Recent Highlights

News

09/01/2009	The 2009-2010 ATC Lecture Series Program The 2009-2010 Art, Technology, and Culture Lecture Series Program is now available http://atc.berkeley.edu/
09/01/2009	Margaret Rhee was named a 2009-2010 HASTAC Scholar http://www.hastac.org/about-hastac-scholars-program
05/17/2009	Opinion Space: A New Approach to Visualizing Opinions http://opinion.berkeley.edu
04/22/2009	UC Berkeley Researchers Announce New Approach to Viewing Opinions "Sample Screenshot from Opinion Space website where each participant is represented by a clickable point in the constellation of viewpoints" On April 22, 2009, the Berkeley Center for New Media at the University of California, Berkeley, launched "Opinion Space", an experimental new system for visualizing opinions and exchanging ideas. Opinion Space is designed to go beyond one-dimensional polarities such as left/right and blue/red to actively encourage dialogue between people with differing viewpoints. "Massive collaboration is driven by passionate people with divergent viewpoints who come from all walks of life. UC Berkeley's 'Opinion Space' is an exciting new visual model that helps people learn about and interact with each other. This kind of mutual awareness could have far-reaching implications." - Jay Walsh, Head of Communications, The Wikimedia Foundation. Responding to a public demand for "participatory media", Opinion Space offers an alternative to existing comment lists on news and commercial websites. "Linear lists are often dominated by extreme postings that can oversimplify and overshadow the rich variety of viewpoints," said Howard Rheingold, author of Smart Mobs. In contrast, Opinion Space allows users to express their opinions and visualize where they stand relative to a diversity of other viewpoints. It introduces an innovative method for automatically highlighting the most insightful comments and participants. Opinion Space charts individual participants in a constellation of opinions and connectivity. "New tools are needed to actively engage online groups in dialogue and decision-making on topics ranging from from art to public policy to zoology." said Ken Goldberg, one of the UC Berkeley professors developing the system. It works like this: visitors use sliders to indicate their opinions on five short propositions and type their initial response to a "Discussion Question" that changes every two weeks. Participants visualize where they stand as a glowing point in relation to other points in the visual display of "Opinion Space", where neighboring points represent people with similar opinions. Participants are encouraged to explore and rate the comments of others, and can change their own responses and comments at any time. The first Opinion Space and discussion questions focus on topics related to U.S. politics. In the coming months, new Opinion Spaces will be created on topics such as the Economy, Education, and the Environment. As users participate, researchers at UC Berkeley will refine the system, adding new functionality and features. Team: Ken Goldberg: BCNM and IEOR and EECS, and School of Information Gail de Kosnik: BCNM and Prof. Dept of Theater, Dance, and Performance Studies Kimiko Ryokai : BCNM and Prof. School of Information Meghan Laslocky: Content Consultant Tavi Nathanson: EECS Graduate Student Ephrat Bitton: IEOR Graduate Student Zach Blas: Film Studies Graduate Student Liz Goodman: School of Information Graduate Student Siamak Faridani: IEOR Graduate Student David Wong: EECS Undergraduate Student Alex Sydell: EECS Undergraduate Student
04/22/2009	Opinion Space -- New Tool Maps Your Viewpoint Marcus Chan, San Francisco Chronicle http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/techchron/detail?blogid=19&entry_id=38849
12/16/2008	Respectful Camera Privacy, Respectful Cameras, and John Baldessari, video on Current TV by Tom Green (Dec 2008) http://current.com/items/89565629/respectful_cameras.htm
12/11/2008	Tangible fun at UC Berkeley's virtual projects Patricia Yollin, San Francisco Chronicle ISchool Professor Kimiko Ryokai, BCNM Associate Director for Communications, held open house for the 11 final projects in "Theory and Practice of Tangible User Interfaces" on Dec. 10, 2008.
10/29/2008	Upcoming Symposium on Appropriating Visual Imagery in the Digital Age Berkeleyan, 29 October 2008
10/29/2008	Homeland Insecurity: Storyteller and Musician Laurie Anderson on Art and Technology Berkeleyan, 29 October 2008 Laurie Anderson performed Homeland at Zellerbach Hall on 25 October and 26 October, 2008. Between the two performances of Homeland, Anderson spoke in Wheeler Hall with Ken Goldberg, director of Berkeley’s Center for New Media, in a discussion that touched on artistic freedom, technology, and the role of artists.
10/23/2008	Prof. Greg Niemeyer's MacArthur Foundation Black Cloud Project The Black Cloud Project is a game that a UC Berkeley professor and a high school English teacher created to help students understand global warming. Students at Manual Arts placed pollution sensors around their neighborhood in South Los Angeles and analyzed the data. They found that the carbon dioxide level in their classroom was ten times the normal amount, making it more polluted than the local gas station. Watch this week’s web exclusive video to find how the students at Manual Arts High fixed their CO2 dilemma.