From: Subject: New products, smart car, upcoming books, music, innovations | USA WEEKEND Magazine Date: Mon, 28 Jan 2008 13:35:18 -0500 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/related; type="text/html"; boundary="----=_NextPart_000_0000_01C861B2.9F3FF160" X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2900.3198 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0000_01C861B2.9F3FF160 Content-Type: text/html; charset="Windows-1252" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Location: http://www.usaweekend.com/08_issues/080120/080120innovations-technology.html New products, smart car, upcoming books, = music, innovations | USA WEEKEND Magazine

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Issue Date: January 20, 2008 =

Innovations=20 2008

The year of living smart

It's not enough to simply live better these days. = All of=20 us can push the edge a bit with new products ranging = from=20 ultra-mini cars to T-shirts that seek out Internet = signals.=20 Take a look at these.

By Reed Karaim

The early forecasts for 2008 have = been, shall we=20 say, not all that optimistic. A slump in the housing = market,=20 rising energy prices and unsteady financial markets = have=20 contributed to a feeling that the year could be a = tumultuous=20 one.

Prices for the = ultra-mini car=20 start at less than $12,000.=20

Nonetheless, life doesn't halt for uncertain = times. The=20 secret to doing well isn't hiding under the bed, but = facing=20 the world and making informed choices. In that spirit, = we=20 hereby christen 2008 "The Year of Living = Smart."

To help you get in the mood, we have = assembled our=20 annual list of clever new products and smart new = books, plays=20 and fashion trends that are likely to capture your = attention=20 this year.

They range from the truly ingenious to the = endearingly=20 silly, because whatever the new year brings, a healthy = sense=20 of humor remains a sign of true wisdom.

Zippy wheels
We start with a car = that=20 actually has "smart" in its name. The Smart ForTwo, = manufactured by=20 Mercedes-Benz, is a two-seat automobile that makes the = Mini=20 Cooper feel like a school bus. Only 8.8 feet long and = a touch=20 over 5 feet wide, the Smart ForTwo looks like a = compact car=20 that has had its rear end surgically removed. =

After selling more than 800,000 Smart ForTwos = in Europe=20 and other areas around the world, Mercedes-Benz has = decided=20 the time is right to bring the vehicle to the United = States.=20 The Smart ForTwo, set to debut this month, is expected = to=20 start at $11,590, climbing to $16,590 for the = convertible.=20 Whatever model you choose, you'll get about 33 miles = per=20 gallon in the city and 41 on the highway, a full = complement of=20 safety devices and the joy of knowing you can park in = a=20 fashion model's shadow.

Powerhouse umbrella=20

3D"powerhouse =20

In 2005, three college = students=20 in the Netherlands began working on a design for an = umbrella=20 that wouldn't get blown inside out in fierce winds. = The=20 asymmetrically shaped umbrella they came up with looks = a=20 little like one of the helmets worn by the bad guys in = "Star=20 Wars," but the full-size model can withstand winds of = 70 mph=20 without turning into a bowl that collects rain. It's = now=20 available under the Senz by Totes brand name for $50 = or=20 $55.

Art beyond the boundaries
A number = of major=20 exhibitions this year will celebrate pioneering = artists old=20 and new.=20

A new exhibit looks = at how=20 movies affect our perception of reality.=20

Beginning Feb. = 27, New York's=20 Metropolitan Museum of Art gives Americans a chance to = view=20 the works of rebellious 19th-century French painter = Gustave=20 Courbet. His landscapes and nudes, which scandalized = the=20 public in his day, helped pave the way for = Impressionism and,=20 later, modern art. "It's the first full retrospective = of his=20 work in 30 years," says Tim Griffin, editor in chief = of=20 "Artforum International" magazine. Griffin also is = excited=20 about "The Cinema Effect: Illusion, Reality and the = Moving=20 Image," a two-part mixed-media show on "how the movies = have=20 affected our perceptions." The first part of the = exhibit,=20 "Dreams," opens Feb. 14 at the Hirshhorn Museum and = Sculpture=20 Garden in Washington, D.C.

Compelling reads
Muhammad Yunus = shared the=20 2006 Nobel Peace Prize for his work on behalf of the = world's=20 poor. Now, the Bangladeshi banker and economist is = bringing=20 the lessons he has learned to a wider audience in the = book=20 "Creating a World Without Poverty," published by = PublicAffairs=20 Books and available this month. "He's created amazing = programs=20 that have been transformative in the Third World," = says=20 Charlotte Abbott, a contributing editor of the = "Publishers=20 Weekly" calendar of upcoming titles. "He's a very=20 inspirational figure."

Other upcoming books to check out include = "The Last=20 Lecture" by Randy Pausch, a Carnegie Mellon University = computer-science professor, written with former USA = WEEKEND=20 contributing editor Jeff Zaslow and due from Hyperion = Books=20 this spring; Jhumpa Lahiri's second collection of = stories,=20 "Unaccustomed Earth," coming from Knopf in April; and = John=20 Grisham's "The Appeal," which Doubleday is set to = release this=20 month.

Big and blooming fashion =
Femininity will=20 abound this spring, and one motif that will be big --=20 literally -- is flowers. "We've been seeing big, bold = flowers=20 on everything," says Andrew Bolton, a curator of the = Costume=20 Institute at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art. = "It's=20 almost a 1950s Dior and Balenciaga flower, nota = shrinking=20 violet." In contrast to the strongly feminine look of = the=20 '50s, however, today's trend is reminiscent of the = '80s=20 "glamazon" style, Bolton says. "I'm seeing broader = shoulders=20 and shorter skirts," he says. "It's an em-powered = female=20 image, almost a superhero influence."

For men, it's time to suit up. "I've been = noticing the=20 return of the suit," Bolton adds, noting in particular = the=20 revamped look of designer Thom Browne. "He has shrunk = the=20 suit's proportions down, and his philosophy is that = men should=20 wear suits as easily as they wear jeans. It's been = very=20 successful."

Signaling your inner geek
Feel = like=20 flaunting your inner geek?=20

3D"light-up The stronger the = signal, the=20 more brightly the logo lights up.=20

If so, we've = got just the=20 shirt for you. Thinkgeek.com is selling a = black=20 T-shirt featuring an antenna logo with radiating waves = on each=20 side of it. Here's the clincher: The logo actually = lights up=20 in the presence of a wireless signal. The stronger the = signal,=20 the more brightly the logo lights up. If you find = someone else=20 who thinks this is truly cool, you have met your soul = mate.=20 The shirt is available for $29.99 at = thinkgeek.com.=20

Double duty on the slopes
Really = serious=20 skiers depend on different skis for different = conditions and=20 even for different moods. A stiff ski enables you to = be more=20 powerful and aggressive on the slopes, while a = flexible ski is=20 well-suited to more leisurely conditions. Now, the = German=20 company V=F6lkl offers a ski with a split personality. = A flip of=20 the switch on a Tigershark ski engages dual carbon = fiber rods=20 inside the ski that increase its stiffness for tougher = skiing=20 conditions. Want to slow down and glide into the = lodge? Flip=20 the switch again to disengage the rods and make the = ski more=20 flexible. The skis, priced at $1,199, are available in = the=20 U.S. market this ski season, online and at sporting = outlets.=20

Tattoo "Infinitink"
Let's say you = were madly=20 in love with Billy Bob. Now, not so much. The problem = is=20 you've got Billy Bob's name tattooed across your ... = well,=20 someplace where the six or so passes from a laser = necessary to=20 burn away the tattoo are likely to be extremely = painful. If=20 your tattoo artist had used Infinitink, available at = tattoo=20 parlors in March, you would be facing much less of an = ordeal.=20 Infinitink, sold by Freedom-2, is permanent -- as long = as you=20 want it to be. Infinitink uses dyes held within tiny = polymer=20 beads that are easily flushed out of the body when = short=20 pulses of intense light from a laser break down the = beads.=20 Price: depends on the tattoo.

Into the music mainstream
This = year's=20 musical picks are relative newcomers to the = mainstream. Three=20 to listen for: Lil Wayne, the Whigs and Hot Chip. Lil = Wayne,=20 of New Orleans, "is the self-proclaimed 'Best Rapper = Alive,'"=20 says Joe Levy, "Rolling Stone" magazine's executive = editor,=20 "and ["Tha Carter III"] is the record on which he is = really=20 going to try to stake that claim." On the indie-rock = side, the=20 Whigs, a trio from Athens, Ga., have made "an album = with the=20 energy and smarts of the Strokes' first record," Levy = says of=20 "Mission Control," out later this month. "The songs = are really=20 tightly constructed and pull in a lot of classic pop = and rock=20 influences." He also is excited about Hot Chip, a = British=20 "electro-pop" group that uses "a lot of '80s sounds, = but are=20 also very current."

Clever steps
3D"shoes If you live in = an urban=20 environment, you have probably seen women commuting to = work in=20 low-heeled shoes while carrying high heels for the = office in a=20 bag. This task could be unnecessary if women find = Camileon=20 Heels to their liking. The heels on these shoes can be = converted from high to low; the extra length of heel, = which=20 can be removed with a tug, tucks into a special = channel in the=20 sole. "It's so simple, even a man could do it," jokes = Lauren=20 Handel, CEO and co-founder of the company with her = brother,=20 who came up with the idea. They're available in a = variety of=20 styles and colors online (camileonheels.com) and at = select=20 retail outlets.

Fresh approach on Broadway

Sondheim's "Sunday = in the Park=20 with George" gets a high-tech twist.

One of the most = anticipated shows=20 this Broadway season is a revival of Stephen = Sondheim's=20 "Sunday in the Park with George," with a modern twist. = "What=20 makes it different is the use of digital animation and = video,"=20 says Ben Brantley, chief theater critic for "The New = York=20 Times," who saw the new version in London. "It's a = play about=20 a painter, and projections are used to make figures=20 materialize in front of you. The theater is always = doing kind=20 of an awkward dance with innovations in technology, = but this=20 is a lovely integration and makes me feel hopeful." = Directed=20 by Sam Buntrock, the play opens Jan. 25. Ticket prices = range=20 from about $36 to $125.

Several 1950s plays also are making a = comeback this=20 season. Brantley is curious to see how Spike Lee fares = with=20 his Broadway directing debut, a spring revival of = "Stalag 17,"=20 a comedy-drama about American airmen imprisoned in = Germany=20 during World War II. Brantley calls Lee "one of the = most=20 original and authentic film directors to emerge in = America in=20 the past 30 years."

Frappa Stout contributed to this = report.=20

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