Open up your mind and say, ahh...

Image: Cadillac

LOS ANGELES, California – The brand once known as the “Standard of the World” has fully embraced the Standard of Geeks for it’s latest play for the hearts, minds and cash of the upwardly mobile. This is the all-new 2013 Cadillac XTS, and while it certainly isn’t your great-great (great) grandfather’s Cadillac, it’s designed to appeal to everyone from octogenarians to their baby-boomer spawn, and maybe – just maybe – even you…

While the XTS’ spate of processors and controllers isn’t running the open-source offspring of Linus Torvalds, the game-changing infotainment intender known as the Cadillac User Experience (CUE) is.

Buried deep within the dash is a three-core, ARM 11 processor, powering two displays: one eight-inch capacitive touch screen – the first non-resistive display to come to a production car – and a second, 12.3-inch fully-configurable instrument cluster mounted behind the steering wheel. Two of those cores adapt on the fly to handle voice commands powered by the same Nuance technology used by many automakers, along with Apple’s personal assistant, Siri. But with CUE, everything is processed on-board.

Because of that trick bit of natural voice recognition technology, and specifically its ability to listen for commands in-line, inputing addresses and performing point-of-interest searches is easily the best we’ve ever experienced in a modern vehicle.

Image: Cadillac

Rather than breaking out each portion of an address into dedicated fields, you simply have to speak an address (say, “123 Main Street, Cupertino, California”) and CUE is smart enough to recognize the entire address in one shot. More impressive is the system’s ability to take local searches – everything from “I need coffee” to navigating to a restaurant – process the voice command within a few seconds and deliver a result.

CUE is one of the most attractive infotainment systems to date

This came in particular handy while trying to make our way to the test-drive lunch stop. Instead of having to look up the address, input it into the navigation system and wait for the routing to begin, we simply said the name of the restaurant and seconds later it was dialed into the nav. And even though we stumbled on our words, pausing momentarily and stuttering in the process, it still recognized where we were trying to go. That’s a first and it’s something we can’t wait to see proliferate throughout other production vehicles.

This same functionality extends to the app and audio integration, allowing the driver to say “Play Rolling Stones Radio” in Pandora or “I want to listen to 88.5″ without ever having to touch the screen, twist a knob or punch a button.

Which is good, since there are few knobs or buttons to speak of.

Images: Cadillac

Aside from the redundant controls on the steering wheel (and there are several), the entire center panel is made up entirely of capacitive, chrome-clad touch controls. The lower panel – which mechanically tilts upward to reveal a hidden compartment for stowing a phone, along with two USB ports for plugging in your mobile, MP3 player or thumb drive – houses controls for volume, climate, seat heating and cooling, plus “home” and “power” controls. Unfortunately, the very nature of capacitive switchgear means there’s a subtle lag between pressing a “button”, registering the input, delivering a haptic pulse, sending said input to the system and then eliciting a change in fan speed or volume level. It’s the same gripe we have with the MyFord Touch system – further proof that good ol’ knobs are still the best way to go, despite their lack of gee-wizardry.

And this same lack of responsiveness can occasionally be felt when navigating the eight-inch central display.

While the overall polish of the system is more than enough to impress, there’s still a perceivable lack of smoothness and immediacy

While the overall polish of the system is more than enough to impress, there’s still a perceivable lack of smoothness and immediacy when switching through menus, navigating pages and swiping between screens. The situation is exacerbated by the occasional misinterpreted press on the screen, a product of small touch points that don’t always register where you expect them.

Equally jarring is CUE’s ability to detect when your hand moves within eight inches of the screen, which then pulls up a series of configurable virtual buttons for everything from radio presets to frequently navigated addresses. When you pull away, the controls fade into the background.

It’s impressive to watch the system recognize your hand’s proximity to the screen and then display a series of controls that would make the display look otherwise cluttered, but having some of these items statically placed seems like a more intelligent user interface choice for frequently selected options. That’s one of the many reasons Cadillac is providing an iPad with every 2013 model to help consumers navigate the new system.

Image: Cadillac

General smoothness aside, CUE is one of the most attractive infotainment systems to date, mixing 3D graphics with color icons and a beautifully rendered mapping display. And while the app selection is limited for now, with only Pandora, Stitcher and a pre-installed OnStar app available at launch, Cadillac tells Wired that an app store is on the way. Java and HTML5 are make up the core frameworks, so once developers are granted access to the SDK, Cadillac expects as many as 30 apps to be available within the next year.

But while we had our issues with CUE (growing pains, we’re sure), the configurable display that takes the place of traditional gauges behind the steering wheel never failed to impress.

Image: Cadillac

Four different designs are available, beginning with a simple, three gauge cluster with engine revs on the left, speed in the center and fuel, coolant and phone/navigation/audio on the right. It’s the most traditional display and what most drivers will feel immediately comfortable with.

The second display nixes all the round gauges for a digital speedo at the top, navigation instructions below and other assorted information flanking the sides, while an even more simple display – obviously aimed at some of Cadillac’s aging drivers – only shows speed, fuel level and a few other must-haves.

Finally, there’s a more enthusiast-friendly option, with an oversized tachometer and speedo, partnered with a 3D rendering of the vehicle along with tire pressures, engine temp, navigation and audio controls, all displayed clearly and vividly for the driver. We stuck with the latter during the majority of our drive.

All this tech is pretty useless if the vehicle surrounding it isn’t up to snuff. And here Cadillac has a winner, even though the XTS won’t send chills down the spines of Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz.

Image: Cadillac

The exterior is an odd blend of bold and bland, while the interior is a beautifully appointed mix of leather, wood and contrast stitching (the purple thread in the Platinum models has to be seen to be appreciated). There’s ample room for four people (five in a pinch), with leg and shoulder room abound, and a thoughtful, conservative approach to luxury that’s been utterly lacking from most American automakers. The XTS’ feels a bit more Japanese than German in execution, but injects a bit of emotion into an otherwise bland segment of upmarket rides.

The overall length is on par with Audi’s range-topping, standard wheelbase A8, but the interior dimensions and general size is more closely competitive with the slightly smaller A6, along with the BMW 5 Series and Mercedes-Benz E-Class.

A 3.6-liter V6 engine putting out 304 horsepower and 264 pound-feet of torque is either sent to the front wheels or all four depending on the trim, and no V8 option is planned, despite most of the XTS’ closest competitors offering some form of big or boosted drivetrains. A six-speed automatic is standard across the range, which nets acceptable fuel economy, despite coming in a few cogs short of other luxury players.

Image: Cadillac

We spent time in both a Platinum all-wheel-drive model and a front-driven “base” version, and found both to be pleasing steers that eschew the wafting heritage of past Caddys thanks to a rigid chassis and the standard fitment of Magnetic Ride Control, the same suspension technology that keeps the Corvette ZR1 and Ferrari 599 stuck to the road. The front-wheel-drive model felt more floaty due to the lack of additional grip and weight in the rear, while the all-wheel-drive version was far more planted and – dare we say it – mildly sporty. The steering and brakes were equally at home while navigating the congested confines of Los Angeles – they might not be as composed as the impressive suspension, but are easily up to the task at hand.

But what exactly is that task?

For Cadillac, the XTS is an attempt to reassert itself as the Standard of the World, and that starts with a competent chassis, a plush interior and a revolutionary in-car entertainment system. But with Cadillac still lacking a proper flagship to go up against the BMW 7 Series and Mercedes S-Class, it’s still a ways away from regaining its former title, even though we’ve been assured numerous times that model is on the way. Cadillac’s head exec confided in us that the XTS is “a bridge” for some of the brand’s existing customers to move out of their aging DTS and STS land yachts, but we’ll call the XTS was it is: a tech-rich stopgap that points the brand forward. And with pricing ranging between the mid-$40,000 range up to near $60k, the XTS is a solid alternative to the segment stalwarts, opting for comfort and convenience over sport and speed.

Google has been asked to remove more than 1.2 million urls from its search index in the last month from more than a thousand copyright owners. Want to know how? You can find out using a newly announced copyright removal requests section of Google’s Transparency Report. The requests are being updated in near real-time, and the Targeted Domains list could almost serve as a guide to the most popular Torrent sites for downloading illegal files. The organizations that have filed the most reports are also indexed, and most of them are not who you would expect (Dr. Najeeb Lectures, for example). The odd thing about Google’s feature? There is no obvious way to search the reports by keyword.

Not so long ago, young women pinned their hopes on getting married and forming a nuclear family. But recent statistics–and a bevy of essays championing singlehood–point to a different reality: More and more people are opting to live alone. Every year, the number of singles grows, as financially independent women refuse to compromise when choosing partners and well-to-do men realize they needn’t get hitched to procreate (at least, that’s my reductive take on it).

So will all this have an impact on furniture design? Looking at Matali Crasset’s new table-bed combo for Campeggi, that doesn’t seem like an outlandish question. The keenest designers know how to tap into (and sometimes even shape) burgeoning lifestyle trends, and we’re guessing that the growing number of singles may have informed the French designer’s Sweet Talk and Dream–a tiny TV table surrounded by foam-cushion seating that can unfold into a bed for one. So now you can eat dinner while comfortably watching “The Modern Family,” before stretching out and taking a snooze. Hey, you can leave the dirty dishes and brush your teeth in the morning. Who’s going to nag you?

It’s been a drizzly May here in New York. With so many rainy days, the city’s parks haven’t gotten much use. Which is unfortunate, as one of them–Madison Square Park–is currently inhabited by a group of noisy, brightly colored blobs that ask strangers to play with them.

Admittedly, loud, misshapen lumps that invite you to touch them aren’t an unusual sight in Manhattan’s parks. But these particular blobs are part of California artist Charles Long’s newest piece, Pet Sounds, commissioned Mad. Sq. Art, the arts arm of the Madison Square Park Conservancy.

At its unveiling on May 2nd (another dreary, misty day), Pet Sounds was difficult to miss: Brightly colored blobs slumped in disconcertingly human postures on benches and picnic tables scattered throughout the park. Touching one of the blobs elicited gurgling electronic noises ranging from a few bars of jazz to actual animal noises, activated by electronic sensors embedded in their fiberglass-and-aluminum skin. The “pets” became uncanny instruments, played by the visitors apprehensively exploring them.

Long, whose past work has been shown in the Whitney and MoMA, was gracious enough to answer a few of our questions about Pet Sounds. Below, he talks about the Beach Boys, the theremin, and the hive mind of New York City.

You’ve said before that your artistic process is extremely experiential. What experiences spurred the creation of the piece?

Pet Sounds was three years from start to finish; I spent countless hours in the park observing what happens there and setting up experiments.

I photographed people sleeping on the benches and did drawings of them as amorphous blobs that attached to the park. Soon I was exploring the concept of the park as a mental state, a place of the unconscious, sort of turning the real park in on itself. I began to see the people sitting and dozing on benches as park features, and conversely, I began to see the park features, such as the railings, as snaking limbs. This eventually led to my creation of this system of railings defining paths spilling out onto the great lawn, where they evolve into human-scale blobs, lounging on benches and plopping down on a picnic table.

I wanted people to connect to these blobs, to be affected by them in this strange, abstract way, so I sculpted forms on the scale of the human body. The intense colors, slick surfaces, and elusive figuration seduce further. You can’t place it – it’s what Freud called the uncanny. The slippery forms are so smooth, so synthetically sexy, they beckon to be caressed.

I also wanted the blobs to respond to human touch: physically with vibrations, and then emotionally, through the wide array of sounds that I created in the studio. I sensitized the skins of these masses with numerous unseen “zones,” which must be found through hands-on exploration. Touching different parts of these blobs generates different responses. The entire surface of the blob also acts like a speaker; your hands pick up sounds that cannot be heard and our ears pick up vibrations that might not be felt.

Can you talk a little about the technology at work in the piece?

Each blob has an electronic brain. Wires connecting the numerous sensitized zones of the skin send primitive signals to a microcontroller–sort of like a brain stem–which interprets it according to the significance of that zone. It sends a very specific bit of coded information about this zone to a mini PC, which executes the particular command is associated with that zone.

That command is output to a transducer embedded in the surface of the blob, which activates the skin to act sort of like a speaker – which is very important because these blobs have no mouths. They have no eyes or ears, for that matter. It’s all about touch and vibrations.

How do the Beach Boys figure in?

I borrowed the title for this project from what is considered by many to be the most important pop album ever made. It will always be the touchstone for my creative process. Brian Wilson’s studio work on the Beach Boys’ 1966 masterpiece was certainly one of the most open creative processes of its time, while still yielding an emotionally meaningful and aurally complex collection of songs, which are still accessible to a wide spectrum of listeners today. Pet Sounds is still influencing musicians…

It was the first pop recording to use the Theremin, an electronic instrument that responds sonically in relation to the proximity of the musician’s body – an idea that captivated me as a youth and is part of what I wanted from this project. During the recording of the album, Brian was bringing in sounds like bicycle bells, rattling coke cans, dog whistles, and dog barks, mixing them in with the sublime vocals of the band and dozens of instruments not associated with pop music.

This project is something of a homecoming for you, as New Yorker who moved to LA fairly recently. Is Pet Sounds a reflection of New York?

I still consider New York my home… I’ve seen a lot of great bands and a lot of great art in my 21 years of living here. And I always think of this place as the collective mind that I draw from and contribute to. What New Yorkers think of what I do here matters a lot to me (you people have very high standards, which I am gratefully challenged by). The freshness of the work has less to do with a California Beach Boys style than with my excitement for a very unique engagement with New York and its visitors.

You once collaborated with Stereolab – did you have any musical collaborators on this project?

It would be a dream to collaborate with the Beach Boys, who reunited this year for a 50th anniversary tour (they played the Beacon on May 8 and 9; I would love for them to see this project!).

But for this installation, I was interested in creating a very abstract experience for the viewer/listener, so I didn’t want the kind of nameable presence a musician would bring. If I could have removed myself from the project, it would have been perfect. But I think that can still occur, because the vast majority of visitors will not know my name or care who I am. They will simply enjoy the project on their own, making music as they wish, trying to figure out how to get the sounds they want from the blobs. I presume they will have a good time.

Pet Sounds is on view in Madison Square Park until September 9.

Google just rolled out an update to its Google+ Android app, revamping the layout of the “stream” with bigger photos and less white space, similar to the app’s recent update on iOS. Another highlight: Now users can start video chats — also known as hangouts — right from their phones.

In a blog post, Google says the update is all about “polish and performance.” The change in layout and navigation ties with the search giant’s recent changes to the look of its services, what it calls a “simpler, more beautiful Google.”

Now when users launch the app, they’ll be brought right to their stream instead of a sparse menu of options that’s heavy on the white space. To navigate, simply touch the stream icon (the “house”) in the top right corner. That brings up a menu that slides in from the side — similar to how Facebook‘s mobile apps work.

Google has had mobile support for its multi-person video hangouts since last fall, but today’s update (version 2.6) brings the ability to start them from your Android device, phone or tablet. “Hangout” is now in the main navigation menu — simply tap it and enter the name, email or circle of the people you want to chat with (Hangouts support up to 10 people simultaneously chatting).

In addition to enhanced hangout abilities, Google+ for Android now lets you +1 posts right from the stream, download photos from posts, and even edit posts right on your phone.

Checking out the new version on a couple of Samsung Galaxy devices, we love the improved layout and navigation. The larger layouts for photos really beg to be touched, and the way they “fade in” as you swipe make the app feel more dynamic than it is.

What do you think of the Google+ update? Share your thoughts in the comments.