Apparently TYR Sport has filed a federal lawsuit against Speedo (both are makers of great swimwear), on the grounds that their new record-breaking “LZR Racer” suit has created chaos amongst top athletes engagements with it’s competitors and might stifle competition on the eve of the Olympic Summer Games.
Since February when the LZR Racer’s was launched, swimmers wearing the suit have set 37 world records and this has launched a fierce debate on the role this new technology has in competitive swimming. Additionally, many of the worlds swimming governing bodies have been plagued with attacks on the legality of Speedo’s design. These new suits claim to improve performance by 2 percent, which is a phenomenal boost in a sport where 1st and 2nd place are often decided by hundredths of a second.
This isn’t the first time that technology has provoked uproar but once again it’s the poor athletes that are in the pools for 3-6 hours everyday that are getting the “heat”.
But then again, didn’t Mark Spitz win all those Gold Medals in baggy swim trunks ?!
Posted by: andrew |
Tags: technology, brands, sports
Laneo attended the LIFT 08 Conference in Geneva last week, a conference about the challenges and opportunities of technology in our society. In the same category as DLD 08 (see post below) but very different in style and flavor, LIFT was once again an excellent venue for spreading the word on Laneo’s mission and also a true learning experience. Some of the keynotes that caught my eye (and ear’s) were the following:
- Younghee Jung, Anthropologist working for Nokia in Tokyo & Paul Dourish, a researcher from University of California Irvine about user experience.
- Rafi Haladjian, founder of Minitel start-ups and internet/wi-fi providers in France about his latest venture; Violet.
- Tom Taylor from Headshift, talk about how to use peer pressure and social networking to get ordinary people to change their behavior in favor of more sustainable activities.
You can see full-screen videos of the presentations here VPOD.TV
LIFT 08 is an example, and there are others, that bringing together a very wide variety of people from around the world to promote and facilitate discussion about new technologies and their impact on our society, is really effective.
Posted by: andrew |
Tags: technology, society, community
The PICNIC’07 conference is Europe’s most dynamic event devoted to creativity and innovation in the media, technology and entertainment industries. Designed for creatives, entrepreneurs, innovation and technology experts, media professionals, and business people, the conference showcases the latest innovative and creative trends relevant to the media and entertainment industries.
PICNIC is not only a conference, it’s a downright festival. Aimed at people who care about the future and want to play a role in shaping it – the PICNIC offers a week of fresh creative & innovative ideas. One of the world’s leading events where creative minds from the world of media, entertainment, science and the arts convene in Amsterdam from Monday 24th September to Saturday 29th September 2007.
To encourage and aid the invention of new green products and services, the Dutch Postcode Lottery and PICNIC presented this year the PICNIC Green Challenge – the challenge to come up with a greenhouse-gas-reducing product or service. The entrant with the best idea will win €500,000, expert coaching, and a starting list of customers, so he or she can bring the invention to the marketplace within two years.
LANEO will be present at this event for only one day, (other priorities are taking me back to Paris) but I really hope to see more and more of these Tech & Media Conferences start giving back to the environment. It’s events like these that draw innovative and entrepreneurial people from all over the world and when joining forces for the planet, we can really make a difference!
Posted by: andrew |
Tags: technology, society, events
Social networking websites are sprouting up around the globe faster than we can keep up with them. It’s no wonder that small companies have found a new “gold rush” in supplying a wide variety of innovative tools and services for their members. Each promising newer and more amazing features so that their members can create better and more personalized “windows” of themselves. (Makes me think of all those quaint storefronts in Salzburg, Austria at Christmas.)
I belong to quite a few of them and have tested many of the “options & gadgets” that are offered. One of them has just caught my eye – I AM GREEN available on FACEBOOK.
Residing under the “Applications” section of the FACEBOOK site, this option to lets you check off eco-actions (or leaves, as they call it) to indicate the things you typically do in favor of the planet. These engagements then show up on your profile and you can then invite your “Facebook friends” to join you. It has spiraled into over 24,500 users and over 700,000 different “leaves”!
And while creating personal “windows” on social networking sites may be a fad, “greenness” is most likely here to stay. Everyday, more and more people are changing the way they live and once they do, they are not turning back. I for one am very happy to see that Facebook is providing people with an opportunity to express themselves in different ways.
The people behind I AM GREEN state; “When we commit to doing something good, we inspire each other to do that, and more.”
They must have read my mind.
Posted by: andrew |
Tags: technology, society, community, environment
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