1. Glass is really, really important in our current computing paradigm.

"At CES 2015, Corning unveiled its new glass product, Iris, which focuses on the light-guide plate (LGP) in edge-lit LCD TVs. Current LGPs in LCD backlight units are made with acrylic, but Corning has proposed a new revolutionary material, glass. The announcement has ignited several discussions in the industry. Will glass in backlights be a game-changer for LCD TV and OLED TV?"

2. A sound-making app designed especially for grieving teenagers.

"Flutter is an experimental app concept designed specifically for grieving adolescents. It uses music to help those experiencing the loss of a loved one – a period of time often resulting in high levels of isolation and incredibly difficult emotional problems – express themselves in a safe, positive environment, by creating sound artefacts that express how they feel at that moment."

3. How management futurism became entrenched in American business.

"Up to that point, budgeting was a one-way exercise: Accountants added up all of a firm’s expenses and then tossed in a sales projection almost as an afterthought. In McKinsey’s view, companies should start by developing their business plan, figure out how to achieve it, and then estimate the costs of doing so. In this new context, budgeting wasn’t just a ledger activity; it could also be used to identify excellence in performance (i.e., those who outperform their budget), to spot weaknesses (those who underperform), and to take corrective action. '[While] there are many who do not yet plan scientifically … ,' he wrote, 'there are few who will deny the merits of the system.'"

4. When northern North America was covered with glaciers, it killed the earthworms up there, but... the survivors from the south trek slowly northwards.

"The manner of earthworm re-colonization of the formerly glaciated and permafrost areas occurs through two means: the natural expansion of native earthworm populations northward and the introduction and expansion of exotic earthworms. Ever since the glacier and permafrost receded, earthworms native to North America have been slowly migrating northward at a rate of approximately 5 to 10 meters per year (one mile every 160 years). Exotic earthworms are actively sold for use in commercial waste management and as fishing bait. Earthworms can also be passively transferred through any exchange of soil containing materials such as potted plants and construction fill. Perhaps the most important aspect of these exotic introductions is that these species do not remain at their sites of introduction but spread outward in fronts. Linden and Hale et al. estimated the advancement of the exotic earthworm front in Minnesota, where at least six exotic earthworm species have been recorded, at approximately eight meters per year."

5. Amazing projection mapping. Whoa.

"PROJECT OMOTE IS A COLLABORATION BETWEEN JAPANESE MEDIA ARTIST NOBUMICHI ASAI, MAKEUP ARTIST HIROTO KUWAHARA AND FRENCH DIGITAL IMAGE ENGINEER PAUL LACROIX."

demimonde. ("The half-world.") The class or world of doubtful reputation. Demimondaine, one of the women of that world.

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