The Origins of the “Jazz” Paper Cup Design

Any American who lived through the ‘90s has undoubtedly encountered it: the scribbled blue and purple “Jazz” design on the side of Sweetheart paper cups. But like a true design phenomena, the pattern wasn’t created by a giant marketing firm, but a Sweetheart employee working out of their Springfield office as part of a contest. While the illustration itself has transcended its humble grocery store …

The World’s First Firefly Themed-Park

China has succeeded in creating something the rest of the world has yet to develop: the first firefly-themed park. Located in China’s Hubei province, the park is divided up into five separate areas including a zero-distance contact zone, observation zone, flying zone, breeding zone and science popularization area for visitors to interact with and observe the 10,000 fireflies. The park is currently open for visitation …

Up-Close Video of a Turntable’s Needle

Even the most avid record collectors might have trouble explaining the inner workings of a turntable, but thanks to a set of up-close images taken by Ben Krasnow, it’s now a little clearer. Using a scanning electron microscope, the electrical engineering wizard and current Google [x]-er created a short clip of a turntable’s needle as it traces a vinyl record’s groove, converting each minuscule curve …