Lowline Fashon Show set to Launch in LES on Essex and Delancey

Snapped this on the way to work this morning walking up Essex Street

The Lowline could really happen—but don't take our word for it, go see for yourself. With The Highline's final phase planned, it was about time Manhattan's newest crazy-idea-turned-real-possibility came a little closer to fruition—and to that end the potential park in the abandoned trolley terminal beneath the LES is offering a free "proof of concept" exhibit from September 15 through 27. It is awesome.

Located in the Essex Market Building D at Essex and Delancey (right above where the park would go) the demonstration of how the Lowline team could put a park underground is small—and does raise questions—but it also shows real potential. In the middle of a dark abandoned space visitors walk through dark curtains, past some interesting graduate student work (Audi and Columbia University's Graduate School of Architecture, blah blah blah) and then through one more set of curtains and BOOM. There she is.

Out of the darkness you come across a beautiful tiny indoor "park" designed and executed by designer Misty Gonzalez to show that plants could live off of the not-as-minimal-as-you'd-think light provided by the gorgeous solar technologies from above it. Of course, the plants you see in the demo wouldn't be the ones that would actually grow in the park—if it even happens. To that end, Gonzalez told us that she'd need at least a year to study the microclimate of the Lowline space in order to "choreograph the plantings" to the light and air (FYI? The canopies should provide between .05 and 500 footcandles of light). She was happy to muse on all sorts of possibilities, however, including plantings that would reflect the seasons (which wouldn't necessarily have to be the case) and obscure planting, including bioluminescent ones!

Above the bonsai park is the just as impressive 35' aluminum and steel canopy, the 600-plus pieces of which designer Ed Jacobs tells us were all fabricated in the city. Though the technology on Essex Street isn't exactly what is being proposed for the Lowline (mostly because it doesn't move light around with fiber optics) it does show just how much natural light can be focused and diffused from a small area out into a dark, essentially lightless space with just a little bit of ingenuity.

Still have doubts? Really the best way to understand just how cool this project could be is to go and check it out yourself. You have until the 27th.

via gothamist.com

 

 

Scaled Comparison of Global Metro Subway Systems

via fakeisthenewreal.org

Facebook's Forcing Timeline as Company Fails...

I have NO interest in transferring to a timeline, and I don't want to use FB if they force a switch... No wonder FB stock has tanked!

A Timeline does not encapsulate "my story," and the fact that they think that a spammy data feed (would somehow be synonymous w/ my online identity and) is the future of social networking, reveals how desperate for ad revenue and ideas FB really is... and how much the company deserves to fail.

Seriously, screw you Facebook...

Minus is more - Free File Sharing... Like Imgur for Videos, Documents and Files...

Minus is awesome... It's like Imgur for everything (not just photos). Similar to Dropbox or Google Drive, Minus actually allows you to upload up to 1GB anonymously, and up to 50GB if you register.

"Sharing is universal. We created Minus to make sharing pictures, documents, music, videos and files simple, instant, and free."

 

Trulia Files Confidential IPO

 

NEW YORK, NY, Jul 31, 2012 (MARKETWIRE via COMTEX) -- It was recently revealed that Trulia -- an online real estate site -- has filed for a confidential IPO with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Taking advantage of the new provisions listed in the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act, Trulia was granted permission to submit their IPO privately, and given similar permission to withdraw it without revealing private information.

Trulia intended on keeping their IPO private, but Reuters reported information regarding the IPO on July 26th. It turns out that Trulia is being advised by none other than JP Morgan Chase & Deutsche Bank. Representatives from Trulia did not confirm nor deny the report.

Because Trulia currently earns less than one billion dollars in revenue, they were able to bypass regulations and file their IPO privately. This would not have been possible if not for the recently instituted JOBS Act. Approximately, 30 other emerging companies have taken advantage of this stipulation. Trulia's decision to go public exhibits the reassurance of the technology sector, precipitated by Facebook's lackluster IPO last May.

For instance, Profile Defenders -- a well-renowned online reputation management firm based in NYC, Washington D.C. and Fort Lauderdale -- is being hailed as the next big IPO within the tech field. Representing the rapidly growing Online Reputation Management sector, Profile Defenders was the first company to provide services designed to repair or establish the reputation of an individual, fortune 500 company or small business owner. The professionals at Profile Defenders are technological geniuses that have somehow managed to figure out Google's ranking algorithms. Thus, its filing for an IPO will undoubtedly renew the confidence of other companies considering going public.