A chilly solstice (and lunar eclipse)

A chilly solstice (and lunar eclipse): "

Yesterday, December 21st, was the Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year in the northern hemisphere, and the start of winter. Also, for the first time since 1638, a total lunar eclipse took place on the same day as the solstice, observable by people across the Americas and parts of Asia. During a lunar eclipse, the Moon travels briefly through the shadow of the Earth, and appears to dim and become a dark reddish color. The coloration is due to sunlight filtering through the Earth's atmosphere - the same conditions that create red sunsets - so an observer standing on the Moon during a lunar eclipse would look up and see the dark Earth surrounded by a red ring, a sunset around the globe. Collected here are images of the eclipse, the solstice, and some of the icy weather as winter officially begins. [Editor's note: An invitation is now open for you to submit your own Christmas 2010 photos for an upcoming entry in January. Next regular posting on 12/27.] (25 photos total)

Three snowshoe hikers watch the almost full moon rising behind the Weissfluhjoch mountain in Arosa, Switzerland, on Monday, Dec. 20, 2010. (AP Photo/Keystone, Alessandro Della Bella)

The $57,871.66 Possession

The $57,871.66 Possession: "

During the second quarter of the Heat’s game against the Mavs, Miami's potent and well-paid offense managed to miss seven shots in one possession. We got to crunching the numbers and took the game salaries of each player involved and divided it by that player’s career field goal attempts per game, giving us the cost per shot, and showing us just how much the Miami Heat paid for this costly possession.

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Whatever Floats Your… House: 16 Amazing House Boats

Whatever Floats Your… House: 16 Amazing House Boats: "[ By Marc in Architecture & Design, Furniture & Interiors, Travel & Places. ]

House boats used to be glorified barges with a bathroom and a place to sleep. More recently, house boats have turned into residences of the wealthy. With as many comforts as a modern home, and a much more interesting address, house boat design has become something beautiful and breathtaking. It makes one wish their house could float.

(Images via samsantravels, allempires, desicolours, armchairtravelogue)

Even the most rustic looking house boats can come fully air conditioned, no matter how rural ones backwater travels might take them. India has a surprisingly robust house boat tourist industry, so it’s a definite must see destination for anyone who has dreamed of boating in total comfort.

(Images via designsquish, jetsongreen)

Some house boats try to maintain a lawn… by covering their roof with plant life. Grass is actually a great insulator, and adds a natural touch to an otherwise entirely artificial residence.

(Images via buttsclermonthouseboat, thrusterman, newhouseofart, 101boatdock, sumerset)

Luxurious, land based, accommodations are now available on the water. House boat technology has increased by leaps and bounds (and so has cost), with many boats costing hundreds of thousands of dollars.

(Images via reevn, likepage, reevn)

If houses can be built on water, it makes sense that a boat can be built on land. This gorgeous home looks like it could sail off during a heavy rain, but it’s doubtful it would make it very far. Perfect for the landlubber with dreams of being the captain of a ship, or the retired pirate, this house has an awesome aesthetic.

(Images via franksquirejr, willc, laceandtea, orion1230, designshoot)

Fully sized houses are now available on the water. They may not be as mobile as one hopes, but the land is cheap (though nonexistent). If someone is into boating and wants to keep their boats in the backyard, this is the perfect solution.

Man Officially Cured of HIV [Hiv]

Man Officially Cured of HIV [Hiv]: "

For the first time, a man has been declared officially cured of HIV. The remedy may nearly have killed him, but it opens a door—just a crack—to hope that we may someday kill off the scourge for good. More »

2010 in photos (part 2 of 3)

2010 in photos (part 2 of 3): "

As the year 2010 approaches its last few days, it's time to look back on the previous 12 months. In the second third of 2010, a nearly unpronounceable Icelandic volcano wreaked havoc on European travel, South Africa hosted the World Cup, and while Russia endured disastrous fires, Pakistan struggled with its own terrible flooding, and so much more. Each photo tells its own tale, weaving together into the larger story of 2010. This is a multi-entry story, 120 photographs over three days. Please see part 1 from yesterday and watch for part 3 tomorrow. (40 photos total)

Lightning streaks across the sky as lava flows from an Icelandic volcano in Eyjafjallajokul April 17, 2010. The volcano spewed ash into the air for weeks, wreaking havoc on flights across Europe. (REUTERS/Lucas Jackson)

Under 35: Living with Parents vs. Homeownership rate

Under 35: Living with Parents vs. Homeownership rate: "This interesting graph is from economist Tom Lawler comparing the percent of 24-34 year olds living at home vs. the under 35 year old homeownership rate ...



There is a clear inverse relationship, and this suggests some pent up demand for housing units when the employment picture improves (although the demand could be for rental units). No larger image.Sources: ASEC March Supplement to Current Population Survey for % living with parents (note sample size, other aspects of survey not constant over time); Housing Vacancy Survey for homeownership rate (note HVS homeownership rate has exceeded Decennial Census AND American Community Survey estimates)

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Fairytale

Fairytale: " "

How Tron: Legacy Light Cycle Designers Made the Sexiest, Coolest Vehicle Ever

How Tron: Legacy Light Cycle Designers Made the Sexiest, Coolest Vehicle Ever: "

Designer Darren Gilford hoped the Light Cycle, the sleek speeder that swirls trails of neon in Tron: Legacy, would be the 'sexiest, coolest vehicle you could possibly imagine.' Gilford, Daniel Simon, and a team of concept artists tried to avoid alienating fans of the
1982 cult classic by drawing inspiration from the bike's original
design, a boxy pixilated vehicle that was severely hampered by 1980s
technology. Three decades later, the Light Cycle has morphed into a
glossy prowler, with hubless wheels and loops of light that blur where
the bike ends and the body begins.

Fast Company spoke with Gilford about the original film, designing the Light Cycle, and the limitations of engineering concept vehicles.

The light cycle is so central to this film's hype, from the toys to the trailers to the video games. What was the design process like for the vehicle?

There's so much back story. I first met [director] Joe Kosinki almost four years ago. There was this very secretive little project coming through Disney, sort of a proof-of-concept. They wanted to do a test to see what Joe's vision was--they wanted to see how this piece of the puzzle would be handled--and it was the Light Cycle sequence.

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I worked with Joe very early on. There was another artist who had taken a pass at the Light Cycle, and I had my own ideas where I wanted to take his design. I started doing 2-D conceptual drawings. Obviously, we are paying homage to the original movie and to Syd Mead, who is a legend and a god in my business, and in many ways, my education. Syd had done Light Cycle sketches for the first movie, and he had originally done an open-cockpit design, where you can see the rider on top of a beautiful surface. But back in the day, the technology was so rudimentary, they just couldn't render a full body. The rendering horsepower was so limited, and they had to do a fully enclosed bike--that closed canopy design.

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We wanted to bridge that gap, and we knew we wanted a bike that grew into the rider. You could see the rider--you could see his forms and his shapes, but blur the lines between where the bike ends and the rider begins.

Light is such an important aspect of everything in Tron--how light wraps around things, how light carries your eyes from the front to the back of the vehicle. Light was the glue that held everything together.

One of the things I've always been fascinated by is hubless wheel design. I loved that concept. For engineering purposes, it’s next to impossible to actually pull that off. I did some sketches, and it worked. One profile sketch really early on showed just a light line on a dark background with a dark bike. The light line was kind of the silhouette, and you saw the circles of the wheels and one light line that connected the rider between the two wheels. That was the sketch that locked the design in.

The bike for the test was maybe 60% of the way there from what you see now. Once the test went well and debuted at Comic-Con, that was the turning point for us. At the same time, Joe and I found this book called Cosmic Motors from this new conceptual artist, Daniel Simon, this automotive designer who was the first guy I've ever seen that was conceptualizing in 3-D. He is an incredible 3-D artist. We reached out and made a commitment that we wanted him to work on this movie. I would say I got the Light Cycle 60% of the way there, but I can't take credit--it was Daniel's final design. His sense of styling and automotive history and detail really brought this design to fruition. I would say Daniel's design is probably one of the most iconic vehicles ever brought to screen.

Part of the design process must be to make the vehicle cool, right? I think back to the speeder in Return of the Jedi or the Delorean in Back to the Future--iconic vehicles that people want to have whether or not they actually exist.

Of course. I was an automotive designer in school, and getting an opportunity to work on something as iconic as the Light Cycle is an absolute dream come true. I wanted to make the sexiest, coolest vehicle you could possibly imagine. The luxury of designing vehicles like this is that we’re not beholden to the limitations of engineering and traditional road requirements. We have the luxury of playing with all of the elements just purely visual, making them as fun as we can.

You're not beholden to the limits of engineering, but did you actually build a Light Cycle?

We did. We actually didn't end up building it for the movie, we ended up building it for Comic-Con for marketing purposes. But I sure would've like to have built one for the movie.

How did you update the vehicle without alienating the cult following of the original film?

That was another huge challenge. There's another retro Light Cycle in our movie that bridges the gap between the new and original design. It is Flynn's closed canopy bike. It's like his California Ferrari that he's been keeping in the garage for 20 years. You can absolutely see Syd Mead's design, but it's been updated. And with our new bike, it creates a timeline. If you put those three bikes together, you can see the progress--the lineage of Tron.

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