A Trip Down Memory Lane: School’s Out for Summer
Watch Alice Cooper shop for school supplies in this 2004 Staples commercial.
Fly By Night
This weekends we went to New York City to see artist Duke Riley’s largest public art project to date – Fly By Night. Presented by the nonprofit arts organization Creative Time at the Brooklyn Navy Yard, a massive flock of 2,000 pigeons (fitted with tiny LED lights) illuminated the night sky above the East River, as Riley paid tribute to the largely forgotten culture of pigeon keeping.
Images via Byron Smith for The New York Times (Night Sky) & Creative Time (Birds)
FlyBabies
In honor of Mother’s Day, JetBlue gave passengers on a recent flight from JFK to Long Beach a reason to smile every time a baby cried.
An announcement was made at the beginning of the cross-country flight, that travelers would receive a 25% discount off their next ticket purchase every time a baby cried. In the end passengers applauded the babies who helped them get a free ticket.
Not designed to increase sales, but rather to create more compassion among travelers, JetBlue spokesman Morgan Johnston said, “We’re hoping to inspire … conversation and know that while it may be tough for you to sit next to a crying kid, we hope you can think about the stress that parent is going through,” he said. “And maybe we can be a little bit more supportive of moms.”
Another airline made passengers very happy for a different holiday.
Tiny Objects – A (Pantone) Book
Inka Mathew’s just released a book that features miniature objects photographed with their matching PANTONE color chips. The project was originally showcased on her Tumblr and via Instagram, which juxtapositions small objects with their coordinating PANTONE color, and described as “A personal project of tiny proportion—matching small everyday objects to their Pantone® Matching System colors…”
Below are some favorites:
Images via Inka Mathew / Green Ink Studios
Even Shakespeare Get’s Judged By It’s Cover
Image via New York Times / Mount Stuart
Earlier this month it was announced that a rare First Folio of Shakespeare’s works was discovered at Mount Stuart on the Scottish Isle of Bute.
Initially historian Emma Smith, a professor of Shakespeare Studies at Oxford University, was skeptical of the discovery, especially in the year that marks the 400th anniversary of the great bard’s death.
Having had a chance to examine and authenticate the Bute Folio, which is bound in three separate volumes, Emma Smith told the BBC that “It’s a book we most likely now see … in a glass case, and one of the things that this copy … shows us is a time when people just really used this book, they enjoyed it, they scribbled on it, they spilt their wine on it, their pet cats jumped on it.”
The First Folio, which contains thirty six of Shakespeare’s plays, was published in 1623 and included several plays previously unpublished works, among them Macbeth, The Tempest and As You Like It.
Only 234 copies are known to exist and, while it is not for sale at the time, this copy is estimated to be worth $3.7 to $4.6 million.
The Dirty Sad Truth –
Kids Spend Less Time Outdoors Than Inmates
A recent survey of 12,000 parents in 10 countries, conducted by detergent brands OMO and Persil, found that one-third of kids between the ages of five and 12, spend less than 30 minutes outside each day.
To make a point, the detergent brand Persil shot a documentary style film inside Indiana’s Wabash Maximum Security Prison as part of its “Dirt Is Good” themed campaign, presenting the concerning fact that US prisoners get more time outside than the average child in a rather abstract way.
The ‘Free the Kids’ campaign is brought to you by Dirt is Good, an initiative to get kids spending more time outside. Find out about the benefits of outdoor play for kids here: dirtisgood.com.
Feeling Lucky? – Google Is Bringing “The Claw” To SXSW
Google has been known for extravagant display booths and giveaways, and this year’s South by Southwest – an annual film, media and music festival, running from March 11th – 15th in Austin, Texas – is no exception.
Visitors can channel their inner child and the (hopeful) excitement of nabbing a toy, by participating in the “I’m Feeling Lucky” experience presented by Google Store, using a giant claw machine to win products such as Chromecast, Android Wear, Google Cardboard or even a shiny new Nexus.
Those not at SXSW can play along via Twitter.
Image via Google
An Otherworldly Cross Promotion
The photo of “The Martian” in the potato section is making the rounds online, as Albert Bartlett Potatoes, who partnered with Twentieth Century Fox, is cleverly using the film about an astronaut stranded on the red planet, to promote their line of red potatoes.
In the movie Matt Damon’s character is trying to grow potatoes in Martian soil to ensure his survival, until a rescue mission can reach him.
Images via gizmodo
Six Degrees of Separation … no more
For years Frigyes Karinthy’s 1929 theory of Six Degrees of Separation led us to believe that any two people are separated by just six degrees aka friendly acquaintances. But today – the day Facebook turns 12 and deemed “Friends Day” – they also just shrunk that number to 3.57.
According to VentureBeat‘s website, “In newly released statistics, Facebook claims that its services have reduced the degree of separation between users — now 3.57 degrees, compared to 3.74 degrees in 2011. The company interprets this is a sign that in the past five years, we’ve grown more connected globally, something it hopes to continue to advance through its various initiatives.”
To see how close or far removed from everybody you are on Facebook, log into your account and visit their “separation research” page.
Humor Does It – Health Insurance Style
As the first month of the new year is coming to an end, so is the open enrollment period for health insurance. And health insurance companies want to make sure you know it – with mailings, phone calls and advertisements…
One company is taking to the approach with humor: OSCAR – the healthier health insurance. While the campaign launched last year, it is still going strong… too bad they only provide coverage in New York, New Jersey, California, and Texas.
