Creative Synthesis Blog

Talking about Creativity as Combination, The thoughts and works of the Creative Synthesis Collaborative.
image by Amy Youngs

Carnival of the Animals

Posted on June 23rd by Shae Davidson.
Our perception of animals has changed dramatically over the last century.  The decline of agriculture and the expansion of the middle class have brought a view of animals that ranges ...

Evolving Art

Posted on June 16th by Shae Davidson.
To mark the bicentennial of Darwin's birth and the sesquicentennial of On the Origin of Species, an exhibit opening today at Cambridge's Fitzwilliam Museum explores the effects of his ...

Finding the Rhyme in Education Policy

Posted on June 9th by Shae Davidson.
In its search to bolster the faltering public school system, California has given new life to a quote attributed (with some variations) to Mark Twain:  "History doesn't repeat itself, but ...
image by Rebecca Macri/MIT News Office

A Self-Powered Sentinel

Posted on June 2nd by Shae Davidson.
Massachusetts-based Voltree Power is currently developing a network of sensor nodes that will monitor forest conditions and immediately alert users to wildfires. The system, the Early Wildfire ...
image from www.mapthefallen.org

Memorial Map

Posted on May 25th by Shae Davidson.
Sean Askay, a geospatial content developer for Google Earth Outreach, created Map the Fallen as a tribute to US personnel who have died in Afghanistan and Iraq ...
//www.kurskontakte.de

Aging in Community

Posted on May 18th by Shae Davidson.
A recent article by Christine Schneider explores the ways in which the intentional community Damanhur offers members a model of education and social life that synthesizes the experiences ...
image from urbantapestries.net

The Food Web

Posted on May 8th by Shae Davidson.
Over the course of the summer, I'll be working with Proboscis's Diffusion project to help children understand the idea of food miles and other ecological and ethical issues related ...
image from www.mutsugoto.com

Method of Modern Love

Posted on April 28th by Shae Davidson.
A project developed by Scottish think tank Distance Lab gives partners a tool for exploring art, intimacy, and the body's relation to space.  The interactive installation Mutsugoto rigs ...
image from cy.wikipedia.org

The Foot Bus

Posted on April 21st by Shae Davidson.
An innovative program combats carbon emissions, traffic density, and childhood obesity while integrating parents into the school system and children into the community.  First appearing as the piedibus in ...

Machine Shoe

Posted on March 19th by leo.
Ten Bhomer’s ‘Rotational Moulded Shoe’ is an anti-craft exploration that seeks to replace the manual ...
image from www.nuspaarpas.nl

Alternative Currency

Posted on March 10th by Shae Davidson.
A pilot program in some European Union cities encourages residents to explore the connection between personal actions and carbon emissions while rewarding those who make sustainable choices.  The NU currency ...
image from www.skichair.com

Salvaging Sports Surplus

Posted on March 5th by Shae Davidson.
Massachusetts-based Skichair turns blemished and abandoned sports equipment into garden furniture.  Developed after designer Mike Bellino discovered a mass of sports equipment in an area landfill, the company began ...
image by Lars Gundersen

The 2400-Hour Monument

Posted on March 3rd by Shae Davidson.
This summer, British installation artist Antony Gormley will orchestrate a popular (in the original sense of the word) evolving work that explores identity and the idea of commemoration in ...
image from freefoto.com

Solstice to Solstice

Posted on January 19th by Shae Davidson.
NASA's Astronomy Picture of the Day recently featured an amazing image by photographer Justin Quinnell. Relying on a homemade pinhole camera, Quinnell used a six-month exposure ...