Girls In Tech

As an actor and producer of 35, the first scripted web series to stream live on the Internet, Kathryn Jones is reinventing the concept of “theater techie.” No longer is it only about shadowed souls clad in head-to-toe black, frantically whispering into headsets, trying to perfect the lighting on Juliet’s face as she waxes poetic about her happy dagger right before plunging the rusty tool into her broken heart. No – because of Miss Jones and her crew, theater techies now perform a much more visible bow at curtain call. In fact – curtain call has taken the form of rolling credits behind the glow of our computer screens, and the theater techie, now clad with multiple cameras and vigilant live-editing skills, has risen, lens first, into the limelight.

Founded by three women, Better Left Unsaid is a cross between a play, an online video and a live-streamed event – and with already six performances under their belt, Jones (producer) has already broken cross-industry ground by merging theater, technology and social media.

Written by Joey Brennaman, the play follows eight lives as their secrets are revealed, ultimately asking the question: “How well do you know the people you love?” Performed in front of a live audience in Manhattan, the production is shot with multiple cameras, mixed in real time, and streamed live so that anyone anywhere in the world can watch, and interact during the show and via the post-show discussions ‘What You Said.’

GIRLS IN TECH: come support your fabulous, fellow GIT. Don’t leave Better Left Unsaid unsaid! SPREAD the word. And WATCH their second round of live performances, starting THIS Friday, in your pajamas at home or with armloads of flowers and applause at Center Stage in Flatiron District (48 West 21st Street, 4th Floor, between 5th and 6th Ave., Subway: F or N/R to 23rd).

Theater and online performance times:

Friday, Feb 4 – 8pm EST

Saturday, Feb 5 – 8pm EST

Sunday, Feb 6 – 3pm EST (optimized for European audiences respectively – 9PM GMT )

Sunday, Feb 6 – 7pm EST
Theater tickets are $18 while interactive online viewing tickets are a suggested donation of $2-$18.

For more information and tickets, visit www.betterleftunsaid.tv.

Tags: better left unsaid, live-streamed, New York, play, Techie, theater, women founder
Posted in All Chapters, New York | No Comments »

There is a space that exists between ambition and success, the dull and delicious, static and  fresh – a demure gap of inspiration that can catalyze global movements, or remain entirely  invisible.

That space is called the AHA. A flash instant, in which our entire perspectives are shifted,  swirled and flipped inside out – revealing a new playing field of ideas and opportunities.

Shauna Mei harnessed her AHA moment a long time ago and launched AHAlife this past Monday. Curious minds all over the world will soon be kowtowing in gratitude.

AHAlife.com is a discovery platform of innovative lifestyle products built for savvy, socially conscious consumers. The AHAlife experience is unerringly reflective of how we are growing as a society. As our lives become more and more cramped with shiny new things, we naturally begin searching for ways to filter and curate. We yearn to cut out the noise, so that we can save time and focus on what’s most important, interesting, inspiring. Which is exactly what AHAlife does for the consumer palette.

Their mantra, “1 product. 24 hours. 100% inspiring,” leverages urgency, scarcity and crowd-sourcing to break the heavy mold of e-commerce by creating a shopping process where the only sales pitch is one we make to ourselves. Because the real ‘aha’ behind AHAlife is their growing network of curators who suggest fiercely inspired products from all over the world.  And though that list of curators includes the likes of Diane Von Furstenberg, Tim Gunn and Vivienne Tam, anyone can submit products for consideration. The platform gives us the chance to be influential tastemakers, ultimately guiding ourselves to become a new generation of more sophisticated, conscious and self-generated consumers. You could say AHAlife is a tastemaker of tastemakers. And it is precisely this move that will be the source of their viral success.

Hey Shauna. You always said you loved when people make everyday objects beautiful. Well – look what you have done to the entire industries of e-commerce and media. You. Go. Girl.

There is a force that sits quietly, waiting to be noticed. A bolt of lightning willing the Earth to obtain a charge.

That force is called the AHA. It stops time, allowing us to discover and recognize a piece of life at its fullest. And it is that AHA that pulls our everyday ordinary into a state of infinite beauty.

*

For more information, sign up to become a member at www.ahalife.com

Tags: aha, aha moment, AHAlife, e-commerce, editorial, fashion, New York, ny, nyc, shauna mei, shopping, social media
Posted in All Chapters, China | No Comments »

A few weeks ago, Mashable put out an article on how to customize real life treats via the Internet. Among them: mix your own chocolate bar, smoke your own jerky, create your own pet-food, shoes, handbags, shirts. And the one that stuck out the most to me (other than the jerky): customize your own jewelry.

Say what?

Every girl likes diamonds right?

And boys (in many cases) are the ideal deliverers.

Thanks, pop culture. It’s because of you that I have this grossly generalized fantasy in my head:

Girl meets Boy.
Boy is smitten.
First date.
First kiss.
Move in.

“Dear Boyfriend,

When you propose, it will preferably be on a cruise to Costa Rica.

Think that’s too cliché? I’ll ask again when our mouths are full of lobster, and we’re riding a horse named Steve through the rainforest.

But most importantly, I would like you to present me with a 10 carat, princess-cut diamond in a platinum  setting . . . or was it a marquise in white gold with two emeralds on the side. Or maybe I . . .

On second thought. Don’t propose until I consult my jeweler to find out what the heck it is I want.

Love, your adoring, baby darling, shmoopie.” Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: bling, CAD cam, customize, designers, Developers, gemvara, jewelry, mashable
Posted in All Chapters, China | 1 Comment »

9am EST yesterday morning began the launch of Loic Le Meur’s SeesmicLook, a radically innovative and intuitive app that curates Twitter content and introduces it to the mainstream population – aka those who don’t have a Twitter account, don’t know what Twitter is, or don’t really find the appeal in microblogging.

If you’re unfamiliar with @loic and his marvels, Seesmic has created a number of platforms that help people share information regardless of where they are: via desktop, web-based, mobile, and recently e-mail, SMS and chat. These platforms have been downloaded 3.5 million times since the company’s launch in 2007. And because one of Seesmic’s largest goals is to create a streamlined experience for Twitter users, devoted tweeters are, well, their main users.  Read the rest of this entry »

Tags: chat, daryll mcdade, e-mail, launch, loic le meur, mobile, platforms, remote control, seesmic, seesmiclook, sms, social media, tv, twitter
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After three years in China and three months in New York, I am finally home for the holidays, in Dallas.

Last night, as we were coming home from another party, my stepfather decided to drive us to see some Christmas lights. There is a neighborhood about two blocks from our house, called Deerfield. And boy do they get it together. We drove up and down blocks and blocks of houses, all decked out in gorgeous lights and decorations. The two things that ran through my mind were: wow, and I wonder how much their electricity bills are. Then we turned on Quincy Street, and came across THIS house. Just watch this video, and come back to read the rest of this post.

Tech the Halls (Dallas style)

Okay, so it kind of looks like a house having a seizure. But what you don’t hear is that the entire display is synchronized to a radio station you can tune into in your car. COOL. I tried to share a little bit of the awesomeness here, but you just had to be there. Talk about technology. At its most creative

Happy New Year!

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Breaking news this morning: flight delays across the nation, due to computer problems with the Air Traffic Control  System. Apparently, the issue stemmed from a glitch in one computer in Atlanta, where flight information has to be  entered manually, rather than automatically. There are no safety issues with the planes—just computer ones.

These are the times when we find out just how much technology affects our lives, without even realizing it.

Click here to see a map of the delays.

Good luck flying today!

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Exciting news! All the way from Beijing.

Our very own Tan Siok Siok (@sioksiok)—insightful, creative filmmaker and core member of GIT-China—has just flown from Beijing and will be driving cross-country from NYC to LA and back Oct 21-Nov 6.

The mission? To film Twittamentary,  an innovative, crowd-sourced documentary about Twitter. The initiative officially launches TODAY, at the NYC 140 Conference meet up.

Twitta….what?

Twittamentary is more than just a documentary about Twitter. According to director Siok, “it’s about you and me and the unimaginable new ways we are communicating. We explore how, what, and why Twitter is affecting sea changes to society, media, business, economy, culture and our daily lives, all at the speed of light.”

People around the world have been talking about the Twitter revolution and how it has transformed our very identities and our collective subconscious. Twitter accelerates serendipity. Bonds are forged as a result of unexpected
encounters between strangers as they share moments of their lives in real
time.
 Twitter also attracts controversy. Cynics see the popular
micro-blogging service as the breeding ground of ‘narcissists’ and
”micro celebrities” who are lured by the promise of instant fame. But why has this seemingly banal micro-blogging service captured the
world’s imagination?
In this documentary, Tan Siok Siok peels away the hype and explores the human dimensions of how lives connect, intersect, and are affected and changed as a result of encounters on Twitter. Twittamentary is crowd-sourced by social medians across the globe; it is all about stories of the people, and by the people. Read the rest of this entry »

Posted in All Chapters, China | No Comments »