Lucie & Simon, a self-taught artistic duo out of France, have traveled the world photographing major metropolitan areas — such as Times Square and the Louvre — without signs of life. Their technique involves using a neutral density filter that allows for extra-long exposures, which removes moving objects like people and cars. See more: http://www.lucieandsimon.com/works/silent_world#

This is the kind of stuff that gets me really excited about the future of mobile and it's role in understanding and influencing behavior. Powerful, exciting, and at times frightening stuff. 

After analyzing more than 16 million records of call date, time and position, the researchers determined that, taken together, people's movements appeared to follow a mathematical pattern. The scientists said that, with enough information about past movements, they could forecast someone's future whereabouts with 93.6% accuracy.

"It is not just about observing what is happening; it is about shaping what is happening," said Dr. Bollen. "The patterns are allowing us to learn how to better manipulate trends, opinions and mass psychology."

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704547604576263261679848814.html

A few months ago I hung out at GA for Startup Weekend NYC, and worked with Ryan Flynn to re-launch ClosedCapp, a continuous speech-to-text diction app that mimicked the real-time behavior of closed captioning for those who are deaf or hard of hearing. You can read the post here.

Just today, Ryan shared with me some of the feedback he's gotten from the users. One of my favorites is this one:

"With your Closed Capp...you've made a difference in my life. I was born hearing.  I've lost the majority of it after 23 years.... I'm now legally deaf and have been for about five years. I know some sign, but its not a primary language for most...and not even for me.  On the other hand, English and written English are learned hand in hand. Everyday tasks that require interactions with others can just be overwhelming.  I just got my first android phone for Christmas.  And then I got your app. Clicking your "appreciate" button just isn't enough. You ROCK.""

Awesome. We didn't win startup weekend, but we made a product that is being used today to enrich someone's life. I keep saying this, but as creatives and technologists, too many of us are working on stuff like this. It's time to change the world and take responsibility for our future.

More here.

I love maps, and James Niehues may make some of my favorite - but this map from David Imus is perhaps the most stunning map I've ever seen. Definitely going to pick up a copy.

From Slate: http://www.slate.com/articles/arts/culturebox/2012/01/the_best_american_wall_...

Credit goes to David Walsh on this one - but its something we concepted together and decided to push out to the interwebs. Enjoy.

http://worstmessageever.com

Inspired by LoCreep:

<p>Locreep at NYTM from Misha Ponizil on Vimeo.</p>