oh, sk.

Hi! I’m an urban planner, designer, artist, and a recent graduate of the Department of Urban Studies & Planning at MIT. I’ll be working on the design and development of infrastructures and info-structures that support diversity and density in our cities through a new initiative known as the Urban Launchpad. I enjoy people, carrying things, and am attempting to become something of an amateur cartographer. You can check out more of my work through my portfolio. Cheers,sk

[stephenkennedy]

German Commuting Patterns — Of all German conurbations the Rhein-Main area shows the most interesting patterns. Although dominated Frankfurt as the main objective for commuters in the region. But cities like Mainz, Darmstadt or Aschaffenburg ensure that spread commuters evenly than elsewhere.

http://www.zeit.de/feature/pendeln-stau-arbeit-verkehr-wohnort-arbeitsweg-ballungsraeume

[popchartlab]

Spoil yourself with this studious survey of some of fiction’s most famous last words! Diagramming 25 closing lines from classic novels, this chart analyzes the grammatical groundwork of ultimate utterances penned by Jane Austen, David Foster Wallace, and more. 20% off through tomorrow with code CATCH-20!

[kickstarter]

Multi-award winning typographer Craig Ward and pioneering biochemist/experimental photographer Linden Gledhill are making a generative, ornamental typeface with ferrofluid — a kind of magnetic ink developed by NASA in the ‘60s. Why? Because science! And curiosity. This project subverts typically fastidious, consistent design, and gives it over to an unrepeatable, organic process, transcending the traditional role of a typeface as a platform for coherent communication. The take home? The resulting one-of-a-kind glyphs will be made into a series of original letterpress art prints. Check out the project here.

[thebeakerblog]

Solarbeat tells you how long it takes planets to orbit the Sun, but it also makes some pretty cool musical tunes. 

Here’s how it works: the tool (which Internet history nerds will recall was launched in 2010 as a Flash program) has been reprogrammed and now allows you to adjust key and add effects like echo and flutter to the sounds you create. 

Tempo of the music can be adjusted by messing with orbital rates – and there’s even a neat little counter to let you know how many times each planet has zipped around the Sun. 

Do you learn much? Not really. But the music is enchanting, and after a while, I found myself not needing the counter anymore. I was able to pick out certain tones and know when, for example, Mars had completed an orbit, just by listening. -Patrick

(Image Credit: SolarBeat)

[npr]

This experience is simply beautiful. -Emily

[asterionellaa]

Whales! From top to bottom: Narhwal, Beluga Whale, Orca, Humpback Whale, Sperm Whale, Right Whale, and Blue Whale (Approx size differences) 

[stephenkennedy]

These Beautiful Aerial Photos Of L.A. Show What Income Inequality Looks Like From Above. Richer neighborhoods are beautiful, curvy swaths of green and blue. Poverty means you live in a straight brown line.

[theimpossiblecool]

“We are a landscape of all we have seen”

Isamu Noguchi, 1980.

[theimpossiblecool]

“I never painted dreams. I painted my own reality,”

Frida Kahlo.

[kickstarter]

Remember when you were a kid and you’d design your dream school or house and it would almost always include some sort of slide of complex network of slides? The hyper detailed Big Hospital takes that to the next level.

[99percentinvisible]

Collecting Concrete by Sarah Ramsey

[visualgraphc]

Raw Lettering | Mathijs Delbaere

[fuckyeahplattenbau]

Novosibirsk, Siberia by Vyacheslav Stepanov

[rgrjnr]

Ettore Sottsass’s “Seating Near Enigma,” 1987

[kumotextiles]

Global Yell from Make Works Global Yell is Shetland’s Centre for Weaving, based in Yell, Shetland. Global Yell provide facilities and an education programme to digital and traditional looms. Designers can access the facilities to produce woven pieces. They have a residency programme in place for those wishing to deliver longer term projects, alongside training and educational programmes for the general public and those interested in weaving.

[99percentinvisible]

Billboard ranked the top 100 songs since the creation of their Hot 100 list in 1958. The list is based on airplay and sales. Here are the songs in chart form.

[stephenkennedy]

xinjian’s city stream expresses urban fabric as intricate paintings shanghai no.6, all images courtesy of lu xinjian

via DesignBoom

[raindog]

I have found that all ugly things are made by those who strive to make something beautiful, and that all beautiful things are made by those who strive to make something useful.

Oscar Wilde (via raindog)