Creative offline initiatives frequently incorporate digital interaction through sensor-tracking tools such as the Kinect (remember Chris O'Shea's air guitar prototype back in 2010?). More recently, Lab212 also used Kinect to create this interactive galaxy of stars with the assistance of a video projector, swing, and openFrameworks:

In the same vein – but with much more sophiticated results – comes ZeroN. ZeroN is a system that was developed at the MIT Media Lab by Jinha Lee, a Ph.D. student and research assistant. After working on the concept and execution for almost two years, Lee has put forth a "physical and digital interaction element that floats and moves in space by computer-controlled magnetic levitation" (source).

The system allows for tangible interaction between modalities which are usually confined to 2D surfaces, so that they are able to levitate mid-air and be controlled by both computers and the human touch. According to Lee's 2011 thesis, ZeroN also combines optical tracking and image projection on to the levitating object — allowing users to use the system in a game of ping pong just as easily as they would to film an intricate virtual rendering.

For further information about Lee's work, visit his site.

This is an extended, personal take on a post that I originally wrote for the DDB Canada blog.

Harvard Business School's annual Newport Ball was held at The OceanCliff Hotel in Rhode Island on Friday, April 27th. The venue was set up beautifully, and not even the crazy winds and unexpectedly cold weather out in the tents could detract from the fun indoors.

We were able to grab these quick photos upon our arrival; I wish we'd snapped some more, but the drinks were flowing and there was dancing and mingling to be had -- a girl's gotta prioritize.

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I love this time of year; It brings out some amazing colors -- and even with our recent bout of unpredictable weather, serves as a reminder that summer is just around the corner. I've been enjoying time out at English Bay, and my plane ticket to visit Boston is booked.

There are also lots of little things that I'm looking forward to in the coming weeks. Listed below are a few of my favorite Pinterest finds and small-scale plans for this season (click on any of the images to view in Pinterest):

1) Try making soap at home
Now that I have all the necessary ingredients (thanks, Lisa!), I can't wait to unleash my inner domestic Tyler Durden to make Martha proud.

2) Bake for friends
I whipped up some brownies and cupcakes this weekend.. next up: macarons (I'm feeling extra inspired after buying a macaron cookbook at my friend Ashleigh's garage sale on Saturday). Not to mention, THIS will be the season that I finally perfect my apple pie recipe -- this adorable packaging idea is incentive enough.

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This is an extended, personal take on a post I originally wrote for the DDB Canada blog.

A new piece of video content for Samsung Portugal's Explore Your Dual World campaign features projection mapping on a human. It was created for the launch of Samsung's first dual SIM card smartphone, and looks to emphasize the multiple dimensions of its product offerings.

While we've seen incredible examples of project mapping on buildings, cars, and even shoes and on water, I really enjoy the loose narrative tied behind this experimental video -- in less than two minutes, the man serving as a canvas is morphed into intricate patterns, objects, and tools such as maps (a nod to some of the capabilities of Samsung's new smartphone).

In less than 48 hours, this video has reached over 100,000 views on YouTube alone.

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For more photos, join me at Flickr.

My idea of the perfect Sunday involves sleeping in and watching movies in bed all day.

Having said that, there's also something about going to the theater and watching films on the big screen. This is the legacy that my father left for me -- a love for film (and my nose; I got that from him, too).

These are two movies that I'm really looking forward to catching in the cinema this weekend:

Jiro Dreams of Sushi is a documentary that follows 85 year-old Jiro Ono and his life as what many people consider the greatest sushi chef in the world. There's something wonderfully bittersweet and complicated about the way the trailer looks at Jiro's relationship with his eldest son (the uncontested heir to Jiro's legacy) that really strikes a chord -- not to mention, the mouth-watering food shots.

I first learned of Monsieur Lazhar when it was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film at the 2012 Academy Awards. 

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This is an extended, personal take on a post I originally wrote for the DDB Canada blog.

During his 2008 campaign, US President Barack Obama and his team famously leveraged online resources and social platforms such as Twitter, Facebook and YouTube to rally voters. During this first term, they have continued to participate across multiple channels in an effort to provide Americans with access to content such as weekly addresses, copies of speeches, infographics explaining new policies, and even behind-the-scenes glimpses into the White House. Most recently, a live Google+ hangout session allowed Americans to partake in a real-time discussion directly with the President himself.

With the upcoming presidential election in November, Obama's team continues to utilize the web for his re-election campaign; this week, with a 17-minute documentary shared on YouTube. Directed by Academy Award-winner Davis Guggenheim (An Inconvenient Truth), The Road We've Traveled is narrated by actor Tom Hanks and features several interviews with key political leaders as they discuss Obama's first term and how he handled notable obstacles around the economy, health care, and the capturing of Osama bin Laden. Instead of uploading multiple 2-minute attack ads, the Obama team attempts to bring the focus back to what has been accomplished in the past four years through this more in-depth approach.

Earlier this year, we discussed the value of creating strong content - and how it can both entice and empower advocates, fans, and news organizations to share a brand's messaging across their respective channels. The Road We've Traveled is an excellent example of this mechanism in play; it demonstrates a polished narrative and clear call to action for Americans looking to support Barack Obama in the upcoming election.

The President's campaign team is certainly not the first to try their hand at long-form online video content to encourage political/social activism. Invisible Children's now notorious Kony 2012 video about Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) leader Joseph Kony is 30 minutes. It registered over 112 million total views in nine days, leading researcher Visible Measures to proclaim it the most viral video in history (source).

Even as far back as June 2009 (yes, ancient times!), we saw a YouTube video triggering an equally emotional response from its viewers in Europe. Running at 1 hour and 30 minutes, Yann Arthus-Bertrand's HOME was financed by PPR and introduced during the European parliamentary elections, which to this day marks the largest trans-national elections in history.

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I'm certainly the last person qualified to speak about fashion -- but I love what I love, and these are some of my favorite fashion-centric online finds of late. What better way to start your week off than by injecting in some of this color?

Prada's Spring/Summer 2012 lookbook was introduced with Real Fantasies - an unapologetically campy piece that layers handmade collages using vintage graphics, imagery and color treatment to showcase the label's latest collection. I love the new prints, and the nod to mod is a perfect touch (thanks for sharing, Chris).

I first discovered Leigh Viner's work two months ago. The Denver-based artist experiments primarily in acrylic, watercolor, and photography -- and it's her fashion portraits that I find myself gravitating towards the most; though not quite as sophisticated as David Downton's similar pieces, her work has a great youthfulness.

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From a tactical perspective, two very different art installations -- but both exquisite in their own right. Each artist uses materials found in nature to demonstrate how temporary can still be beautiful.

Sonja Hinrichsen's large snow drawings are reminiscent of crop circles; I love the sense of calm that comes from watching this collaborative project unfold at an aerial view (source).

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The Guardian's new promotional campaign features a gritty re-telling of the classic fairy tale, Three Little Pigs. Launched online and through television with BBH less than two weeks ago, this is my favorite ad so far this year; outside of its polished concept and execution, it also ties in brilliantly with the news organization's campaign message, "get the whole picture".

According to Ad Age, BBH creatives were heavily influenced by dramatic Hollywood movie trailers that revealed key plot lines; they looked to emphasize The Guardian's "open journalism" approach through a strong storyline:

It was clear that BBH needed to tell a story to demonstrate the news cycle. But which one? "We couldn't pick a current-affairs story for fear of it dating," said David Kolbusz, creative director. "And writing a revisionist history of a historical event seemed insensitive." So they went with fairytales. BBH also created scripts for "Humpty Dumpty," "Hansel & Gretel" and "Cinderella." But Mr. Rusbridger is a big Orwell fan, so the "Animal Farm" parallel won out. (source)

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