If It's Hip, It's Here (Archives)

Meet The 10 Most Heroic and Inspirational Women of 2013.

This year Microsoft / Bing showcased Sara Bareilles' song "Brave" in their Windows marketing campaign which inspired them to take a different approach to the "Year in Review." They sought out women who spoke out, stood up, led, persevered and fought their way through adversity and challenge to come through the other side triumphant and created this one minute video and a special website to honor them.

So, who are these women?:

1. Malala Yousafzai

Malala Yousafzai stood up to educate us all. After surviving an assassination attempt, she arose stronger than ever. In 2013 she addressed the UN, was named one of Time's "100 Most Influential People" and, at 16, became the youngest woman to be nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.

2. Margaret Thatcher

Margaret Thatcher blazed a trail. Still the only woman prime minister of Great Britain, Thatcher paved the way for women to lead in the highest offices in the world. Known as the "Iron Lady" due to her uncompromising politics and leadership style, she passed away in 2013.

3. Adrianne Haslet-Davis

Adrianne Haslet-Davis vowed to dance again. Despite losing her lower leg in the Boston Marathon bombing, this dance teacher shows amazing courage. She has committed to not only dance again, but to also run in the 2014 Boston marathon on a prosthetic leg.

4. Gabrielle Giffords

Gabrielle Giffords got back up to fight for others. Surviving a gunshot wound to the head, U.S. Representative Giffords returned in 2013 to make an inspirational statement to Congress in the Sandy Hook hearings, and has gone on to use her experience and position as ex-member of the House to fight for improved gun safety regulations.

5. Diana Nyad

Diana Nyad persevered. After four attempts, at age 64, Diana Nyad embodied tenacity by becoming the first person to swim from Havana to Key West unassisted and without a shark cage.

6. Janet Yellen

Janet Yellen shattered the glass ceiling. On October 9th, 2013 President Barack Obama nominated Janet Yellen to be the first woman to be Chair of the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve.

7. Antoinette Tuff

Antoinette Tuff said "I love you" to save a school. Rising above panic, Tuff talked down a gunman who had entered Ronald E. McNair Discovery Academy with words of compassion, convincing him to peacefully surrender.

8. Angela Merkel

Angela Merkel had the strength to lead again. Angela Merkel is the first woman to hold the offices of Chancellor and leader of the Christian Democratic Union. In 2013 she led her party to a historic third-term victory in German elections.

9. Edith Windsor

Edith Windsor won a victory for equality. One of Time's "People of the Year," her Supreme Court victory in United States v. Windsor was hailed as a landmark milestone for marriage equality.

10. Deb Cohan

Deb Cohan danced to inspire us all. Facing a double mastectomy, she denied despair, holding a dance party just prior to the operation with the surgical team. The video of the party went viral, giving hope and courage to those fighting cancer.

And of course, lest we forget, all the women who fought to protect this country, its principles and its people:

This courageous group of women have changed the world and shown us all what the human spirit can achieve. Let that inspire you for 2014.

info, images and video courtesy of Bing

The Ufogel Is A Cool and Cozy Rentable Refuge in Austria.

Designed by architect Peter Jungmann, The Ufogel (a combination of the words 'UFO' and 'Vogel' which means bird in German), is an extraordinary and comfortably appointed house made almost entirely of larch wood available for rent all year round in the East Tyrolian village Nussdorf - the southwestern part of Austria known as Tyrol (or Tirol).

above: Frida Kahlo's famous self-portrait created with food on toast

Oslo, Norway based Instagram food artist and enthusiast Ida Skivenes (aka IdaFrosk) uses a dinner plate as a canvas to create original and reproductions of classic art with food. Her Art Toast Project features the classic works of masters from Magritte to Munch recreated on, you guessed it, toast.

For the new PlayStation® 3 racing game Gran Turismo 6, released just last month, the Mercedes-Benz designers have developed the visionary concept of a super sports car – and created one in full scale: the Mercedes-Benz AMG Vision Gran Turismo.

Extreme proportions, sensual contours and intelligently implemented high tech blend to form a breathtaking body.

Using the theme "Vision Gran Turismo", the world's leading automotive manufacturers and design studios were to develop concept models which give a unique insight into the further development of the automobile.

Kazunori Yamauchi, Head of Games Development and President of Polyphony Digital Inc., called for a look into the future. Under the basic idea of "Vision Gran Turismo", leading car manufacturers and design companies worldwide were asked to fashion pioneering design models. As virtual vehicles that nonetheless function just like a real car, the visionary concepts will be gradually unveiled in and integrated into the new game Gran Turismo® 6 through online updates.

"With its proportions and its expressive appearance, the Mercedes-Benz AMG Vision Gran Turismo embodies that design philosophy of sensual clarity which is characteristic of the brand. The design of this concept car clearly shows the perfect interaction of emotive, sensual shapes with intelligently placed technologies," said Gorden Wagener, Head of Design at Daimler AG.

As a 1:1-scale model, the Mercedes-Benz AMG Vision Gran Turismo celebrated its world premiere at the opening of the new Mercedes-Benz Research Development Center in Sunnyvale, California and debuted at the Los Angeles Auto Show.

above: the Mercedes-Benz AMG Vision Gran Turismo at the Los Angeles Auto Show

During the design development of the Mercedes-Benz AMG Vision Gran Turismo, the same standards were kept and the same processes followed as for any other concept car or series-production model. All the Mercedes-Benz Advanced Design Studios around the world prepared initial design drafts of their visions. Finally, the best ideas were further developed at the Advanced Design Studio in Sindelfingen as part of a digital design process, and then perfected in a physical 1:1 design process. The interior design was created at the specialised Advanced Design Studio in Como, Italy.

Also, the sound designers of the concept car have integrated an elegant, specially developed sound for the eight independent exhaust pipes integrated into the rear lamps (shown below).

Muscuar Bodyshell:

The sports car proportions that are a typical Mercedes-Benz feature have been reinterpreted: the long bonnet has a flowing transition into a compact greenhouse offset to the rear, which takes the form of an aerodynamically efficient water drop to descend slightly at the rear, where it rests on the rear end with broad shoulder contours. The dynamic aura is accentuated by an extended, dramatic side contour and a pronounced bulge to the wheel arches, which blend into the low-slung, muscular bodyshell. The angled headlamps, with their colour scheme and determined look, convey a sense of sportiness and readiness to leap forward.

LED Grille:

Another eye-catching feature is the radiator grille – a reinterpretation of the wide Mercedes-Benz sports car grille with central star. Its shape is reminiscent of the legendary 300 SL racing car of 1952. However, instead of classic louvres the grille of the show car features exclusively LEDs. The variable LED grille with different light patterns is a further development of the diamond grille introduced with the new A-Class.

The Game: Gran Turismo 6 - Standard Edition

• The Gran Turismo® series, recording sales over 70 million* worldwide, reinvents its core game engine in its newest edition for PlayStation®3. Gran Turismo®6 brings with it 1,200 types of car and 76 courses across 37 locations.
• With powered-up online competition, brand-new community functions, the product of collaboration with the world’s automotive manufacturers “Vision Gran Turismo” and more, Gran Turismo®6 is at the forefront of racing game technology.

Gran Turismo
Mercedes Benz

For The Love of Movies and Dogs: Wrigley At The Movies 2.0

above: Wrigley and his owner recreate a scene from John Hughes' Sixteen Candles

I came upon this adorable set of images where redditor mmsspp posted pics of their boss, Chris Naka, with his dog Wrigley recreating famous movie scenes compared to the original movie stills.

above left: as originally posted and above right: an example of my alteration

The 13 images were adorable BUT... and I hope they are not offended... I couldn't stand the way they were laid out nor how poorly the colors and looks matched in some, so I took it upon myself to put them side by side or above and directly below and adjusted the colors a bit so they really look similar.

Here are the improved images of "Wrigley at the Movies":

Dirty Dancing:

Top Gun:

Brokeback Mountain:

Spiderman:

Sixteen Candles:

The Graduate:

Hunger Games:

The Notebook:

Titanic:

Ghost:

Ryan Gosling:

Say Anything:

To see the original post, go here

The World's First Interactive Print Ad (For The Moto X) Breaks In This Month's WIRED magazine.

To drive home the 'customization' concept behind Motorola's Moto X Mobile phone, Digitas, with some help from T+Ink Technology, has created the very first interactive print ad. Select copies (only 150,000 distributed in Chicago and New York) of the January edition of WIRED magazine will feature a print ad that allows you to begin designing your own Moto X phone by simply pressing on colored buttons to change the color of the back of the smartphone's case.

This animated gif (courtesy of FastCoCreate) gives you a peek at the technology:

Then the viewer is directed to a site where they can complete the customization process and order the smartphone, if they so desire.

See how it works in the video below:

Motorola

The 20 Most Incredible Photos Of Living Creatures From 2013.

National Geographic's 2013 Year in Review is a beautiful interactive site on which one could spend hours and hours exploring many of the most incredible scientific findings, technological advancements, space exploration, geopolitical stories, travel images, adventure scenarios, ancient worlds, human cultures, environmental happenings, animal photography and more from 2013.

This award winning rechargeable time piece was initially designed by Gusztav Szikszai two years ago, sparking a lot of interest, with many people in various forums asking how they could get hold of one.