Here is a little Twilight Zone homage to Singularity&Co, a Brooklyn-based bookshop specializing in vintage science fiction, fantasy, and pulp fiction. The shop was funded through a successful Kickstarter campaign with the goal of buying the rights to vintage titles and releasing them as CC-licensed ebooks. The spot was written and directed by a fan of the shop, Gabriel de Urioste. h/t Boing Boing Singularity&Co - Saving Vintage Pulp for a Better Future - YouTube.
Walker Evans visits the New York Public Library
In 1949 noted photographer Walker Evans visited the New York Library and began shooting. When he was done 68 images where in the bag. Now thanks to the recent release of a treasure trove of hundreds of thousands of digital images from the Metropolitan Museum of Art we get a front seat. The library acquired Walker Evans archive in 1994. See the entire shoot here: Walker Evans | [68 Views of New Y rk Public Library...The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
Maya Angelou: Another Great Tree Falls
Amiri Baraka, Maya Angelou, and Toni Morrison at James Baldwin’s funeral, December 1987 In 1987 Maya Angelou wrote this poem upon hearing of James Baldwin's passing and read it at his funeral. "When Great Trees Fall" by Maya Angelou When great trees fall,rocks on distant hills shudder,lions hunker downin tall grasses,and even elephantslumber after safety.When great trees fallin forests,small things recoil into silence,their senseseroded beyond fear.When great souls die,the air around us becomeslight, rare, sterile.We breathe, briefly.Our eyes, briefly,see witha hurtful clarity.Our memory, suddenly sharpened,examines,gnaws on kind wordsunsaid,promised walksnever taken.Great souls die andour reality, bound tothem, takes leave of...
New Computer Program Turns Literature Into Music
The latest from the algorithm universe comes to us via TransPose, a new computer program which translates literature into music. Created by Hannah Davis and Saif Mohammad TransPose assigns ratings to words based on their emotional value and aims to "programmatically translate the basic emotions of a novel into a musical piece that holds the same basic emotional feeling." The current version of TransProse is just the beginning of our investigation, and we don't claim to be making beautiful music yet. This iteration is a starting point to see if we could programmatically translate the basic emotions of a novel into a musical piece that holds...
The Drinkable Book: Clean water for the masses
Books and water are usually not so good a mix but The Drinkable Book is a game-changer. Created by DDB for Water Is Life The Drinkable Book is a complete water purification device in which each page is printed with warnings and tips while being smothered in bacteria-killing silver nanoparticles Tear out a page, place it in the 3D printed slipcase, pour the dirty water over it and there you go - drinkable water! About the project: The Drinkable Book is a life saving tool that filters water and teaches proper sanitation & hygiene to those...