Farewell to the Plastic Bags of NYC

While the single-use plastic bag ban in New York (instated 1 March) is undeniably necessary, the bags’ kitsch designs have become synonymous with the city. Graphic designer Sho Shibuya collected more than 200 different types of bags over several years and photographed some of his favorite designs, sharing them with The New York Times. “In treasuring things other people consider trash, Shibuya cites a Shinto …

Link About It: This Week’s Picks

Philippe Starck's private space homes, lie-flay beds in economy class, knitting climate data into scarves and more

Farewell to Mathematician Katherine Johnson, Crucial “Hidden Figure” at NASA in the ’60s Space Race From her time as a childhood math prodigy in West Virginia to her crucial role as a “computer” at NASA, where her calculations helped lead astronauts into orbit and then the moon, black mathematician Katherine Johnson was a pioneering figure in spaceflight. Johnson’s work was critical to NASA’s earlier successes—especially …

NASA’s Philippe Starck-Designed Private Space Homes

“My vision is to create a comfortable egg, friendly, where walls are so soft and in harmony with the movements of the human body in zero gravity,” enterprising designer Philippe Starck says of his latest commission: private accommodation on the International Space Station (ISS) for commercial tourists. NASA partnered with Axiom Space on the project, who then tapped Starck. The project should be complete by 2024—and …