Thursday May 23, in live streaming in English and Italian.Museums and libraries embracing the Maker initiative include the Exploratorium (CA), the Carnegie Library (PA), the Westport Public Library (CT), the Fayetteville Free Library (NY), the Newark Museum (NJ), the Detroit Public Library (MI), the Chicago Public Library (YOUMedia), to name just a few. These Maker-type activities include digital studios, teen-focused technology toolkits, and mobile digital media labs. These spaces are designed to foster experimentation and creativity for youth in library- and museum-based, out-of-school-time settings.

 NEIL GERSHENFELD, MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Center for Bits and Atoms:  Prof. Gershenfeld is the originator of the growing global network of fab labs that provide widespread access to prototype tools for personal fabrication. Author of numerous publications, featured in media such as The New York Times , The Economist and Foreign Affairs, he has been named one of Scientific American’s 50 leaders in science and technology, and one of 40 Modern-Day Leonardos by the U.S. Museum of Science and Industry. His famous Fab Lab is immensely popular among students at MIT, who crowd Gershenfeld’s classes: http://www.ted.com/speakers/neil_gershenfeld.html . 

 KRISTIN FONTICHIARO, University of Michigan: Kristin Fontichiaro is a clinical assistant professor at the University of Michigan School of Information and faculty founder of Michigan Makers. She is a contributor to and series editor for the Fall 2013 Makers as Innovators book series for middle-grade readers, which covers makerspaces, Maker Faire, game design, digital badging, Arduino, Raspberry Pi, 3D printing, and e-textiles. She has written several books about engaging instructional practices, including Podcasting at School and 21st-Century Learning in School Libraries. She was a member of the inaugural class of the American Library Association’s Emerging Leaders program, named a 2012 Library Journal Mover and Shaker, and has been named Distinguished Alumna of the Library and Information Science Program of Wayne State University.

@activelearning - http://blog.schoollibrarymedia.com/&nbsp  http://fontichiaro.com&nbsp

 SUE CONSIDINE, Executive Director, Fayetteville Free Library: Sue has been named a 2013 Library Journal Mover & Shaker and WCNY Women Who Make America awards.  The Fayetteville Free Library is the first U.S. library that created a maker-space: http://www.forbes.com/sites/tjmccue/2011/11/15/first-public-library-to-create-a-maker-space/.  

Read the many tributes in Per Contra and image by Dr. Lin Tan -

http://www.percontra.net/issues/27/nonfiction/hoffman/

No tracking, no filtering, simply quick relevant results to your questions.  I found several fairly technical searches retrieved matching technical replies. Simpler searches retrieved items from Wikipedia and the like.  There are many other growing services for developers and sites for special interests such as gaming.

April 3 - 5 learn about electronic literature. More powerful than a computer screen, Able to leap from an ebook or a digitized text in a single bound. Look,  It’s a hypertext narrative, literary games, interactive fiction, kinetic poetry! Electronic literature exploits the digital world’s capacity for multiplicity and interactivity to create new forms of literary expression not replicated in print. Like all literature, it explores the human condition—but as “born digital” content it is now mediated by underlying computer code, often combining the written word with sound, images, animation, and video.

There’s a game jam in Los Angeles the weekend before the Game Developers Conference (GDC) which will be a first of its kind.  What’s the Game Developers Conference®? The GDC is the world’s largest and longest-running professionals-only game industry event attracting over 22,500 attendees, and the primary forum where programmers, artists, producers, game designers, audio professionals, business decision-makers and others involved in the development of interactive games gather to exchange ideas and shape the future of the industry. The GDC is produced by the UBM Tech Game Network.

This market defining conference features over 400 lectures, panels, tutorials and round-table discussions on a comprehensive selection of game development topics taught by leading industry experts. In addition, the GDC expo showcases all of the most relevant game development tools, platforms and services helping to drive the industry forward. The conference also features the fourteenth annual Independent Games Festival, the longest-running and largest festival relating to independent games worldwide, where original games compete for the attention of the publishing community, and the twelfth annual Game Developers Choice Awards, the premier accolades for peer-recognition in the digital games industry.

The Game Developers Conference has grown from an informal gathering of about 25 developers in the living room of a notable game designer 26 years ago, to a week-long conference for more than 22,500 industry insiders. In 2011, GDC commemorated the 25th edition of the conference, serving as a testament of how far the industry has come. Initially, the GDC was focused on computer games, but the industry has now diversified to the point that it includes any number of platforms, such as dedicated gaming consoles, handheld devices, mobile, smartphone and tablet devices, online, and of course computers. From year to year, the GDC continues to define market innovations and future vision, providing insight into the future of gaming.

Friskies maker Purina is sponsoring what it is calling the “Games for Cats Hackathon,” a weekend-long jam where aspiring developers will compete to create games (or apps) for cats to play with. The grand prize-winning team will take home $15,000, with $3,000 and $2,000 awards for the runners-up. Thinking of entering, but don’t know where to start? Gamasutra’s got you covered: check out 5 tips for making video games your cat wants to play - http://www.gamasutra.com/view/news/174230/5_tips_for_making_video_games_your_cat_wants_to_play.php#.UUKOEVfCn5Q. Event registration is open - http://gamesforcatshackathon.eventbrite.com/#