Innovation

Drive a Mercedes with Your iPhone and Nine Other Mind-Blowing Stories This Week on Fast Company

BY Kate RockwoodFri Nov 20, 2009 at 6:45 PM

"Interferometric modulation," driving your Mercedes with an iPhone, driving your computer with your mind, Minute Maid's juicy new packaging, locavore Thanksgiving, a next-gen activity monitor to help you burn it off, and other great stories on Fast Company this week.READ»

SWINE FLU | 1 comment

Can Protein Sciences Produce a Swine Flu Vaccine in Time? Update: Likely No

BY Erica WestlyFri Nov 20, 2009 at 3:00 PM

As the start of a new school year begins, concerns over H1N1--aka swine flu--are growing. Everyone's waiting to hear when a vaccine will be available, and earlier this summer, the CDC predicted that 120 million doses ... READ»

TWILIGHT | Comment

Inside the Vamp-artment of Twilight's Edward Cullen, Buy It for $3.3M!

BY Tyler GrayFri Nov 20, 2009 at 1:30 PM

Must every facet of Twilight's sparkly-skinned lead vampire Edward be irresistible? He may be a blood chugger, but his interior design sense doesn't suck. The character's (played by Robert Pattinson) digs are featured prominently in ...READ»

DIGITAL MUSIC | Comment

Today's Vision of Tomorrow: Digital Music From Mobile Pandora, Sony's iTunes Rival

BY Kit EatonFri Nov 20, 2009 at 8:30 AM

Digital music turned the recording industry upside down several times already, and given the amazing rate of change it's going to keep evolving dramatically. A couple of news items today point to how this evolution will mean we ...READ»

VIRAL LOOP CHRONICLES | 2 comments

How to Write a Book Proposal That Sells

BY Adam PenenbergThu Nov 19, 2009 at 6:00 PM

Assuming you have an idea for a work that a reader would plunk down $25 for, how do you get the HarperCollinses and Hyperions of the world to publish it? [Viral Loop Chronicles Part 5]READ»

VIDEO CAPTIONS | Comment

YouTube Now Reads Your Lips for Automatic Captions, Kinda

BY Kit EatonThu Nov 19, 2009 at 4:00 PM

Depending on your needs, and how you look on them, YouTube's embedded captions are either extremely useful, or an irritating extra that people abuse, distracting you from the video. The good thing is: Captions just got a whole lot ...READ»

BLUEBEAT | Comment

Hank Risan on BlueBeat's $20 Million Gamble...on 25-Cent Beatles Tracks?

BY Tyler GrayThu Nov 19, 2009 at 1:30 PM

Bluebeat founder Hank Risan says he sank $20 million into an effort to revolutionize digital music delivery. But he flushed it all the day he offered Beatles tracks for a quarter a pop, a judge has ruled. U.S. District Judge John ...READ»

50 CENT | 1 comment

Vitamin Water and 50 Cent Launch iPhone App

BY Anne C. LeeWed Nov 18, 2009 at 9:30 AM

Four months after Soulja Boy got his iPhone app--which let users remix his songs--50 Cent gets his, dubbed "50's Sound Lab." Only 50 Cent's app is part of a marketing campaign for Vitamin Water. Like Soulja Boy's remixer, the ...READ»

FUTURE VISION | Comment

Today's Vision of Tomorrow: Entertainment

BY Kit EatonWed Nov 18, 2009 at 9:30 AM

To brighten up your dreary winter's morning, here's something to tickle the dreamer inside you: Exactly how might we be enjoying our digital entertainment in the future? Three news pieces today point to different TV-based ways to ...READ»

RESTAURANT BUSINESS | 2 comments

Independent Restaurant Groups Band Together to Cook Off the Sour Economy

BY Lydia DishmanTue Nov 17, 2009 at 6:00 PM

When does free Wi-Fi, a selection of $5 entrées, and hip décor fail to draw a throng of eager diners? When it's a mom-and-pop eatery owned and operated by locals, for locals (or anyone who wants to feel like a local). The problem ...READ»

DIGITAL MUSIC | 5 comments

MySpace Buying iMeem: A Plan to Beat Spotify?

BY Kit EatonTue Nov 17, 2009 at 4:30 PM

There are rumors abounding that MySpace is in advanced stages of trying to social-network music system iMeem, and they set us thinking. Looking at Facebook's tie-up with Lala, and even MySpace's with iLike, is this all to outsmart ...READ»

INNOVATIONS | Comment

The Most (and Least) Inventive Inventions on Time's '50 Best Inventions' List

BY Kit EatonTue Nov 17, 2009 at 10:30 AM

If someone decided to do a list of innovative magazine lists, it probably wouldn't include Time magazine's "50 Best Innovations" list. The new one's out, and we've sub-selected some of the good items for you. But a broad swath of the ...READ»

NICOTINE VACCINE | 3 comments

GlaxoSmithKline Signs $540 Million Deal for Nicotine Vaccine

BY Erica WestlyMon Nov 16, 2009 at 5:30 PM

Four years ago, the startup Nabi Biopharmaceuticals began testing a promising nicotine vaccine called NicVax with the aid of $4.1 million in funding from the National Institutes of Health. Earlier today, the vaccine received a booster ...READ»

DISASTER MOVIES | Comment

Are Dystopian Movies More Popular When the Economy Blows? Nope

BY Kit EatonMon Nov 16, 2009 at 4:00 PM

With the launch of disaster/apocalypse movie 2012 last weekend, a new question has popped up on the Net: Are dystopian movies more popular when the world is already gloomy from an economic depression? You'd think perhaps yes, wouldn't ...READ»

FAKE AP STYLEBOOK | 1 comment

Will Tweet for a Book Deal

BY Lydia DishmanMon Nov 16, 2009 at 3:00 PM

Aspiring authors check your Twitter feed. Are you witty? Are you providing a fresh perspective on something that's hot right now? Can you make your 140 characters sing with all the abbreviated elegance of a budding Bard? If so, you ...READ»

STEFAN LEIJNEN | Comment

Is Imitation the Hidden Key to Creativity?

BY Cliff KuangMon Nov 16, 2009 at 11:00 AM

Social scientists create a model of how ideas spread and find that about 30% of people should create while the rest imitate.READ»

NETWORKED BODY | 1 comment

Test-Driving the Networked Body: 4 Takes on Fitbit Features

BY Kate RockwoodMon Nov 16, 2009 at 10:30 AM

The sleek Fitbit tracks your movements 24/7 so you can process that data online and set your fitness and nutrition goals.READ»

BEN-PAYNTER | Comment

Holiday Hack: How and Why You Should Pack a Single Bag

BY Ben PaynterMon Nov 16, 2009 at 9:00 AM

This holiday season Virgin America has announced a plan to reward travelers who save the stuffing for their turkeys rather than their carry-on bags. But you'll need a few extra skills to get where you're going without breaking your ...READ»

ANNOUNCEMENTS | Comment

Follow Fast Company - Here's How

Fri Nov 13, 2009 at 5:30 PM

@fastcompany on Twitter, m.fastcompany.com on mobile, daily or weekly newsletters, and more...READ»

VRTUAL REALITY | 1 comment

Is Virtual Reality the New Nicotene Patch for Smokers?

BY Ben PaynterFri Nov 13, 2009 at 10:00 AM

By now it seems a pretty idiotic idea that the Internet can cause addiction. But what about using alternate realities to cure it? That's the concept behind a new study done by the University of Quebec in Gatineau, which tried help ...READ»