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China Television HQ Done, Looks as Crazy as the Renderings
Posted by Jesus Diaz at 11:15 PM on August 7, 2008
The facade of China Central Television Headquarters is now complete, just in time to look pretty tomorrow, when the world turns its eyes on Beijing's Olympic Games. The 6.45 million-square-feet complex looks as amazing as the original renderings, defying gravity with its two leaning towers connected by two massive sections floating in midair. Still, the process of how they got connected is even more impressive:
This is a model of Shanghai as projected for 2020 by Chinese authorities. At 1,000 square feet, it's perhaps the biggest model of a city in the world, and--for sure--the best place ever for two grown men to wear their Gamera and Godzilla latex costumes and fight to death. The gigantic dimensions and the detail shown in the photographs are just mind-blowing.
Chunky geeks that enjoy eating Cheetos while working on the computer would never have to worry about cheese covered fingertips again if they had keyboard napkin protection. And hey, you are working hard with all of that lifting, chewing and typing, which is why you can easily remove the napkin to wipe the sweat from your brow after the snacks are gone. Unfortunately, the keyboard napkin is only a concept at this point, so messy laptop users that sweat when they eat are SOL for now.
I can't say that I would be thrilled about the idea of cooking in the same space that I shower and go to the bathroom, but the idea behind the Woon Box is sound. Basically, the Dutch designers at KAW envision the Woon Box as something like an elaborate port-a-potty. It features a shower, toilet and kitchen inside a relatively compact box that can be transported to areas in need of temporary facilities. I can also see something like this being popular with people who need to 
Designer Laurent Hongisto has crafted the Lisco USB Snake as an attempt to solve that age-old (ok... decade-old) dilemma of never having a USB cable handy when you need one to charge/connect-up your device. So the design combines elements of those '90s "slap bracelets" with a USB A to mini-USB cable, wrapped up in colourful polyurethane and designed to be carried around on your wrist. Hmmm. Ok... so it looks kinda odd, and do you know anyone who'd want to wear this as jewellery, let alone anyone who's frequently that desperate for a USB cable? It doesn't have the geek-chic of the 
A few months ago an LA real estate mogul revealed his plans to light up the LA skyline with 
For those of you who enjoy steampunk, story telling and handmade creations, I present to you Klaatu Varata Studios, the workshop of Arkansas artist Dillon Chandler. Check out his 
As part of its 150th anniversary celebration, the Japan Iron and Steel Federation got ironsmithing genius Kogoro Kurata to display his insane 1:1 scale model of the Scopedog mecha from the 80s anime series VOTOMS. Weighing in at two tons and standing a full four meters tall, it dwarfed everything else at the exhibition. The cast iron structure was actually finished in 2005 and has been on display before at other Japanese conventions, but it still thrills every time it rears its mechanical head. Look at the detail on this thing!
This Ashton Martin DB5 is a full-sized, almost-perfect reproduction of the original Bond car--down to the front-blinkers machine guns and Ben-Hurish wheels' blades--built using only cardboard and glue. It has no supporting structure, neither metal nor wood. Her Majesty's cardboard spy car was built by Chris Gilmour, who has a tendency to convert everything in 1:1 scale cardboard models, from bikes to giant strong boxes to dragsters to dentist chairs, grand pianos, and portable typewriters:
Although quite wide and thick, the Plica concept out-iPhones the iPhone by having two screens where there was only one. What's better about two screens? You can use one of the screens as a keyboard, leaving the other free for viewing things. Or, you can just look at something at twice the resolution as before. Do we really have to explain why 
Design goodness hunters 
Hey, I love pleasing scents as much the next person, but I don't think people are quite ready for an MP3 player that pumps odours through your earbuds. Nonetheless, a group of designers has come up with that very idea and dubbed it "Sweet Honey." I highly doubt that you will see something like this on store shelves anytime soon, but there are plenty of crazy stupid 
It kind of looks like a laptop if you ask me, but the V-Line toaster concept from designer Thibault Masclet is actually a toaster and an induction cooker all-in-one. It incorporates glass like 
The Vortex Fountain eschews gentle, soothing streams for a powerful water funnel. The illusion of a standing block of water is created by an acrylic case hidden by transparency and water cascading down the sides, and the vortex itself is formed through the combination of strong, alternate currents of water that collide in the tank. Depending on the angle from which you view the fountain, it alternates between a majestic restraint of nature and an oversized science experiment involving expensive two-litres. Here's a clip of the Vortex Fountain in full vortexness:
Shanghai-based designers Naolab have turned their creative talents towards the universal gadget charging station, and come up with ChargerFrame. It's designed to put your charging gadgets on display... in a chaotic, randomly wiry, 
Sporry guyss, there'lll be speling mistkes in this post coz I cnt see the keyboord proply: my eyess ar watercingg to much. *dab dab* Ah that's better. Just don't think too much about the eyelid jewellery from designer Eric Klarenbeek, or your eyes too will fill up in sympathy with that poor model. Wearing jewels dangling from contact lenses stuck to the front of her eyeballs. Ten out of ten for ingenuity, minus several million for practicality...that'd be my stance on these. Still, it's a weird world out there, so these will appeal to someone. Oh darrrn, I justu watchd the videoo... *drip*
I don't know how much of a workout you are going to get with some rinky-dink 1 pound weights, but I like the idea behind this 
The FuChat concept phone is pretty, and kind of half-phone, half-Chumby as its surface is a concealed display used to show widgets: from weather displays, to showing a "keep out" sign on your door. But the emotional-sensing aspect got me intrigued. FuChat would be able to analyse your voice and body temp and guess at your emotional status... then display it back to you, supposedly enhancing the emotional aspects of communication. That sounds appealing, until you wonder what it'd be like to have a damn phone telling you you're bloody angry in the middle of an empassioned rant to the ex. As well as being designed to hang on door handles or stand on desks, this thing would have to be "smashed onto the floor-proof" too. Just a concept. [
Precisely how the Flowlight would work is a little unclear, but the design page notes that a base station would focus a laser beam 100 times a second into a point in the space, creating small plasma points that glow in mid air. Users could then use the pen to draw and write, making doodles look like some sort of fantastic light show. It's kind of like a cross between and blackboard and a laser pointer—which would be extremely cool if the product actually existed.
Architecture has always been a mixture of art and engineering, but as we press on through the 21st century, the role of computers in the design process is becoming more and more integral. Algorithmic architecture is on the cutting edge of this movement, and the complex, rhythmic designs can be truly breathtaking. With that in mind, OObject has collected a list of 15 schemes that portray this emerging field at its best. [
Whenever a gadget is focused on ergonomics, buckle up for some seriously weird looking design. A prime example of this phenomenon can be seen in this "Alien Mouse" concept from designer Mizanur Rehman. The idea was to create a mouse that would strictly adhere to the principles of ergonomics and provide maximum comfort by molding itself to the user's hand with a body constructed of soft gel and cellulose. It even features a pulsating central core that reverberates throughout the frame to help relieve stress.
Saving a little extra money on your next power bill is as easy as unplugging your power cables now and then. After all, those greedy gadgets keep sucking power from the grid even when not in use. Designer Paulo Oh has come up with an extremely simple solution to this problem with an outlet that includes hangers for your plugs. Naturally, this little feature means that you don't have to deal with cords lying all willy-nilly on the floor. It is only a concept at this point, but with this whole power conservation thing catching on, I wouldn't be surprised to see something similar available in the near future. [
This concept USB watch, dubbed "Timeless" is either a fabulously ironic piece of deconstructivist electronic art, or a geeky overload. Whichever way you look at it, it's kinda neat: basically it's a simple digital watch, with an internal battery that's charged when you plug it into a USB socket. And then the same USB socket plugs back into the watch face, secured with PCB mount-style latches, with the ribbon cable as a strap. It's a concept... but I could rattle off a pretty long list of people I know who'd probably love to own one. [
According to the designer, Pillo is a "modern way of living" that can be described as "furniture or micro architecture." Essentially, it is a series of carbon fibre rods covered in fabric that can be easily unfolded or collapsed for easy transport. Throw a little light source in there and you have yourself one cozy, blinding little fort for adults that can also function as a unique focal point and lighting source in a room. Obviously, this thing has the word "concept" written all over it, so I wouldn't expect to see it being sold to the public anytime soon.
