ChocoSol

I came across a place in Toronto called ChocoSol that was said to have a 'bicycle machine' and use them to grind chocolate in Oaxaca, Mexico. Although they used to use these machines when they started the business, the volume has grown so much so that they use electric machines to husk and grind cocoa beans now and use the bicycle for demo purposes only. Nevertheless, it was still a learning opportunity and a chance to see a working bicycle machine.

Electric assist

Grinding by hand

Tension adjustment and leather chain

vaccuum pipe filled with cement as a flywheel

bolted in

For the record, the chocolate is really tasty.

First crit

Oh god, winter is coming.

Lamphrey

These things are so weird and creepy.

Disability around the World infographic

That's today!
click to see the full poster here.
section of infographic from CMB Australia, cbm.org.au, 2010-2011

Ezio Manzini, Designing in (the state of) Crisis

My notes for a lecture by Ezio Manzini. He stresses three main points that in order to design in a crisis, there needs to be three types of innovation: technological (resilience), social (collaboration), and cultural (bringing new qualities), and goes on into how to design for all three. For him, he believes that design is a cultural activity to promote the meaning of things.