Category Archives: Futurism

"Perfect for when you need to lose your stars."Changing Colors

Heres something wild we didnt expect to see at this years CES convention in Las Vegas: an electric BMW that can literally change the color of its paint job with the press of a button.

A video thats gone viral on Reddit shows a sleek SUV puttering around a parking lot when it suddenly switches its exterior color from a pearl white to a medium gray in an instant. Oddly enough, the charging port cover stayed white, while the rest of the vehicle darkened.

A different video shared on Twitter shows swirls of grey move across the vehicle like a dark cloud.

Sure, its a bit gimmicky but CES is all about gimmicks. And the feature may have other uses, too.

Perfect for when you need to lose your stars, one Reddit user chimed in, referring to the wanted level in the video game franchise Grand Theft Auto.

In December, BMW issued a statement that it will show off the first-ever demonstration of a technology that changes the exterior color of a vehicle with the touch of a button, but didnt elaborate on what that would look like or how it would work at the time.

One Twitter user suggested that the color-changing tech could involve a temperature sensitive finish, but BMW has yet to comment.

Only a few people will be able to see the car in person, thanks to a resurgence of COVID-19 cases.

Out of an abundance of caution, BMW will move all planned media activities at CES to a fully online program from Germany on January 5, reads a statement from BMW.

While were still not entirely clear on how the carmaker managed to pull off the chameleon paint job, were pretty certain on one thing: this vehicle will be turning a lot of heads at CES this year, given the hype on social media.

More on BMW: BMW Posts, Deletes Ad About Sex Inside Self-Driving Cars

Care about supporting clean energy adoption? Find out how much money (and planet!) you could save by switching to solar power at UnderstandSolar.com. By signing up through this link, Futurism.com may receive a small commission.

See the original post here:
BMW Shows Off Car That Changes Color at the "Touch of a Button" - Futurism

Image by Getty / Futurism

In a grim finding, a team of scientists say that people who believe myths about COVID are more likely to catch it.

Community transmission rates drop when government entities impose restrictions, Ohio State University researcher Russell Fazio told PsyPost in a new interview about a study he helped publish back in October of 2021. But the very persons who engage in more social distancing behavior decrease their personal likelihood of contracting COVID-19. [We] took this a step further, examining beliefs and personal characteristics that predicted whether individuals contracted the virus.

Study participants completed assessments for variables including pandemic perceptions, faith in government, belief in science, conspiratorial ideas and more. As it turns out, those with a strong trust of former President Trump, more government faith and more conspiracy theory beliefs were more likely to contract COVID, according to the studys findings.

There are many important findings from this research, but the most critical one may be related to misinformation regarding COVID, Fazio told PsyPost. Individuals with more accurate knowledge were far less likely to have contracted [it].

The solution to these problems, though, may not lie in political evangelism and trying to sway COVID deniers to the other side of an ideological spectrum.

Instead, a less political and more empathetic approach may be a much more effective way to reduce COVID cases and deaths, which should really be everyones end goal.

It would be fascinating to examine the consequences of correcting any misinformation that people had acquired regarding the virus, Fazio told PsyPost. Whether changes in accurate knowledge results in changes in the likelihood of contracting the virus is an important question that needs to be addressed.

In other words, in the fight against COVID, preventing hospital stays matters more than changing votes. So letting people know that their leaders failed them in an empathetic way, and not holding them personally responsible for those failings, may prove most effective.

After all, if individual action can make you vulnerable to COVID transmission, surely the reverse is true, too.

More on anti-vaxx dangers: WHO: Anti-vaxxers Are Now One of the Greatest Threats to World Health

Care about supporting clean energy adoption? Find out how much money (and planet!) you could save by switching to solar power at UnderstandSolar.com. By signing up through this link, Futurism.com may receive a small commission.

Read more:
Study Finds That People Who Believe COVID Myths Are More Likely to Catch COVID - Futurism

Hyundai Ioniq 5 hauls us into a bright retro-future as the smartest EV on the market

Hyundai Ioniq 5 is retro-futurism made flesh, fulfilling the neon dreams of the forward-thinking 1970s its also easy to live with, efficient and practical

The Hyundai Ioniq 5 wears its retro influences on its sleeve, but in truth there were never really cars like this on the road. The closest parallels to the faceted forms in Hyundais newest EV can be found in the concept car designs of the 1970s and 1980s, back when futurism meant sharp edges. In particular, the jumping off point was Giorgetto Giugiaros 1974 Hyundai Pony Coup concept, shown at the Turin Motor Show. The Ioniq 5 is the production version of the Hyundai 45 Concept, featured in our 2020 Design Awards for its combination of excellent exterior, intelligent interior design, and eco-conscious engineering.

Not only is the Ioniq 5 substantially different from the companys EV offerings to date, its also pretty different from other companies offerings (including Hyundais sister company Kia). Inside and out, the Ioniq 5 is retro-futurism made flesh, fulfilling the neon dreams of the forward-thinking 1970s as a mass-produced object without the barriers of badge snobbery or brand hierarchy.

You see, way back before retro was cool, companies like Hyundai were comfortable in their unfashionable skin, letting premium brands duke it out for the title of best-looking car. Time and taste have been surprisingly kind to the resolutely ordinary cars built by the Korean manufacturer in the 1970s and 1980s.

Giugiaros original 1974 concept still looks relatively fresh, and in April 2021 the Pony was given a retromod makeover, complete with modern pixel-style lights and a dashboard made from Nixie tubes. It was followed by an all-electric make-over of the stately Grandeur saloon from 1986.

Hyundai Heritage Series Pony

The latter two cars are part of the companys Heritage Series, a canny way of bolstering the credibility of the past through the lens of the future. Consumers often have a nostalgic longing for the lost powers of perception and imagination in old-fashioned futurology. Hyundais design team are tapping into these emotions with a (relatively) straight face; the Grandeur is video game design made real, a clever way of splicing modern EV tech into old forms.

The wider point here is that electrification offers designers far more freedom than ever before. Ultimately, cars will evolve even further, but the underlying promise of such electrified retromods is that there may just be life in the billions of soon-to-be-discarded conventional cars, if only their drivetrains could be swapped out for batteries.

Hyundai Heritage Series Grandeur

The Ioniq 5 isnt quite as blatant an homage, but it is still extremely striking, quite unlike anything else on the road. In the metal, its much larger than the compact hatchback-style body shape suggests, but the scale lends the interior an airy spaciousness that is missing from so many modern cars.

Outside, the folded, crimped, and ribbed bodywork is far more sophisticated than the machine-made forms of the 1970s and 1980s. This is a tad fussy in places (especially in comparison with the original 45 Concept), but the overall effect is handsome, well-proportioned and different. The pixelated lights, front and rear, create presence and visual interest, while the clean relationship between the light clusters, bodywork and glasshouse is the very definition of crisp.

Inside, the space makes the most of Hyundais new Electric-Global Modular Platform, which also serves as the underpinnings for the closely related but very physically different Kia EV6. The dashboard successfully blends flat screens with conventional controls, while there are no overwrought curves or scoops anywhere to be found.

The interior of the Hyundai Ioniq 5

On the road, the Ioniq 5 demonstrates all the best EV driving qualities, swift acceleration, stable, grounded handling, and simple one-pedal operation. The bigger capacity battery (73kWh versus 58kWh) promises a range of around 300 miles, and a (scarce) ultra-fast charger will get you from 10 to 80 per cent charge in under 20 minutes.

It is a very easy car to live with, characterful without being overbearingly charismatic, efficient without being clinical, and practical without being dull. We look forward to future Ioniq models with keen anticipation.

See the rest here:
Hyundai Ioniq 5 hauls us into a bright retro-future as the smartest EV on the market - Wallpaper*

I always look at anything as an opportunity, says the Turner-prize winning artist Mark Leckey. Im always looking for a way to produce, and this has been another example of that. Leckey is referring to the monthly radio show he makes for London-based station NTS, in which he has played everything from digicore pioneers David Shawty and Yungster Jack to Deep Purple prog-rock epic Child in Time to his own field recording of a silent disco.

Mark Leckey, artist

Leckey has been making the show since 2016, and it represents another area of activity for an artist known for the diversity of his work, which takes in film, video, collage, music, audio and more. Leckey says that originally he simply wanted to play his favourite music and then move on to more ambitious ideas, like stories, or lectures. But in the event, when he had got through his own record collection, he started to engage with more contemporary, current music. At the time I had the sense that music had been completely exhausted, that there was no futurism left in it, he says. When I was forced to dig deeper I realised theres loads of people making very experimental forward-facing music. It really re-engaged me.

For Leckey, the radio show appears to be another form of collage that he has found inspiring. The most interesting thing about it is how much its changed my head, he says. Every second month he invites a guesta fellow artist, or a set of studentsand has tried out more elaborate concepts: one hour-long show consisted of different versions of the song Easy to Be Hard from the musical Hair. Theres something I hear in music that I want in my work, he says. Theres something Im listening out for, something Im trying to grasp in this music that I then cultivate back into what Im doing.

Ed Baxter, the co-founder, chief executive and programming director of Resonance FM, points out that unlike, say, film and video, there has been virtually no tradition of experimentation on radio in the UK. When we started Resonance in 1998, that was ground zero, he says. Hardly anybody knew what they were doing but everyone had something they thought they could do. It was a kind of punk attitude: everyone has a radio show inside them.

In the years since, Resonance has found a sizeable audience for its wildly varied activity, from Caroline Kraabels walking tours with saxophone and pushchair to Bob and Roberta Smiths sound-art montages to 48-hour live broadcasts with the Resonance Radio Orchestra that Baxter developed with Chris Weaver. Access is the key thing, Baxter says. At the entry level its a very straightforward transaction: pull up a fader and make a noise. Everything else is nuance.

Live radio seems to have caught on with a younger generation of artists too. Based in Norwich, the writer and curator Jonathan P. Watts spent lockdown broadcasting on the gaming platform Twitch and inviting friends and collaborators to make their own shows. Like Leckeys shows, Wattss programming revolved around music, but Twitchs ability to host live chat as well as incorporate visuals gave it an extra dimension. People like radio because its intimate, Watts says. But that space on Twitch is a different proposition. It throws it open. Watts points to other show organisers, such as fellow artist Liv Preston, who performed under the moniker Spacetooth and incorporated a live gaming element into her show, and musician/DJ Geiger, an NHS nurse who created a radio show for the fictional East Brantwich Hospital.

As well as the shows content, Watts says that building a community was vital. My background is in artist-led spaces which have an autonomy outside the institutions, and Im really interested in how you bring people together. People were mixing in that space who would never mix in a galleryincluding my granny. It was about producing something during a tough and isolating period, creating a community. And then, importantly, we did have a physical festival. Watts cites the effect of livestreaming music platform Boiler Room. Livestreaming is great, but the big thing is when people meet up in physical space and interact.

Baxter, meanwhile, prefers to concentrate on being as innovative as he can with sound art; he doesnt have a lot of time, he says, for the repackaging he sees in much digital-era art. He talks approvingly of other radical radio pieces, such as a show with climber Jim Perrin, who talked over the sounds of another climber going up a cliff face with an open mobile phone, or the work of Christof Migone, who used radio as a receiver rather than a transmitter. People have to call in for anything to happen, he says. You get a lot of dead air, but that is provocative in art.

You get the feeling, as far as Baxter is concerned, that radio has only just begun to scratch the surface. Its a post expressionist arena, he says. If you think of [Robert] Rauschenberg, his big Monogram piece has got every kind of visual media in there. You can do the same with radio: music, phone-in, drama, feedback noise. You can bring them all into some kind of equilibrium. Its that potentiality where it gets exciting.

Mark Leckey on NTS Radio: nts.live/shows/mark-leckey; resonancefm.com; Jonathan P. Wattss radio shows were at twitch.tv/tier_plus but are currently offline

More:
Making (air)waves: how artists are finding inspiration through, and on, radio - Art Newspaper

It's been more than 20 years since The Matrix first took us on a cyber-philosophical trip through truth and reality and 20 years since bullet time first blew our collective pre-millennium minds. Now, with the release of the franchise's fourth installment, The Matrix Resurrections, many of us are visiting that virtual world and reconsidering the questions it raised.

Whether or not we're currently living in a simulation, waiting for a trench coat-clad savior to release us from our mental prison is a question of some debate within futurism circles. That debate has been beaten to death and it's likely you already have an opinion one way or another. The question on our minds, however, is whether or not we could build a Matrix-like simulation if we wanted to, now or in the near future.

The graphics and computing technology for crafting immersive open worlds is improving all the time, and they're becoming increasingly photorealistic. Supposing we can crest the uncanny valley and have the gumption to trap a few billion souls inside of a lie, what might it take to make it work? To our minds caged in a dystopian pod of pink goo as they may be there are two key components necessary for crafting a convincing virtual facsimile of reality.

The Matrix only works because the machines are able to take in the thoughts and experiences of the embedded humans and feed them into the simulation. The world the machines present is merely a framework which must be inhabited by acting players.

In the films, the machines take in that information through an array of ports implanted at various spots along the body, from the base of the skull down through the body and limbs. In the real world, we have something similar, albeit more primitive.

A team from the University of Oregon trained an artificial intelligence to reconstruct faces using only the brain activity of observers. Participants were connected to an fMRI machine while looking at images of faces and their brain activity was recorded. Importantly, fMRI machines don't record the actual synaptic activity of the brain, instead it looks at changes in apparent blood flow related to stimuli.

In the first round of testing, the artificial intelligence took in the activity recorded by the brain scans and compared them to the associated faces, considering 300 mathematical points associated to physical features. This allowed it to create a sort of map connecting particular features to related blood flow in the brain.

Next, participants were shown a second set of pictures and the AI was asked to reconstruct the faces they viewed, using only the brain scans and the learned features map. The results weren't perfect. In fact, they were pretty bizarre. But if you look at the reconstructed photos long enough you start to see glimmers of the actual faces. The actual images look like deepfakes processed on a Nintendo 64, but there's something there, the beginnings of recognition. The software is able to read the thoughts, in a manner of speaking, and reconstruct brain activity. It's just that the fidelity is lower than we'd like.

Even so, if technological progress in other arenas is taken into account, we might expect these sorts of intelligences to improve drastically over time. As our ability to gather brain activity in higher definition gets better, and artificial intelligences get better at parsing it, we'll need to tackle the second challenge.

If you want to build a world from scratch, you must first invent a way to give people false experiences. Carl Sagan said that, or something similar. Getting to the truth of the past is difficult in the Matrix.

That becomes especially true once scientists develop a way to implant false memories or experiences into our minds, something which has been accomplished already. At least it has been, in mice.

Nearly a decade ago, two scientists at a laboratory at MIT were experimenting with mice to see if they could change their perceptions about the world around them.

The first step in that work involved identifying the neurons involved in forming memories. They accomplished this by creating genetically modified mice with light-sensitive proteins. In that way, they could observe the groupings of neurons, or engrams, associated with a particular memory. Moreover, hitting the engram with a laser by way of implants could reactivate a memory.

With that knowledge in hand, scientists were able to craft false memories in mice, specifically memories involving an electrical shock, which never actually occurred. These falsely implanted memories convinced the mice that a particular area was dangerous, triggering fear in their minds, despite there being no actual danger.

The mice, in effect, believed they'd had a prior experience that never actually happened. Their reality had been shifted through artificial means. And their future actions were impacted by those false memories.

These results, both the implanting of false information and the ability to read that information, exist in preliminary stages. The sorts of complex narrative information needed to create a convincing virtual existence still linger in the distance. Their shadows, however, the first warnings of their future potential, are apparent in current technology.

We can trust that scientists have our best interests at heart, and why wouldn't they? Our interests are their interests, after all. The same technology could be used to save people from post-traumatic stress disorder or paralyzing anxiety. We could modify personal experience such that each of us lives happier and more fulfilling lives.

Still, while these technologies are in their infancy, they're opening doors which, if they were bent toward nefarious intentions, could construct an entirely false reality for us to live inside. Once that happens, once we can no longer trust the veracity of our own experiences, anything is possible.

Read more:
Could we build a Matrix-like simulation if we wanted to? - SYFY WIRE

That's actually pretty scary.Drone Zone

Police in Israel may soon have autonomous drones that fly to locations where gunshots are detected, according to a new press release from ShotSpotter. The US-based company already creates a controversial product that uses acoustic sensors to detect gun shots and alert police, and now its teaming up with a company called Airobotics to create drones that respond to disturbances.

Airobotics believes that integrating with ShotSpotter, the leader in gunshot detection, will provide a better technological solution for dealing with gunfire crime in Israel, said Meir Kliner, CEO of Airobotics via the December press release. This partnership is another step in the companys strategy to expand the scope of its activities by providing solutions for emergency response, security, and flight in urban areas.

The concept isnt without its critics. Just days ago, Axios reported that Denver police are using ShotSpotter, but cant prove it actually reduces gun violence. New numbers show ShotSpotter alerts in Denver spiked in 2021 by nearly 25 percent compared to last year, but arrests only increased by 2 percent. The tech has been deployed in more than 100 cities worldwide, and Denver isnt the only one to report problems with it.

Its hard to imagine that putting this tech on a drone will solve problems with less-than-ideal response and arrest numbers, especially in the hands of police in Israel a country with plenty of controversy of its own for human rights abuses.

Law enforcement technology can save lives and make the job safer for officers, but only if it actually works in the first place. If faulty tech falls into misguided hands, the outlook is even worse.

More on drone officers: Police Drone Caught Barking Orders at Chinese Driver

Care about supporting clean energy adoption? Find out how much money (and planet!) you could save by switching to solar power at UnderstandSolar.com. By signing up through this link, Futurism.com may receive a small commission.

Read the rest here:
New Tech Will Send Police Drones to Sites Where Guns Went Off - Futurism

AUSTIN, Texas, Dec. 28, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Futurism Technologies, a leading IBM Global Security Solutions Partner, rolls out 'Zero-Trust Managed Security Acceleration Services' powered by best-of-breed IBM Security Solutions viz. IBM QRadar, IBM Maas360, IBM Verify and IBM Guardium Data Protection, all integrated with IBM Watson - the AI for smarter business.

Zero Trust is a conceptual and architectural framework for moving security from a network-oriented, perimeter-based security model to one based on continuous verification of trust.

"Traditional incident response approaches leave security and IT teams overwhelmed and perplexed when it comes to thwarting coming-of-age attacks. Our Zero-Trust Security approach helps to eliminate attacks before they take place. Futurism Managed Security Acceleration Servicesoffer a novel security approach that can effectively adapt to the complexities of a modern security infrastructure, embrace hybrid workplace environment and protect people, apps, devices and data wherever it goes or stays," said Mr. Sheetal Pansare, CEO of Futurism Technologies.

"With scores of successful deployments and customers across the entire cybersecurity landscape, we are a trusted name formanaged security services. We know that security is never a 'one-size-fits-all' concept and our comprehensive security portfolio validates our commitment to continuous Zero-Trust security," added Mr. Sheetal Pansare.

As a leading IBM Global Security Solutions Partner, Futurism aims to extend the Zero-Trust security model developed by IBM to help enterprises accelerate their journey towards Zero-Trust maturity. With Zero-Trust expertise, Futurism intends to simplify risk management by eliminating implicit trust. No matter the user, situation, user location, and access method, security takes center stage with the most tested, proven and extreme cybersecurity checks.

Developed using the IBM Zero Trust Framework, Futurism brings a powerful portfolio of Managed Security Acceleration Services:

Futurism aims to help businesses ramp up their Zero-Trust journey by defining a multi-disciplinary and well-integrated Zero-Trust strategy. "Our certified cybersecurity experts can help businesses verify that resources, data and users are securely connected through a powerful deny-by-default authorization and policy," concluded Mr. Sheetal Pansare.

About Futurism Technologies

Futurism Technologies is a trusted digital transformation (DX) partner for more than 1,000+ Fortune listed organizations spanning across healthcare, retail, manufacturing, and various other verticals. We are also an IBM Global Security Solutions Partner helping MSPs, Channel Partners and mid sized businesses adopt market-leading IBM security technology. We provide Security Consulting, Advisory, Integration & '24 x 7 Managed Security Services using a Zero-Trust Security Framework globally through our SOC centers located in the U.S., UAE & India.

Contact

Praful Mayekar

Global COO

Mobile: +1-732-790-2376

Email: prafulm@futurismtechnologies.com

Website: http://www.futurismtechnologies.com

Related Files

Futurism EndPoint Secure.pdf

Advanced Threat Protection.pdf

Related Images

Image 1: Futurism Technologies

This content was issued through the press release distribution service at Newswire.com.

Read more here:
Futurism Launches 'Zero Trust Managed Security Acceleration

Australian brain computer interface (BCI) company Synchron allowed a 62-year-old man with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) to turn his thoughts directly into tweets using a device implanted in his brain.

Its the first time somebody was able to write messages on social media directly through a BCI, the company claims a symbolically significant moment for the technology that could open the door for people with paralysis to stay in touch with the world.

Hello, world! tweeted Philip OKeefe, who is suffering from progressive paralysis caused by the disorder, from the account of Synchron CEO Thomas Oxley. Short tweet. Monumental progress.

My hope is that Im paving the way for people to tweet through thoughts, he added in a followup message.

ALS, also known as Lou Gehrigs disease, has caused the 62-year-old OKeefe to lose much motor function and left him unable to work. In April 2020, he received the Stentrode BCI, a small stent-mounted electrode array implanted in the brain through the jugular.

When I first heard about this technology, I knew how much independence it could give back to me, OKeefe said in a statement. The system is astonishing, its like learning to ride a bike it takes practice, but once youre rolling, it becomes natural.

Now, I just think about where on the computer I want to click, and I can email, bank, shop, and now message the world via Twitter, he added.

In July, the neurotech startup was granted regulatory approval by the FDA to start testing the device on volunteers.

These fun holiday tweets are actually an important moment for the field of implantable brain computer interfaces, Oxley said in the statement. They highlight the connection, hope and freedom that BCIs give to people like Phil who have had so much of their functional independence taken away due to debilitating paralysis.

Care about supporting clean energy adoption? Find out how much money (and planet!) you could save by switching to solar power at UnderstandSolar.com. By signing up through this link, Futurism.com may receive a small commission.

Continue reading here:
Man With ALS Tweets Using Brain Implant That Translates Thoughts Into Text - Futurism

"Its sweet like a chocolate sauce."Taste the TV

A professor in Japan has created a prototype TV screen that generates flavors when you lick it.

The bizarre invention, dubbed Taste the TV (TTTV), allows you to taste whatever youre watching through a disposable hygienic film that covers a TV screen, Reuters reports.

In other words, a special array of ten flavor canisters could allow your taste buds not just your eyeballs to follow along while you catch up on an episode of Iron Chef.

The goal is to make it possible for people to have the experience of something like eating at a restaurant on the other side of the world, even while staying at home, inventor Homei Miyashita, professor at Meiji University in Tokyo, told Reuters.

Whether the technology will ever stand a chance of going mainstream, however, remains to be seen, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic when licking random surfaces isnt, uh, quite advisable.

In a demonstration for reporters, 22-year-old Meiji University student Yuki Hou reported that the screen she just licked tastes kind of like milk chocolate, as quoted by Reuters. Its sweet like a chocolate sauce.

Last year, Miyashita showed off a much smaller taste display that used special gels and an electrical current to generate a variety of flavors.

According to the professor, a commercial version of the tasty TV could cost about $874 to make. The device could allow cooks to learn about new flavors remotely or let you show off your tasting skills in a quiz with friends.

The professors food inventions dont end there, either. Miyashita is also working on a special spray that can add a pizza or chocolate flavor to a slice of toasted bread, according to Reuters.

Because, lets face it: Nutella and Hot Pockets are so last year.

READ MORE: Taste the TV: Japan invents lickable screen to imitate food flavors [Reuters]

More on lickable tech: Scientists Say This Device Can Simulate Any Flavor

Care about supporting clean energy adoption? Find out how much money (and planet!) you could save by switching to solar power at UnderstandSolar.com. By signing up through this link, Futurism.com may receive a small commission.

View post:
Scientist Invents Screen That Creates Flavors When You Lick It - Futurism

Make like Grimes and go for a futuristic space-inspired look this holiday season. AFP pic

NEW YORK, Dec 23 This New Year's Eve, the countdown to midnight could have all the makings of a rocket launch. Fashion is going retro-futuristic for the holidays, drawing inspiration from space exploration, all framed in a mood of extravagance. Rhinestones, sequins, feathers, fringes and shiny metallic colours are all the rage this year, in total contrast to last year's more understated holiday looks.

It's hard to find the perfect outfit for this year's end-of-year celebrations, with the Covid-19 pandemic making a resurgence. From the Christmas sweater to pyjamas to glamorous get-ups, men and women seem to have made their choice, drawn towards something they haven't known for months and months chic styles laced with extravagance. The global fashion search platform Stylight* has seen a surge of interest in pieces that are both retro and space-inspired a trend it calls Retro-Galactica. Buckle up, fashion fans!

Sparkle overdose

New Year's Eve festivities inevitably bring to mind glitter, gemstones and sequins a must for this time of year. But it seems that, after spending several months in sweatpants and slippers, men and women are ready to really go to town and turn heads. Lashings of sparkling details will be seen on pieces with both retro and futuristic inspirations, oscillating between the glamour of the 70s and 80s, and modern space exploration. All that may sound hard to follow but, rest assured, there's something for everyone. Really!

Those still wavering between comfort and glamour can cut to the chase with a shiny or sparkly jumpsuit, a piece that's going down a storm around the world. Stylight reports a 928 per cent increase in clicks for the category this year-end, compared to the same period last year. Glittery details seem to be on the agenda, so why not go for a head-to-toe look? Pantyhose with glitter and gems are the centre of attention online, with a 392 per cent increase in clicks on the global platform. Space exploration also means metallic shades, which are proving very popular, with a 122 per cent uptick in clicks for metallic items of all kinds.

Feathers, fringes and face gems

Often associated with the Roaring Twenties, feathers symbols of lightness are looking popular for the party season (+146 per cent for feather dresses), not to mention fringing (+223 per cent for fringed dresses), which was all over the Fashion Week catwalks for spring-summer 2022.

As for accessories, we can forget sneakers too casual for seeing in the new year. If you want to turn heads, go for platform heels (+105 per cent) that will take you a step back in time. The most daring will wear them with socks yes, honestly! a trend that has been on the rise for several weeks now. But the hottest trend of the moment is none other than face gems, a viral hit on TikTok, and something that's on the radar of many beauty forecasters for 2022. It simply involves finishing your make-up look by adding stick-on gems to your face. Search interest for face gems tripled in November 2021 on Google. ETX Studio

* This report is based on Stylight's internal data collected from its 120 million annual users across its global platforms. Clicks were analysed across products for the period November 1-25, 2021, compared to the same period in 2020. Data is also based on Google Trends figures, beginning November 2021, compared to the same periods in 2020, unless otherwise stated.

See the original post:
Retro and futurism collide as fashion maxes out on glam for the party season - Malay Mail