Swiss Army Bicycle

Have you ever seen anything cooler than this Swiss military bike? I highly doubt it. And if so, you better show me.

More coolness at La Rueda Tropical.

Herman Miller: This is You

This is a great little HR video for Herman Miller by Fairly Painless Advertising. They definitely do a good job of making Herman Miller sound like a cool place to work. Plus, they make the best chair ever.

ROOT

Do you like root beer, but wish it actually got you drunk? You might want to try Art in the Age's new organic liqueur ROOT, an 80 proof "root tea" based on a recipe from the 1700's. This is the real deal, folks.

Nike LIVESTRONG Chalkbot

This is a very cool and very original idea for LIVESTRONG by W+K.

Eames Lounge Chair debut

Here's a slice of design nerd heaven. In this video from 1956, Charles and Ray Eames discuss their creative process and introduce one of my all-time favorite chairs, the Eames Lounge Chair.

Who killed CyberTran?

This is a pretty sweet transportation concept that apparently has been around for a while, but for whatever reason hasn't taken off yet. CyberTran is a personal rapid transit system that carries small groups of people in lightweight rail vehicles. The ultra-efficient system is compared to an elevator, in that it only stops where the passengers need to go.

Here's more info on CyberTran. Skip straight to 'media' for cheesy video.

BIKES!

A couple sweet looking rides from Fast Company's What's New in Bike Design?

ZzzzrroooWWWWwwww!!!

Introducing the "Zombie Saw" iPhone app by Luke Oeth:

Zombies have a way of appearing when you least expect them. With this application, you'll always be at the ready. The next time you need to fend off the undead, just launch the application, tilt it 90 degrees to begin the motor, and run the long edge of your iPhone or iPod Touch along any appendage that needs to be severed.

The Zombie Saw app is FREE for the next week!

GM and Segway unleash the PUMA

This is the upcoming all-electric "PUMA" scooter by GM and Segway. It will use wireless technology to avoid traffic backups and it offers more protection than a regular scooter. Give me a little more rain coverage and some kind of trunk compartment, and I'm sold.

Kite flying for grown ups

Inventor Saul Griffith recently spoke to TED about giant kites with wind turbines to create surprising amounts of clean energy.

Buckminster Fuller at the MCA Chicago

The Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago is now featuring an exhibition on Buckminster Fuller, the visionary architect, author, designer, futurist, and inventor. Among his many great quotes, Fuller stated:

Take the initiative. Go to work, and above all cooperate and don't hold back on one another or try to gain at the expense of another. Any success in such lopsidedness will be increasingly short-lived. These are the synergetic rules that evolution is employing and trying to make clear to us. They are not man-made laws. They are the infinitely accommodative laws of the intellectual integrity governing universe.

If you're going to be in Chicago sometime between now and June 21, be sure to check it out.

The iPhone can rock!

I have yet to give in to apparent gloriousness of the iPhone and all the fancy "apps" we suddenly can't live without (as Louis C.K. would point out, we knew they existed only ten seconds ago). But I have to say, these music applications would be pretty cool to play around with... someday.

The Mentalists are covering "Kids" by MGMT.

"Handmade Nation" opening titles

Handmade Nation is an upcoming documentary on the rise of D.I.Y. and the new wave of art, craft, and design. It's directed by Faythe Levine of Milwaukee, who also produces the yearly event Art vs. Craft. That song -- by Noisola -- is frickin' sweet. If this movie is half as good as the opening titles, it should definitely be worth seeing.

Also, check out Etsy.com for all your handmade buying and selling needs.


Update: Handmade Nation premieres Thursday, February 5 at Milwaukee's Oriental Theater. Check here for more screenings.

"Objectified" Movie

Objectified is a new film on industrial design and our relationship to mass-produced objects. It's directed by Gary Hustwit, who brought us the great documentary on a typeface, Helvetica. Looks like another winner.

Newton Running

This is some sweet packaging for the Boulder, CO based Newton Running shoes, which have an interesting "forefoot running" concept. The boxes are made of the same 100% post-consumer recycled material that egg cartons are made out of, and the shoes themselves also use recycled materials. Package design by TDA.

More on green running shoes here.

I Made You a Beard

Check out all the crafty beards that Erin Dollar has been making. Her work is for sale on Etsy. Get 'em while they're furry!

2006 Ford Escape Hybrid Ad

Can you believe this ad is almost three years old already? I still like it, even though it's kind of ridiculous to call any car green. Plus, Kermit totally sold out. But as the American auto industry currently looks like a bunch of chickens with their heads cut off, I can't help wondering what happened to the promise of more vehicles like this? Why isn't the Escape Hybrid the best selling car in the U.S.? It's roomy, all-wheel drive, fuel-efficient, and (mostly) American-made. Were they poorly marketed? Or are consumers really that short-sighted that they want an F-150 when gas prices are low and a Prius when gas prices are high?

Now the automakers need a huge loan for "retooling" to make efficient vehicles. It's not like they don't know how to make them. They sell efficient cars in Europe and South America, where there's more tax on gasoline. Should America have a higher tax on gas to keep consumption down? The money could go towards lower income tax, carbon offsets, infrastructure and public transportation. But I can already hear the wave of backlash to that idea, especially during a recession. Higher fuel efficiency standards could help, but the lower cost of filling up would probably just make some people drive more.

Michael Moore has an interesting proposal to force the automakers to put the taxpayer money towards efficient vehicles, and having them build the public transportation systems we need. But I know a lot of free market types would be against that too. So how about this... Instead of our only choice being gasoline, why don't we have the choice of gasoline, diesel, biofuels, electric, and natural gas? Instead of continuing this stranglehold of Big Oil, we could actually let the consumers choose which is most efficient. We can even choose on a daily basis how we want to fuel our cars with plug-in hybrids and flex-fuel vehicles. Total free market solution. We just need government to stop listening to the monopoly and start letting the people choose.

Once again, I'm proud of America's choice of an inspirational leader who appears to make intelligent and sustainable decisions based on what is best for average Americans (and he plays it cool). We've decided to change. Now let's do it.

Pangea Organics

You stink. It's time to treat yourself to some of these awesome Pangea Organics bodycare products with this 50% off holiday discount (through Dec 15). The packaging is even plantable with seeds for next year's Christmas tree!

Your friends and family stink too. You should really consider giving one of Pangea's holiday gift sets. Again, the packaging is 100% compostable, biodegradable, and plantable. Plus, the products kick ass!

Looking for a quality organic soap that's already half the price of Pangea? You can't go wrong with Dr. Bronner's Magic Soaps. Their peppermint soap is tingle-icious.

Beards and Moustaches

A collection of mannequin facial hair (via kottke). There are some great moustaches here, but is it too much to ask to get some decent beards on these dummies?

See more in this larger image.

Worldchanging's Alex Steffen

Alex Steffen, the mastermind behind Worldchanging.com, recently spoke at the Sustainable Innovation Conference in Sweden. The camerawork in this video blows, but it's still worth watching for some real-world examples of sustainable solutions.



Also, be sure to check out Steffen's book, Worldchanging: A User's Guide for the 21st Century with foreword by Al Gore and design by Stefan Sagmeister. It might make a nice gift for that eco-design-nerd in your life.