The Daily Trap

On the Cutting Edge: 3D Printing

Wed, 15 May 2013 13:05:00 -0400

I recall the first time I stepped inside an Ikea superstore like it was yesterday. I found myself mesmerized by the sophisticated operation at work. Human sweat was virtually nowhere to be found. Machines with robotic arms from the warehouse rafters to the floor were stacking, arranging and hauling like it was nothing. There was something profound about this sense of effortlessness becoming our future and ever since that moment I’ve been addicted to learning more about what machines could do next. Enter: Additive Manufacturing, or you may know it as 3D Printing.

The idea of printing 3D objects is a concept I am still trying to wrap my brain around. It seems every time I jump back into the 3D Printing Trap, I come across a mind-blowing article about a new use case that further expands the vast ceiling of this technology’s potential. In a process known as sequential layering, it’s fairly reasonable to grasp the idea of a machine at the push of a button able to construct objects like a new pair of designer shades, shoes with gimmicky iphone connectivity, or even basic smartphone cases. Where this technology really took flight was when I began learning about its more practical cutting-edge uses, far beyond our natural lust for material objects.

Forget 3D printing with inks, plastics or even greener, more environmentally sustainable materials like wood, salt or clay—let’s take this a step further. Imagine being able to print with organic materials like actual living human cells to come to a final product! Yes, scientists have figured out how to print themselves artificial human kidneys and livers.

Furthermore—paired with some new-age electronics—printing off a human ear is also possible, even one that can hear better than the pair currently attached to your head. Tragedies like the Boston Marathon bombing tend to send humanity back a step, but imagine a world where the victims could find new hope printing off (potentially inexpensive) prosthetic limbs with robotic features. What if you could grow old and someday print off your own dentures? Picture technology that could aid surgeon efficiency in the operating room with tiny 3D-printed implants able to enter the human heart to reduce mid-surgery stroke risks. It all seems like a science fiction fantasy, but the reality is, these ideas aren’t too far away in our distant future.

Unfortunately, a budding technology that ultimately seems good for mankind is debatable when you consider the dichotomy, with so many opportunities for evil lurking on the other side. The Obama Administration has already started allocating a giant chunk of funds set to discover how 3D printing could bolster military manufacturing and mass production of [insert who knows what here]. We already possess the tools to build terrifyingly sophisticated weaponry as is, but how much easier, faster and less costly can it be built? And what happens if these tools end up in the wrong hands? However, the technology being honed by government isn’t the only concern. Imagine homicidal lunatics printing off firable assault rifles and faux identities (phony fingerprints, and realistic human disguises).

Regardless what side of the gun control debate you stand on, common citizens with 3D-printed weaponry throws a giant wrench into the mix. In fact, a blueprint for a 3D-printed gun already hit the internet, downloaded by hundreds of thousands in a matter of days.

So where do we go from here? Will we put this brilliant technology to a peaceful good use reaching for new medical breakthroughs, heartwarming ideas like 3D-printed guitars finding the hands of young aspiring artists, 3D-printed three-course meals landing on the plates of the impoverished, or will it be the latter? That really is anyone’s guess. As of now, for just $1,299.99, you can get your hands on a 3D Printer at an office supply store like Staples. Just imagine what the industry will shape itself into a few years down the road. Rest assured, it’s going to remain interesting in the 3D Printing Trap.

-Geoff

Trapit For Fandoms

Tue, 14 May 2013 14:39:14 -0400

It’s a passion that grips nearly us all at some point in our lives: a book series, television show, or movie franchise that we simply cannot get enough of! Whether it was trading old bootleg VHS tapes of Dr. Who, scavenging through the aisles at Toys R Us for the latest Star Wars lightsaber, or planning your vacation to the Harry Potter theme park, there’s nothing more liberating than openly admitting and celebrating your membership in a fandom, no matter how out-of-the-mainstream it is.

Even if you’re a 34-year-old man who’s absolutely delighted by a television show geared towards 7-year-old girls.

From all across the world — and all over the internet — fans of non-traditional, non-mainstream cultural touchstones are coming out and proudly declaring their love for all sorts of fictional universes, and celebrate that in some of the most creative ways imaginable. And no matter what it is that you’re passionate about, there’s no better way to stay on top of the latest news, stories, and creative projects — and to find empathetic supporters when you feel you don’t fit in — than with Trapit.

Simply put in the keywords of the show/movie/universe you’re a fan of, or the name of the subculture or characters you’re a fan of, and let Trapit do the rest!

What you’ll get back from us is a discovered collection of the most relevant recent articles, and if you like the five best ones that best represent what you’re looking for, we’ll use that information to bring you exactly what you’re looking for. And that’s going to include some amazing finds, from reclusive people finding a community of acceptance to creative DIY projects to philanthropic do-gooding. You’ll even find people who rushed to a negative judgment and then gave your fandom a genuine chance, and were won over for the exact same reasons you were!

You may even find inspiration for your next Halloween costume! As we accept our desire for authenticity, we can all be free to follow and enjoy whatever it is we’re truly passionate about, no matter what anyone else may think. And no matter what it is you’re passionate about, there’s no doubt a whole community of people across the world just waiting for you to connect with them. So what are you waiting for? Use Trapit to keep up with your favorite fandoms and see what new discoveries await!

-Ethan

Trapit In The Kitchen: Mother's Day Lemongrass Shrimp Banh Mi

Fri, 10 May 2013 13:02:14 -0400

Full Recipe: Lemongrass Shrimp Banh Mi
Discovered in: My “Seafood Recipes” Trap
About the blog: Seasaltwithfood is all about taking readers on a “journey beyond delicious Asian gastronomic delights.” Forget a traditional index with nothing but recipe titles, Angie Tee would rather show you and let the food speak for itself, Pinterest style (click here at your own risk, deliciousness overload).
Reason we picked it: I wanted to treat my mom to a fabulous Mother’s Day gift and I figure a surprise home-cooked meal is the perfect way to reciprocate love and appreciation for the decades of her doing so for me. In search of a unique dish, I wanted to find something we’d both mutually endorse and an entree with shrimp never requires a compromise. Introducing her to the Banh Mi craze that is hot in our city right now seemed like a win-win decision.
What you’ll need:

The Banh Mi breakdown:

Shrimp, shelled, and tail-off
Lemongrass stalks, finely chopped
Garlic Cloves, finely chopped
Fish Sauce
Sugar
Chili Flakes
Sea Salt
Peanut Oil, for frying shrimp
Vietnamese-Style Baguettes
Cilantro
Green Chilies, sliced
Mayonnaise
Asian Coleslaw [see below]

The ‘Slaw

Mix Slaw (green & red cabbage, carrot)
Red onion, finely chopped
Garlic Cloves, finely chopped
Bird’s Eye Chilies, chopped
Rice Wine Vinegar
Fish Sauce
Sea Salt

In the neighborhood in which my Mom raised me, I couldn’t help but roll my eyes a few years back when the infamous 82nd Avenue was coined by our mayor “The Avenue of Roses.” The blatant truth was, there was virtually nothing rosy about that strip of road. Fortunately, a half decade later creative minds in the food industry changed everything about our area’s reputation. Nowadays, segments of the avenue have transformed into an oasis of diverse Asian American style cuisine, unofficially the ‘New China Town’ of Portland. But even that nickname is vastly underselling it, as the area offers genres of grub far beyond Chinese food—you name it—Japanese, Korean, Thai, (many others) and my favorite being Vietnamese.

In particular, Vietnamese Banh Mi joints have popped up in droves all around town and the various flavors of sandwiches have become an integral part of my diet. When I discovered Angie Tee’s tasty-looking Banh Mi recipe in my Seafood Trap, it hit me how religiously I devour these sandwiches, yet have never tried to whip one up myself. It seemed like a perfect recipe to try out for Mother’s Day, as both my mom and I adore Vietnamese flavor, especially when shrimp is the cornerstone of the meal.

Aside from the fresh produce and shrimp, I had most of the ingredients already stocked in my cupboard, making the meal exceptionally hassle-free to compile. The great thing about having a favorite Banh Mi restaurant in the area is the fact that they likely also sell fresh, cheap baguettes. Avoid run-of-the-mill grocery chains that offer unimpressive, borderline-stale baked goods—without the perfect bread, there really is no such thing as the perfect Banh Mi. Overall, the recipe turned out fantastic, with the pungent garlicky lemongrass flavor providing a nice changeup away from the savory pork style Banh Mi sandwiches I routinely order. As a result, I now have a Banh Mi Trap I plan to keep a close eye on and a mission accomplished on Mother’s Day.

Check out Angie Tee’s (Mom-approved!) Lemongrass Shrimp Banh Mi recipe in full here.

-Geoff

Networking With Trapit's LinkedIn and Buffer Share Options

Wed, 08 May 2013 13:26:49 -0400

Looking for a new job or networking? Did you know Trapit’s iPad app has integrated LinkedIn sharing that makes building and maintaining a vibrant career network a breeze?

If you’re anything like me you’ve probably already got some career related Traps. My information science and my information literacy traps provide plenty of articles and posts of interest to my particular career network. Whatever your career interests, Trapit will discover interesting gems sure to impress your colleagues.

To share to LinkedIn simply click the share icon in any view of the app, select the LinkedIn icon, authenticate with your LinkedIn account, add your custom message (remember, LinkedIn now supports “@” to members and companies), click send and voila, instant karma from fellow job seekers or impress that potential new employer.

While LinkedIn share is a snap, sometimes during Sunday morning coffee-and-read-time I find too many awesome discoveries to share all at once (nothing worse than blasting your potential new boss with content overload). Not a problem. Use Trapit’s handy buffer integration spare yourself that faux pas.

Buffer automatically spaces out your shares overtime so you can maintain a healthy presence without annoying anyone and make sure your best discoveries don’t get lost in the shuffle.

Celebrate Cinco de Mayo With Trapit

Fri, 03 May 2013 14:47:56 -0400

Cinco de Mayo is almost here, and what better way to celebrate than by cooking up some delicious mexican-inspired food? I’m a big fan of mexican food - it’s one of those things that always sounds tasty no matter the situation. But for a Cinco de Mayo celebration it’s fun to go a little above and beyond a veggie fajita or cheesy quesadilla. Luckily the Cinco de Mayo Trap has plenty of inspiration.

Since I’m not a meat-eater I might try whipping up some of these Creamy Tortilla Soup Enchiladas, yum! And for the carnivores out there, I thought that these BBQ Pulled Pork Taquitos look like a fun twist on a mexican classic. If you’re trying to stick to a healthy diet, you can check out these tips for keeping things light at your fiesta.

And of course, don’t forget drinks and dessert. I’m all for a classic lime margarita, but this blood orange version would be fun to try. Sticking with the margarita theme, I like the looks of this Frozen Margarita Tart that is made a little healthier by using greek yogurt.

Happy Cinco de Mayo!

Kelly

Featured: LGBT Sports Trap

Wed, 01 May 2013 12:22:00 -0400

I’m a 34-year-old NBA center. I’m black. And I’m gay

After 12 solid seasons as a professional basketball player, Jason Collins went public with his announcement through an eloquently written essay about his sexuality, published in Sports Illustrated Monday. No longer willing to live a “mask on, mask off” type of lifestyle in-and-out of the public eye, Collins became the first active male player in a major American professional team sport to come out, revealing he is gay.

After sifting through the LGBT Sports Trap’s content the past few days, it is quite clear that the outpouring of praise and support for Collins’ decision far outweighs the voices of opposition and talking head naysayers brushing off the topic. Even President Barack Obama spoke out that he couldn’t be prouder of Collins and the steps the LGBT community have taken, serving as an example of “one of the extraordinary measures of progress that we’ve seen in this country.” Obama wasn’t the only one with shoutouts for Collins (Bill Clinton, Martina Navratilova, Ellen and her entire audience, Kerri Walsh, Joe Kennedy, Tommy Wingel, etc).

When Collins—the free agent seven-foot center—finds a spot on an NBA roster this fall, he won’t have to be the lone gay athlete out there with skills and performance on display. To name a few, top draft-pick selection Brittney Griner will take the court in the WNBA; recently out U.S. soccer star Robbie Rogers appears to have flipped a 180 on his retirement plans, after being spotted working out for the Los Angeles Galaxy; “proud man” Orlando Cruz will continue lacing up his boxing gloves on a quest for a world title shot.

Read Collins’ essay in full and follow the LGBT Sports Trap as the conversation continues.

-Geoff

User Profile: Alice Ackerman, M.D., M.B.A.

Tue, 30 Apr 2013 08:01:33 -0400

When I explored Trapit I was fascinated at how easy and intuitive it was; I was feeling like an expert in no time!

Location: Roanoke, VA
Occupation: Professor & Chair, Virginia Tech Carilion School of Medicine; Pediatrician-in-Chief, Carilion Clinic Children’s Hospital
Websites: Alice’s Carilion Clinic Blog, @CloseToHomeMD on Twitter
Favorite Wildlife: Birds

Q: You came from very humble beginnings in Brooklyn, NY, to have an incredibly successful career in medicine. How did you first discover your interest in medicine?

There were a couple of related events. The first was when my father died, when I was nine years old. At some point after he passed away, I remember coming out of my bedroom, and looking at my mom, and she was trying to figure out how to write a check and how to balance a checkbook. And she was crying.

And I sat there, and I said, somewhere inside of me, that this was not going to happen to me. I think that gave me the desire to become self-sufficient, to value my education, and to go forward with the mindset that I was going to rely on myself.

I also remember when I was in highschool, I volunteered at Coney Island hospital. I was volunteering at an ER when they were responding to a cardiac arrest. And the doctors were working on some poor man they had brought in, and they were unsuccessful. Afterwards, they just walked away, with the attitude “you win some, you lose some.” And I wondered if they treated my Dad like that when he was brought in, or if there was someone there who really cared. And that’s what I think really set the stage for the person I was going to become.

Q: You were basically raised by your mother after that. How did your relationship with her impact you?

She was an incredibly strong, inspirational role model for me in so many ways. Except for that one time I saw her crying at the kitchen table, she was really an upbeat, happy person who always strived to improve herself.

It irritates me when I see people — and it’s mostly women — who don’t feel fulfilled if they don’t have a man. That was just not where I was headed. I had managed to do very well in high school, and had graduated with some high GPA. My mom, she was Italian, and in the Italian tradition (her parents had come over from Italy), the daughter is responsible for taking care of the parents. And my mom said, “You can’t leave me. I need you to take care of me!” And I said, “Mom, I am going to take care of you. But I can do a lot better job of that if I go to college than if I become a secretary or stay with you right now.” But I knew I had to go, because I knew if I didn’t, I knew I’d find myself in a dependent situation down the road.

Q: Neurosurgery was your early passion, but you wound up becoming a pediatrician. How did that journey happen for you?

I continue to be fascinated with how the brain works. It’s fascinating how, as humans, we respond to injury, and I saw neurosurgery as being a more active specialty than neurology. At the time, neurology was much more about caring for someone who had something wrong with them — who was going to die — and there wasn’t anything you’d be able to do for them. But neurosurgery gave me hope that I could really help the people they brought in.

“What makes someone go into a coma?” “How could they treat it, how could they avoid it?” Those were the questions I wanted to answer.

But then I did a rotation in pediatrics. While I was doing it, I just found that I was happy. It’s really amazing, because my whole face just changes. My interns or residents just tell me — even today — that they see how much I love my patients. When I’m doing it, it just feels like this is what I was meant to do. It was an epiphany, but it wasn’t a conscious one, and it’s what I now consider my home in medicine.

Q: Was it an easy decision to make, to become a pediatrician? Were the people around you at the time supportive of that choice?

When I went in to tell the dean of my medical school that I was going to choose pediatrics, he was very disappointed. He said, “My dear, but you’re good enough to do medicine.” It’s indelibly etched into my mind. It was an incredible eye-opener for me. But it really didn’t faze me, because I really felt so sure about it. I feel a little bad about it when I try to mentor students today, because they feel like they need to know what they’re going to do when they enter, and I tell them that’s not true.

If I were to sit down and think about it, I think medicine might have been one of the last things I’d wanted to do, because in internal medicine, most of the diseases people face are the results of years of bad decisions that they make. And a lot of people say I’ve taken the easy way out, but I feel that this career, as a pediatrician, really gives us a chance to make a difference, and to have a lasting impact on families throughout their lives and also passed on to subsequent generations. It turns out that things like toxic stress can adversely affect not only a child, but that can be passed down to their children as well. I think that pediatrics becomes much more attractive when we start talking about population health and global health, and we really have an opportunity to have a lasting impact. I still feel, to this day, that I made the right decision. And I still see that a lot of people who chose other fields — like internal medicine — aren’t as happy with their lives.

Q: For most of my friends who are doctors, going from college to med school to an internship followed by a residency is all the “schooling” they can handle. But you have your M.B.A. on top of that!

Gotta keep that brain fresh, you know! <laughter> I don’t want to get senile!

Why did I get an MBA? I had been working in the same place, doing the same job for about 20 years, with a few variations. I was not ready, at that point in time, to move or change jobs, but I wanted a challenge, and I wanted something to break me out of the box I’d been thinking in.

I had always been interested the business of medicine, but I didn’t want to have anything to do with physicians; I wanted to be in there with business people. When you surround yourself with the same people all the time, you really get into that same way of thinking. But we had a big diversity of people in this program, a variety of backgrounds: retail, infrastructure, banking, construction, someone worked for Verizon, another for Under Armour, etc. I just loved it, and I did it because I needed some short-term goals. At that point, I didn’t have a specific career-based goal at my place of work, so I was looking for something to stimulate me, my brain, to make me read, and solve problems I’ve never solved before.

Q: You’re also very passionate about improving outpatient care. What do you wish more parents and patients understood about that?

I think — and it does get fairly complex — that most children are generally healthy. Most children don’t really need a doctor all the time. Their growth, development, and vaccines need to be tracked and charted. But pediatricians are trained to care about children’s health, how to keep them healthy, and how to spot any potential issues before they become too difficult to deal with. Recommendations change over time — your grandmother doesn’t always know best — but what I see going on with outpatient care is that something like 5% of children wind up having special healthcare needs. And there’s a wide variety among them.

For example, a child is born with spina bifida, they may have stomach problems, behavioral problems, etc. I’m here in Roanoke, in SW Virginia, which is fairly rural, and my dream is to have this increasing percentage of kids with special needs having access to the physicians and the experts who have the knowledge they need, as close as possible to where they live.

Q: It sounds like what you’re talking about is making medicine faster and more responsive to the needs of your patients and your potential patients.

My dream gets embodied when I think about it as this building: an outpatient clinic. The other piece of it is that I want people to realize that healthcare, these days, is not just about medicine. Healthcare is provided by an entire community, and in order to optimize a child’s health, we have to give them access to different services. When I think about that “it takes a village” concept, it really rings true. My goal is really to build a sort-of adjunct healthcare village in the lobby of this the building. I’d like to bring these groups and services that all kids need — especially kids with special, extra needs — who are now scattered around this city in, so that they have one-stop access to everything they need. When someone comes in to see the pediatrician, and I order them a special formula, that’s just available downstairs. I’d like to make it much easier and simpler, and to have translators on-site, so that when you have a specialist who’s not bilingual, you can make the entire experience that much more comfortable for everyone.

Q: You’re also working very hard to raise awareness over social media about medicine.

I think we’re all doing it differently, and I’m finding it interesting that people think what I’m doing is extraordinary. I’m coming to realize that fewer than 1% of physicians are actively engaged in social media. There’s a lot of fear out there about what might happen. I was reading today about physicians on twitter, and whether those who have chosen to allow themselves to be known by name versus the pseudonymous ones, and the Australian Medical Society came out and said that you shouldn’t be anonymous as a physician. If you’re going to identify yourself as a physician, you really need to be transparent about who you are. There are a bunch of people that would like to be involved, and it’s a growing community of physicians and healthcare providers, and the number of patients wanting access is also growing. Social media has given me the opportunity to interact with people I never would have interacted with otherwise.

My entry into social media was via my blog; this coming September, it will mark 3 years since I started. I barely even knew what Twitter was back then, but now I think it’s incredibly powerful. I see a growing number of healthcare providers that are very active there. There are Twitter chats that we have weekly in many different areas, that can allow us to talk to each other and ask questions of each other. We wound up telling stories of a “vaccine town hall,” and vaccine-preventable diseases, which I was trying to raise awareness about on my blog. And I saw a Twitter chat on that exact topic. And there were plenty of parents reading this chat, and one of the moms said that she was anti-vaccine but now she’s pro-vax, and she mentioned that it was Alice Ackerman’s blog that changed her mind! I realized that if I changed this one woman’s mind, maybe I changed others, too. She’s writing about this stuff in a way that’s accessible, maybe she doesn’t have an ulterior motive, maybe she’s just trying to help my child.

Had those things not come together, I might never have known about the positive impacts of what I was doing. That really solidified my interest, and justified my spending time to find content, and to write something; it made me feel like there’s a real point to this, and maybe this is useful. That’s what solidified my interest in social media.

Q: And one of the tools you use over social media is Trapit. Can you tell us about your experience with us?

As far as Trapit goes, I am totally loving it! I learned of it through Buffer, which up until now has been my absolute favorite Twitter app. When I explored Trapit I was fascinated at how easy and intuitive it was; I was feeling like an expert in no time!

I use it to simplify my life, help me find and read interesting material in a very short time, and if I want to, jump from one topic to another easily. Once I have read a piece, I can decide if I want to share it and I’ll hit the Buffer icon, which then allows me to share to any of my platforms: Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn. Most of the time I only share to Twitter. But since I usually have time to browse only once or twice a day, I don’t have to send all my great finds out at once; the pieces can go out throughout the day at times that I know most of my followers are online.

Q: Has using Trapit in conjunction with Buffer helped you more effectively engage with your followers?

In the beginning, I was sending out tweets with just the title of the article and the link, but people didn’t seem to be clicking, favoriting or RTing very much. So I started writing a couple of words at the beginning — just in my own words — like “a wonderful read,” and I can tell that people are clicking more. I can track that through Buffer, and the share rate has really gone up.

I’ve definitely seen a jump in my retweets since I started using Trapit to find and share interesting articles about my favorite topics. People are really going through Trapit and accessing the article much more than they were before I started using it.

Q: You’re using Trapit on the iPad, which we’re hoping you find incredibly convenient. What has your experience with it been like?

It’s pretty much now one of the first things I do in the morning, and one of the last things I do before I go to bed. It brings me all of this information on so many different topics, and it’s all in one place. It’s incredibly portable, too, so I can take it with me anywhere I go, as well as just have it with me on the couch when I’m watching TV at night.

I’ve been so happy since I’ve found Trapit. It’s really maximized my ability to share these interesting, new, and not necessarily common stories that I’ll find. It’s allowing me to share less commonly quoted sources that are still reliable, and it’s finding quality, unique voices. I probably could have eventually found them on my own, but I would have had to spend a lot of time slogging through a laborious search.

Q: What are your favorite topics to follow, and your favorite traps that you’ve created?

To name a few, I’ve created traps on autism, children’s hospital, big data, artificial intelligence, and on gluten-free (where I often pick up recipes). I’m busy with my work from 7 in the morning until 7 at night, and so I don’t have two hours to just sit and comb through information, or read my entire Twitter feed. Having Trapit at my fingertips not only makes me more productive, it helps me to keep people’s interest in my Twitter feed, which gives me a better way to share my own content as well.

Q: Thanks for such an enlightening interview. Is there any final message you’d like to leave to other medical professionals about the importance of being professionally social?

I think that there’s no way that the Internet is going to be policeable, and we don’t want it to be. So those of us who are knowledgeable in certain areas have to help the average person make sense of and distinguish between what’s based in fact versus what’s based in emotion or conjecture. If someone’s going to base their healthcare decisions based on something they found on the Internet, they need to be able to know what a reliable physician says about that. As a doctor, a nurse, a PhD in the biological sciences, we should be able to help people make sense of what’s out there.

I feel some responsibility to the population to say, “Am I going to be able to help you make decisions?” I’m not giving direct medical advice, but I am giving quality information. Decisions about vaccinating pregnant women against pertussis with each pregnancy might not make it into the mainstream, but if I can write about it and tweet it out to people, it’s a way to share information about what’s recommended by the academy of pediatrics or other reliable organizations.

Alice Ackerman is a Professor and the Chair of the Department of Pediatrics at Virginia Tech’s Carilion School of Medicine, as well as the Pediatrician-in-Chief at Carilion Clinic Children’s Hospital. Her blog at the Carilion Clinic can be found here, and she tweets as @CloseToHomeMD on Twitter.

Stunning Finds From The Time-Lapse Technology Trap

Thu, 25 Apr 2013 12:51:00 -0400

Last month I made a taxing decision. To patch up one of the many holes in my pocket, I cancelled my Netflix account, throwing a wrench in my habitual late night ipad streaming sessions. The night owl in me hasn’t been too thrilled of the decision, but fortunately I found a great way to use Trapit to reel in fresh, fascinating videos at no cost. As my brain steadily powers down for the night, here’s what I’ve been learning in my brand new “Time-Lapse” technology Trap.

When I initially plugged in the keywords “Time-Lapse” I had the epic Planet Earth series in mind. I wanted to see how today’s photographers and filmmakers were toying with the techniques of capturing a delicately slow process in nature and speeding it up for viewers to watch scenery transform at a warp speed pace. Right off the bat, the Trap was digging up gold—I even went on a few Google Street road trips for starters. Picture rugged New Zealand landscapes with tangerine sunsets bleeding away, “polar spirits” dancing amongst the Northern Lights in Norway/Finland/Sweden, and my personal favorite, London artist Toby Lockerbie’s passion to film in the dark.

But not all time-lapse beauty is captured by humans grounded on earth, some of the best images are taken miles above the clouds, snapped from cameras in orbit. Paying homage to Earth Day, NASA dropped a “greatest hits” tape, compiling the most spectacular time-lapse footage of deserts, oceans, glaciers and cityscapes, all taken from a satellite’s-eye view. Even better, NASA released a mesmerizing three-year time-lapse of the sun. In under four minutes, our favorite volatile star interacts with a solar flare, a partial eclipse and even a comet sweeping by.

Although I thoroughly enjoy time-lapses of nature, my favorite implementation of the technology comes when used in a more tangible way, displaying how common things around us are made. In 120-seconds, watch workers gut and remodel an entire LEED certified Target megastore. Ever wonder how an ice hockey rink morphs overnight into an arena where the Chicago Bulls play? Imagine the labor of love behind the scenes at Wrestlemania 29 before 80,000+ WWE fans arrive, or picture what it took to construct the 88-acre complex at Microsoft’s campus.

It’s not all hard hats and architects in this Trap either. When it comes to the art of hard work and meticulous planning, time-lapses can be captured by people from all walks of life, from any trade, from any region. Watch a sacred Buddhist tradition unfold as monks sketch and color an exquisite Mandala symbol in a process known as sandpainting. Catch a glimpse of street graffiti artists at work in war torn environments such as Beirut and Tripoli, or learn how biologists in rural Alabama consider time-lapse settings invaluable tools when studying the population, behavior and habitats of wild turkeys. That band you never heard of made an awesome music video using time-lapse functionality to show the life cycle of a marigold plant. Listen as the background instrumental seems to narrate the story.

As advancements in time-lapse tech continue to rise, the more we can anticipate videos full of random awesomeness like these to hit the web. It doesn’t take a pro to enter the time-lapse scene either, nowadays all it takes is an iphone and a few bucks burned at the itunes App Store to put the art into your own hands.

Whether building a Trap on time-lapse, still motion, or short films, Trapit is full of all kinds of multimedia surprises. That being said, I leave you with my all-time favorite Trapit video discovery: a short clip titled Duality, the showdown of a house cat taking on a black leopard.

-Geoff

User Profile: Krista Craven

Tue, 23 Apr 2013 12:03:31 -0400

Starting a business, I don’t have the time to create my own content (e.g. blogging), so I use Trapit as a way to connect with my followers and to quickly find interesting articles, recipes, or just general fun foodieness.

Location: St. Paul, Minnesota
Occupation: Founder of Cravin’ Pie
Favorite Traps: Pie, Locavore, Chocolate, & Blueberries

What led you to make a career change and start your own business?

My first career was as a hairdresser and included competing, teaching, and creating trends for the industry. Eleven years ago this month I retired to be a stay-at-home mom. As our youngest grew and was getting closer to school age I started to ask myself “What am I going to be when I grow up?”

Being home full-time for so many years allowed me to really dive into my love of cooking. I would take the kids to the library and along with their books I would check out stacks of cookbooks for myself. My father’s family is from Arkansas, and all of those southern comfort foods and flavors find their way into my cooking frequently. I have the fondest family memories gathered around piles and plates full of food. My paternal grandmother, Flossie always made chocolate fried pies. My oldest son Nick always wanted them for his birthday and eventually my husband and I started dreaming about one day having our pies in the Minnesota State Fair. So for several years I’ve been tweaking the recipe and force feeding my friends and family all the time, insisting on ‘honest’ feedback.

A local pie contest is what really jump-started your Cravin’ Pie business recently. Tell us about what happened.

Last fall was a crazy time. I was preparing to be the primary caregiver for my dad, who lives 70 miles away, while he underwent a stem-cell transplant. The month before, my husband emailed me a link to a local magazine called City Pages. It turned out that there was going to be a National Amateur Chef competition and it just so happened that one of the cities was Minneapolis and the category was pie. Even though the timing couldn’t have been worse I knew I had to do it. So I called a friend, Christina Rogan (who is now my business partner), and we both prepared for the competition. We competed against 22 other teams and won the Grand Prize in The Twin Cities Pie Experiment hosted by Brooklyn Brewery. Then in December Brooklyn Brewery sent us to New York to compete in the Food Experiment National Championships, where our pies were voted 3rd out of 16 teams from all over the country and one team from Sweden.

It sounds like everything was quite serendipitous! What was it like to enter the contest on such short notice? It must have been overwhelming.

It was crazy! By the time I found out about the contest and entered we had a little over two weeks to decide on a recipe, perfect it, and figure out the logistics of making 300 individual bite-sized pies and how to keep them warm on competition day. I had been working on a crust recipe, and had made some spicy chocolate pies, but making a ‘competition worthy’ bite of pie was a whole different story. We decided on a very light crispy crust, and filled it with a Mexican Chocolate filling that hurt just enough to make you want to have another bite.

Did you ever think you would do so well in the competitions or was it a complete surprise?

Because of all the feedback we got during the tasting I started to feel like we had a chance to place. As we were all on stage and they announced 3rd, and then 2nd, the disappointment started to sink in. So when they announced Christina and I (team Chocolate & Spice) as the winners I stood there in a stupor for a while until it sunk in.

Now that you have had a little bit of exposure, what are the next steps for your budding pie business?

We have been accepted into MarketFest, which is a local festival that runs seven Thursday nights in downtown White Bear Lake, Minnesota. Our first goal is to gain experience so that we can apply to be a vendor at the Minnesota State Fair (our dream)! We also hope to have a decent-sized wholesale business selling pies to local restaurants and coffee shops. We are in the process of putting together a Kickstarter campaign to raise funds for equipment for our kitchen and booth. Depending how the rest of this year goes we would like to get a vehicle along with a Mobile Food License and hit the streets of Minneapolis/St. Paul next summer.

What is your favorite pie that you make? And what are your favorite crazy flavor combinations you’ve tried or want to try?

My favorite is still the Mexican Chocolate - I love food that hurts a little. My business partner, Christina, likes our new Macaroon pie. I can hardly wait to do something with key lime. We eventually want to do some savory pies too…maybe a buffalo chicken with blue cheese dipping sauce, or vegetarian chili pie. We’ll rely heavily on customer feedback for determining what flavors to make. Oh and we have a really cool ‘top secret’ pie on deck for once we start to get a little more of a following.

What has been the most rewarding aspect of starting your own business?

The challenge. Similar to how I felt after my first (and only) rock climb or a high ropes course. If I can do this, I can do just about anything.

What’s the biggest problem using Trapit has solved for you and your business?

Time. Trapit became an excellent source for keeping my finger on the pulse of what was happening with the foodie crowd and more specifically with desserts, and even more specifically with pie. I also rely on Trapit for content to post to Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, etc. Trapit allows me to quickly browse what I’m interested it and what my customers, followers, and friends might be interested in. Starting a business, I don’t have the time to create my own content (e.g. blogging), so I use Trapit as a way to connect with my followers and to quickly find interesting articles, recipes, or just general fun foodieness.

How important do you think using social media is for a new business? Have you noticed it having a positive impact for you?

Since the competition and starting my business came up quickly it was important for me to get a feel for what was going on in the food industry, and also learn to use social media. I started doing Trapit for fun but it soon occurred to me that it would be an excellent tool for keeping up with food trends as it pertains to my business. The positive impact on me is that it’s fun, and inspiring, and I can use it to fuel my social engines.

And lastly, what are your favorite Traps? :)

The Pie Trap is awesome! I like Locavore and Chocolate. I also created a blueberry Trap (I love blueberries!) that is super cool. I love that I can teach it what I like with the thumbs up button.

Celebrate Earth Day With Trapit

Mon, 22 Apr 2013 12:51:37 -0400

Happy Earth Day, everyone! There’s no better way to celebrate our planet than by learning how you can help protect it, and doing your best to take a small step forward in that regard. Whether that means ditching your inefficient car, taking steps to reduce your carbon footprint, or even occasionally telecommuting, there are all sorts of ways to celebrate and help preserve the natural world we all inhabit. And there’s no better way to stay up on all the latest news about Earth and the environment than with Trapit’s Environmental Protection Agency featured trap!

Today’s a great day to start doing something positive, and the EPA trap is a great place to find ideas and inspirations on how you can make it Earth Day every day! It’s time to take responsibility for the stewardship of our planet, and there’s no better place to inform yourself than here. (And we’ve got some amazing Earth Day pictures for you, too!)

Regardless of where your environmental passions lie, whether it’s with the climate, ocean life, green, clean automobiles, protecting the environment or even something exotic like bringing back extinct animals, Trapit’s got you covered! We’ve only got one Earth, so let’s celebrate by making it the best it can be for everyone on our planet!

-Ethan

Trapit In The Kitchen: Smoked Salmon Brunch Taco Bar

Fri, 19 Apr 2013 08:01:22 -0400

Image via Noble Pig

Full Recipe: Smoked Salmon Brunch Taco Bar
Discovered in: My “brining” Trap
About the blog: Noble Pig is a recipe blog bolstered by great taste and self-expression. Cathy, an established Pinot Noir winemaker and freelance writer also kills it in the kitchen.
Reason we picked it: I had anticipated a pork recipe for my first stab at brining, but smoked salmon jumped off my ipad screen. As a taco addict, I couldn’t resist. Cathy caught the Chinook salmon herself, displayed her narrative with beautiful photography and like myself is located in the Willamette Valley. I was sold.
What you’ll need:

the brine: water, kosher salt, light brown sugar, pure maple syrup
Salmon filet, coupled with alder wood smoking chips (I added pepper to the maple syrup baste)
daikon radish, rice vinegar (if you plan to pickle them—I didn’t)
whipped cream cheese
pepper jack cheese
capers
toasted sesame seeds
furikake, optional (yet recommended, so delicious)
flour tortillas cut into 4” circles

Now although Cathy insists there is no shame in purchasing pre-smoked salmon from a market, I felt I’d be selling myself short taking the easy route in replicating her recipe. In her blog post, she mentions a chartered fishing trip to the lower Columbia River will run you about $500 for a group of three—which seems relatively expensive—however the bang-for-your buck outcome is an absolute steal ending up with a freezer full of fresh salmon at roughly $10-13 per pound.

The bad news is, I didn’t have time for a fishing excursion, nor do I know the first thing about casting a line. The good news is, I’m friends with a fish guy. When he is not at work or watching baseball, you can bet on him being anchored out on the open water. My fish guy hit me with a fresh chunk of spring Chinook which prompted the overnight tenderizing process ziplocking it in a salt-sugar-maple syrup brine as suggested. The next step is arguably the most critical—air drying the fish to form the pellicle. Without this thin glossy layer on the skin, fat and juices will escape, leaving you with one dry, ruined clump after smoking.

The outcome of the meal was a grand success. They turned out just fine without having an actual fancy smoker, I used a basic charcoal grill. Traditionally, tacos served cold don’t sound like the most appetizing snack, but this particular smoked salmon version changes the game. Without having to reheat/overcook anything (or dirty up more dishes), this recipe is ideal for multiple rounds of leftovers for that week you need to get your smoked salmon fix. My pre-wrapped tacos to-go for lunch today were just as tasty as last night’s and no, the tortilla wasn’t the slightest bit soggy. Kudos to Cathy, this simple recipe now rests atop my list of favorite lunch meals…or brunch, if that is your thing.

See Cathy’s blog post for a narrative about her passion for smokey tacos, Pacific Northwest flavor and a thorough breakdown on how to get the most out of your smoked fish.

Geoff

Follow the DIY Trend With Trapit

Wed, 17 Apr 2013 17:20:00 -0400

It’s no secret that the Internet has taken hold of the DIY trend with force - everything from wedding crafts to homemade beauty treatments to do-it-yourself remodeling projects shows up on Trapit on a daily basis. It’s understandable, because doing things yourself (or making things yourself) can come with some huge benefits, like saving a ton of money or having complete control over a custom project or design. If you’re a beauty fiend like myself and want to get in on the DIY action, The Nail Art Trap is a great place to start. There are some crazy and complicated designs in there, but there are also some great tutorials on how to do the simpler versions of nail art, like an ombré glitter manicure or color-blocked look.

I wanted to try something fun that I could do with nail polish that I already have. Confession: I have A LOT of nail polish. Luckily that means I have lots of nail art options. I really liked the cool look of this V-Shaped Neon Manicure, so I decided to pick one of my favorite bright colors and give it a go. I don’t have a true neon shade in my arsenal, but I thought this extra-bright teal would do the trick. You can create this design using any two colors, or just a bright color on a clear base like I did. Here’s how to get the look.

1. Cut 20 small strips of scotch tape and place them somewhere accessible, like on a magazine or the edge of your coffee table.
2. Prep your nails and paint on a base coat of clear polish. Wait until dry.
3. Using the strips of scotch tape, mark off your V shape on all ten nails. Make sure the tape is pressed firmly to the nail so that you get a sharp edge.
4. Paint two thin coats of your color into the marked off V shape.
5. Remove the tape while the color polish is still wet. Wait a few minutes.
6. Paint one or two coats of a clear top coat to seal in your design and give it some shine.

This was a pretty simple nail art design to accomplish and didn’t take much skill. It did take some time - perfect for doing while you catch up on what’s on your DVR. But the results are pretty cool! It’s a different look, and a good design to start with if you’re new to the trend. I’ll definitely be trying it with some different color combinations - mostly on nights when I’m a bit bored.

If nail art is not your thing but you are curious about other DIY projects, we suggest simply adding “DIY” to a keyword of your choice when you are creating a Trap. Perfect examples would be “DIY Wedding,” “DIY Organizing,” or “DIY Crafts.” You can also find some great ideas in The DIY Trap or The Wedding Trap.

Kelly

Trapit Earns Webby Honor For User Experience and Nomination in Lifestyle Category

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 11:53:09 -0400

Our users matter to us and we’ve worked hard to ensure that Trapit provides a great user experience. And it turns out it shows. We are extremely pleased to announce that Trapit for iPad has been selected as an Official Honoree in The 17th Annual Webby Awards in the Best User Experience category.

Just as awesome, our app has also been selected as a Webby Awards Nominee in the Lifestyle category! The best part of this is you can help us to win the People’s Voice Award for this category by casting your vote here.

We are honored and excited. Find out more about the Webby Awards and other Webby nominees and categories in our Webby Awards Trap.

Trapit In The Kitchen: Easy Peanut Butter + Jelly Bars

Fri, 12 Apr 2013 11:11:22 -0400

Full recipe: Peanut Butter + Jelly Bars
Discovered in:The Baking Trap
About the blog: I found this recipe over at Fearless Homemaker, a blog about tasty food, crafts, and other DIYs written by Nashville, Tennessee resident Amy.
Reason we picked it: I wanted to try a sweet treat for this post, but I had a terrible time picking one, because everything looked delicious. In all honesty, I forgot to pick up an ingredient for my original found recipe, but soon discovered that I had everything on-hand that I needed to make this one!

What you’ll need:

1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1 1/2 cups sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 extra-large eggs
2 cups creamy peanut butter
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 cups raspberry jam (I used Marionberry, which I had on-hand)
2/3 cup salted peanuts, coarsely chopped

As I discovered in my forgetfulness about my planned recipe (remembering anything at 5:30 pm is a struggle), this recipe for Peanut Butter + Jelly Bars is a great thing to whip up at the last minute, because chances are pretty decent that you’ll already have all of the ingredients. I was too tired to run out to the store for my forgotten ingredient from another recipe, so these bars were an easy fix.

They just use a lot of basic baking ingredients, plus peanut butter, jam, and some chopped nuts. I wanted to try making something sweet and two things about this recipe immediately appealed to me - first, the combination of sweet and salty; second, the fact that you could eat this for dessert, snack, or with your coffee in the morning. Multi-purpose treats are always a winner in my book.

As with many delicious recipes, this one starts with two sticks of butter. If you’re reading this hoping for a healthy treat, I have to disappoint you. I do not even want to know how many calories are in these bars. But as we all know, sometimes a little indulgence is worthwhile.

Unfortunately I do not have a fancy mixer with a paddle attachment like the recipe suggests using, and my regular mixer did not want to work at a low speed, so I think my dough turned out a little more crumbly than it was supposed to. I was a little worried later when I read “globs” and mine was more like crumbs, but you can’t win them all. I pressed the bottom layer down with a spatula and that seemed to keep the dough together well.

Layering the components in the pan was easy, and once the bars were baked and cooled, we had a taste of these decadent little treats. They are rich! They were particularly delicious when the jam in the middle was still a little warm and gooey, and the salty and sweet combination was a nice change from other overly-sugary desserts. They were a little messy to eat because of my crumbly dough, but were delicious nonetheless. I brought some into the Trapit Portland office and let’s just say they didn’t go to waste. I’m not sure I would make them again simply because they were a bit too rich for me, but on the plus-side they are quite filling if you want to eat them for breakfast.

Head over to Fearless Homemaker for the full recipe and instructions.

Kelly

Autism Awareness Month

Wed, 10 Apr 2013 12:58:21 -0400

It’s Autism Awareness Month, and here at Trapit we’re passionate about bringing you accurate information about this widespread condition. Scientifically proven to be completely unrelated to vaccines and vaccination (despite scientific frauds who contend otherwise), autism is not a disease but is simply a hereditary condition that requires acceptance. Kids with autism do, in fact, have a wide variety of special needs, but there are a whole slew of resources for coping with autism.

There’s no reason that having an autistic child means you can’t have a happy, healthy family. Many different therapies abound, from psychiatric to animal to robot therapies and more; consult with a doctor to find what’s right for your family. (Resources for adults with autism are also available!) Plug in to the conversation surrounding autism with Trapit’s Autism featured trap, where we’re working to help raise awareness of this affliction, while dispelling the harmful myths and misconceptions that surround it. We know you’re working hard to get it right, and here at Trapit we’re committed to that 100%!

-Ethan

User Profile: Jeremy Forsythe

Tue, 09 Apr 2013 11:30:00 -0400

I have found that Trapit is superior in this regard, bringing in a wider range of sources that assist in tracking down anything and everything motocross spread out all over the world.

Location: Lakeland, Florida
Occupation: Account Executive, GLT Total Office
Favorite Traps: Motocross & Astrophysics

Q: When most people enter an office space, they see desktop computers and cubicles. You see a blank canvas and an opportunity to think creatively. Tell us about what you do for a living…

I am an Account Executive for an independent office supply and furniture company. I do mostly business-to-business sales and marketing. On the surface, it doesn’t sound like it’s jam-packed with excitement, but it would actually surprise you. We get to design and install some of the nicest interiors in the region. We’ve completely transformed college campuses from old, obsolete and stuffy layouts into modern marvels. Our main brand is Steelcase, the same workspace layouts you see in the interior of Google HQ. The field of design reminds me of my childhood, growing up building structures with my huge Lego collection.

Q: Tell us more about the ‘modern office.’ Any favorite projects you’ve worked on?

These days, the modern office is nothing like it was even five years ago. Innovation through collaboration, creativity through comfort are the goals these days. You want that “campfire feel,” with the presenter as the focal point in a setting where discussion and sharing is encouraged by convenience. Making people enjoy their workspaces and look forward to being there does wonders for the productivity of a company.

One of our personal favorites is USF Sky Blue Polytechnic—working with the people actually using the space—we came up with some very creative and unique ideas. Storm Troopers (the guys in white suits from Star Wars) guard networking rooms and there’s a big curly slide to bring out the kid in anyone. Nowadays, working in this field comes with an added bonus, knowing that what you helped build will assist the levels of productivity in budding learning environments. Whether it be for college students, or even an office full of architects and engineers who are designing themselves—designing our future.

Q: So when you aren’t busy in your office brainstorming tomorrow’s offices, what do you like to do to clear your mind?

In my free time, I love to get out on the off road on my dirt bike! To me, there is nothing in this world more spiritual than straddling 450 cubic centimeters of engine, pumping 108 octane fuel, riding in open air, down a mile long stretch of whoops at 70mph. Imagine your front tire never touching the dirt, back tire in the air more often than not, tantalizingly close to the edge of life or death, unable to stop smiling.

Q: Intense! So, I imagine ‘whoops’ isn’t the sound you make when you are flipping over your handlebars?

Ha! Not quite, although they have been known to cause just that. If you have ever watched a Supercross, ATV, or a monster truck race, on the tracks there is usually a series of small hills, like speed bumps a couple of feet apart. It takes a lot of finesse to go over them at high speeds and any little mistake will send you flying. Get’s the blood pumping for sure.

Q: How long have you been experiencing the adrenaline of dirt biking?

I’ve been hitting the off road since I was a little kid when I got my first three-wheeler. I bought my first bike from my cousin—an 84 Honda 125, a real jalopy. I wrenched it more than I rode it and although it was never in great working shape, it was always a blast! It’s a tough hobby with plenty of cuts and bruises, fractures, deep tissue damage, but through it all, the experience is always highly rewarding. We typically go riding in the Withlacoochee State Forest, Croom Motorcycle Area. A lot of celebrity pros ride out there in a park space that stretches some 2,000 acres with a wide variety of terrain.

Q: Speaking of wide variety, you mentioned you’ve been enjoying the nice spread of content in your Motocross Trap?

Definitely. It’s impossible to describe the variety I have found in my Motocross Trap. I seriously have never returned to my Trapit account, read the stories discovered inside and thought I needed to do anything additional to get more thorough results. My Trap will inform you of motocross events you never even knew existed, as well as up-and-coming stars you never heard of. Articles ranging from who won the pro circuit, to some eight year old phenom that won in Kentucky last night. Entering a vague keyword like “Motocross” will reel in results on everything released that day, bios of new riders just released, a Ukrainian track that was flooded, or even a precedent-setting noise ordinance lawsuit story that brings the sport into the courtroom.

Q: How does this compare to other experiences you’ve had when mining for info on the sport?

It really has worked quite differently. For example, if you were to conduct a basic search on a topic through your everyday search engine in its “news” tab, it is going to bring you results based on the highest rated articles, which is going to be produced by a small set of a few press organizations—the biggest and what is claimed to be the best. As a result, the biggest and the best will only cover the top-tier events going on deemed most important. Odds are, there is only so much news available in one day, and usually this type of research method will only provide six or so sources that end up covering the same story. I have found that Trapit is superior in this regard, bringing in a wider range of sources that assist in tracking down anything and everything motocross spread out all over the world.

Q: Do you have any other successful Traps that have been feeding your interests?

I have two favorite Traps that I regularly check in on and I can hardly keep up on the fresh content that filters in on a daily basis. Aside from motocross, I have a great Trap on Astrophysics. It serves to satisfy the natural curiosity I have for science and particularly my love for physics and astronomy. I’ve always been fascinated trying to wrap my mind around the beginnings of the universe, imagining the size and scale of events that happened in order for us to be here. Pondering the science of how this all unfolded is very awe-inspiring to me, and right now we live in an era where answers to our scientific questions are flowing in at a very high rate. It’s a historical time in the field, and I really don’t want to miss a thing! My favorite thing about using Trapit is it doesn’t limit to the most popular sub-sections of content, instead providing a nice collection of choices to choose from. It doesn’t assume you want the most popular story in 14 different forms. You can open your Trap, read a story, hit the next page button to find something subject related, yet entirely unique. It’s very handy.

Q: Is there a scientific breakthrough you’re keeping a close eye on at the moment?

One thing I’ve been following on a daily basis are the Planck results flooding in. We’ve been receiving new data on the size and shape of the universe, answering many questions, but at the same time, creating many more of them. The main thing Planck has done, as I understand it, is make a much more detailed map of the CMB (cosmic microwave background) and what we once thought was pretty much uniform, we are now finding is not, our universe is lopsided. The reasons behind this are still up in the air, but I can’t wait to see what the Physicists come up with next.

Q: Lastly, can you tell us of a new, enlightening discovery you made via Trapit you may have never heard about otherwise?

Yes! In my Astrophysics Trap, I came across a rather intriguing article about a new observation made by UK’s MERLIN radio telescopes. I learned that they found a cloud of pure alcohol some 280 BILLION miles wide. I figure this should get the private space industry kicked into high gear very soon. After all, who wouldn’t pay for a pint of deep space moonshine?

Build A Pinboard Of Inspiration With Trapit

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 13:29:42 -0400

It’s now officially Spring, and for me that always means the urge to change something. Whether it’s my hair, my makeup routine, adding some new items to my wardrobe, or dressing up something in my apartment, giving something a fresh new look is satisfying and exciting, especially with a change of season. I find inspiration all over the web for these kind of things, and sometimes even in my real-life magazine pile, but keeping it all in one place can be a more difficult task. Sometimes my urge to do something new doesn’t include the patience to research it, so having a stockpile of inspiration is essential.

That’s where Trapit and Pinterest come in to help. I was an early fan of Pinterest and it has always been great when it comes to creating inspiration boards for almost anything you might be interested in. But there are a couple downsides to using Pinterest alone. Like many other social media outlets, the same content tends to be re-circulated among friends and contacts again and again, so finding new and fresh content can be harder than it seems. Pinterest is also wonderful for inspirational images. Sometimes another click will lead you to a blog post or other useful information, but often the photos are photos and nothing more. Using Trapit on the Web with our Pinterest integration, you can create an amazing inspiration board that has even better content behind every photo.

Pinning inspiration from Trapit will no doubt enhance your Pinterest boards, but it works the other way around, too. If you’re a visual person like I am, you can use Pinterest as a tool to make your Trapit reading list into a visual paradise.

Getting started: Before you go crazy with excitement, it’s good to decide what kind of specific inspiration board you want to create. Even though Pinterest is known for fashion, beauty, design, and DIY, you can make a board about whatever you like. I have had makeup and hair on the brain lately, so I’ve been filling up my Beauty board with everything hair, nails, makeup, and skincare that I might want to try. Be as specific or as general as you like. Then go back to Trapit and start trapping! For my beauty board, I have made Traps with keywords like “nail art,” “bb cream,” “hair chalk,” and “ombre hair.” I also use some of the beauty and hair-related Traps in the featured section for inspiration.

Start pinning: Once you’ve found some great content in your Traps, it’s time to start pinning to your inspiration boards. From your Trap view or the article view, you’ll simply want to click the share button and then click the Pinterest button. You can decide which inspiration board to send that article to, and you can also add helpful notes and text.

Be inspired: Now take a look at your beautiful handiwork! As you can see, I’ve pinned some great nail art onto my Beauty inspiration board, and when I’m ready to give it a try, a couple clicks will take me back to the article within Trapit. My board now has great visual inspiration and awesome Trapit content to back it up.

Now that you’ve learned how Trapit and Pinterest can work together, your boards will always have fresh inspiration as well as great content. Then, when you get he urge to (for example) update your makeup routine like I often do, you’ll know just where to look.

If you’re still unsure about where to start, but are interested in lifestyle content, follow me on Pinterest, where I’m always pinning the best Trapit content I can find.

-Kelly

Trapit Discovers April Fools

Mon, 01 Apr 2013 15:15:00 -0400

It’s April Fools Day and we’ve got a kid president, a going out of commission Yellowstone Geyser, chocolate on mars, and more than one prank from Google.

Find out who took it too far, how it all allegedly got started, and more in the April Fools Trap.

Stock Up On Easter Brunch And Craft Ideas With Trapit

Fri, 29 Mar 2013 13:32:07 -0400

As a kid, the Easter holiday (if you celebrate it) is all about the big fluffy Easter bunny and hunting for eggs. I never had a yard growing up, so my candy-filled eggs were hidden under pillows and in lampshades, but the thrill of the hunt was still the most fun part of the day. I’m a little old for Easter egg hunts now, so my focus has shifted to making delicious brunch dishes and maybe experimenting with a few fun crafts if I have the time. Perusing our featured Traps, it’s clear that there is plenty of inspiration for both!

If you’re looking for Easter foodie inspiration, head on over to the Brunch Trap for a huge variety of tasty-looking and Easter-appropriate recipes, from healthy to indulgent and fast to extravagant. I’m a big fan of pretty much all egg dishes, and this Vegetable & Cream Cheese Quiche with Almond Crust sounded particularly interesting. I’d imagine these adorable little Mini Ham & Cheese Frittatas would also be a hit. If you’re in a time crunch, check out these recipes that prep in 30 minutes or less or get a head start on the festivities with this Make-Ahead Brunch Strata.

And of course we can’t forget the crafts. For those with kids who want to change things up a little bit, check out these 9 ways of decorating eggs besides classic dyeing. I also really liked this cute DIY Mini Easter Trees project for kids or adults. These Graffiti Eggs are a great modern-art take on the holiday, and I also like the idea of trying some paper crafts instead of working with real eggs.

Regardless of what treat or craft you decide to whip up, enjoy the holiday and happy Spring!

-Kelly

User Profile: A.J. Ghergich

Tue, 26 Mar 2013 08:01:30 -0400

People want to discover, they want to find a new blogger, a new perspective, and be forced to take their blinders off. Trapit really breaks you out of that, and opens you up to content and new voices that you wouldn’t have heard otherwise.

Location: Chicago, IL
Occupation: Content Marketer and SEO
Websites: Ghergich.com, @SEO on twitter
Favorite Cheese: Aged Gouda, the older the better

Q: You’re a professional in the field of content marketing and search engine optimization (SEO). What problems are we trying to solve here?

Although these are related, they’re really two separate problems. For SEO, what you’re really trying to accomplish is to make your website and your content as search-engine-friendly as possible. You also want to optimize it for keywords you know your audience is already searching for.

Content marketing is a little more on the outreach side of things. Basically, users are your customers. They don’t respond very well to interruption-style advertising. If you’re listening to a radio in your car, you just tune out a radio ad. The same thing happens when you see a banner or pop-up ad on the webpage you visit. That’s Interruption marketing, and it’s a dead-end.

The goal of content marketing is to try and produce content that helps your user, gains their trust, and finds them the content that you think will be most helpful to them based on what they’ve been searching for. Rather than try to sell the user something they may or may not have any interest in, you’re engaging them based on what their expressed interests already are.

Q: This doesn’t sound like the same thing as an advertiser using my search terms to target me. What would be a good example of when content marketing could help me find what I want?

If ask a search engine, “what’s the difference between Plasma and LCD,” there’s really only one reason you’re looking at that: you’re looking to be educated about buying a television. You don’t want to jump right in there trying to sell them a television, you want to answer their question. Give them the information they’re asking for. Their questions will become more refined and sophisticated, and you can produce content that engages your audience at every stage of the buying cycle.

You don’t have to sell; you’re just being helpful. And that’s what people want: honesty and integrity. This is earned attention, and it earns you respect. That’s what you want. A company that has your attention and respect will be on your list of finalists, and — regardless of what your final buying decision is — you’ll walk away as a much happier consumer.

Q: Some people have a negative attitude towards search engine optimization, and think of it as a way of tricking search engines. What’s flawed with that line of thought?

Manipulation would be the word I would use. When I first got into SEO, I was like everyone else in it: I was young, fresh out of college, and it was a new community. Other than the young nerds (like me) doing this, no one knew what it was about. It was new and exciting, and I was attracted to it for all the wrong reasons. I wanted to impose my will on a search engine. How to word things optimally, when to bold or italicize something, etc. I was trying to reverse-engineer the search engine’s algorithm. It was very exciting, initially, and it was a completely wrongheaded approach.

Obviously, that was a long time ago. I’ve grown as a person and as a professional, and I no longer feel that way. If you’re thinking “how can I trick google into giving me something I haven’t really earned,” you’re using it wrong. But SEO still has its place. Let’s say you sell powerboats, and you’ve got an image of one, and you upload it. If it’s named kd5099fjaskewlew-07.jpg, no one will find it. But if you name it Powerboat.jpg (or Red-powerboat.jpg) you’re really just helping the search engine find what it wants to find in the first place. There’s a technical side to SEO that people really struggle with, and using it properly can help clean up the web. Knowing that as a background and using that for good, instead of evil, is still extremely valid.

Q: There are some people who think that content marketing isn’t necessary. Won’t the top content simply rise-to-the-top organically?

Amazing content is really competition-proof. If you’re producing good content, you’re really never going to be at a disadvantage with your competitors. What’s happening right now is there’s a content marketing arms race. People are trying to out-content one another. But a mediocre piece of content isn’t going to cut it; you need to earn the consumer’s trust.

If people are searching for reviews, is that really what they’re looking for? Make sure you’re returning what the consumer actually wants. You can have consumer reviews, but how do you know they’re trustworthy? Are these reviews real, and how can you verify that there’s a real person behind it? Images of a consumer with the product, video reviews can really be honest and can earn your trust. Your product can’t be for everyone, and you need to be honest about who it is and isn’t for. Have expert reviews, and talk about the drawbacks as well. Think about what you would want, as a user, for almost any product, and give them the content to help them make an informed decision.

I’d rather see you make one stellar piece of content rather than twenty average ones. Consumers are going to become immune to average content pretty quickly, just like we’re already immune to low-quality content. Get off the content marketing merry-go-round right now, and focus on creating the highest-quality content.

Q: At your new site, you focus not just on content marketing and SEO, but also on infographics. What makes a good infographic so powerful?

The reason why I think a good infographic is successful is the same reason I think people like twitter: when it comes to information, we’ve become headline-scanners. We rarely read the whole article anymore. With only 140 characters, Twitter forces you to get right to the point, and it forces you to be concise. A good infographic is filled with the best data, and people can see it really clearly and concisely, but also because you’re only giving me the good stuff, and all the fluff is cut out. Here’s an example of one we’ve just put together.

An infographic done right will just get right to the facts. Say it in one line, one chart, not in a whole paragraph. And also stay on point: don’t tell six stories, tell one. You can’t put everything in one infographic; the best ones typically have only a few sources, and stay on-message by using a small set of data from a reliable source. The consumer is really going to appreciate it, because you’re just telling one story, and you’re doing it very well, without any extraneous information clouding your message.

Q: And you’re also passionate about keeping your followers up-to-date on the latest information about content marketing. How do you make that happen?

I have to be very plugged into what my audience wants, and that involves reading so much to stay on top of the latest trends. Things change and develop very quickly, and when I talk to clients, I need to know what’s going on. And that means being both comprehensive and selective in what I’m reading every day: the things that are useful or informative.

And the ones that meet that — the stories that are useful, informative and original — are the ones I share. I use Bottlenose, I use Trapit, and a couple of other services to take an in-depth look at a particular industry. But people have likely already read the content from the biggest websites in that industry; what people really like is something they wouldn’t have come across otherwise. Even if you have 50 blogs RSS’ed to you, you’re still only getting the same message over and over. So that’s what I try to bring them: a hidden gem that allows me to provide a service to my folks. People want to discover, they want to find a new blogger, a new perspective, and be forced to take their blinders off. Trapit really breaks you out of that, and opens you up to content and new voices that you wouldn’t have heard otherwise.

Q: So do you also use Trapit for content curation?

Not everyone wants to curate the way I do. It’s a lot of effort. But Trapit is such a useful tool that I’ve only recently discovered. I just type in a new term for any industry I’m taking a look at, and it allows me to stay on top of it. I also believe it’s incredibly useful for staying educated, and that’s something that’s vital in every industry. You might be able to list four or five solid bloggers, and they may be very good, but if that’s all you read, you’re going to miss some very good and fresh voices. Trapit exposes you to some small, lesser-known but still quality sources that wouldn’t have surfaced traditionally, and if Trapit can continue to do that, you guys will have an incredible service to offer.

Q: Can you tell us how you discovered us?

I actually discovered it from another blogger, and I had seen another blogger mention it as a content marketing tool. So it was word-of-mouth in the course of my doing what I do. And I’m always on a lookout for a new, powerful tool to add to my arsenal.

Once I gave it a shot, I was using it right away; it was a very intuitive, simple process. I found an article I liked and hadn’t seen before within just a couple of minutes, and I realized I was dealing with a really powerful tool. I don’t know that it could be any simpler, actually.

Q: You also have a slew of other tools that you use, but there’s something unique about Trapit that keeps you coming back. Can you tell us what Trapit does that none of its competitors can?

First off, Trapit is visual, and that makes it really stand apart from any other information-scouring application.

I think that you have an easier way of channeling my interests. It’s nice and clean, whereas other competitors are search-intensive. I set something up once with Trapit, and I can keep going back to it, and constantly get new information as it comes in. If I want to ban a source — even from just one particular trap — Trapit empowers me to do so, and the control I get with likes and dislikes is an incredible advantage. The ease-of-use, combined with the like, dislike and banning options means that Trapit will be a permanent addition to my arsenal!