Wantful

Custom curated booklets aim to personalize online gift-giving

Options for online gift-giving are by no means scarce. Going beyond the basics of easy browsing and affordable shipping, CEO John Poisson founded Wantful with the intention of making the process even more intuitive, creating a rare blend of curated storefront, gift card and material goods. At the most basic level, the service provides users a way to send a thoughtful selection of gifts to …

Hövding Invisible Bicycle Helmet

Changing the way cyclists view safety and style with an innovative airbag hood

by L.S. Winkler In 2005, Swedish designers Anna Haupt and Terese Alstin began work on a joint masters thesis in response to new laws requiring cyclists under the age of 15 to wear a helmet while operating a bicycle. The new law left many Swedish cyclists wondering if helmet laws for adults would soon follow, so the duo behind Hövding used the public’s concern as …

Cultural Differences

An artist and a technologist pair up to find the cultural meaning of words through pictures

Recently presented at Rhizome’s annual Seven on Seven conference, Aaron Swartz and Taryn Simon‘s “Cultural Differences” application culls the top six photos from a Google image search for a specific word in 15 countries, displaying a visual comparison of its meaning among an array of different nations. The concept was born to follow the conference’s purpose of pairing a technologist with an artist to see …