Play-Doh Trivia

A perfect gift for Christmas

2007-12-24T06:40:00.000-08:00

Well, since Christmas is fast approaching, ever think of a perfect gift for your godchild? Think no more, Play-Doh is the perfect gift for them. Playing Clay has a lot of benefit for a child development process. It will help develop their motorskills and improve hand and eye coordination. It will also improve their visual observation of things by converting 2D images to 3D objects. Playing Clay helps motivate and enhance the kid's creative thinking, by developing and expanding the child's interests. It also cultivates the basic creative instinct of the child. It will be an important and essential part of growing up. It will also cultivate the recycling skill of the child converting unwanted or discarded object, into art, toy and gift. By rolling, folding and kneading the clay, it will also help relieve stress, tension, improve nerve and blood supply. Clay modeling is an excellent way to develop fine motor skills in young children. The stimulating creative thought process will improve the children's visual observation skills. Learn how to mix colors and to create textures with the colorful polymer clays. Develop the child's interest and enhance their talent in the art of clay creations. So what are you waiting for? Rush to your nearest toy shop and buy a Play-Doh Can today! Merry Christmas to all!

Sony Bravia Advert Trilogy

2007-10-15T10:17:00.000-07:00

Ever watch the award winning commercials of Sony Bravia? “Balls” and “Paint” were the most watched and anticipated commercials of year 2005 and 2006.

Set to the stripped-down acoustic soundtrack of José González' "Heartbeats", 250,000 'superballs' come flying, in slow motion, over the brow of a typical street in San Francisco, raining down on anything that gets in their way. And it was done without computer graphics.[1]

Watch it here: http://www.bravia-advert.com/commercial/braviaextcommhigh.html

The second advert was set in and empty multi-storey high rise. The empty multi-storey high rise in Queen’s Court, Toryglen, will have thousands of gallons of paint blasted across it by fireworks as part of a multi-million pound campaign for Sony’s high definition Bravia LCD TV.

The advert has already been filmed, and we are awaiting release, they used:

* 70,000 litres of paint

* 358 single bottle bombs

* 33 sextuple air cluster bombs

* 22 Triple hung cluster bombs

* 268 mortars

* 33 Triple Mortars

* 22 Double mortars

* 358 meters of weld

* 330 meters of steel pipe

* 57 km of copper wire[2]

Watch it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GURvHJNmGrc

Even though the second Advert weren’t that much appreciated by many, Sony is on its way to its third come back. Guess what colorful material they have used? Yes! They’ve used Play-Doh as their main material and shaped it as a giant bunny, a 10ft by 20ft and lots of 1 ft cubes. Stunning commercial by Sony, I must say.

"BRAVIA TV fans have high expectations from our advertising and have been watching with interest to see what the third ad in the trilogy would be. This production has been a technical feat, and even with forty animators working together, it took more than four hours to create just four seconds of film. But the results are spectacular."[3]

They have used:

3 week shoot, Foley Square NYC (located between the Financial District, Little Italy and TriBeCa)
6 x cameras
2.5 tonnes of Play-Doh used on set
189 2ft rabbits
150 1ft cubes
10ft x 20ft purple wave
30ft giant rabbit
40 animators

Watch it here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P9aALd3wVT0&mode=related&search=

[1] http://www.bravia-advert.com/

[2] http://bull3t.blogspot.com/2006/08/sony-bravia-television-advert.html

[3] http://www.prweb.com/releases/2007/10/prweb558480.htm

images: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2007/10/prweb558480.htm

http://www.bravia-advert.com/balls/gallery.html

http://bull3t.blogspot.com/2006/08/sony-bravia-television-advert.html

Highschool Musical Part 3

2007-10-10T07:22:00.000-07:00

Hey, kids! Did you sing and dance together with the cast of Highschool Musical
on its first series? Who wouldn’t know the tune “Breaking Free”? Who doesn’t know Troy Bolton (Zac Efron) and Gabriella Montez (Vanessa Hudgens) is? Did you wait patiently and eagerly watch its part 2? Well, it’s on its way for Part 3. Yes, you heard it right Highschool Musical will be out in theaters on 2008. Anyway here is an article about it:

“Kenny Ortega and the rest of the HSM cast will be shooting the THIRD installment for the HSM phenomenon, next spring. There were rumors earlier that the movie would be titled Haunted High School Musical. But recently Kenny Ortega (the director) of the movie stated, “It wouldnt go as far as the original if it was haunted.” he also stated, “It wouldnt make much sense, what would they sing about ‘Halloween’ and ‘Ghosts’ [laughs]“. SO…it will be called High School Musical 3. The movie will STILL be headed for the BIG SCREEN, and will be produced of course by Walt Disney Pictures. If they were to have it Haunted, that is just taking the High School Musical thing too far. The whole cast will be returning so dont worry! Well keep you up to date with High School Musical 3.”[1]

So kids better get your throat and dancing shoes ready because the Highschool Musical Cast will again teach and encourage kids to sing and dance to their beats. The next question seems simple enough: What will Troy, Sharpay, Montez, Chad and the others be doing when they return for their third high-stepping adventure? Well better be good and wait for the next big movie.

[1] http://teenscoop.wordpress.com/2007/08/13/high-school-musical-3-wont-be-haunted-but-its-still-headed-for-big-screen/

Gumby, the Clay boy...

2007-10-09T08:54:00.000-07:00

As a child, I was fascinated by the series in the television wherein this blue character keeps walking in an odd manner. Later. I found out that it was made out of clay. I kept on bothering my older brother to shape my Play-Doh just like the creature on television. Growing up, I forgot about the blue creature. Then in gathering data for my thesis I found out that the creature's name was Gumby. A weird name for my weird shaped friend, I have been wondering why the shaped? Was it because it was the easiest thing to shaped? Well, here a trip down memory lane and discover what’s behind the most famous TV series Gumby:

Right after Sam Engel, the movie producer, had seen Art Clokey's film Gumbasia he was so impressed that he asked if Art could create a new character for children's TV. Art played around with clay for weeks, molding many shapes and colors as he searched for the right figure.The first thing Art set out to do was create a shape and size that were functionally practical from the film animating standpoint."Animating clay for hours under hot lights created a problem," Art explained. "I found it necessary to have a shape and size that were easily reproduced, so that a fresh figure could be substituted as the old one became dirty and completely misshapen through excessive manipulation. "Something thin and geometric with square edges rather than rounded and fat made complete sense.

http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/thumb/f/f2/200px-Gumby_pokey.JPG
-photo (many thanks!)
http://www.gumbyworld.com/memorylane/histgum.htm
-article (many thanks!)

Did you know?

2007-10-03T04:01:00.000-07:00

Play-doh can fool 90% of finger scanners. According to Associate Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering Stephanie Schuckers and her team at Clarkson University, most scanning systems can be fooled 90% of the time by taking a mold of the mark’s finger, filling the mold with Play-Doh, and using the fake digit to gain access. But hold it, Clarkson and the team also designed an algorithm that detects the spread of perspiration from the pores out of the ridges of a live person’s finger, and is only foiled by the Play-Doh method 10% of the time. So never mind the ideas rushing through your head on using the common child’s toy Play-doh for stealing. Well kids can absolutely enjoy Play-doh and play pretend play as detectives and all sorts. Still, until this new tech becomes more widespread, along with iris scans, facial and voice recognition, and implanted RFID verification, we're gonna continue keeping our cash under the mattress that we fiercely guard as we telecommute from atop it.

Keep all your Play-Doh from big bad men, kids. We wouldn't want the crooks to get away with all the loot, don't we? Let's all act up like detectives and have fun with Play-doh!

http://www.washjeff.edu/users/ahollandminkley/Biometric/biometric05.jpg (for the picture)

importance of toy in child development

2007-09-18T09:32:00.000-07:00

A toy is an object used in play.[1] As a child, we considered toys our object of desire. They come from different sizes, type and shapes. Toys are considered a child’s priced possession. We normally fight our siblings because of toys. And most of all it is our first learning tools.

Here is a small article about the importance of toys in early child development:

Toys in child development

Toys, like play itself, serve multiple purposes in both humans and animals. They provide entertainment while fulfilling an educational role. Toys enhance cognitive behavior and stimulate creativity. They aid in the development of physical and mental skills which are necessary in later life.

One of the simplest toys, a set of simple wooden blocks is also one of the best toys for developing minds. Andrew Witkin, director of marketing for Mega Brands told Investor's Business Daily that, "They help develop hand-eye coordination, math and science skills and also let kids be creative." Other toys like Marbles, jackstones, and balls serve similar functions in child development, allowing children to use their minds and bodies to learn about spatial relationships, cause and effect, and a wide range of other skills as well as those mentioned by Mr. Witkin.

One example of the dramatic ways that toys can influence child development involves clay sculpting toys such as Play-Doh and Silly Putty and their home-made counterparts. Mary Ucci, Educational Director of the Child Study Center of Wellesley College, demonstrates how such toys positively impact the Physical Development, Cognitive Development, Emotional Development, and Social Development of children.

Toys for infants often make use of distinctive sounds, bright colors, and unique textures. Through play with toys infants begin to recognize shapes and colors. Repetition reinforces memory. Play-Doh, Silly Putty and other hands-on materials allow the child to make toys of their own.

Educational toys for school age children of often contain a puzzle, problem-solving technique, or mathematical proposition. Often toys designed for older audiences, such as teenagers or adults demonstrate advanced concepts. Newton's cradle, a desk toy designed by Simon Prebble, demonstrates the conservation of momentum and energy.

Not all toys are appropriate for all ages of children. Some toys which are marketed for a specific age range can even harm the development of children in that range.

So next time your parents would stop you from playing, tell them you’re learning stuffs during your play time.

[1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toy#Toys_in_child_development

[2] for the photo - http://www.flickr.com/photos/gracinhamarco/494518826/

A peek into Play - doh

2007-09-07T08:13:00.000-07:00

Filipinos have been lauded the world over for their creativity, innovativeness, artistry and craftsmanship. These are the things that differentiate us from other nations.

The Creative Industry in the Philippines is an emerging and dynamic sector of the country’s economy. It includes publishing, printing, literature; music and the performing arts; visual arts; crafts, design and architecture; audiovisual and new media; cultural heritage and cultural activities[1]. What better way to start with our country’s children. Children are the hope of the nation. The youth are the next people and future career developers of our country. Children’s business is playing. Play is to a kid as work is to a man. It is their most favorite thing to do. Toys are their machines and equipments. It is their most prized possession. Some have collected and value their toys since childhood and kept them as souvenirs and memorabilia.

Who wouldn’t know what Play-Doh is?

Play-Doh is very popular and is already recognized as one of Toys Hall of Famer[2]. It is the three-dimensional doorways to artistic expression of kids. Kids especially love to flatten, cut and mold modeling dough with plastic tools. In addition to entertaining kids, Play-Doh can help children develop a lifelong skill. Clay modeling is an excellent way to develop fine motor skills in young children. The stimulating creative thought process will improve the children's visual observation skills. Learn how to mix colors and to create textures with the colorful polymer clays. Develop the child's interest and enhance their talent in the art of clay creations.

"Young children learn best through direct sensory encounters and not through a formal academic process. Learning should be the outcome of hands-on experience, especially play." - National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC)

A kid event that would mentally physically and socially develop children would be an appropriate way to increase or enhance the Philippine’s creative industry.

Intelligence, imagination and creativity are engaged and fostered in the activities throughout the event. It will also give opportunity for the target market to experience the products in hands on basis. The event will also be an opportunity for parents to experience fun and quality time with their kids. The event will not only be for fun and enjoyment but also good teaching grounds as well for both the parents and their kids. The event teaches kids values, good manner, the importance of teamwork, how to socialize and mingle with others kids as well.

Each one of us has their own childlike behavior.

I have posted a picture of a vintage Play-Doh tub ever.
Picture taken by Euphrates (http://www.bigredtoybox.com/cgi-bin/toynfo.pl?playdohindex)

[1] SunStar -http://www.sunstar.com.ph/static/man/2006/05/21

[2] National Toy Hall of Fame - http://www.strongmuseum.org/NTHoF/NTHoF.html