The document discusses various innovative projects and technologies from April 2012, including a flight search engine that optimizes reward travel, a green energy-generating spin bike, and text-based coffee ordering. Notable cultural highlights include Kraftwerk's influence on music and a project to redesign New York's metrocard. Additionally, it touches on significant industry news such as a discrimination lawsuit against Interpublic Group and the establishment of sustainable initiatives like urban bee breeding in Brooklyn.

1. Creativity + Bravery
CHEAT SHEET
16 APRIL - 23 APRIL 2012

2. INNOVATION & TRENDS
Flight Search Results are Prioritized by Mileage Booking Options:
Superfly is a relatively new engine that simplifies the process of shop-
ping for reward travel by storing membership information for airlines,
hotel chains, ground transportation and credit cards. Flight searches
cross reference this data to present the most relevant results.
Spin Bike Power Generator:
The Green Revolution is a new patent-pending invention that converts
human effort generated during aerobic activity into clean, renewable
energy. Its generator replaces the normal friction resistance mechanism
with a motor that when run in reverse produces electricity.
Work Spaces in the Heart of Railway Stations:
Train stations are not only made of concrete but also of services,” Guil-
laume Pépy, President of the SNCF (French national railway company),
states. He is setting up the project using a strategy aimed at attracting
professional customers “so that high-speed trains may equal planes.”
InnovCity
1
1-29-1
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GYRE9
4-12
Cool Hunting
4-19-12

3. TECHNOLOGY
Flying Object Propels itself by Flipping Inside Out:
Created by engineers at Festo in Esslingen, Germany, the floating
band filled with helium takes on different shapes while expanding and
contracting to generate thrust and move through the air. The design is
based on the inverted cube shape discovered by inventor and math-
ematician Paul Schatz.
Intel Launching Next-Generation ‘Ivy Bridge” Processors Today:
Intel is officially launching on Monday its next-generation chip technol-
ogy, codenamed Ivy Bridge. For Intel, Ivy Bridge represents more than
just the regular generational shrinking of transistors to increase chip
performance.
Textspresso Coffee Machine, Order by Text Message:
Zipwhip has created a machine that allows you to text your order to it,
so that it is ready for you when you get there. It is currently able to pro-
duce basic coffees such as lattes and espressos. A printer that sprays
edible ink onto the froth on top of the coffee so it will have your name
on it is soon to be added as well.
New Scientist
4-20-12
Mashable
4-23-12
GadgetWiki
4-23-12

4. CULTURE
Flow - A Piano Player as Big as a House:
Flow is a project by Ed Carter from the Arts Council England and Si-
mon Blackmore from Owl Project. It’s a mill house moored on the River
Tyne that uses the river’s energy along with some brilliant “electro-
acoustic” musical instruments to create music from nature. It’s a bit like a
huge player piano that reads water instead of music.
Kraftwerk In New York - Decades Of Influence On Display:
Imagine an era when mainstream music wasn’t filled with synthesizers,
when electronic music wasn’t a force propelling everything from pop
and hip-hop to music from the underground. There was a time when
this world existed. Then Kraftwerk emerged, and the world we knew
changed.
The Metrocard Project:
The Metrocard Project is an ongoing project that aims to redesign the
iconic New York City Metrocard. The purpose of the project is to show
the many ways there are to design a better Metrocard and to promote
better design within the city. Behance
4-12
NPR
4-13-12
Fast Co.DESIGN
4-19-12

5. AGENCY NEWS
IPG Staffer Files $50M Discrimination Suit Against Holding Company:
A Trinidadian employee of Interpublic Group of Cos. has filed suit
against the company for race discrimination. Complaints in the suit in-
clude a hostile work environment, promotions denied because of race
and retaliation for speaking out against discrimination.
Publicis Grows 4.
1% In Q1 But Expects Slower Q2:
Publicis Groupe expects a “deceleration” of growth in the second quar-
ter, followed by a stronger performance in the second half of the year.
“There is a lot pushed back to the third quarter, partly because of the
Olympics and also the scheduling of product launches,” according to
Chairman-CEO Maurice Levy.
Y&R Advertising and VML Kick Off U.S. Olympic Committee Campaign:
Y&R Advertising and VML, along with Cohn & Wolfe, announced last
week the official launch of their integrated communications campaign for
the U.S. Olympic Committee. It is focused on bringing the Olympic spirit
to life towards the objective of raising money from individual donors.
Ad Age
4-20-12
Ad Age
4-19-12
Market Watch
4-18-12

6. SUSTAINABILITY
Brooklyn Rooftops Breed Bees To Revamp New York’s Ecosystem:
Brooklyn Grange, a commercial organic farm located on New York
City rooftops, will soon help to restore the ecosystem again by launch-
ing a bee breeding operation. The project includes an apprenticeship
program that mentors dozens of enthusiastic urban beekeepers as well.
In India, Solar-Powered ATMs Use as Much Energy as a Lightbulb:
In urban America, getting money out of the bank means walking a
block to the ATM. In rural India, the nearest bank branch might be a
day’s journey away. But now a company called Vortex Engineering is us-
ing solar power to bring convenient banking to out-of-the-way villages.
Marks & Spencer Launches U.K.’s First Sustainable Fashion Lab:
Marks & Spencer and the London College of Fashion are launching
Britain’s first Sustainable Fashion Lab. Entrance to the lab is free - the
only “ticket” you’ll need is an unwanted item of clothing that will be re-
purposed. Ecouterre
4-20-12
Grist
4-23-12
PSFK
4-16-12