The New York Moon

REtune™

A Revolution in personal translation

by ZACK SULTAN & SETH ULLMAN

By the end of 1999, the first prototypes for U.S. military grade universal translators were already being cobbled together in a Taiwanese laboratory.

ABOUT BLUEPRINTS
SUBMIT A BLUEPRINT

An early “wearable language translation device”

Developed by Taipei-based ViA Technologies, Inc., the “wearable language translation device” would be a jagged hunk of black plastic nearly a foot in length — reminiscent of early mobile phones. It would be worn around the neck of soldiers in the field to provide, “a near real time, two way, mobile, lightweight, robust and low cost multi-lingual language translation device” which could be “operated with minimal training in a hands free manner.”

Perhaps the device’s translations would be shaky at first, but as the technology improves (see the sinister sounding “Voxtec Phraselator”), one can expect to have meaningful conversations with foreigners mediated through a friendly box of digitized dictionaries, speech recognition software, and voice synthesizers.

Many of our favorite consumer technologies, like the Internet and movies, were first developed for their military utility.

We demand nothing less of the “wearable language translation device.” Cultivated to the tastes of focus groups, the universal translator is destined to become smaller, sexier, faster, and most importantly, tailored to you: a hedonistic “experience machine” that translates reality to your tastes in near real time.
We propose:


	LIFE IS FULL OF MISUNDERSTANDINGS. BUT WITH RETUNE, YOU’LL NEVER MISS A WORD. No matter where you go, no matter who you’re with, RETUNE lets you hear what you want to hear. A revolution in personal translation technology, RETUNE does more than let you speak to the odd locals in exotic locales. With our proprietary network of user-driven content, and OpenWiki 3.0 technology, sound is translated into your personal language: your business, your music, your cool. Introducing your world, clearly.
With hundreds of applications, RETUNE without limits. Experience some of our defining products: RETUNE YOUR WORLD Filter out rudeness, expunge catcalls, eradicate flatulence. Customize all your interactions to your preferences. With RETUNE extensions, there’s no telling what you can do. Our popular vernacular packs let you decode even the most slang-heavy dialects, from Appalachian to TXTMSG. RETUNE YOUR MUSIC With the RhythmThought Modulator, now with "LiquidWorldSync" technology. Music is important to you wherever you are. Where you are is important to you, whatever you are listening to. Explore the rhythm of the street, as the birds, the cars, the wind, and your subway companions’ chatter are incorporated into your music on the fly. Your music comes from all over the world. Return a touch of your world to your music. RETUNE YOUR CAREER Boss a jerk? Join the club. But don’t let him ruin your day. With the Work-Tune Suite, RETUNE transforms his rancor into constructive criticism, bringing harmony to your 9-5. Clarify confusing jargon and navigate your industry with ease. Move beyond the color of your collar and make Retune work for you. And Now... RETUNE FOR KIDS AND BABY Spend more quality time with your child. Respond effectively to their needs. With BabyGo, every word will count, giving your baby a vital head start. Translates baby talk with up to 70% accuracy. As they get older, they begin to understand, but sometimes a little too much. Utilizing V-TUNE, you can effectively screen your child from whatever you consider profane. Bring your family’s values everywhere you go. Now, in partnership with Disney™, V-Tune can help your child tune into the Magic™, available at over 300 locations nationwide.

LIFE IS FULL OF MISUNDERSTANDINGS. BUT WITH RETUNE, YOU’LL NEVER MISS A WORD.
No matter where you go, no matter who you’re with, RETUNE lets you hear what you want to hear. A revolution in personal translation technology, RETUNE does more than let you speak to the odd locals in exotic locales. With our proprietary network of user-driven content, and OpenWiki 3.0 technology, sound is translated into your personal language: your business, your music, your cool. Introducing your world, clearly.

With hundreds of applications, RETUNE without limits.
Experience some of our defining products:

RETUNE YOUR WORLD
Filter out rudeness, expunge catcalls, eradicate flatulence. Customize all your interactions to your preferences. With RETUNE extensions, there’s no telling what you can do. Our popular vernacular packs let you decode even the most slang-heavy dialects, from Appalachian to TXTMSG.

RETUNE YOUR MUSIC
With the RhythmThought Modulator, now with "LiquidWorldSync" technology. Music is important to you wherever you are. Where you are is important to you, whatever you are listening to. Explore the rhythm of the street, as the birds, the cars, the wind, and your subway companions’ chatter are incorporated into your music on the fly. Your music comes from all over the world. Return a touch of your world to your music.

RETUNE YOUR CAREER
Boss a jerk? Join the club. But don’t let him ruin your day. With the Work-Tune Suite, RETUNE transforms his rancor into constructive criticism, bringing harmony to your 9-5. Clarify confusing jargon and navigate your industry with ease. Move beyond the color of your collar and make Retune work for you.

And Now...
RETUNE FOR KIDS AND BABY
Spend more quality time with your child. Respond effectively to their needs. With BabyGo, every word will count, giving your baby a vital head start. Translates baby talk with up to 70% accuracy. As they get older, they begin to understand, but sometimes a little too much. Utilizing V-TUNE, you can effectively screen your child from whatever you consider profane. Bring your family’s values everywhere you go. Now, in partnership with Disney™, V-Tune can help your child tune into the Magic™, available at over 300 locations nationwide.

ABOUT
BLUEPRINTS

A New York Moon “Blueprint” is essentially an idea encapsulated in a short amount of words or imagery. It is something that could occur to as you ride the subway or right before you fall asleep. The Moon is interested in publishing re-imaginings of the city or world, and proposals that are as much thought experiments as possible creations. For example, if you think the intersection outside your house could be designed better or at least in a way more accomodating to human interaction, draw it and submit it, or photoshop it. On another plane, if you, in a fit of Fourierism, have a novel idea about to organize your building’s daily routine so as to inspire creativity and love, we are all ears and eyes. It is best, perhaps, to read a few blueprints to get a better understanding of how they work.

Submit Blueprints to: newyorkmoon@gmail.com