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IAP 2007 Activities by Sponsor

Media Arts & Sciences

'Library Music' - installation and workshop at the Lewis Music Library
Tod Machover, Peter Munstedt, Media Lab grad students
No enrollment limit, no advance sign up
Participants welcome at individual sessions (series)

Come help vibrate and pulsate the usually sedate Music Library!

The MIT Media Lab and the Lewis Music Library are collaborating to present 'Library Music', a group of interactive music installations that explore the relationship between space, movement, touch and sound. Curated by Professor Tod Machover, these ten experiences were created by Media Lab grad students and range from musical stairs to tactile rainfall to a sonorous, robotic chandelier.
Contact: Ariane Martins, E15-443, x3-1613, ariane@media.mit.edu
Cosponsor: Libraries

Installation
Tod Machover, Peter Munstedt, Media Lab grad students
Students' installations open to the public.
Tue Jan 16, Wed Jan 17, Thu Jan 18, 03-05:00pm, Lewis Music Library

Workshop / Demonstration
Tod Machover, Peter Munstedt, Media Lab grad students
In this culminating workshop/demonstration, the student designers will explain the how, what and why of their installations and will be available to guide visitors through each experience. In addition, the Lewis Music Library staff will share some of its hidden treasures that are particularly relevant in this context. Refreshments will be served!
Fri Jan 19, 02-05:00pm, Lewis Music Library

Behind the Curtain
Matthew Hockenberry, Connor Dickie, Jon Wetzel
Tue Jan 16, 04-07:00pm, E15-320
Wed Jan 17, 01-04:00pm, E15-320

No limit but advance sign up required (see contact below)
Signup by: 15-Jan-2007
Participants requested to attend all sessions (non-series)

Unfortunately, "if you build it they will come" only worked in the movie Field of Dreams.

In this fast-paced workshop, we want you to be as excited about seeing what other people do with your idea as you are building it in the first place. The workshop will take place over two days (and possibly one very long night).

You’ll have to build something, but don’t worry: we’re not going to break out the resistors and hammers. We thought it would be good to start with some materials that everyone can deal with (cardboard, markers, and maybe scissors – if you don’t run).

By building things to look like they would, and ‘work’ like they should, we can see how the design actually impacts people before we waste all of our solder and bits.

We’ll feed you, get materials, and bring some users. All you bring is your imagination.
Web: http://www.creativesynthesis.net/behindthecurtain/
Contact: Matthew Hockenberry, E15-324, (412) 726-9753, hock@media.mit.edu

Hacking Second Life
Pathfinder Linden Linden Lab, Josh Lifton, Jeff Orkin, Lis Sylvan
Tue Jan 16, 23, 30, 02-05:00pm, TBA

Enrollment limited: first come, first served
Limited to 50 participants.
Participants requested to attend all sessions (non-series)

This workshop will introduce participants to the Second Life virtual world and its various technical capabilities. A representative from Linden Lab, the makers of Second Life, will lead the workshop with the assistance of several experienced Second Life residents local to MIT.
Contact: Pattie Maes, sl-iap-org@media.mit.edu

Imagine Processing at NASA Ames: Robots, Space Science, Google, and You
Cory Kidd
Tue Jan 23, 04-06:00pm, E15-2nd floor, Wiesner Conference Room

Single session event

From autonomous vision-based rover operations to Lunar and Martian
geology to using imagery to bring space exploration to the public, the
Intelligent Systems Division at the NASA Ames Research Center develops
software to help solve a wide range of NASA image processing problems.
This talk will include a presentation of a variety of different research endeavors.
Contact: Cory Kidd, E15-485, x2-5612, coryk@media.mit.edu

Taming the Borg: Design Principles for Transparent Use
Joseph Dvorak, Motorola Scientist in Residence
Tue Jan 23, 01-05:00pm, E15-283a (Roth Room)

Enrollment limited: first come, first served
Limited to 20 participants.
Single session event

Ever wonder why electronic devices are so hard to use? This workshop discusses design principles that encourage transparent use. Devices that are transparent to use require minimal effort to configure and set up, require very little effort to use, and we are rarely aware of them when they are with us but not being used.

This workshop introduces the concept of Operational Inertia and discusses several principles and techniques to minimize it. Minimizing Operational Inertia is a key to designing for transparent use. Originally applied to wearable devices and cell phones, these principles can be applied to any device or service requiring human interaction. Examples of the application of the design principles will be given.
Contact: Joseph Dvorak,, E15-329, 253-0329, j.dvorak@media.mit.edu


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Massachusetts Institute of Technology
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Last update: 30 September 2004