So I went to Ken Perlin's lab with the students from my New Media class and we had a very nice time. Ken was very gracious in inviting us to join him that afternoon. We spent a little over an hour watching him demonstrate some of his inventions. He explained a lot about his desire to simplify things such as human movement or expression and how, by doing so, he is able to create simulations or animations via a computer. It was interesting for me to see his interest in human nature and the basic functions that allow us to live our daily lives.
Perhaps the most interesting thing that he mentioned was his Games for Learning Institute. Having developed a really close relationship with a young autistic boy named Liam, my heart lies very close to causes near and dear to him and his overall development. Part of what makes life a struggle for him is his inability to communicate effectively with others. The Games for Learning Institute seeks to develop gaming platforms that promote even the most basic elements of child development and education such as elementary communication skills. Initial feedback regarding the program from individuals related to special needs children has been extremely positive. I can only imagine what games like this can do for people like my buddy Liam. I look forward to following the growth of this institute in the future. The link to this website is: http://g4li.org/
Another topic mentioned during Ken's presentation was a novel contest...
November is apparently novel month. In honor of this, people are being challenged to write a 50,000 word novel between midnight November 1st and 11:59pm November 30th. Ken is participating in this challenge alongside a younger friend of his who has also expressed creative interest in the project. While I have absolutely no desire to write a novel within the next four weeks, I certainly appreciate their attempts to do so. More power to you, Ken.
That's all for now. I'll update soon.
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