[Baypiggies] Singularity University and Open Allure

[John Graves]

Dear Bay Area Python User Group folks:

80 graduate students from around the planet have assembled at NASA
Ames this summer for a 10 week program (Singularity University GSP10)
which aims to use exponentially developing technologies to address
some of the world's Grand Challenges including Food, Water, Energy,
Upcycling and Space.

Many of the students feel Education also deserves to be a priority
project because of the leverage you get from having smarted people
working to solve the world's problems.  As it happens, Python may be
able to play a key role in realizing this vision.  I'm one of the
GSP10 students from New Zealand.  The open source Open Allure project
( http://openallureds.org ) which is the subject of my PhD research is
Python-based.  Open Allure is a new voice-and-vision enabled
educational software which supports collaborative content creation via
simple scripts which can be posted on any blog or wiki page.  Think of
it as a new kind of web browser that takes the computer OUT of the
user interface -- you communicate THROUGH the computer asynchronously
without using the mouse or keyboard: you talk, the computer listens,
talks back and watches for gestures (and ultimately facial
expressions) using your Skype hardware -- a webcam and headset
microphone.

If you'd like to learn more about this (and maybe come to a cool party
tonight Thursday, 1 July) give me a call on 650-417-4149.

I hope to attend your next meeting and would be very interested in an
opportunity to talk about Open Allure.

Cheers,

John Graves
GSP10 Student
Singularity University
http://singularityu.org