Tailrank is a Memetracker?

I came across a new buzz word in the web/blog space today:Memetracker.

 

I was curious to find out what this is all about. So here are my findings.

 

First, what is a meme?  A "meme" is any "idea, behavior, style, or usage that spreads from person to person within a culture".  The term "meme" was coined by Richard Dawkin's around 1976 to represent a cultural equivalent of a gene.

 

Therefore a meme tracker is an aggregator of ideas compiled by searching lots of blogs and prioritizing the most popular ones..

 

Tailrank is an example of a memetracker.   Tailrank, like memeorandum.com creates a so called "living" newspaper totally generated on the fly (every 5 minutes) with content from people's blogs.  Sounds a bit like what EPIC 2014 (a future history of the media by Robin Sloan and Matt Thompson) was talking about.

Create your avatar at MVM?

This is an interesting undocumented feature at My Virtual Model. Click a link below to go directly to a questionnaire to create your model.  You can use any MVM enabled site.  Below I am using H&Ms.

 

Try creating your Male Virtual Model or Female Virtual Model

 

Many people would like to create their avatars using MVM.  Any comment?

Plastic Surgery and your Virtual Model

Visit this site for a free consultation on your personal plastic surgery plan.  Now imagine combining this with your personal Virtual Model?  Ouch!  Do you think people will be more or less willing?  Thanks Alex for finding this.

Colliding worlds or technology convergence?

What typically appeared as opposed and radically different markets not even 5 years ago, now appear to be coming closer and closer together.

 

Take a look at the following companies.  You have companies building 3D communities like SecondLife with their fashion shows, industrial 3D data processing companies like AG3D, shopping experience companies like MVM (leader), apparel CAD companies like Optitex offering 3D runways, and gaming companies educating users on real apparel and footwear products like this basketball video game.  All companies operating in different markets.  All featuring Virtual Try-on of apparel on a virtual model.

 

Is this the start of a technology convergence towards 3D apparel?

Building Identity

Interesting article on building identity and trust into the next-generation Internet by Ken Jordan, Jan Hauser, and Steven Foster.

 

Compare this to My Virtual Model's Manifest of Virtual Idenity (access to members only).

Lands End My Virtual Model Tour - 5 years ago!

The 2001 Lands End My Virtual Model Tour was 5 years ago, but even today it still sounds like science fiction!

 

My Virtual Model did a tour with Lands End using a truck which contained a human body scanner. The truck visited majour cities across North America.  People entered the truck at one end and left the truck at the other end with a full body scan and a virtual model created and ready to be used on-line.

 

TC2, a non-profit organisation, worked with a start up company called "Image Twin" to create an on-line bank of people's body scans for use with visualisation and fit prediction engines such as My Virtual Model. 

 

Full article at:

http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m3638/is_5_42/ai_70658450

 

See the pictures at:

http://intranet.mvm.com/home/2000_10_23_MVMTour/photos.htm

Innovative Communities

Threadless
A really amazing t-shirt creation site - design your own t-shirt. 

If your creation gets a lot of votes, it gets  printed!

Created by http://www.skinnycorp.com

 

Mathworks
A collaborative math problem solving site with several contests per year

 

Innocentive
Innocentive connects companies with R&D problems and scientists willing
to solve problems. This project shows the power of tapping into the
periphery and enabling communities to innovate. 

 

Second Life
Second Life is a virtual world - a 3D online persistent space  totally
created and evolved by its users.

 

Habbo Hotel
Habbo Hotel is a virtual hotel where you can hang out and make new friends. It's designed for 13 to 20 year olds in Canada, but  everyone (13 and older) is welcome. When you register you "become" a Habbo. Then  you can walk,
dance, eat, drink and chat in the many clubs, cafes, restaurants,  swimming pools and games rooms. You can even create, furnish, and decorate your own room!

 

Library Thing
Create your bookshelf by selecting books,  then create a snippet to display
them on your blog. Use other users bookshelves to speed up the creation of your own.

Facebook
Students only!
Facebook is a social networking website  specifically for college,
university, and now high school  communities.They have an incredibly high percentage of penetration reaching almost 100% with this years first year university students.

 

For more see the Wikipedia's list of Social Networking Sites.