To promote real dating over internet dating for the company Ô Fiô Bier Bar, Brazil-based ad agency Dim & Canzian created a humorous print ad.

In the ad, it shows how a man can transform himself into an attractive woman in just 10 steps—showing how misleading internet dating can be.

Scroll down to view the pictures of the step-by-step transformation:

[via Creative Criminals]
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This time, we bring you photos of Robert Zemeckis’ Back To The Future trilogy.

Though the photographs strip the movies of its magic—like showing how many people it took for Marty McFly’s jacket, hoverboard and shoes of the future to work—the images still give a touch nostalgia, and a precious glimpse into the old ways of how special effects were created.

[via Limeisbetter]
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New York-based design consultancy PENSA has developed a concept for cities—where street signs get turned into an ‘urban oases’ or rest stops that allow us to charge our mobile devices.

Called ‘Street Charge’, the concept involves installing solar panels to street signs, to convert solar energy into renewable energy.

What makes their concept so interesting is that it can be applied to our current infrastructure—improving the connection and relationship we have with our surroundings.

Not to mention, it will be handy to charge our dying mobile phones at any street sign.

Could this be the future of our cities?

Click to watch the video below:

[via PENSA]
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‘Litographs’ are print images that are created from the texts of books.

Litographs founder Danny Fien has teamed up with various designers to transform the text of classic books—such as Alice in Wonderland, Moby Dick, The Catcher in The Rye, and many others—into beautiful literate illustrations.

Each print is sold from US$ 24 to US$ 39—depending on the color and size of the print.

[via Litographs]
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These brands are world-famous and some of the most advertised; and their logos, instantly recognizable—but do you know how their names came about and what they actually mean?

2) Photographer Adds Superheroes To Old War Photographs

Indonesian photographer Agan Harahap has digitally-manipulated popular characters from cult comics and movies into real-life vintage war photographs.

3) Japanese Developer Creates Robotic Butt That Expresses Emotions

Tokyo-based interactive developer Nobuhiro Takahashi has created a robotic butt that represents emotions in the form of visual and tactile responses.

4) New York Gets The First Underground Park Of The Future

Called ‘Delancey Underground’ or ‘LowLine’ (as in an underground ‘The High Line’ park for the Lower East Side), the first underground park of New York will use a system of fiber optic cables to gather and transfer sunlight from above the ground, to the ceilings below the ground.

5) Creative Agency Grows Fruits Into Box Shapes, To Create ‘Real Juice Boxes’

To show that Camp’s fruit juice is all natural, Brazilian creative agency AGE Isobar grew fruits into box shapes—to create ‘real juice boxes’.

6) Spotted: Banksy’s Latest Piece In London?

The piece features Union Jack flags draped across the wall, and applied to the artist’s signature stencil of a child working on a sewing machine.

7) Leica Announces World’s First Digital Camera Dedicated To Black-And-White

Called ‘Leica M Monochrom’, the company said that the camera a full-frame, 35-mm format digital camera, “designed exclusively and without any compromises for black-and-white photography”.

8) The World’s Most Expensive Camera: 1923 Leica O-Series

At the 21st WestLicht Photographica Auction in Vienna on Saturday, the world record for the most expensive camera ever sold was broken again for the fifth time.

9) Make Any Website Appear In 3D Without The Glasses

By simply bookmarking the script to your bookmarks bar, you can turn your usual (boring) 2D site into 3D—with just a simple click of the mouse!

10) The World’s First Invisible Ad

Using hundreds of polarized sunglasses, hack LCD screens, and a terrace house in Sydney—the company created ads that were only visible when viewed only through polarized sunglasses.

For the most current updates within the creative, media, and technology industries, please follow TAXI on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or Pinterest
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Sponge-making company Scotch-Brite—together with ad agency Grey Brazil—created a campaign ‘Wash Your Bill’ that lets restaurant diners skip paying their bills by washing dishes.

Upon asking for their bill, diners were presented with a sponge and the opportunity to skip payment by simply washing the dishes.

[via Creative Criminals]
TAXI Daily News

Sponge-making company Scotch-Brite—together with ad agency Grey Brazil—created a campaign ‘Wash Your Bill’ that lets restaurant diners skip paying their bills by washing dishes.

Upon asking for their bill, diners were presented with a sponge and the opportunity to skip payment by simply washing the dishes.

[via Creative Criminals]
TAXI Daily News

In case of ‘emergencies’, Solid-State Drive (SSD) developer RunCore has made a new type of SSD drive that you can erase or destroy at a push of a button.

Called ‘InVincible SSD drive’, it comes equipped with a set of red and green buttons that remain accessible outside of your computer.

Here’s where the fun starts: by pressing the green button, the device will be activate its ‘intelligent destruction’ mode—which overwrites the entire disk—leaving the data inside unrecoverable.

However, by pressing the red button, the physical destruction mode will be activated—which sends a strong electric current to the flash memory—physically destroying the drive permanently in a puff of smoke!

It may seem a little extreme but at least it guarantees that no one will be able to recover the information from the drive.

Just make sure you push the right button!

Watch the video below to see on how the InVincible SSD drive works:

[via RunCore]
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Swiss artists Taiyo Onorato and Nico Krebs—together known as Tonk—have assembled a camera made out of old photography books.

The books are first carved hollow before attaching the lens and buttons.

The duo’s latest piece is part of their self-published photo magazine titled As Long as It Photographs and It Must Be a Camera

In both books, various camera apparatus are being constructed from almost anything hallow such as a television set to an empty turtle shell!

And yes, you can take pictures with their unusual and unorthodox cameras.

[via Tonk]
TAXI Daily News

It may have just been two weeks since The Avengers premiered in theaters across the world. But the superhero movie is still one of the most talked-about topics across social media platforms.

To measure the impact of The Avengers across sites such as Twitter, Facebook and Google+, media analysis website Topsy has gathered some facts on the movie and its social media presence.

New Media Rockstars and designer Andrew Rueda took this information and used it to create a ‘super powered’ infographic!

How big of an impact do you think The Avengers made on the world?

[via New Media Rockstars]
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As homage to the former president of the Parisian fashion house Hermès, Jean-Louis Dumas, who died in May 2010, Leica has revealed a limited edition camera.

Called the Leica M9-P ‘Série Limitée Jean-Louis Dumas’, the camera is offered in two different sets—with either one, or three lenses.

The one-lens camera set comes with a silver-anodized Leica Summilux-M 50mm f/1.4 ASPH, and is available from June 2012 with a worldwide limited edition of 300.

The three-lens set—available from July 2012 with a limited edition of 100 sets—comes with: a Leica Summicron-M 28mm f/2 ASPH, a Leica Noctilux-M 50mm f/0.95 ASPH, and a Leica SPO-Summicron-M 90mm f/2 ASPH; that all comes with silver-anodized finishes.

The sets are available at US$ 29,000 and US$ 59,000 respectively from Leica stores and boutiques.

The camera company also made a video to launch the limited edition series.

In the video, it shows the precision, craftsmanship and effort combined to produce the series.

Watch the video below to see the craftsmen at work:

[via PetaPixel]
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For Japan Day @ Central Park, New York-based graphic designer Christopher Dina designed minimalist symbols classic to Japan’s strong history and visual culture.

The series of icons—that have a retro-futuristic feel—represents the arts, crafts, fashion, pop culture, music and the likes of Japanese culture.

Lacquered bowl

Origami crane

Fan

Kimono

Koi

Sake

Geta sandals

Taiko drum

Teapot

Torii

Noble woman

[via designboom]
TAXI Daily News

Instagram may not be making a camera with its US$ 1 billion from Facebook, however, someone else might. Design and communication company ADR Studio has created a concept design of a realistic camera based on the popular photo app.

2) Philippe Starck Creates Spray That Instantly Makes You Drunk

As part of their niche market referred to as ‘aerosol cuisine’, French designer Philippe Starck has joined forces with French-American scientist David Edwards to develop a small spray that gets you feeling drunk for a few seconds with no aftereffects.

3) Fancy ‘The Avengers’ USB Flash Drives?

Taiwanese company InfoThink has joined forces with Marvel to come up with a set of The Avengers USB flash drives.

4) Leica Announces World’s First Digital Camera Dedicated To Black-And-White

Leica has officially announced its new monochrome digital rangefinder—the world’s first digital camera dedicated to black-and-white photography.

5) 13-Year-Old Girl Develops Cure For Hiccups

No longer will we have to drink large quantities of water, or hold our breaths for a minute, to relieve ourselves of hiccups.

6) Animation Artist Makes Buildings Sprout Out From iPhones

California-based 3D artist and animator Mike Ko has created a sleek 3D animation video that has buildings and cars sprouting out from the iPhone.

7) In Case Of Emergency, A Survival Guide Book You Can Eat To Survive

To help Land Rover owners stay alive if they ever get stuck in the desert, Land Rover worked with ad agency Young & Rubicam Dubai to create an edible survival guide.

8) Say Goodbye To Mini Pencils During Your Next Visit To IKEA

In a bid to match changing consumer behavior, IKEA has developed a mobile application in Canada to enhance customers’ in-store experience.

9) If Famous Competing Brands Merged, Would Their Logos Look Like These?

Italy-based designer Tommaso Guerra imagined what competing brands’ logos might look like if they joined forces.

10) What If You Could Photoshop Your Real Life?

Admit it, Photoshop works like magic. Surely wishing that you could use it for not just images must have crossed your minds.

For the most current updates within the creative, media, and technology industries, please follow TAXI on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or Pinterest
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As part of Nike’s global ‘#makeitcount’ campaign, advertising agency JWT Mexico has launched a Facebook app—‘Nike+ Auction’—that motivates you to get up and go running!

Nike+ Auction is an auction that uses the ‘distance’ users ran as ‘auction credits’—for Nike products.

The further a person runs, the more credits he/she receives—which can be used to bid for Nike products on the auction application.

To outbid a competitor for an item, you would need to ‘outrun’ that person’s bid.

The campaign uses Nike+, a popular program which tracks a person’s run through various devices, such as smart phones, iPod nanos and sports watches.

Unfortunately, this campaign is currently only available in Mexico.

Watch the video below to see how the Nike+ Auction works:

[via Nike+ Auctions]
TAXI Daily News

Electronics company Sharp has developed a vacuum cleaner not only cleans, but also has the ability to communicate with people, respond to voice commands and greetings, and has feelings—like a pet robot.

Called ‘Cocorobo’, the vacuum-cleaning robot built with artificial intelligence technology Cocoro Engine and speech-recognition engine by Raytron.

According to Yuji Onishi of Sharp, Cocorobo’s mood could vary depending on whether you use it everyday and speak to it everyday, and it has the ability to say simple greetings.

“Depending on how it feels, its words and movements vary a lot, so you can gain a feeling of closeness with it. Regarding Cocorobo’s learning capability, we’re planning upgrades that will make it evolve rapidly,” Onishi told DigInfo TV.

Integrated with ultrasound sensors, it’s also smart enough to avoid obstacles.

“These are three sensors, on the front and 45 degrees to either side,” Onishi said. “With infrared sensors transparent glass and black furniture can’t be recognized, so Cocorobo would bump into them. But with ultrasound sensors, it recognizes those items from the reflected sound waves, so it isn’t prone to bumping into things.”

Cocorobo can be controlled by buttons or remotes; and also has a 1.3-megapixel camera, an LED light and wireless LAN connectivity that lets users check on the state of the room it has cleaned via their mobile phone.

To observe rooms using Cocorobo, users can connect to the internet via their smartphones. Cocorobo would then move 50cm away from its charging stand, and take four photos at 90-degree intervals, covering 360 degrees.

“You can check these with your smartphone. You can also use the smartphone like a radio controller to move Cocorobo forward or rotate it while watching the streaming video. If you set Cocorobo to automatic, you can also keep watching it move,” Onishi added.

Besides its extraordinary capabilities, Cocorobo as a vacuum cleaner sweeps and sucks dirt up with brushes and a rotating fan that runs at 14,000 rpm.

Cocorobo is expected to be released in early June, priced at US$ 1,100-1,600.

A vacuum cleaner with feelings and can communicate with people—is this a step towards the future homes Ericsson predicted?

[via DigInfo TV]
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Inspired by treehouses, Japanese architects Sou Fujimoto Architects built a house that is not upside-down, but is transparent.

Located in Tokyo, Japan, the house called ‘House NA’ boasts large glass windows for lots of light to come through during the day.

The various segments of the house allows its users to climb up and down and outside, without actually exiting and entering rooms or doors.

Although it does have a lack of privacy, as there are hardly any walls—the house does look pretty sleek to spend your day in.

Just a place to hangout and work with friends, perhaps?

[via My Modern Metropolis, images via Iwan Baan]
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In his project ‘Indifferent’, logos of arch-enemy companies—such as Apple and Microsoft, Puma and Nike, McDonald’s and Burger Kings—get mashed up together, to create some wonderful, yet absurd logos.

Since some of these logos look good, should the brands really look into a merger?

[via Logo Design Love]
TAXI Daily News

In his installation piece titled ‘Lost Signs’, graphic designer Phil Jones attaches seemingly typical signs to various trees.

Upon closer inspection of the signs, viewers will discover creative and witty messages written on them.

One of his works includes a sign attached to a tree begging for money to return home to its family in the forest—while another states that each time someone uses the ‘Comic Sans’ font, a designer would lose their wings.

Quite an interesting take to the usual signs you would normally see, wouldn’t you agree?

[via Design You Trust]
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Armed with a lomo camera, Londoner Gavin Hammond goes around his beloved city taking impressive black-and-white pictures of the local sights reflected off water puddles.

His collection of ‘puddle shots’ includes iconic London monuments, such as the Tate Modern, Westminster Abbey, and the London Eye—offering a different perspective to these historic buildings and an illuminated view of London.

[via NOTCOT]
TAXI Daily News

Malaysia-based artist Marcus has created a set of posters using just the silhouettes of Superheroes.

2) PANTONE Unveils 336 New Colors

According to PANTONE, the new shades—which ranged from pale pastels to mid-tones, deep hues, neutral and bold—were inspired from the PANTONE Goe System.

3) The World’s Scientifically Most Beautiful Woman?

According to The Daily Mail, a woman’s face is said to be most attractive when the distance between her pupils is just under half of the distance between her ears. Colgate scored a 44% ratio.

4) Will The New iPhone 5 Look Like This?

Since it was reported that the new iPhone 5 might be made out of Liquidmetal, designers have begun to imagine how it would actually look like.

5) High-Rise Condo In India Consists Of Glass-Walled Pools For Each Balcony

Hong Kong-based architect James Law of James Law Cyberture has plans to build a condominium tower that has glass-walled balcony pools.

6) Animation Artist Makes Buildings Sprout Out From iPhones

California-based 3D artist and animator Mike Ko has created a sleek 3D animation video that has buildings and cars sprouting out from the iPhone.

7) ‘Angry Birds’ Theme Park Opens In Finland

Theme park attraction ‘Angry Birds Land’ has opened at Finland’s Särkänniemi Adventure Park.

8) A Bra That Lets You Stuff More Than Just Tissues

The Joeybra is equipped with slim under-arm pouches on each side, that allows women to keep their hands free and their busts perky simultaneously during a night out in town!

9) If IKEA Made Manuals For Items In Sci-Fi Movies…

College Humor created a series of manuals that pokes fun at how IKEA manuals show you how to assemble everything.

10) What If Superheroes Took Vintage Family Portraits?

Milan-based art workshop Foto Marvellini, has curated a series of arresting vintage portraits starring superheroes.

For the most current updates within the creative, media, and technology industries, please follow TAXI on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, or Pinterest
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Swedish company Volvo has built a one-off diesel, hybrid truck that has recently set two world speed records at the Wendover Airfield in Utah, America.

Nicknamed ‘Mean Green’, the vehicle broke the records for the standing kilometer and the flying kilometer.

Mean Green hit a top velocity (speed) of 147 mph in the flying kilometer (where drivers get to drive a small distance to gain speed before beginning the run); and 95 mph in the standing kilometer (which is done from a stop).

To achieve those speeds, the truck was modified to have a more aerodynamic and lighter body—but composed of Volvo components.

The vehicle also contains a Volvo D16 engine, a modified Volvo I-Shift gearbox, and an electric motor that provides the truck 200 hp and 885 lb-ft.

The speed records were certified by the United States Auto Club, a division of the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile.

“We are very pleased with Mean Green’s performance especially at such a high altitude,” Boije Ovebrink, owner and driver of Mean Green told Autoweek. “We knew Wendover would present challenges because it’s more than 4,200 feet above sea level.”

Last year, the truck hit records of 135.9 mph in the flying kilometer and 94.6 mph in the standing kilometer at Sweden’s Hultsfred Airport.

[via Digital Trends]
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Skype has left a privacy vulnerability unfixed for more than a year.

According to Wired, researchers from Polytechnic Institute of New York University had discovered the problem in Skype that allows people to track the geographical location Skype users and identify the users’ IP addresses.

The team of researchers discovered the vulnerability in 2010 and notified the company. In 2011, they published the information.

They were also able to track 10,000 Skype users for two weeks after discovering the vulnerability.

However, according to former researcher Steven Le Blond, the vulnerability remains unfixed.

Keith Ross, one of the researches, believes that Skype failed to rectify the problem as it may be too “deeply embedded in the code” and would require “heavy restructuring” of the program to be resolved.

When questioned on the researchers’ discovery, Skype’s director of product security Adrian Asher said Skype would be investigating the researchers’ reports.

He also added that it is an issue faced by all peer-to-peer software companies.

[via Wired]
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Belgium-based company WeWatt has developed a table for you to sweat it out at your next meeting to charge your phone.

Called ‘WeBike’, the table comes equipped with pedals that users are able to use to generate power, in order to charge their mobiles phones and other electronic devices.

An interactive LED display placed in front of each seat indicates how much power has been generated since the start of your ‘meeting’.

The WeBike tables are sold at US$ 13,154 each. Rentals options are also available.

Why cycle to work when you can cycle at work? In a way, you can stay healthy while working.

[via PSFK]
TAXI Daily News

Each year thousands of people—most of which are younger than 25—die behind the wheel due to texting.

To convince youngster not to text while driving, Belgian organization Responsible Yong Drivers (RYD) ‘issued’ a new (fake) road safety measure for driving tests.

To pass the driving test and get their licence, candidates have to prove that they were able to use text while driving.

Called the ‘Mobile Phone Test’, learner drivers at the Belgian Driving Center had to avoid obstacles on the road while texting—so that they knew it was a bad idea to do so, and hopefully wouldn’t do it in the future.

See how the drivers fared in the video below:

[via Neatorama]
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After barely two months of being sold to social gaming giant Zynga for US$ 200 million, mobile game ‘Draw Something’ is beginning to experience a drop in the number of users.

According to internet media company WebMediaBrands, the game has lost about five million daily users in the past month.

This was after the game received a huge spike of downloads in April.

Zynga said that the popular game was the “fastest selling” game of all time—after it was downloaded 50 million times in 50 days.

Experts believe Zynga has to revamp the game’s appeal to its users.

[via BBC, images via iTunes]
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