Back in 2003 I spent some time in the Milwaukee Art Museum and saw an exhibit by an industrial designer, one of the people who design the class or whoosh into the casing of the stuff we buy. I don't remember the guy's name, though he had a reputation in the Milwaukee area. I do remember he designed the Miller beer logo, the first home clothes dryer (he made sure it had a window so the housewife could see the clothes tumbling around), and the housing for the Evinrude boat motor. It was an enjoyable show.
My friend and debate partner sent me a link to an article about Steven M. Johnson, another industrial designer/inventor/cartoonist/urban planner. The article is delightful and full of whimsy while exploring (and poking holes at) serious social problems. He reminds me of a Japanese practice of having a fresh crop of inventors design some gadgets, knowing they would be impractical -- like containers strapped to the backs of your legs that would agitate clothes in sudsy water while you walked.
As much as I like the Pedaltrain, it may not be a new idea. I first read about it in the book Souls in the Great Machine by Sean McMullin. The book describes a resurgent society after an apocalypse and all of the devices described, including the train, are human powered because of a lack of electricity and gasoline. The Great Machine in this case is a computer in which the individual processing bits are actual humans. I enjoyed the book but didn't bother with its two sequels.
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