Welcome to an extended Olympic winners’ podium of particularly awesome stuff. We check out 5 subjectively chosen and most certainly chemically enhanced winners from around the interweb, including Intel’s latest Facebook Connect effort, voice-recognition gaming from Xbox, and a 3D printed gun – just because.
Number 5) ASCII Street View
In some kind of cheap alloy constructed medal place this week is a trippy but beautiful project to display Google Street View through old skool ASCII code by Peter Nitsch. Gizmodo describe ASCII Street View as a ‘beautiful way to get lost’; The Huffington Post as the map Neo and Monet would converge on when travelling together. Type in in your destination and watch the alphabetical symbols ebb and flow like an Impressionist painting. If you’re feeling particularly nostalgic, hit the Green mode.
Recommended by @KBallensky
Number 4) Intel ‘Me The Musical’ Facebook Experience
Copper medal goes to Intel’s follow up to their amazing Museum of Me. This time it’s ‘Me the musical’, a slightly cheesy, but interesting Facebook Connect animated musical video powered by the content on your timeline. Technology progressions are highlighted over the decades alongside some contextual references to your own personal data.
Recommended by @DiSapia, via Digital Buzz
Number 3) Volkswagen 100m ‘cheer-powered’ car for Olympic fans
Bronze place is won by VW’s ingenious efforts to circumvent its inability to use the word ‘Olympics’ for fear of incurring the full Olympian wrath of M Jacques Rogge. In this slightly nauseating to watch but very clever stunt in The Netherlands, VW created a ‘cheer controlled’ car. The louder the cheers from orange-clad fans inside the Up car, the faster it goes. First to complete the 100m ‘cheer sprint’ win tickets for the Games.
Via PSFK
Number 2) Working 3D printed firearm
Picking up Silver medal is this perhaps slightly controversial initiative from HaveBlue to 3D print the first fully working firearm. Given that the majority of digital innovations which are later adopted by advertisers are either lead by pornographers or merchants of death, this is perhaps a fairly indicative barometer of 3D AKA ‘additive’ printing going mainstream at some point soon?
Via Gizmag
If you’re wondering why 3D printing is relevant, or what on earth could do with it, then check out the outstanding Be Your Own Souvenir project from BlablaLlab in Barcelona from last year.
Number 1) Voice-Recognition in XBOX FIFA 13 to shout team formations or simply abuse
This week’s Gold medalling (when did that noun become a verb?) position goes to FIFA 13’s brilliant integration with Xbox Kinect voice recognition. It enables you to scream out subs, team formations or even call for the ball. You can even encourage your players to argue with the ref through hurling abuse at him for making an unjust binary decision. Watch out though as the computerised ref holds grudges and will inevitably exact his vengeance in latter stages.
Via PSFK
Aggrieved something isn’t featured? Think an entry just isn’t up to the correct threshold of awesomeness? Then let us know in the comments below. Or if you’d like to recommend anything for inclusion next week then contact @jamescfilmer or james.filmer@umww.com.
James Filmer
Chief Innovation Officer
UM