Added 24 January, 2014
Although it sounds like science fiction, industrial cloning is already happening and clone farms are already up and running. In Shenzhen, China, one farm alone is cloning some 500 pigs this year in a factory outfitted with genetic sequencing processors. At the moment, these cloned animals are being used primarily for medical testing (In China, the...
Added 16 January, 2014
The trend for foods to be natural, organic, local, hand-made, small batch and the like is pervasive; we are seeing it everywhere, from restaurants that only use produce that was picked the same day to organic vodkas that use sustainably harvested quinoa instead of wheat. Not even chewing gum is immune from this trend. Simply Gum claims to be the...
Added 14 January, 2014
Pizza Hut is the largest hot food delivery brand in the United States, as well as many other parts of the world. Up until now, if you wanted to order a delivery pizza, or Chinese food or whatever, most people would pick up the phone and call the store. The advent of delivery services like GrubHub and Seamless Web, both of which have popular mobile...
Added 13 January, 2014
For centuries, coffee was the main delivery system for caffeine. Then, in the late 20th Century came Red Bull, followed by myriad energy drinks that brought that drug to teens and others who prefer sodas to brewed beans. Last year we wrote about caffeinated soaps, energy sprays, edible energy gels and a new chewing gum called Alert Energy Caffeine...
Added 13 January, 2014
GE knows that the future of our homes is a wired world in which our appliances can wirelessly connect to the Internet and interact with us in ways that will, supposedly, add convenience and joy. That is the promise of the much-vaunted Internet of Things, a trend that will have our refrigerators, toasters and more connecting with us, and with each...
Added 12 January, 2014
Regular WikiTrend readers know about the Internet of Things, the concept that everything in our homes will be connected to one another on a network that will work seamlessly with our lives. Many products already exist including "smart" smoke detectors that alert you by mobile phone when they are triggered or need new batteries, and smart...
Added 30 December, 2013
Regular WikiTrends readers are familiar with the idea of a "sharing economy," in which ownership is overtaken by borrowing, lending and sharing goods that are only used occasionally, like tools, luggage, bicycles and even cars. The sharing trend is related to another movement promoting community and closeness between neighbors and friends. This...
Added 10 December, 2013
In recent months we've seen many fast-food giants promote healthier menus, including a new type of french fry from Burger King that has less fat than normal fries. It's certainly a trend when the biggest companies get on board, and that is the case with food. The major players know that customers are clamoring for choices that are healthier and...
Added 27 November, 2013
Some people think that graveyards are relaxing and bucolic. That seems to be the ethos behind the trend in German cities to locate cafes in cemeteries. While some customers are there because they are visiting dead relatives, most come for the atmosphere. Café Strauss in the Kreuzberg district of Berlin encourages patrons to fire up their laptops...
Added 26 November, 2013
There was a time in the United States when cider, and not beer, was the alcohol of choice. The drink was made by countless families with crabapple trees in their backyards, many coming from Johnny Appleseed, the famous 19th-century propagator of apple trees. But then came Prohibition, people chopped down their trees, and the art of cider making...