers set out to create a similar sea-worthy material. They did so by “layering various microscopic sheets of molecules according to nacre’s specific chemical gradient,” making the fish “stretchy, flexible to twist and even able to pull up to 5kg in weight.” The dyes, heavy metals and antibiotics in microplastics possess “strong chemical bonds and electrostatic interactions” with materials the fish are made from. This kind of nanotechnology, the scientists believe, can be scaled to make an impact in the battle against microplastics in our oceans. Read more at The Guardian.
Image courtesy of The Guardian, adapted from Nano Letters 2022
NYC’s Last Public Pay Phone Acquired by the Museum of the City of New York
Last month, NYC’s last remaining payphone (of 30,000) was removed from the corner of Seventh Avenue and West 50th Street, near Times Square. That phone has been acquired by the Museum of the City of New York, where it’s on display as part of the Analog City NYC B.C. (Before Computers), which explores technology in the city from the 1870s to the 1970s. “These phones were absolutely essential to living and working in New York, and they were everywhere,” Museum of the City of New York curator Lilly Tuttle tells NY1. “But once people started adopting cell phones and smartphones, they really quickly became totally obsolete.” Read more about the pay phone and the exhibit, running now through 31 December, at Hyperallergic.
Image courtesy of the City of New York
Link About It is our filtered look at the web, shared daily in Link and on social media, and rounded up every Saturday morning. Hero image courtesy of Bjarke Engels Group, KAI Enterprises and Atchain
