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"Those who make peaceful evolution impossible make violent revolution inevitable."- John F. KennedyThere's one thing for sure: 2008 isn't anything like politics as usual.The corporate media (with their unerring eye for the obvious point) is fixated on the narrative that, for the first time ever, Americans will likely end this year with either a woman or a black man headed for the White House. Bloggers are telling stories from the front lines of primaries and caucuses that look like something from the early 60s - people lining up before dawn to vote in Manoa, Hawaii yesterday; a thousand black college students in Prairie View, Texas marching 10 miles to cast their early votes in the face of a county that tried to disenfranchise them. In recent months, we've also been gobstopped by the sheer passion of the insurgent campaigns of both Barack Obama and Ron Paul, both of whom brought millions of new voters into the conversation - and with them, a sharp critique of the status quo and a new energy that's agitating toward deep structural change.There's something implacable, earnest, and righteously angry in the air. And it raises all kinds of questions for burned-out Boomers and jaded Gen Xers who've been ground down to the stump by the mostly losing battles of the past 30 years. Can it be - at long last - that Americans have, simply, had enough? Are we, finally, stepping out to take back our government - and with it, control of our own future? Is this simply a shifting political season - the kind we get every 20 to 30 years - or is there something deeper going on here? Do we dare to raise our hopes that this time, we're going to finally win a few? Just how ready is this country for big, serious, forward-looking change?Recently, I came across a pocket of sociological research that suggested a tantalizing answer to these questions - and also that America may be far more ready for far more change than anyone really believes is possible at this moment. In fac

The Occupy Wall Street movement is well into its second week of operation, and is now getting more attention from media as well as from people planning similar actions across the country. This is a promising populist mobilization with a clear message against domination by political and economic elites. Against visions of a bleak and stagnant future, the occupiers assert the optimism that a better world can be made in the streets. They have not resigned themselves to an order where the young are presented with a foreseeable future of some combination of debt, economic dependency, and being paid little to endure constant disrespect, an order that tells the old to accept broken promises and be glad to just keep putting in hours until they can't work anymore. The occupiers have not accepted that living in modern society means shutting up about how it functions. In general, the occupiers see themselves as having more to gain than to lose in creating a new political situation - something that few who run the current system will help deliver. They are not eager for violence, and have shown admirable restraint in the face of attack by police. There may be no single clear agenda, but there is a clear message: that people will have a say in their political and economic lives, regardless of what those in charge want. Occupy Wall Street is a kind of protest that Americans are not accustomed to seeing. There was no permit to protest, and it has been able to keep going on through unofficial understandings between protestors and police. It is not run by professional politicians, astroturfers, or front groups with barely-hidden agendas. Though some organizations and political figures have promoted it, Occupy Wall Street is not driven by any political party or protest organization. It is a kind of protest that shows people have power when they are determined to use it. Occupy Wall Street could be characterized as an example of a new type of mass politics, which has been seen in

One of our most innovative, popular thinkers takes on-in exhilarating style-one of our key questions: Where do good ideas come from? With Where Good Ideas Come From, Steven Johnson pairs the insight of his bestselling Everything Bad Is Good for You and the dazzling erudition of The Ghost Map and The Invention of Air to address an urgent and universal question: What sparks the flash of brilliance? How does groundbreaking innovation happen? Answering in his infectious, culturally omnivorous style, using his fluency in fields from neurobiology to popular culture, Johnson provides the complete, exciting, and encouraging story of how we generate the ideas that push our careers, our lives, our society, and our culture forward. Beginning with Charles Darwin's first encounter with the teeming ecosystem of the coral reef and drawing connections to the intellectual hyperproductivity of modern megacities and to the instant success of YouTube, Johnson shows us that the question we need to ask is, What kind of environment fosters the development of good ideas? His answers are never less than revelatory, convincing, and inspiring as Johnson identifies the seven key principles to the genesis of such ideas, and traces them across time and disciplines. Most exhilarating is Johnson's conclusion that with today's tools and environment, radical innovation is extraordinarily accessible to those who know how to cultivate it. Where Good Ideas Come From is essential reading for anyone who wants to know how to come up with tomorrow's great ideas.

When we study Marx in my graduate social theory course, it never fails that at least one student will say (approximately), "Class struggle didn't escalate in the way Marx expected. In modern capitalist societies class struggle has disappeared. So isn't it clear that Marx was wrong and his ideas are of little value today?" I respond by challenging the premise that class struggle has disappeared. On the contrary, I say that class struggle is going on all the time in every major institution of society. One just has to learn how to recognize it. One needn't embrace the labor theory of value to understand that employers try to increase profits by keeping wages down and getting as much work as possible out of their employees. As the saying goes, every successful capitalist knows what a Marxist knows; they just apply the knowledge differently. Workers' desire for better pay and benefits, safe working conditions, and control over their own time puts them at odds with employers. Class struggle in this sense hasn't gone away. In fact, it's inherent in the relationship between capitalist employer and employee. What varies is how aggressively and overtly each side fights for its interests.

Apollo Architects & Associates' Ark House is the modern version of Noah's Ark!

Luxury and architecture define a fine balance as @claudiokaczka-entrepreneur and BIRKA embody the prestige and identity of #luxury fragrance stores across the globe integrating tradition and #modernism within the #design. Check out his latest #BuenosAires boutique for @chanel…

SAOTA dramatizes the form, spatial quality, scale, intimacy and calmness of this plush modern home set against Miami's tropical setting.

The Orange Lane, Mumbai, brings a modern twist of typical Indian elements to vivid South Indian culture that makes for a contemporary 'udipi' restaurant by day and trendy bar by night. Find out how the integration of the concept within the design allows for a flexible space here...

Amsterdam-based design agency Tjep. envisions a cleaner yacht industry with the introduction of EAU, a concept electric luxury yacht with 100% electric propulsion and a modern aesthetic that will appeal to leisure boaters. Check it out here…

With a passion for creating distinctive spaces through experimentation, modern construction and an analytical approach, Studio Ardete's latest, Boston Bites, is a café in Mohali that takes you on a journey to Boston and celebrates its cultural ethos. Find out more here…

A careful balance of formal and informal, the TATA Communications office, Pune, by Arvind Vivek Associates sets the stage for #work #environments that are unorthodox, energising and synergetic. Check out the office interior here…

Chromed Design Studio styles #Pikkle as a #hospitality venue that oozes a #modern #contemporary aura, rich with #flamboyant colours, unique textures and #luxurious furniture, effusing a #welcoming ambience under the glowing lights. Check it out here

A three-BHK home in Pune refurbished by Cluster One Creative Solutions, fuses the retro charm with contextual functionality, all against the backdrop of bright colours and modern finishes. Find out more here…

Elips Design Architecture's Attic Loft project proves that modern, minimalistic designs can develop and revolutionise even the most unexpected and unassuming spaces. Check out the interiors of this loft in Istanbul and leave us your views…

What makes a restaurant space modern, metropolitan and cohesive? Find out how Studio US Design culls out the Culinary Urban Experience (CUE) for the ultimate urbanite…

Fusing traditions and modernity, Dipen Gada and Associates design #NarayanJewellers showroom in #Vadodara to exude a novel charm.

In a scenario, where the modern is appreciated without compromising on the value of traditional or historic, more architects are making interventions on the borderline; cohabiting the two sensibilities in more ways than one. Check out Appareil Architecture's latest outing and leave us your comments

Blending in tried-and-tested design with small doses of experimental new, helps create a balance that is striking yet comfortable in #3Seventy Kitchen by interior designers, Harit and Shefali Desai of #Neovana Design - the only independent eatery in a food court in Surat!

@sid-lee architecture in association with @architecture49 have redesigned the #FairmontHotel, Montreal in tandem with its historical legacy. Check out the modernist underscoring and leave us your views…

Hotel Parister by Beckmann N'Thépé Architects is a converted office building that is purely Parisian. Elevational elements are traditional, while the interiors are modern and spunky. Conscious efforts to incorporate green elements make this 5-star hotel unlike most! Read on to know more...