Happy Halloween

As Halloween comes to an end, I hope you treats were plentiful and your tricks were villainous.

(image via National Park Foundation's Flickr)

The Fabulous Debbie Millman

Yesterday was the birthday of the fabulous Debbie Millman who has a great new book out, Brand Thinking. You can read an section over at Fast Company from Brand Thinking about Starbucks that gives you a great insight to the book. To hear Debbie directly take a listen to her presentation from the Creative Mornings series below.

I wish Debbie a happy year full of many wonderful moments and memories. Happy Birthday, Debbie!

2011/02 Debbie Millman from CreativeMornings on Vimeo.

The World's Most Photographed Lady

Friday marked the 125th anniversary of the world's most photographed lady, Lady Liberty. Her formal name, the Statue of Liberty Enlightening the World was a gift of friendship from the people of France to the people of the United States and is a universal symbol of freedom and democracy. The Statue of Liberty was dedicated on October 28, 1886. After 125 years she is still a beautiful lady. To read more visit the National Park's Statue of Liberty National Monument.

(images via LOC.gov)

52x52

We all want to be "do gooders" and here is your chance at 52x52. Designed / developed by Jessica Hische this site allows you to give to charities at a dollar or less per week.

We’re not a charity, we’re a group of people committed to helping others. Every week, 52x52.org will highlight a different charity and call on you, those willing and happy to help others, to donate directly to that charity. Don’t feel like donating to one of the featured charities for whatever reason? No problem. Donate to a cause you love. The charities we’ll feature will be suggestions and since we are not collecting any money, you’re free to donate to whomever you wish. We’re a messenger, not a middle-man. If $52 is too much for you to commit to give, donate $25. If $25 is too much, donate $10. Give whatever you can, each and every week for one year, and together we will make a giant difference.

52x52.org has just begun gathering names of those pledging to help others. We’ll begin highlighting charities in November, so sign up now. If you don’t pledge by the initial launch date, no worries, pledge your own 52 weeks. It doesn’t matter when you start as long as you commit to finish.

Feel good and do some good.

A Thermostat for Today - Nest

Today homes need today's technology and this is where Nest comes to play. Founded by Tony Fadell who, back in the day, was in charge of the iPod at Apple, has developed and designed a thermostat that learns and saves you energy. The beautiful design is smart, easy to use and will save you energy. Nest found it "unacceptable... that the device that controls 10 percent of all energy consumed in the U.S. hadn't kept up with advancements in technology and design."

According to the U.S. Department of Energy and Lawrence Berkeley National Lab, the annual energy bill for a typical single-family home is approximately $2,200, with heating and cooling (HVAC) accounting for approximately half of the bill. The programmable thermostat, developed in the 1970s, promised to help people conserve energy, but 89 percent of owners rarely or never set a program (source: ACEEE, 2010). The devices are simply too complicated. In fact, Energy Star revoked its certification of all thermostats in 2009 when it became apparent that people weren't actually engaging with programmable thermostats to reach their proper functionality.

Nest addresses the programming problem through a combination of sensors, algorithms, machine learning, and cloud computing. Nest learns behaviors and preferences and adjusts the temperature up or down accordingly, making you comfortable when you're home and saving energy while you're away. Nest also provides people with tips and information to help them make energy-saving choices.

This is an excellent example of how design and function can come together to create a product the improves our lives. To read more visit the Nest site.

(via Core77)

Rum Diary Poster

I love this simple yet effective poster for the upcoming film, The Rum Diary. Trailers and background are available on the official website.