“The Centre for Sustainable Design [at The Surrey Institute of Art & Design, University College, in the UK] facilitates discussion and research on eco-design and environmental, economic, ethical and social considerations in product and service development and design. This is achieved through training and education, research, seminars, workshops, conferences, consultancy, publications and Internet. The Centre also acts as an information clearing house and a focus for innovative thinking on sustainable products and services.”

“The AgeLab was established at MIT in 1999, as a partnership with industry and the aging community, to develop new technologies promoting healthy, independent living throughout the human lifespan. Our research involves an array of disciplines including engineering, computer science, human factors, health and medical sciences, management, marketing, and the social and behavioral sciences. All of our work is motivated by a shared belief that the appropriate use of technology, along with innovations in its delivery, can have a significant impact on the quality of life for older people, their families and caregivers.”

See the article at Metropolis Magazine.

“The Guerrilla Girls, established in 1985 and still going strong in the 21st century, are a group of women artists, writers, performers and film makers who fight discrimination. Dubbing ourselves the conscience of culture, we declare ourselves feminist counterparts to the mostly male tradition of anonymous do-gooders like Robin Hood, Batman, and the Lone Ranger. We wear gorilla masks to focus on the issues rather than our personalities. We use humor to convey information, provoke discussion, and show that feminists can be funny. In 17 years we have produced over 80 posters, printed projects, and actions that expose sexism and racism in politics, the art world and the culture at large. Our work has been passed around the world by kindred spirits who we are proud to have as supporters. The mystery surrounding our identities has attracted attention. We could be anyone; we are everywhere.”

“According to this article in The Herald Newspaper, the island of Islay, on the West coast of Scotland is set to become the world’s first Hydrogen Fuel Cell powered island. Scientests at Napier University wish to use the existing Wave Power Station to treat sea water and store the resulting hydrogen in fuel cells. The first plan is to power a building, moving on to powering the entire island in a decade.” From slashdot.org.

“Scientists have long suspected that airplane condensation trails — the wispy, white tails found in the wake of high-flying jets — form larger cloud banks that substantially alter the atmosphere’s heat balance..... [T]he FAA grounded commercial flights nationwide for three days following the terrorist air attacks... and now it has emerged that the American climate was indeed noticeably different during those three days without air travel. This research provides one of the strongest indicators that air travel itself changes our climate.” Read the article on Wired.

“Bobby was created by [The Center for Applied Technology] to help Web page authors identify and repair significant barriers to access by individuals with disabilities.... CAST is a not-for-profit organization whose mission is to expand opportunities for people with disabilities through innovative uses of computer technology.” Enter a URL and get detailed recommendations on how to make your site more accessible. Note, being “Bobby Approved” does not necessarily mean your site is accessible.

“In London’s bus-stops, some of the finest information graphics I have ever seen are gradually being introduced. Here are some hastily taken photos to record the before and after of London’s bus maps, and the improvements I think are great innovations... The previous map design was ‘one size fits all’ — customised to the locale by the addition of a ‘you are here’ arrow sticker applied to it... The new map design’s first advance is that they are tailored to the specific locale. So they only show the traveller information appropriate to where they are and where they can get to from that point.”

Found on xBlog.

“Poor transport contributes to social exclusion in two ways. First, it restricts access to activities that enhance people’s life chances, such as work, learning, health care, food shopping, and other key activities. Second, deprived communities suffer disproportionately from pedestrian deaths, pollution and the isolation which can result from living near busy roads.” Why does it happen? What can be done? Read the report from the Social Exculsion Unit, a Cabinet Office. Read coverage of the report in the Guardian.

Found on also not found in nature.

“In the US, in the 1880s, Herman Hollerith had designed and patented an electronic tabulating machine using punch cards to carry out calculations. Using this technology the Hollerith machine, in a pre computer age, was able to carry out complex accounting functions in a fraction of the time previously needed. Hollerith’s invention laid the basis for the foundation of IBM, which was to become one of the most profitable multinational corporations of the 20th Century. By the 1930s, IBM had become a leading US corporation under its Chief Executive, Thomas J. Watson, who was an open sympathizer of both Hitler and Mussolini. After Hitler came to power in 1933, Watson strove to build a strong commercial relationship between IBM and Nazi Germany. Through Dehomag, (IBM’s German subsidiary) IBM equipped Nazi Germany with Hollerith machines for numerous financial and statistical purposes. One use of the Hollerith machine was to compile data on German Jews - who they were and where they lived.” From a review of IBM and the Holocaust on getethical.com.

Quoth the Christian Science Monitor:

“They are among the most intriguing pieces of beachfront architecture in Art Deco Miami Beach, and certainly among the smallest. They are eight lifeguard stations that stretch over nine blocks of beach lining the commercial part of Ocean Drive. The stations... [were] rebuilt three years ago to replace the ones that hurricane Andrew destroyed. But the stations between Sixth and Eighth Streets are not the generic, weathered shacks of yore. To local architect William Lane, who designed them for free, they tell the world about Miami Beach. ‘They’re a response to the kind of energy that’s here in Miami,’ Mr. Lane says. The pastel structures blend 1920s Art Deco with 1960s pop-culture themes.”

What struck me when I saw them, though, was not how their whimsical style suited South Beach, but how much they stood out — and how this served their function. Sometimes it’s important for structures to call attention to themselves.