Ballard interviewed, in-flight arphids, Viridian manifesto, fish-controlled robot vehicle…

• 1 – J G Ballard: The comforts of madness
  “J G Ballard’s new novel is set in a mall. The master of the urban dystopia tells Marianne Brace why consumerism is a new fascism, and why it fascinates him.” The Indy talks to one of the old masters.
  (tags: interview urban politics genre fascism consumerism fiction science writing books Ballard JGB)
• 2 – Solar Powered Wiggly Sign
  “Tim Hunkin is a British inventor who recently made a solar powered sign that wiggles.” Does what it says on the tin.
  (tags: sculpture sustainable mechanics art motion sign design powered solar)
• 3 – In-Flight Active-Tag Test Successful, Says Boeing
  “The plane maker plans to submit a proposal to the FAA by month’s end, requesting that the agency issue a policy allowing active tags aboard airplanes.” I have had it with these motherf*ckin’ arphids on this motherf*ckin’ plane…
  (tags: UHF tags identity active test in-flight aircraft Boeing arphid RFID)
• 4 – Viridian Redux
  “Sterling figured design movements like futurism and dadaism had been effective in [...] driving new ways of thinking about the world and its problems, so he started the Viridian Design movement…” A summary of the manifesto, over at Worldchanging.
  (tags: economics politics social change manifesto futurism ecology environment Design Viridian Sterling Bruce)
• 5 – Devolution
  “It’s not impossible to find discussions of (for example) nanofactories or everyware sensor networks that assume that the systems will be buggy and prone to surprising and sometimes baffling failures, but they’re not at all common.” Jamais Cascio strikes
  (tags: Cascio Jamais address danger malfunctions errors failures bug futurism technology)
• 6 – Fish Explores Land with Robotic Vehicle
  “This interesting vessel is driven by the motions of a parrot cichlid in a fish bowl. A camera mounted above the tank tracks the fish’s movement and relays that information to a computer, which then drives the robot in the direction the fish was traveling
  (tags: Terranaut Weiner Seth travel robot detection motion camera vehicle fish)
• 7 – Small, lownoise oscillator may help in surveillance
  “A new design for a microwave oscillator that is smaller, simpler, and produces clearer signals at a single frequency than comparable devices has been invented at the NIST.” Building the panopticon, day by day!
  (tags: panopticon surveillance technology communications device oscillator microwave)
• 8 – Nanotech plan ‘falls short’, say critics
  “A nine-point plan for the responsible development of nanotechnology in Australia has been recommended in a new report. But environmental and worker safety groups are still not happy.” Hmm…regulation needs to strike the right balance.
  (tags: safety worker environment regulation industry development technology nanotech Australia)
• 9 – NASA Craft Settles Into Mars Orbit
  “The most powerful spacecraft ever sent to Mars has settled into a nearly circular orbit, a move that allows scientists to begin studying the planet in unprecedented detail, NASA said Tuesday.” Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter starts work.
  (tags: research study science probe satellite Orbiter Reconnaissance Mars NASA space)
• 10 – The employee-free convenience store
  “It not only doesn’t have a staff, but the goods are all stocked in machines facing outward. What’s more, it doesn’t have tobacco, alcohol, gas or lotto tickets … and its profit margins are even more distinct from its traditional cousin.”
  (tags: business employment economy machines vending automated staff employees zero outlet retail store convenience)
• 11 – Do eco-friendly products harm the environment?
  “Can eco-friendly products and services, such as shade-grown coffee or green electricity, actually be bad for the environment? Possibly, says one economist.” Though not directly.
  (tags: environment changes lifestyle contributions donations products purchasing green ecology economics)