Capitol Hill
On Sunday, I wandered around my neighborhood, Capitol Hill, with my camera… Here are a few of the shots: view of space needle from capitol hill iron grate truck cherry blossoms
Olympic Sculpture Park in Seattle
In January, Seattle opened the Olympic Sculpture Park in Belltown. Yesterday was my first time there. And, on a rare Seattle March afternoon, there was sun. 🙂 eagle by alexander calder > unfortunately, the birds didn’t get the memo. (see above “white highlights.”) wake by richard serra the color was just amazing. it’s me! eagle backlit
Expression Blend – Release Candidate Available
The Expression Blend release candidate is now available! Get it here! As was recently noted in a comment, there are a bunch of very cool samples in Blend. One of them has a sweet page turning demo. I converted it to an xbap… check it out here:
Yo-Yo Ma & the Silk Road Project
Nine years ago, Yo-Yo Ma founded the Silk Road Project, a non-profit aimed at studying the ebb and flow of ideas among different cultures along the Silk Road. Tonight, Yo-Yo Ma & the Silk Road Ensemble performed at the Benaroya Hall in Seattle. The music was stunning, with three pieces (“Once We Were…”, “When the Wind Circles…” and “The Silent City”) standing out for me. The latter was composed by Kayhan Kalhor and commemorates.. the Kurdish village of Hallabja in Iraqi Kurdistan… who are often called a ‘nationless nation’ and who have been the subject of numerous assaults and difficulties because of their …
Origami on Crack
Last night, I read a great article in the New Yorker about Robert Lang, master orgami folder. I remember folding cranes when I was little with my family and our Japanese exchange students. But this stuff is on a completely different level. Interesting point from the article & something I never thought about: Scientists began applying these [origami] folding techniques to anything—medical, electrical, optical, or nanotechnical devices, and even to strands of DNA—that had a fixed size and shape but needed to be packed tightly and in an orderly way. From Lang’s website (and may I add a serious *DAMN!*): Black Forest Cuckoo Clock, …
The Darfur Wall
A couple months ago, my friend Jonah created the Darfur Wall. This site raises money for 4 organizations that aid the Darfur Conflict. On the “wall,” there are 400,000 numbers, one for each person killed in the Darfur genocide. Every dollar donated turns a number from dark gray to brilliant white. 100% of the proceeds go to four Darfur relief organizations.
XBAP Contest! Deadline: March 12, 2007
Josh Smith (formerly of Infragistics) is putting on an XBAP contest! Submissions are required by March 12th. I can’t wait to see what people create!
Starbucks in the Forbidden City?
My friend Peter recently sent me a link about Chinese public opinion & the Forbidden City Starbucks. I first heard about the controversy last November, when my parents were in Beijing. It was only a month and a half after I snapped the picture below, but they had trouble finding the Starbucks: the sign was no longer there. (My dad tried to take a photo of the inside of the Starbucks, but they wouldn’t let him.) Interestingly, my original post with this picture now has with 2093 hits…
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
YAY!!!!!! The last book in the Harry Potter series will be released on July 21st. That’s a Saturday. I know what I’ll be doing starting at midnight July 20th. 🙂
British Library – 3D Rare Books Experience as an XBAP
As Tim Sneath announced earlier in his blog today, the British Library has released a just awesome XBAP. I’ve been giddy about this app since I saw the first prototype. Here’s an example of technology really opening doors and offering new experiences. The public can see these Da Vinci’s notebooks, Mozart’s compositions, and many other (usually locked up) rare books in a fuller fidelity, richer environment than ever before. Tim goes in to all the specific coolness of the app in his post. I definitely recommend the read. Try out “Turning the Pages” here.