Down to Rio

Published on January 18, 2008

Mara Mac fashion show at recent Rio Fashion Week in Rio de Janeiro. EPA

Featuring theatrical-lighting design and art installation for a catwalk, models strutted, sat and even danced to show off the fall-winter 2008-09 collection.

Gadgets in Vegas

The latest technologies, new gadgets, computer games, mobile phones, IT accessories and software were launched at the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. Featuring more than 2,700 exhibitions, IT and electronics firms like Apple, Nokia, Sony and Google introduced new products.

Among the highlights:

n Atlantic EGO Icebar 2 (US$ 69, Bt2,079) - A waterproof sound case for the iPod Nano. It floats and has waterproof speakers and membranes so the Nano can be used in the pool, the bathtub or even the shower.

n Polaroid's Distal Instant Mobile Photo Printer - Once connected to a phone or camera by Bluetooth wireless or USB port, the printer needs less than a minute to churn out two-by-three-inch picture.

n Sanyos Xacti E1 - The world's first waterproof camcorder and digital still camera, the six megapixel Xacti E1 won the 2008 CES best innovation award for digital imaging.

n SanDisk 4GB USB flash drive - More than a mere thumb drive, it's a priceless necklace, made of tiger-eye stone and gold.

n LG VX9400 - Catch the latest shows, news and sport matches, live on television, provided by Verizon's V Cast Mobile TV service (US only).

n NoPoPo battery - This eco-friendly new battery literally gets its juice from orange juice or just about any other liquid, including water, alcohol and saliva.

Artful laziness

 The new Museum of Bogota in Colombia ditches the old notion of museums, in which masterpieces are sequestered inside glass boxes or hung on a wall behind a railing, with signs that warn, "Don't touch".

Instead, visitors are invited to sprawl out on sofas and beds and watch the art, with screens displaying films, and artists in attendance for the "Week of Laziness". The museum's opening so soon after the holiday season is no coincidence. It's a time of year when people think about laziness, and perhaps changing their behaviour and lifestyle throughout the rest of the year. The exhibition is a hands on, or we should say bottoms on, way of making us think about laziness in our high-speed, fast-paced societies.

"We always think about laziness as an enemy of work," curator Arrieta told the Associated Press. She explained that the exhibition aims to "make people think about the social issues implied in taking a nap, in being jobless or in feeling that maybe we are wasting time".

- Compiled by Phatarawadee Phataranawik