futuristic work station

In the not so distant future, we'll all work in these futuristic offices.

quartodisecolo:


retrozone:

hugo-strikes-back:
Retro Thing:...: "

quartodisecolo:

retrozone:

hugo-strikes-back:

Retro Thing: Painfully Beautiful Vintage Tech

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(Via Aspettando Ellis.)

Technorati Tags:
1970s, Future, receptionist, work station, industrial design, phone, tv phone, uniform, panels, yellow dress, white cap, gloves, futuristic, fantasy

ARK II

[from wikipedia:]Ark II was a live-action science fiction series aimed at children that aired on CBS beginning in 1976 as part of its Saturday morning line-up.

Technorati Tags:
Future, Sci Fi, Monkey, Space Ship, 1970s

Peapod Eco Car with a smile

An electric car that was just announced by Chrysler. The specs seem to be more like a suped up golf cart than a real car but you can't help but smile at it... as it smiles back at you.

via Peapod

GM Car of the Future (1962)

The control mechanism of this futuristic car sounds a lot like that of the Segway. It's interesting how they were thinking way ahead of their time back then. Too bad their innovative thinking didn't come to fruition.

On another note, the graphic design for their brochure is fantastic.

[from Paleo Future:]

GM Car of the Future (1962): "
The advertisement below ran in the Official Souvenir Program for the 1962 Seattle World's Fair. The ad proclaims that General Motors is, 'setting a course for the future' by showcasing the 'fully functional Firebird III space-age car.' The full text of the ad is transcribed below.



Mobility - the easiest, fastest, surest kind possible - turns your world of tomorrow into an accessible and amicable place. The fret is removed from traffic and it is fun, not frustrating, to take short jaunts on vehicles which float along on a pad of air or to Sunday-drive down automatic highways.

The General Motors Corporation exhibit in the Coliseum presents a preview of the fascinating changes coming in the automobile industry. You see now the full-size, experimental Firebird III. This pace-setter for the car of the future, proven in road tests, is thrust with a turbine engine. Its simple control stick accelerates, brakes and turns. Push the control forward and the Firebird III moves ahead; swing it left or right and the wheels turn; pull back and it brakes. The electronic guide system can rush it over an automatic highway while the driver relaxes.

Although the Firebird II stands as the center attraction in the exhibit, you see other displays of the future. There is a model of the automatic highway, prototype of a stretch of experimental roadway which was built in New Jersey to demonstrate how electronics can steer cars and even stop them. This quarter-mile stretch of road has been received enthusiastically by officials, who predict that electronic mechanisms in the future can eliminate routine driving chores and make long distance highway travel safer and easier.

The General Motors exhibit includes solar energy demonstrations and you may test your skill with sun-powered guns which activate parts of the display. Yet another exhibit reveals the principles of ground effect machinery, where objects are moved along a flat surface on a cushion of air. In the next century, more people will be going more places in fascinating new vehicles . . . and they'll go safely.

See also:
Magic Highway, U.S.A. (1958)
Seattle World's Fair Official Souvenir Program (1962)
Century 21: Space Needle Designs (1962)
The Future World of Transportation"

(Via Paleo-Future.)

World's longest tunnel to make a permanent connection between 2 continents

They just need a tunnel between the Russian mainland, Sakhalin (Saharin) Island and Hokkaido and I can drive home to Tokyo!

[from Spluch]
World's longest tunnel to make a permanent connection between 2 continents: "Russia plans to build the world's longest tunnel, a transport and pipeline link under the Bering Strait to Alaska, as part of a $65 billion project to supply the U.S. with oil, natural gas and electricity from Siberia.

A 6,000-kilometer (3,700-mile) transport corridor from Siberia into the U.S. will feed into the tunnel, which at 64 miles (103 km) will be more than twice as long as the underwater section of the Channel Tunnel between the U.K. and France, according to the plan. The tunnel would run in three sections to link the two islands in the Bering Strait between Russia and the U.S.

The planned undersea tunnel would contain a high-speed railway, highway and pipelines, as well as power and fiber-optic cables, according to TKM-World Link.

The project, which Russia is coordinating with the U.S. and Canada, would take 10 to 15 years to complete.

Source: Bloomberg
Tags: Tunnel | Berling Strait | Longest"

(Via Spluch.)

MINI USA rolls out RFID-activated billboards

Genius idea for Mini outdoor boards. Assuming it's from the always smart guys at Butler Shine.

[from Engadget:] If there was ever a slick way to get folks to willingly carry around an RFID tag, MINI USA has it all wrapped up. Catering to every person's egotistical side, MINI has begun a pilot advertising campaign in Chicago, New York, Miami, and San Francisco, which gives select Cooper owners the chance to get an RFID keyfob in the mail, and moreover, a reason to consistently drive under MINI billboards. Users can select a custom message to be encoded on their RFID chip, and when they cruise near an overhanging MINI billboard, their particular message lights up for the world (or at least nearby motorists) to see. Of course, we're sure messages will be edited before delivery, and you still need to be down with toting a homing signal around with you each time you cruise, but let's face it, the mastermind behind this ad campaign probably got the raise we all wanted, but didn't come close to. So if you're a MINI owner in one of the four lucky cities, keep a keen eye on that inbox, and word on the street is that MINI USA is planning on hitting up more cities if (read: when) this proves to be a smash hit.

[Via Slashdot]

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(Via Engadget.)

Technorati Tags:
Mini, Butler, Shine, Stern & Partners, outdoor advertising, OOH, automobile advertising

Apple iPhone

Just finished watching the keynote address at MacWorld where they introduced the iPhone. I will readily admit that I drink the kool aid when it comes to Apple products but this introduction really excited me. As Steve Jobs professed, it's a leap forward that feels just as monumental as the introduction of the Mac and the iPod. I've felt the same delight when I first got hands on those two ground breaking products and I can't wait to get my hands on the iPhone, too.

Here are the innovations (link). I'm especially impressed with the "Multi Touch" technology where hey eliminated all dedicated buttons. This you have to see to believe. I remember watching the Spielberg film "Minority Report" where they had those touch screens that Tom Cruise kept rearranging... I realized that this is that future. Like the mouse or the idea of an mp3 player, Apple did not invent the touch screen technology, but they made it into a "how did I ever live without it?" feature. Genious.

Well enough gushing. I'm probably only the 8329th Apple fan boy who's blogged about his excitement over this brand new toy but hey, it's a good day to be a geek.

Tallest Buildings, 2012

Fascinating to see the world's obsession to be the tallest. I thought the race was pretty much over after 9/11 but seems to be a lot more sprouting up to the atmosphere. Check out this article on Wired and the details of the diagram above.

Technorati Tags:
architecture, skyscrapers, future

The Beginnings of a Teleporting Future?

This is one technology I really hope for in my lifetime.

Beam Me Up, Scotty: Scientists Transport a Hunk of Matter 18 Inches: "

[quoted from Gizmodo] Scientists in Copenhagen took one more step toward the Star Trek transporter, figuring out how to teleport groups of billions of atoms from one place to another using light, quantum mechanics, magnetism and a concept they call 'entanglement.' Professor Eugene Polzik and his team managed to move an object about 18 inches, using an excruciatingly complicated process that amounts to some serious magic. Says the Prof:

'Creating entanglement is a very important step, but there are two more steps at least to perform teleportation. We have succeeded in making all three steps -- that is entanglement, quantum measurement and quantum feedback.'

Although the scientists admit that no humans are going to be teleported a la Star Trek any time soon, this technology might make it possible to transmit and process data at unheard-of speeds. Can't wait to see that. Energize. - Charlie White

Scientists teleport two different objects [Reuters] (Thanks, Mark!)

"

(Via Gizmodo.)