Perceptive Pixel is developing YAMTS, but this one has moments of organic, intuitive genius. There is nothing readily on display at their site,so be sure to watch the video. [deathboy]

It’s well known that incandescent bulbs are wildly inefficient means of lighting – in a decidedly forward-looking move, Australia will phase them out by 2010.

Second Life is going through a media blitz right now, drumming up public and media interest. Meanwhile, Google is quietly chugging along with the majority of tools and resources to create its own virtual world. The question is really whether or not Google is going to build it for us, or let the public develop its own toys on top of its base? [gamespy]

I read a lot of news about games, and have muddled through a number of diatribes on Are Games Art or Not? I am tired of most arguments, as they seem to miss the point that games are just another form of media, like TV or film or clay or canvas. As such, it is neat to see in Japan an installation where the games seem, for once, to inarguably BE ART.

Technological advances in communication frequently brings social changes as well, sometimes for the worse. Apparently more Germans than Americans wisely grasp that cell phone calls while defecating are unacceptable. [land-o-links]