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X Prize Foundation Unveils $1.4 Million Oil Cleanup X Challenge

Google Says Its Services Are Now Blocked in China, Chinese Residents Say Otherwise

Can somebody in China help us out? Google's updates page says its service are now unavailable in the PRC, but actual human reports suggest otherwise.READ»

NYC Approves $2B Plan to Renovate Domino Sugar Factory

BY Cliff KuangToday

A sour day for New York preservationists, and an ecstatic one for architect Rafael Viñoly and his real-estate backers: New York's City Council has just gave final approval to Viñoly's master plan for the area surrounding the ... READ»

FOURSQUARE | Comment

Foursquare's Business Chief on Revenue Plans, Google AdWords, and Why Marketers Shouldn't Delay on Geo-location

BY Austin CarrToday

Despite research showing location based services are little-used and largely unknown, Foursquare's head of development sees big growth and innovation on the horizon.READ»

TWITTER | Comment

PeerIndex, Social Influence Tool, the Google Vanity Search For Tweeters

BY Addy DugdaleToday

The idea of former Reuters Innovation boss Azeem Azhar, PeerIndex is a Twitter-centric tool that measures your social network standing and influence on the Web. It launched in beta yesterday, and is the kind of thing that will, first ...READ»

CEO QUOTES | Comment

Who Spewed It: Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos Edition

BY Kit EatonToday

Amazon's Jeff Bezos, famously mysterious about some matters, is also known for spouting some fabulous, and fabulously confusing, quotes ... Can you work out which ones are his?READ»

E-READERS | Comment

E-Reader "Race to the Bottom" Given Extra Boost by Amazon, Copia?

BY Kit EatonToday

The e-reader may only have a short time in the limelight, as tablet PCs get better. This notion is given an extra kick by the devices ever-dropping prices--including the Amazon Kindle.READ»

NUCLEAR POWER | Comment

Is Solar Power Now Cheaper Than Nuclear Energy?

BY Ariel SchwartzToday

Solar power took a big step toward becoming the alternative energy of choice with this week's news that energy from sunlight might be cheaper than nuclear power. The analysis, which comes from a Duke University report entitled Solar ...READ»

FOOD MIRACLES | Comment

Culinology: Behind Frito-Lay's Zesty, Tangy, Fiery Innovations

BY Austin CarrToday

"Consumers have a lot of curiosity about our products," says Cathy Dial, head of consumer affairs at Frito-Lay. "They want to know where we get the ideas for our flavors." With flavors that range from zesty taco and fiery habanero, ...READ»

GARY HUSTWIT

Exclusive: "Urbanized" Is the Third Film in Gary Hustwit's Design Trilogy

BY Alissa WalkerToday

Filmmaker Gary Hustwit's films have transformed the design process into a cinematic experience, tracing the role of designers in culture through the graphic environment with Helvetica and manufactured environment with Objectified. And ... READ»

The First Car Purpose-Built for the Disabled

BY Sarah RichToday

It's a wonder it's taken so long, but in the last few years, products for the physically impaired have finally entered the sphere of high design. Last year, interaction designer Graham Pullin's book Design Meets Disability, made the ... READ»

DO SOMETHING | Comment

DoSomething Winner Returns to Save His Stricken Hometown

BY Emilie LuseToday

After he graduated, development major Mark Rembert applied for the Peace Corps, thinking he could help developing countries strengthen their communities. But when his hometown's largest employer shut its doors, Rembert found that rural Ohio needed him most.READ»

Infographic of the Day: The GOP's "Dildo Rolled in Glitter" Rides Again (SFW)

BY Cliff KuangToday

Last year, Republicans gleefully produced a terrifying chart purporting to represent the Democrat plan for health care reform; an approach to political debate and problem solving that was best summarized by Jon Stewart: Wow! ... READ»

OIL CLEANUP X CHALLENGE | Comment

X Prize Foundation Unveils $1.4 Million Oil Cleanup X Challenge

BY Ariel SchwartzToday

The X Prize Foundation first announced plans for a million dollar oil spill X Challenge last month. Today, the foundation revealed the details of the $1.4 million Oil Cleanup X Challenge, which asks entrants to clean up the Gulf oil ...READ»

HACKING | Comment

Hackapalooza: ATM Spews Cash, Android App Swipes User Data, Digital Game Badges Battle

BY Kit EatonToday

The Black Hat conference should be renamed the "Bad News for Netizens" conference: There's news that hackers can easily force ATMs to spew cash, and that millions of folks were duped by an Android app. READ»

Eye Candy: Cardboard Boxes Become Pixelated Fantasyland

BY Suzanne LaBarreToday

The Parisian architect Stéphane Malka turned an empty room into a gorgeous minimalist landscape by filling it with the humblest of humble objects, the cardboard box. The installation, Rue Sans Frontieres (No Limits in the ... READ»

Designer of the Swiffer Cleans Up the Modern Hospital

BY Kaomi GoetzToday

Herman Miller is best known for sleek office chairs and home furnishings. But a large and growing share of their business is in health care. And the company wants to make hospitals every bit as sleek and functional as the best modern ... READ»

ELECTRIC CARS | Comment

Enterprise Adds Electric Vehicle Rentals, WeCar Sharing, Massive Tree Planting

BY Jenara NerenbergToday

Say hello to electric car-renting-sharing fusion goodness.READ»

Ted Kennedy's Memorial Teaches Kids to Filibuster and Pound Gavels

BY Sarah RichToday

Next to the John F. Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum in Boston, the late Senator Edward Kennedy will soon be memorialized with a new building, designed by Rafael Viñoly Architects. In a few months, construction teams will ... READ»

CIA | Comment

Google Teams Up With CIA, Invests in Analytics Firm

BY Addy DugdaleToday

Both Google Ventures and In-Q-Tel, the CIA's investment arm, have injected sums into Recorded Future, a company that goes through "tens of thousands" of websites and looks for related actions and conversations between, for example, Twitter accounts, blogs and websites, and analyzes them in order to spot events and trends as early on as possible.READ»