Why play is vital -- no matter your age

A pioneer in research on play, Dr. Stuart Brown says humor, games, roughhousing, flirtation and fantasy are more than just fun. Plenty of play in childhood makes for happy, smart adults -- and keeping it up can make us smarter at any age.

Source TED 

Sound Visualization Jewelry

The Sound Advice Project creates custom bracelets of any sound’s waveform. Although the project is aimed at parents who want to make anti-drug message bracelets for their kids, the concept seems full of interesting possibilities.

Source PSFK

YouTube to Create Global Orchestra Online

YouTube’s latest venture is a good example of new approaches to collaboration: an endeavor to engage musicians from all over the world and create the first global symphony orchestra in the process.  Although grand in scope, the concept’s success relies on individual participation. To that end, musicians of all types are asked to record themselves playing any classical selection of their choosing, along with a piece written specifically for this project by composer Tan Dun entitled “The Internet Symphony”.  All videos of the original composition will then be rolled into one collective performance to generate the global event. Contributors are given the opportunity to download sheet music and rehearse with a conductor online. As an added incentive, the best entrants (as voted on by the larger community) will be invited to a 3-day summit that culminates in a live concert held at Carnegie Hall. Submissions are being accepted through January 28.  Details and tutorials are available on YouTube’s microsite.

Source ReadWriteWeb

Rerearch bringing together the voices of people from all religions

Join the world at www.charterforcompassion.org to write the Charter for Compassion. The Charter brings together the voices of people from all religions. It seeks to remind the world that while all faiths are not the same, they all share the core principle of compassion and the Golden Rule. The Charter will change the tenor of the conversation ...

Source TED