The Big Idea

The Big Idea
Robugs, biologically based software, the GeoWeb, transgenic art and other hot frontiers in technological innovation.
The Big Idea
Bodyguards for sheep, plug-in hybrids, edible yards and other environmental innovations worth celebrating.
Making it new
From affordable housing to beautiful highways and computer-monitor gargoyles, the Big Idea looks at architecture and design ideas to build a future around.
Cheap = Good
Affordable housing -- more necessary now, post-Katrina -- is not just better than it used to be, it can be more stylish than any garden-variety McMansion.
Nice ice
Lab-made diamonds are as dazzling as those mined by third-world labor. This bling may be easier on your conscience -- and your wallet.
The year in games
Developers, critics, gamers and analysts weigh in: What they loved, what they learned, what they worried about.
Digital fashion design ain't as easy as it looks
The computer-generated clothing in Pixar's "The Incredibles" required real tailors and years of programming.
The Friendster of photo sites
On the photo-sharing site Flickr, instant and unlikely communities spring up around a wild universe of images, from cats and grocery day to giving birth.
Car ports
How those eerily beautiful bubble cars in "The Incredibles" may well appear in our not-too-distant future.
Good wood
How to indulge in beautifully designed wood furniture and keep your tree-loving conscience (mostly) clean.
Bright lights, big savings
Believe it or not, a dazzlingly gaudy Vegas light display actually represents a major step forward in energy conservation.
The rise of the insta-doc
Through documentaries like "Outfoxed," "UnConstitutional" and "Control Room," digital technology has revolutionized the box office -- and democracy.
Would you drink this water?
NEWater looks like any other glacier-clear bottled H20. Except it gushes from the toilets of Singapore instead of a bubbling spring.
Bamboom!
It's long, strong and pleasing to the eye. So -- who needs wood?

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