EPIC 2008 – Copenhagen

The fourth annual international Ethnographic Praxis in Industry Conference 2008 will take place at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark from October 25 – 18, 2008.

Praticipants will explore the paradoxes and practices of (In)Visibility and bring to life the concepts, theories, plans, worries, approaches and ideas that can expand and advance the practices of ethnographic work in and of industry.

EPIC is the premier international forum bringing together artists, computer scientists, designers, social scientists, marketers, academics and advertisers to discuss recent developments and future advances around ethnographic praxis. It aims to promote the integration of social and cultural perspectives, theories and method into business practice.

Questions that will be explored during this year’s conference:

• What important issues can ethnograpy in industry shed light on?
• Are some ideas and things better left invisible?
• How do we work with things which are themselves essentially invisible?
• In what ways are we (in)visible as ethnographic practitioners in industry? In sites of scholarly production? What are ways of making the value of ethnographic work more visible to organizations, participants and stakeholders, and academic and other intellectual communities?
• Is the invisibility of theory in much ethnographic work in industry a problem, a virtue, or both?
• What invisible traces do we leave in industry?
• What do different representational practices make visible, what do they obscure, and how do other senses come into play?
• Does, and how does, ethnography’s bias for observation work to balance other forms of understanding in the context of industry?

Conference Programme

Wear Your Coffee

Photo: xsmommy

Salad Blaster Bowl and Other Gadgets

Fill it! Press It! Shake It! The new Salad Blaster Bowl is a 26 ounce, clear plastic container for salad, vegetables, and other small meals. The lid compartment is a two ounce chamber for your favorite salad dressing. When you’re ready to eat, press down on the top to “blast” your salad with the dressing. Shake the container, remove the lid, and enjoy!

Other new gadgets:

Denon Blows Hole In Your Pocket With ‘Bullet’ Earphones, February 18, 2008

Glass Radiators Make Staying Warm Really Cool, November 20, 2007

Nail Assist is Sadly Not What You Think, October 03, 2007

Top 50 Gadgets Of All Time, September 26, 2007

Ladies’ Facial Shaver Makes me Say “Whoaaa”, September 21, 2007

Countertop Pizza Oven, September 18, 2007

Dr. Whippy Ice Cream Machine Measures Sadness, Delivers Diabetes, September 12, 2007

The Note Toaster Design, September 06, 2007

Giant Lamp Terrorises Old People, August 11, 2007

RoboBoa – More Fun And Less Lethal Than The Real Thing, August 06, 2007

Magnetic Toaster Tongs Protects Fingers, August 01, 2007

Titanic Lamp Sinks Into Your Livingroom, July 31, 2007

Scary Espresso Maker Doubles As Lethal Weapon, July 30, 2007

Three-in-One Lawn Care Device Mows, Throws and Blows, July 03, 2007

Steampunk Lights Illuminate Your Home or Invade the Planet, July 02, 2007

The Coffee Table Aquarium, June 29, 2007

A Car That’s a Grill, June 25, 2007

The 3-Second Cuppa Tea, June 19, 2007

Snore Pillow Shakes You To Shutup, June 18, 2007

Froggetmee…Spoonsticks, June 18, 2007

Mystery Bulb Lights Up While Hanging in Space, June 11, 2007

Vu Coffee Table For Your Ugly Mug, May 29, 2007

LG’s Washing Machine Has an iPod Dock, May 29, 2007

The Gasmask Showerhead: Just Plain Creepy, May 17, 2007

LED Table Gives Your Meals a Sensual Glow, May 12, 2007

Digital LED Fan Isn’t any Colder than a Normal Fan, May 11, 2007

Geek Waffle-Maker: We’re Not Worthy, May 03, 2007

Lego Lunchbox, One More Step Toward the Lego Singularity, May 01, 2007

Portable Grill: Now you can BBQ on the Subway, April 25, 2007

Solar Grill Cooks Burgers with the Sun, April 10, 2007

Unlike TV Counterpart, Homer Fridge Magnet Says Just One Funny Thing, March 23, 2007

Sink + Toilet Makes Dirty Hippies Happy, March 14, 2007

Ondine ESS Electronic Faucets Give You a Techno-Shower, March 12, 2007

TurboChef Speedcook Oven Ruins Dinner 15 Times Faster, March 12, 2007

Lock Up Your Food, March 12, 2007

Auto-Turning Pasta Fork for the Stupid and Lazy, March 06, 2007

Television Microwave Makes More Sense Than Rock Lobsters, March 06, 2007

About Jam Sessions and Inno-Waiters

A Jam Session is a musical act where musicians gather and play (or “jam”) without extensive preparation or predefined arrangements.

The word ‘jam’ refers to any particularly inspired or improvisational part of a musical performance, in rock and jazz music.

Jam sessions are often used to develop new material, find suitable arrangements, or simply as a social gathering and communal practice session. The New York jazz scene during World War II was famous for its after-hour jam session. The Minton’s jams were a fertile meeting place for artists like Ben Webster and Lester Young to meet community.

Other artists such as Henry Miller would meet at cafés to further their ideas. Today, this metaphor is used by innovation project leaders to connect with community and gather structured feedback and ideas for their innovation initiatives. Woodstock N.Y.-based Mitch Dikoff took this metaphor a step further opened Breakthrough Café. It serves more than just great food, but also food for thought.

The premise of Dikoff’s unique offering is a simple one: Most of the meaningful interactions that happen at meetings or business trips usually happen informally – at the hotel bar, on the golf course or during dinner. Breakthrough Café is an experiment that fuses dinner-party idea exchange with the focus of a brainstorming session.

The entering guests’ first task is to define an intention, challenge, goal or idea they are struggling with – and want to noodle on during the Café visit.

Strategically placed “inno-waiters” interact with café goers in fun ways to get the creative juices flowing.

Café visitors informally brainstorm with each other – at their tables, while enjoying hors d’oeuvres, or at the bar.

Breakthrough Café is a mix between party, restaurant, and idea jam session.

At the end of the evening, each Café goer is given a check to capture their breakthroughs for the visit and commit to a few, simple action steps.

[Get the full Story ¦ FastCompany]

SolutionSync Tool: connect2jam

PEZ

Are Mobile Ads the Next Internet Gold Rush?

Mobile web offers a unique opportunity to marketers. The mobile phone is a highly personal device; research shows consumers rarely leave home without their mobile phone. And, because the mobile device is so personal, users are highly engaged with content. The mobile environment is uncluttered; most publishers only allow one ad per page, providing premiere placement for brands.

Mobile phone ad spending is expected to more than double in 2007 to $1.5bn, says an InfoWord article.

But also mobile video advertising clearly opens interesting opportunities for viral videos delivered to mobile phones, although pricing and/or business models still remain a question to be answered.

With increases in the number of high resolution mobile devices and observation of improved quality when ads are optimized to the handset, the MMA Mobile Advertising committee has developed Mobile Advertising Guidelines for Mobile Web (WAP) Banners. Advertisers and publishers should refer to them:

1. Advertisements may not be misleading or deceptive to the recipient in any way.

2. Advertisements promoting illegal products and services are not allowed.

3. The sponsor of any advertising message should be clearly identified either on the ad itself or on the resulting first-level jump page.

4. Special categories of products must comply with existing voluntary industry guidelines (alcohol, tobacco, seepstakes/promotions, and ads targeting children, etc.)

5. Any advertisement for regulated products must comply with existing guidelines for such advertising (e.g. pharmaceutical ads must comply with FDA guidelines).

6. Advertisements should be age appropriate.

7. Potentially controversial advertisements should primarily be avoided, but may be reviewed on a case-by-case basis by publishers and wireless carriers.

8. All claims made in an advertisement must be substantiated before the advertisement is scheduled to appear. Advertising that includes warranties, guarantees, or other types of assurances to the user must comply with all applicable laws, regulations or guidelines regarding such assurances, including but not limited to those set forth by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

9. Advertisements cannot promote or glorify violence, crime, obscenity, the use of weapons or provide instructions on how to “get away” with crimes or unlawful activity.

10. Language that is offensive, or disturbing, or which is likely to cause outrage, general disapproval, or negative opinion within the community is not allowed.

11. Any customer information provided is limited to the current campaign only. Further interaction with the customer requires an additional opt-in.

[Get the full MMA Mobile Advertising Guidelines]

PEZ