Fifteen seconds on Google will point you toward a glut of puns regarding Justin Timberlake’s 20/20 “career vision.” His confirmation of a second album later this year with another 10 tracks brings the 20/20 puns full circle. For the amount of music here, a whopping 70 minutes worth, we’re left a little less than satisfied. [...]
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Music is easiest to explain through analogies. We describe new artists as combinations of other artists, who in turn are combinations of others. Though uncreative, it remains a construct to extrapolate swiftly and with minimal effort. While a simple means, there’s always the mental battle to pick the perfect parallels. Does this band sound more [...]
Continue readingThe drama of Anne Hathaway has become a proliferation of society’s willingness to kill our idols. A more than splendid actress, Hathaway has gained a reputation of diva-ism and morphed into the prototypical try-hard. She’ll do anything to please naysayers, going as far as drafting up and practicing her Oscar acceptance speech for her performance [...]
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Skylar Bergl
Email me: skylarbergl@gmail.com
On this blog, you’ll find the assorted writings of a young writer. I try to wear many hats.
— 23
— Writer
— Journalist
— Brooklynite
— Reader
— Music lover
— Conversationalist
Clips
Esquire.com
A Robot Basketball to Fix Your Lousy Jumper
— a look at 94Fify’s basketball that can measure a variety of in-game metrics to help players improve their game.
Dwell.com
The Life Aquatic
— profiling a Kickstarter project looking to fund a sustainable fish tank garden for the kitchen
Shedding a new “Lightt”
— looking at a new life clip sharing app, Lightt
A Glimpse of Google’s Data Centers
— when Google released photos of their global data centers, we took a look at the design behind the search giant
The Potential of a One-Square-Meter House
— Van Bo Le-Mentzal designed a one-square-meter house as a project to get people thinking about how they use their personal space
An Innovative Air Purifier
— a slideshow regarding a modern air purifier you can hang in your home that uses the greenhouse effect to clean the air
Living in a Belgian Water Tower
— a slideshow about the Chateau d’Eau in Belgium that is a converted water tower apartment
A New Model for Suburbia
— a slideshow covering a futuristic and sustainable new way to layout suburban areas of major metropolitan cities
Fast Company
Most Innovative Companies 2013—Tesla Motors
— a short look at Tesla Motors, No. 22 on our list of Most Innovative Companies
Most Innovative Companies 2013—Evernote
— an infographic comparing the functions and capacity of our No. 39 company, Evernote, and the human brain
Most Innovative Companies 2013—AngelList
— breaking down the funding, location and areas of expertise of AngelList, an online venture capital website and No. 47 company on our list
Most Innovative Companies 2013—Tumblr
— looking at No. 50 Tumblr’s migration to ads and paid content by comparing the most popular content providers on the platform.
Wallaby Financial
— about Wallaby, a credit card that analyzes the perks of all your credit cards and decides statistically which card to put the purchase on.
What’s Popular on Tumblr
— covering a project to build the first real Tumblr analytics platform by Derrick Bradley at Undercurrent in New York
Your Company Name Goes Here
— a piece about the lucrative naming rights business and some of the strangest things to get corporate sponsorship.
A Mobile Kitchen That Works Inside and Out
— a look at a sleek, mobile kitchen unit designed by Italian designer Elia Mangia. For FastCoDesign
Map of London Surnames
— a short story about an infographic designed by an English graphic designer that plotted the spread of last names by their popularity. For FastCoDesign
Popular Mechanics
The World’s 18 Strangest Pools
— a highly successful slideshow showcasing some of the strangest pools around the globe
Two-Moon Theory
— an interview with Astronaut Harrison Schmitt regarding a recent scientific simulation
EV Highway
— about the planing and construction of a green/electric highway along the West Coast
Taking Your Kindle to The Beach
— the possibility of sand damaging your Kindle
Drake Magazine
We Made It In America
— a story about vintage workwear/menswear store Greenwich Vintage in Minneapolis, MN
No Pain No Gain
— a feature on The Pains of Being Pure At Heart, including an interview with lead singer, Kip Berman
Urban Plains Magazine Spring 2012
Dont Leave Home Without It
— a firsthand look at one of the best haberdasheries in the Midwest, Heimie’s Haberdashery in St. Paul, MN, from the eyes of a sartorially-obsessed college student
Almost Famous
— a story on rising Midwest music artists such as Jaill, Phaseone, Poison Control Center, Solid Gold and Light Pollution
Brewers of The Lost Art
— a feature about an ’80s-inspired coffee shop located in Chicago called The Wormhole
Suburban Life Publications
Kevin Guilfoile Q&A
— a Q & A with author Kevin Guilfoile about his recent book The Thousands
Melanie Lamoureax Q&A
— a Q & A with BAM Theater director Melanie Lamoreaux
Chicagoland Mountain Biking
— a guide to the Chicagoland mountain biking scene and everything needed to get started
Resume
To download a PDF of my resume, click here
Experience
Editorial Intern, Fast Company
Fast Company // New York, NY // May 2012 to Present
Responsible for fact-checking print stories; contact sources to confirm accuracy of quotes, facts and statistics; brainstorm and pitch stories; write stories.
Editor-In-Chief, Urban Plains Magazine
Des Moines, IA / September 2011 to December 2011
Oversaw the production of iPad magazine; managed staff; utilized MagPlus publishing software; researched and edited magazine; wrote feature story; coordinated staff meetings; assigned stories to writers; managed workflow.
Editorial Apprentice, Recipe.com, Meredith Corporation
Des Moines, IA / September 2011 to Present
Manage reader response and interaction; create quizzes; assist in recipe assessment and pricing; maintain Recipe.com Mixing Bowl group; complete user-testing for Meredith mobile apps.
Web Intern, Popular Mechanics, Hearst Corporation
New York, NY / May 2011 to August 2011
Formatted and produced stories for the Popular Mechanics website; worked extensively with Magnus CMS; wrote stories; interviewed subjects and transcribed interviews; maintained community section.
Staff Writer, 365 Albums a Year
Des Moines, IA / November 2010 to January 2012
Wrote weekly album reviews; communicated with editor and other writers using staff messageboard; assisted with yearly lists.
Editorial Intern, Suburban Life Publications
Downers Grove, IL / June 2010 to August 2010
Wrote articles for print and online editions of newspaper; attended editors meetings; interviewed subjects for stories.
Social Media Intern, On Pitch Media
Des Moines, IA / June 2010 to August 2010
Manage the Twitter and Facebook Feeds for music venue, Vaudeville Mews; format and distribute wekly email newsletter; research bands for shows.
Freelance
Esquire.com
Dwell.com
Meredith Corporation at More.com
Urban Plains Magazine Spring 2011
Yellowbrick Music Press
COED Magazine
Drake Magazine
Education
Drake University, Des Moines, Iowa
Magazine Journalism major
English minor
Graduation date: May 2012
Technical Skills
Basic: Mac OS X, Microsoft Office.
Creative: Adobe Photoshop, inDesign and Illustrator, Photography (film and digital) and photo editing.
Technical: HTML, CSS, SEO, Google Analytics, Omniture. CMS: Magnus, Drupal, WordPress and Tumblr, Basecamp.
Other: Avid social media user and blogger.