“I normally never lose my temper on the road, even after he cut me up i was trying to give him his wallet back. But then he proceeded to flip me off and thats why dropped his phone on the ground. “..(Read…)
IFC Films has released yet another official US trailer for the Werner Herzog feature film Queen of the Desert. This premiered at the Berlin Film Festival way back in 2015 and was originally slated for release that year. Nicole Kidman and director Werner Herzog bring to life the extraordinary true story of a trailblazing woman who found freedom in the faraway world of the Middle East. Gertrude Bell (Kidman) chafes against the stifling rigidity of life in turn-of-the-century England, leaving it behind for a chance to travel to Tehran. So begins her lifelong adventure across the Arab world, a journey marked by danger, a passionate affair with a British officer (James Franco), and an encounter with the legendary T.E. Lawrence (Robert Pattinson). Stunningly shot on location in Morocco and Jordan, Queen of the Desert reveals how an ahead-of-her-time woman shaped the course of history. Opening in theaters and VOD April 14th Directed by: Werner HerzogStarring: Nicole Kidman, James Franco, Robert Pattinson, & Damian Lewis..(Read…)
Marko Morciano joue avec les codes de la pop culture en créant des clichés drôles et soignés au détail avec pour thème principal la couleur jaune. Son univers décalé se mélange avec une passion pour l’écriture qui rajoute un sens de poésie à ses créations.
Pour Micra et Fubiz, il réalise une incroyable silhouette en utilisant seulement des lettres imprimées par une ancienne machine à écrire.
The Panolight makes perfect, simple sense! Whether you’re working or playing, sometimes you need a beam, sometimes you need ambient light. Panolight provides both with one simple twist.
By adjusting the tactile end cap, you can transform it from a focused flashlight to a lantern in seconds. One twist will reveal a single column of light, but continue to twist and more columns will turn on to increase the vibrancy and expand the direction of emitted light.
The design detail on the back gives it a functional, but equally playful element. Just like people spin their pens or keychains to keep their fingers occupied, this design detail becomes the fidget-worthy element on the torch. The torch’s back even comes with its own handle, allowing you to hang it anywhere. It also ditches the pencil battery for a USB powered approach. Even though you may say that your phone flashlight is essentially the same thing remember, the Panolight can work for hours on a single charge, and is the only torch that turns from focused to ambient lighting!
Designer: Pushpal Dey
Stephen Hawking has had the same trademark voice for 30 years and has now decided it’s time for a change. Watch him view the audition tapes from hopeful celebrities…..(Read…)
Robert McGuire, owner of McGuire Editorial & Consulting, once worked as a reporter at weekly newspaper publisher, Community Newspapers, Inc. One thing that’s stuck with McGuire from his tenure at the paper? The authority of the staff’s junior-level fact checker.
“She could pull the brake on the train in ways nobody else could,” McGuire recalled. “Even the desk editors were afraid of her. They had worked on and approved stories that now someone less senior had the power to shove right back at them and say, ‘We can’t print this.’” Ouch.
So what does a fact checker do exactly? They check facts, sure. But what’s that really mean? Like, what facts? What are we talking here, Reese Witherspoon’s government name or how many times 50 Cent was shot? Gigi Hadid’s diet? Or the statements candidates make during a presidential debate? The short answer: all the above. Fact checkers verify it all, even the seemingly obvious.
Fact checkers help a source of news or information maintain credibility and integrity, says Jake Tully, editor in chief and de facto fact checker of a popular trade website. “They ensure that writing isn’t just good, but that it is also factual.”
To that end, McGuire tells his team not to take anything for granted. “If the source says [his] name is Bob, ask how it’s spelled”—a lesson McGuire learned the hard way, as an obituary writer. “The first time it’s your fault that a misspelling of the deceased or their bereaved shows up in print, you learn how important it is to check everything,” he added.
In fact (pun intended), sometimes the lighter stuff is tougher to verify than hard news. “Because all of the material can seem less significant, the story lies in the small details,” says Sharmila Venkatasubban, BuzzFeed copy editor. “And in pieces that involve celebrities, the most minute details can be really important.” In pop-culture writing, misidentifying the type of shampoo a celebrity uses or the car she drives is big, as those particulars could be the result of contractual brand obligations.
Fact checkers verify that all the facts and claims in a story are accurate and represented fairly, says Venkatasubban, who splits her time between copy editing and fact checking. This involves reading through a reporter’s notes, audio and transcripts. Checking court records, video footage, research documents and any materials that a reporter used (or didn’t) in researching and reporting a piece is imperative.
“Fact-checkers also look for holes in stories. They research sources to make sure they don’t have their own conflicts of interest and [that] what they’re providing can be relied upon. And they read very closely on a sentence level to make sure the research and reporting [haven’t] been framed in a way that makes for good copy but doesn’t represent what exactly the reporter found. This involves what is often described as reporting in reverse,” adds Venkatasubban.
Publications rely on fact checkers to help them maintain their credibility. Of course, writers and reporters bear responsibility too. If they write it, they better be able to attribute it. Submitting notes accumulated while writing a piece, a list of credible sources (sorry, Wikipedia doesn’t count) and source contact information may be required. But not every publication uses fact checkers.
“Many magazines, particularly those that publish longer reporting, employ fact checkers,” says Venkatasubban. “News desks that publish breaking news and shorter stories—that are responding quickly to the news cycle often don’t.” This may explain why many newspapers don’t use fact checkers, though some have a research department that may assist with investigative pieces with longer turnaround times.
“For many industry-specific sites, specifically those that are not entertainment-related, I think the reporters themselves are policing their own articles,” offers Tully. “Certainly, the larger news sources have a department or team dedicated solely to fact checking, but I suspect that many other writers are doubling up on their duties. I don’t predominantly consider myself a fact checker, per se; it’s more of an inherited duty.”
But mags aren’t the only game in town for fact checkers. There’s plenty work for those committed to verifying the veracity of political claims at outfits such as Politifact, a Tampa Bay Times offshoot. The process at Politifact is a bit different, but the mission is the same: truth telling.
A typical day for a fact checker at Politifact begins with reviewing the news and checking out a list of factual claims, usually gathered by interns who comb transcripts of TV interviews, explains Bill Adair, Politifact’s founder and former editor. Reporters reach out to the person who made the statement, or that person’s press secretary, and request background to verify any claims made.
This evidence usually comes in the form of government data or a report from a think tank, explains Adair, who is also a Knight professor of the practice of journalism and public policy at Duke University and director of the DeWitt Wallace Center for Media and Democracy—the school’s journalism program. Next, the fact checkers find their own sources—independent experts whenever possible—and start their check.
The process is similar at Verbatim, the fact-checking arm of nonprofit, nonpartisan collaborative political encyclopedia, Ballotpedia. First, freelance researcher Kent Klein gets assigned a claim made by an elected official or other public figure. He researches the claim and then assembles an outline in which he answers a series of questions posed by editors, including whether the claim can be proven or disproven and who’d be interested in the outcome.
Klein is quick to point out that fact checkers—at least at Verbatim and other such projects—aren’t on a witch hunt. They’re not conspiring to take someone down. “Contrary to what some may believe, reputable fact checkers do not have a partisan agenda, but are simply interested in finding the truth.”
As is any fact checker worth his or her salt. Because the fact of the matter is (yep, another pun intended) good journalism can’t exist without stone-cold facts.
For more in-depth lessons on fact checking, and an exclusive discount for being first in line, click here to be notified when our Fact Checking course launches.
The post What Fact Checkers Do and Why The Role is So Important appeared first on Mediabistro.
The concrete walls and roof of this headquarters for the Greek city of Lamia’s Municipal Water Supply are interrupted by voids and fissures that carve out different routes through the building.
The building is set on the eastern edge of the city at a junction of two main roads so local studio Vtria Architects aimed to create “an iconic, interactive and extroverted building that is open, accessible and welcoming to all of its users.”
The desire to promote the building’s connection with the surrounding city informed a design with an east-west axis that follows the adjacent road.
The main facade is broken up into a series of volumes sheltered beneath a huge concrete roof supported by tall cylindrical pillars.
Gaps between the concrete and glass boxes lend the facility a permeable feel that promotes its public character. The voids accommodate different entrances that lead towards a central courtyard.
“By adding or subtracting pieces of the outer structure, the building’s shape is changed and transformed to create a vivid and dramatic effect,” explained Vtria Architects.
“This stereotomic process moulds the project’s clear geometric shapes into producing a notional structure that expands the spatial experience.”
A sloping plot led to the building’s division into a two-storey northern wing and a three-storey wing to the south, with the main administrative areas distributed throughout an L-shaped block that flanks the courtyard on two sides.
The reception area is housed in the western portion of the facility, which has the most direct connection to the rest of the city. This space is entered via a long ramp that extends above a lawn towards a glazed section of the facade.
Alternative entrances interrupt the other elevations, and a series of vertical, horizontal and diagonal axes split the building into a cluster of angular volumes with a variety of circulation options.
“The existence of a large number of entrances, staircases and ramps gives movement to the synthesis and allows the visitor to enjoy a vast choice of architectural promenades and alternating views of the exterior and the interior of the building and its surroundings,” said the architects.
The courtyard at the centre of the headquarters provides outdoor seating, planting and water features that create an environment suited to relaxation or social activities.
Shade and the cooling effect of the water surfaces also helps to create a micro-climate that reduces temperatures inside the surrounding blocks during the hot summer months.
On the southern side of the courtyard, a concrete volume containing an amphitheatre for hosting cultural events incorporates a large window that provides a visual connection with the outdoor space.
The double-height reception area is largely lined with glass to create a bright and welcoming environment for visitors.
A boardroom is accommodated in an oval pod suspended above this space, which is accessed via a bridge on the first floor.
Photography is by Dimitris Triantafyllou.
Project credits:
Architect: Vtria Architects/Vasilis Triantafyllou
Associated architects: Ifigeneia Trintafyllou and Dimitris Triantafyllou
Civil engineer: Nikos Papadopoulos
Electrical engineer: Giannis Apostolou
Construction: Tzortzis A.T.E.B.E. and Lantern Construction
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This white circular education centre in western Hangzhou, China, features a decked arena and cosy sleeping areas for children to camp and can learn about sustainable farming.
Hong Kong-based Superimpose worked with local farmers in Tai Yang Valley to build the structure for the Sun Commune, an initiative raising awareness of sustainable farming and promoting healthy living to urbanites.
Set among the region’s ample bamboo and rice fields, Micro-O operates as a camp for city children from Hangzhou and Shanghai to learn about nature.
White canvas covers the ring-shaped portion of the structure, which is raised above the ground on stilts and supported by a series of A-shaped frames made of reclaimed pine.
The building encircles an open-air deck used for group activities and events.
“The structural A-frame, a ninety-degree angled triangle, gives the design an externally pure shape, while internally the patio opens towards the sky and surroundings,” said the architects.
The looping structure is subdivided into three sections with corresponding doors that link with the central patio. The wooden A-frames are left exposed along the length of the building and the timber floors covered in sleeping mats for overnight stays.
The architects intend to return to the centre to host architectural workshops with visiting children as well local farmers.
The project is part of a wider programme of architectural experimentation at the Sun Commune eco-farm, which boasts a bamboo and thatch pigsty designed by China Academy of Art professor Chen Haoru.
Photography is by Marc Goodwin.
Project credits:
Architecture: Superimpose
Design team: Carolyn Leung, Ben de Lange, Ruben Bergambagt, Mika Woll
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Studio Course has overhauled the upper level of a penthouse apartment in Pune, west India, creating mix of indoor and outdoor rooms that surround a rooftop garden.
The local studio, which is also based in Pune, aimed to transform the home’s under-utilised top floor into an area similar to the veranda of a traditional Indian home – even though it is 12 storeys up.
Called the Veranda on the Roof, the 50-square-metre extension provide the occupants with spaces including including a library and reading room, an outdoor kitchen, and a deck with views of the city.
“A veranda was always an element, central to making our houses into homes, an accidental space for long conversations, a place for one to relax and unwind,” said the team, led by architect Kalpak Shah.
“But the Veranda on the Roof is no accidental space,” he added. “It is a space designed keeping in mind the family and their clear understanding of a special place they wanted to add to their home.”
“[It is] a space crafted out from their lifestyle which revolves around books, food and plants.”
Cement plaster was applied by hand to the floors and walls of both interior and exterior spaces. Known locally as Ghotai, this technique is typically used on houses in the region, and creates unusual patterns on the surfaces.
Its austere grey tone contrasts with the furniture and structural elements, which are all made from teak wood.
“This material and natural process gives warmth and earthy tones to the space, designed and intended to turn as a refuge from its immediate environment,” said the team.
In the library, a teak bookshelf is connected to a staircase made from the same material. The staircase’s treads are hung from stainless steel wires, and lead up to a store room.
Minimal furnishings in the library create an open and airy environment. Artwork is recessed into the cement wall above a teak desk, while a vibrant sofa can be rotated to face the rooftop garden or views of a nearby race course.
“The design intends a play on the senses as one approaches the place through a wooden staircase from the living room below,” said the designers.
“The existing walls of the staircase were broken down and roof was created to open up the space and get better connection.”
Teak-framed glass doors connect the library with the courtyard garden, where the floor is lined with gravel and a raised patio area features a futon for reading and relaxation.
The open-air kitchen also fronts this courtyard.
“A reading nook, which sits along the water fall and a lotus pond within it, is a tranquil setting to indulge into a piece of literature with the garden partly screening it,” added the team.
As cities grow outwards and upwards, space for ground floor gardens in urban areas are limited. Many architects are designing green rooftop spaces to combat this.
Vo Trong Nghia has created a house in Vietnam which features a staggered garden on sloped roof, while Australian firm CO-AP has designed a glass-fronted living room surrounded by an oasis in Sydney’s Darlinghurst.
Photography is by Hemant Patil.
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Andrea Ponti‘s Shadows in the Windows chairs are line-drawn versions of window seats that reference Hong Kong’s architectural landscape.
The collection, which will be shown during Milan design week, features eight chairs that all reflect on the repetitive grids of windows that appear in city apartment blocks and high rises.
Made from steel, the seats are attached to a square outline that represents the window frame. Each chair features subtle differences, anchored to the window at different points, or featuring “stairs” that lead up to the seat. One chair curves away from the frame, like a bench.
“The window is the architectural element that best represents the concept of urban density,” said Ponti, who is from Italy but has been living in Hong Kong since 2013. Ponti specialises in product design, and has collaborated with major brands including Panasonic and Philips.
“A second glance will reveal the story behind each window: the story of the person or people that live behind that window, occasionally projecting their contours and their shadows over it,” he added. “What emerges from that is a unique urban scenery made of frames and silhouettes, lights and shades, textures and colours.”
This isn’t the first time Ponti has used the city’s architecture as a source of inspiration. His concrete and steel Kanban table was intended to reference Hong Kong’s industrial buildings, as well as the neon signs that hang over the streets in the Kowloon district.
The Shadows in the Windows collection will be shown at the Superdesign Show, at Superstudio Più on Via Tortona 27, during Milan design week from 4 to 9 April.
Other furniture on display during the week includes British designer Paul Cocksedge’s collection of pieces made from material excavated from his studio’s floor, and a range of crocheted poufs, stools and rugs that help provide an income to out-of-work women.
The post Andrea Ponti models chair series on Hong Kong’s urban architecture appeared first on Dezeen.
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