We just finished up a two-day convening of 80-some representatives of various projects funded by the Digital Media and Learning department of the MacArthur Foundation. It's sort of a Jedi Council of the most bad ass researchers, educators, game designers, and techies in the field of 21st century learning. It's good to connect again with…
Category: Virtual Worlds
Talking about Digital Learning at UC Irvine
To the right is a picture from the John Wayne International Airport in Santa Ana, California, where I flew in this afternoon. I'm at UC Irvine with Rafi for a MacArthur Foundation Digital Media and Learning grantees meeting. We're joining a bunch of super smart people who are conducting a wide range of research, field…
Machinima “book trailer” for thriller novel Cemetery Street (video)
My friends at Ill Clan studios produced this sweet little machinima as a "book trailer" for the young adult thriller novel Cemetery Street by Brenda Seabrooke. Produced in Second Life, it's an interesting marketing tactic to attract new readers in the YouTube era. In related news, Ill Clan's "Tiny Nation" series has been accepted for…
Intellagirl talks about her study of 80 virtual worlds and online games tomorrow
Just got word that Sarah "Intellagirl" Robbins will be speaking on "Games and Virtual Worlds in Education: MMORPGs, MUVEs, Games…What's the difference?" at Indiana University Bloomington tomorrow, February 10, at 12pm EST. People can attend remotely using Adobe Connect at this link and log in as a guest. Here's the description: Today there are over…
Virtual LOLcats insulin pumps raise awareness about the dangers of diabetes
What you see here is a closeup of the virtual insulin pump worn by my dragon avatar in Second Life, courtesy of Noelyci Ingmann. Hamlet Au just blogged about the pump — which comes in a "regular" and a "LOLcats" version believe it or not — so I had to check it out. The free…
Indian nonprofit “Child Rights and You” in Second Life
While I was visiting the Tata Indicom sim in Second Life, I stopped by the virtual headquarters of CRY – Child Rights and You – just one sim over. CRY is "an inclusive, participatory, people's movement" that campaigns for "child rights for India's children" according to the automated text that greets you as you arrive….
Tata Indicom launches contest for amateur art, music and photos in Second Life
Shell Caerndow sends me the news that Indian telecom company Tata Indicom has launched a contest for amateur artists to submit their artwork, photos or music for a chance to win fabulous prizes including iPods, digital cameras and digital picture frames. Between now and March 2009, you can register online and submit your work for…
Uganda teen addresses youth in Teen Second Life about HIV/AIDS in Africa
Yesterday, I organized a special fireside chat on the Teen Grid of Second Life focused on HIV/AIDS in Africa. The workshop began with Rafi leading a small group of teens in an exercise to have them think about the links between poverty and HIV/AIDS, and the role of Western governments in the fight against AIDS….
Understanding Islam through Virtual Worlds: the machinima, graphic novel and report!
As previously reported, on Thursday, I had the pleasure of attending the event "Understanding Islam through Virtual Worlds" at the Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs. The gathering featured Rita King and Joshua Fouts discussing their project to research how Muslims have been using virtual worlds as a medium to express their faith, find…
Draxtor’s report on Human Rights in Second Life on PBS Frontline/World
My buddy Draxtor Despres filed his first story for PBS's "Frontline/World" show today, about human rights advocacy within Second Life. Drax focused his reporting on the Virtual Gitmo camp created by Nonny de la Peña and Peggy Weil. And he describes the somewhat mixed reception he got from other human rights activists in Paris when…