Hollywood2020

ARE BRAIN DRAIN GAMES IN OUR FUTURE?

Will the new brain-controlled video games be dangerous...just a sane thought from Joyce Schwarz @www.hollywood2020.blogs.com.

The hottest thing to be promo'd at the GDC (Game Developers Show) appears to be this new 'brain-controlled' controller system. Which gives the user a view not unlike a Minority Report or a holographic experience at some level. Click on JPEG above to see BBC.com pix.

Will the new controllers drain our brains-- what if a virus hits the system? hmmm any 1 thinking about that or is kewl just too new! Or new just too kewl? Here's the link to an article on TMC.net....www.emotiv.com for more info.

A New Headset For Those With Gaming On Their Mind
TMCnet - 17 hours ago
By Stefania Viscusi, TMCnet Assistant Editor Emotiv Systems, well known for their brain computer interface technology work, has announced their latest ...

THEBROTH.COM OGDC SPONSOR SPEAKS OUT ON COLLABORATION IN GAMES & ONLINE EXPERIENCES

THEBROTH.COM founder speaks out on collaboration online and in multiplayer experiences in a TEN TON HAMMER interview that was done at the OGDC www.ogdc2007.com.

www.thebroth.com -- next generation art experience collaboration!

Blogged by Joyce Schwarz @ www.hollywood2020.blogs.com.

What role does collaboration play for Americans online? Are we too independent and want to do it all ourselves or will we work with others to accomplish a goal. Personally, I think that the success of American Idol text messaging and phone call voting shows that collaboration when channeled toward a specific goal is a big opportunity in the USA.

Take a look at this terrific article that interviews the CEO of www.thebroth.com which is an amazing site that looks at interactive and collaborative art experiences online from the website Ten Ton Hammer:

http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/7830

OGDC 07 - Collaborative Art and MMOs? - Markus Weichselbaum Interviewed full disclosure "Thebroth.com is also a JCOM client.)

Now for something completely different. At OGDC 2007, we sat down with Markus Weichselbaum, Founder and CEO of theBroth.com - a website geared toward collabortive art for the global online community. Markus, an Australian from Austria (you read that right!) holding a Ph.D. in biophysics, is at least as much of an interesting person as you might imagine him to be, and he has a vision to take the methodology, technology, and lessons learned from his website into other online spaces, including MMORPGs. How would that work? It turns out that the prospects could very well be revolutionary. For the full story go to: http://www.tentonhammer.com/node/7830 (

Macau Makes More Money than VEGAS from gambling!

Seems impossible but a small island off the coast of the China mainland is taking in more gambling bucks than Vegas now. Really! by Joyce Schwarz, blogging at www.hollywood2020.blogs.com.

Macau, the former Portuguese enclave on the south coast of China, has overtaken the Las Vegas Strip as the world’s biggest gambling market, fuelled by a boom in casino developments.

The 3,000-year-old obsession of the Chinese with gambling pushed revenues 22 per cent higher to $6.95 billion in Macau last year, slightly ahead of the predicted turnover figure of $6.5 billion for the famous Strip in Las Vegas.

COMPETITIVE GAMING IN BEIJING OLYMPICS?

Up at Digital Hollywood North (BUILDING BLOCKS) in San Jose...some of us were talking about video games as an Olympic sport...a couple of folks didn't quite believe it...so I thought I'd put a few links to legit sources that are following that story..

Competitive gaming trying to earn a berth in the Olympics - May ...

Should video games be a part of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing? ... "This is the natural place for an exhibition Olympic video game tournament to occur ... money.cnn.comCached - /2006/05/31/commentary/game_over/column_gaming/index.htm - 38k - Cached -

Here's a screengrab of CNN's poll on the subject:

1. Should video games be a part of the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing? Dude! Cool! 14% It deserves discussion 5% Are you kidding? 81% total responses to this question: 14923

OKAY WHAT ABOUT MOTOCROSS INSTEAD????

CNN.com - Transcripts

Bicycle motorcross, BMX, will be an official Olympic sport for the first time in the Summer Games. That's for 2008 in Beijing. It follows the arrival of ... transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0307/02/lt.08.html - 29k - Cached -

INTERNET IN 2015 -- DYSON & CERF SOUND OFF

GURUS ESTHER DYSON AND VINTON G CERF -- sound off about what the next decade will look for the Internet -- fascinating link to a free (yes, no charge) story on Wall Street Journal late last week-- here's the link:

..... next 10 years online
Vinton G. Cerf, one of the architects of the Internet, and technology pundit Esther Dyson exchanged a series of e-mails about what the Web will bring in the next decade. Both see an Internet that extends to all kinds of devices -- including luggage, household appliances and a range of consumer electronics.   The Wall Street Journal (free content) (5/4) 

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THAT WSJ ARTICLE INCLUDE: WSJ OVERVIEW: Cerf envisions an interplanetary network, Dyson ponders a loss of privacy and an information glut.

CERF-- key points: Mobility has entered the world, big time,Geo-indexed information has increased in value Broadband is finally coming, and is highly penetrant already in some communities Channel surfing will be replaced by menu selection,By the end of the decade, we will have a two planet Internet in operation,The Internet reaches only about a billion users so there are another 5.5 billion to go.

DYSON -- keypoints: The Internet will have become more ubiquitous but less visible,most things will have Internet identities ,the biggest issue will be not search but filtering:  fundamental shift in the balance of power towards,much harder for consumers to get free content anonymously individuals. People go on the Web in search of attention; they don't want to give it as much as get it. It's just that the advertisers are not the center of attention ,people judge their own worth by their number of friends (Friendster) or fans (MySpace) or business contacts (LinkedIn). Internet of the future will be much more tightly linked to physical space.

DYSON'S BIG QUESTION ---who controls the filtering: individuals, organizations or governments? Will it be done transparently?

WSJ ASKS: What do you think the Internet will look like a decade from now? Join a discussion.

Watch this blog for Hollywood2020's forecast on the Internet in 2015-- in fact in Joyce Schwarz book, "MULTIMEDIA: GATEWAY TO THE NEXT MILLENNIUM" she forecasts the multi-media world of 2015 in her opening paragraphs...for an advance preview, email her at [email protected].

( Megacities 2015)

WHAT OTHER'S SAY ABOUT INTERNET 2015: What will the internet be like in the year 2015?

What will the internet be like in the year 2015? ... Kevin Kelly, founder of Wired, writes about his predictions for the internet in 2015 where everyone is ... digg.com/technology/What_will_ the_internet_be_like_in_the_year_2015_ - 11k - Cached - Internet in 2015 - ScenarioThinking.org  Our scenario will focus on: The future of the Internet in 2015 ... After much sweat and thought we have converged our Internet in 2015 Scenario Snapshots to ... scenariothinking.org/wiki/index.php/Internet_in_2015 - 14k - The Future of the Internet in China 2015 - ScenarioThinking.org AND OF COURSE GOOGLEZON: Flash » Epic 2015 Epic 2015. Epic 2015. by Robin Sloan and Matt Thompson. Save · Send · AIM. The Internet in developing nations Let us consider one possible Grand Challenge: Connecting every rural village to the Internet by 2015. After a decade of evangelism and work, ... www.firstmonday.org/issues/issue9_4/press/ - 50k - Cached - Cached -www.albinoblacksheep.com/flash/epic - 4k - Cached -

NASRIN AUTOMATED RACING NETWORK JUST IN TIME FOR KENTUCKY DERBY

SCI-GAMES ROLLS OUT RACING: Quantum Data Center Rollout

Following up on one word on the www.kentuckyderby.com I looked into what Nasrin(TM) is/was and here's what I found next-gen automated race betting &more...have some fun reading about it after your horse wins or lose in the Kentucky Derby.

NASRIN™ along with our parent company, Scientific Games, has begun the buildout of two state-of the-art Data Centers to further enhance the stability of the existing pari-mutuel network. With facilities on both the East and West Coast, we are ensuring no regional disasters will impact the critical operations of the network.  Redundancy and security have been key in the design and construction of this Tier 1 facility.  From the redundant UPS power systems to the highly available core Cisco Systems routing equipment and Intrusion Protection Systems, we are providing a true platform for the future.

Tote Link Requests Are A Snap On the NASRIN™ Website
The NASRIN™ Web site can now be used to efficiently request new tote links for our customers.  If you are planning to take a new track, all you need to do is go to NASRIN.com, click on "Add a Track", and enter the following information:

• In the first four boxes, enter the date, your name, phone number, and email address
• In the "Track Name" box, enter the name of your organization
• In the "Track Adding" pull down box, select the track that you would like to take
• In the "Start Date" box, enter the month/day/year that you want to start taking the track
• Use additional "Track Adding" and "Start Date" boxes as necessary
• Click on "Submit"

Click on thumbnail to see first lottery terminals back in 1964-- at racetracks and other locations.

PARENT COMPANY: SCIENTIFIC GAMES: www.scigames.com Scientific Games is a global marketing and technology leader in the lottery industry with over 120 national and international customers, including many of the world's highest revenue-producing lotteries. We work in close partnership with customers to drive retail sales and contain operating costs, resulting in more money for lottery beneficiaries such as education and other good causes. Scientific Games is the only company in the world offering the Fulline^TM suite of online and instant lottery products, integrated systems and services including instant tickets, licensed brand games, entertainment-based promotions, online and instant ticket validation systems and terminals, cooperative services, and innovative ticket vending systems.

The Diversified Gaming Group of Scientific Games addresses convergence within the racing, sports wagering, VLT and venue management segments

• Leverages the technical, commercial and operating expertise to exploit new and emerging distribution channels and to penetrate new markets
• Aligns SGR with the evolving needs of our customers and their patrons
• Internet & Mobile Gaming
• Sports Wagering
• VLT Central Systems
• Flexible Tote Systems

VIRTUAL PUPPETS NEW HOLLYWOOD CASTING OPPORTUNITY?

VIRTUAL PUPPET SHOWS SOLDIERS HOW TO READ NONVERBAL CUES....On the screen, computer-generated characters shrug, wink, nod, wave or cross their arms as they follow one’s every move with an attentive gaze but it's not a new Nintendo of Xbox video game, nor is it the next computer-generated animated feature!

IT'S NOT JIM HENSON'S PUPPETS:

It's not a Jim Henson puppeteer pulling the strings nor a Disney animator re-creating the expressions, instead its a USC-developed system module called “Social Puppet” pulling the strings.

BEYOND WORDS: -- understanding the non-verbal is life or death!

Once a given character is designed, a simple set of standard commands orchestrates a whole range of nonverbal expressions. The same commands work for any other character in the game.
Human communication is only partly verbal,” said Hannes Högni Vilhjálmsson of the USC Information Sciences Institute, who designed the game. He calls the software an “engine” to generate visual social behavior, and will present it at the AAAS annual meeting in St. Louis Feb. 16-20.

GAMES FOR MILITARY TRAINING: Vilhjálmsson is among the builders of a set of ISI-created videogames called “Tactical Language and Culture” that the armed forces now use to teach language and customs to soldiers. Hundreds of soldiers have trained with “Tactical Iraqi,” while a “Tactical Pashto” is being readied for Afghanistan.
SIMULATION -- control your own character: In the games, a person controls a figure representing themselves, who interacts with other characters animated by artificial intelligence, a specialty at ISI, which is part of the USC Viterbi School of Engineering.

NONVERBAL CUES IN DIFFERENT CULTURES:

“To introduce players to a culture that is unfamiliar to them,” Vilhjálmsson notes in his presentation, “it is important to have them both observe nonverbal behavior that reflects the culture and have them be able to perform … appropriate behaviors in return.”

GAMES GET SMARTER!Watch for more of this kind of intelligence to be built into mainstream video games and perhaps even in future animated features. Hollywood knows we want to talk back to Kermit or to Tom Cruise!

FOR MORE INFO: Tactical Language and Culture Training .

Camarsaurus Dinosaur Comes to Life: IS IT ANOTHER FURBY?

By Joyce Schwarz, author & Hollywood columnist, www.joycecom.com

MEET PLEO  ....a superb example of 'organic robotics' revealed at Demo 2006 www.demo.com.

See more about Pleo -- at www.ugobe.com or see it "live" at www.demo.com  Could it be the next FURBY...or is it really just the perfect house-broken pet to take to work?

Modeled after a week old Camarsaurus dinosaur, Pleo's chief inventor was also co-inventor of FURBY -- you remember that little fluffy, talk-bot that took the world by storm in 1998 and toted up more than $50 million in sales not so many holidays ago.

PLEO VS REAL DINOSAUR

Surprising, when this blogger Joyce Schwarz looked up info on Camarsaurus dinosaurs on www.enchantedlearning.com (one of our favorite sites for this kind of research) we found that they say: "Camarasaurus was a sauropod, whose intelligence (as measured by its relative brain to body weight, or EQ) was the among the lowest of the dinosaurs". In fact, on the chart that Enchanted Learning shows the Camarsaurus is below the crocodile in his/her EQ.

AUTONOMOUS EMOTIONS.....

But that's not the case with PLEO who according to creator Chung is the world's first autonomous life-form (note lifeform NOT TOY) who is capable of autonomous emotions that allow personal engagement. Is it a he/she? Bloggers keep calling Pleo "he" but I called up Julie Crabill, one of Pleo's PR flacks and she says there are no identifiable biological factors that determine if Pleo is a girl or a boy. AND there's no real reason for the name PLEO either. Julie mentioned that there is a dinosaur type with that name but actually when I looked it up it's spelled Pliosaur meaning near reptile.

PLEO FACTS AND TRIVIA: See him at www.ugobe.com According to their website, UGOBE's designers and engineers recreated Pleo's physiology from the fossils of the original. His height and weight are consistent with that of a one-week old infant camarasuarus. The site goes on to explain Pleo is an authentic Life Form. Treat him gently like any other living thing. Your Pleo will let you know how he feels at any moment. That's because he is capable of actual emotions including joy, aggression, sorrow, and fear. He can also yawn, sigh, sniff, sniffle, snore, cough, hiccup, and sneeze. Note UGOBE is pronounced "you go be" -- as in you can go and be what you want....hinting at what might come from this company in the future perhaps?

PLEO -- Sleeps and dreams....

When Pleo grows tired, lay him down and attach his 'dream cord' so he can sleep, dream, and gather energy for more exploration. BLOGGER NOTE -- hmm maybe they can sell dream cords for kids -- to encourage bed-time!!!

PLEO has its own REGENERATION BED so that it can sleep and dream...reminds this blogger of a little bit like a Borg rejuvenation chamber! Star Trek is calling Pleo!

PLEO IS DEMOgod and INNY WINNER

UGOBE was awarded the honor of DEMOgod and was also bestowed an INNY award at the DEMO 2006 conference this week in Phoenix. The Tech Museum of Innovation in San Jose honors the INNY Awards to DEMO innovations that will impact people's lives and reinforce The Tech's mission to inspire the innovator in everyone.

SO WHO AND WHAT IS UGOBE? MAYBE THE QUESTION TO ASK IS WHO IS UGOBE?

Who is UGOBE is fascinating.  According to the press release, UGOBE's multidisciplinary team of robotics experts, animators, technologists, scientists, biologists and programmers are led by polymath toy inventor and Furby co-creator, Caleb Chung. Check out who's on the Board of Directors, it includes: Gordon Radley, former President of (what else) LucasFilms and Chauncey Shey, CEO/Softbank China Venture Capital and co-founder UTStarcom.

UGOBE'S ADVISORY BOARD: The Advisory board is equally as impressive-- it includes: Stephen Mayer, co-founder Atari Computer and Activision, Curtis Sasaki, VP Sun Microsystems and Phil Schlein, Partenr/US Venture Partners (USVP) and former president of Macy's California.

UGOBE -- NURSERY NOT A FACTORY.... according to Ugobe's press kit, they want us to think of the company's lab as a nursery for new life forms not a factory-- the firm is located in Emeryville and they say in their press materials that they are outside of San Francisco.

WHAT"S NEXT FOR PLEO? I saw somewhere that Pleo is going to do a debut at the San Francisco Zoo. Chances are the "life form" or at least his creators will show up at TOY FAIR opening next week. Pleo is set to retail at $199 about the same price as the Robosapien and other robotic wonders-- but I know Pleo is a LIFE FORM not a robot!!!

PALS FOR PLEO AT TOY FAIR? According to an Associated Press reports, lifelike robotic toys will be all the rage at the American International Toy Fair beginning Sunday in New York. The lineup includes a life-sized miniature pony that responds to touch, a Barbie doll that follows a child's dance moves and a robot made from a Lego building set that can be programmed.

Microchips have come down in price, so toy makers are able to make more advanced toys that are still affordable. At least 75 percent of the toys at this year's event will have some sort of microchip in them.

PLEO ON TV, BOOKS & MERCHANDISE? we saw no info on any licensing deals for Pleo --for TV, Books, movies etc-- but with board members and advisors from such firms as Sun, Macy's and Lucas Films -- Pleo may soon make his REEL debut not just his REAL premier.

INTERNET NOW PART OF SUPERBOWL SUNDAY WATCH LIST

THE INTERNET IS NOW A BIG PART OF THE SUPERBOWL WATCHLIST ACCORDING TO A RECENT SURVEY

Internet Emerges as an Important Medium on Game Day   RESTON, Va., Feb. 2, 2006 – comScore Networks today released the results of a survey of more than 1,100 Americans’ attitudes and opinions related to Super Bowl XL.  Just under half of those surveyed report that watching the game is their favorite part of the Super Bowl festivities, while roughly one out of four say they enjoy watching the advertisements the most.  For the second consecutive year, the most eagerly anticipated advertiser is Anheuser Busch.

Enjoying the Actual Game is Secondary to Many

While the Super Bowl is the quintessential football game, less than half of respondents (46 percent) claim that watching the game is the part of the festivities they enjoy the most.  Watching the advertisements (26 percent) and spending time with friends and family (18 percent) are the primary reasons behind many tuning in.  Not surprisingly, the survey responses reveal a disparity based on gender, as 63 percent of men report watching the game as the aspect they enjoy most, while only 37 percent of women report the same.  Conversely, women favor watching the ads (31 percent) and spending time with family (20 percent).

Integrating the Internet into Game Day Festivities

On Super Bowl Sunday 72 percent of respondents intend to log on to the Internet, and 56 percent of those intend to do so from a computer located in the same room as the TV used to view the big game.  When asked how they intend to use the Internet on game day, 14 percent of respondents report they will monitor stats and stories related to the game while the same percentage said they will watch/download ads or video clips.  Additionally, 11 percent of respondents said they intend to visit the Web sites of Super Bowl advertisers, reflecting the emergence of the Internet as a complementary advertising channel.

Q: For which of the following activities, if any, do you plan to use the Internet on game day? Source: comScore Networks n=1,154 January 27 - February 1, 2006
	Total
To monitor stats and stories related to the players and the game	14%
To watch/download ads or video clips	14%
To visit web sites of Super Bowl advertisers	11%
To listen to the radio over the Internet	5%
To forward ads or video clips to friends	4%
To place or follow bets on the game	4%

SUPERBOWL ADS PRICELESS????
Excerpted from: Internet sees all-out blitz of Super Bowl ads, not game Even before the game, you can watch the Super Bowl of Advertising unfold at SuperBowl-Ads.com, a pioneering site that serves news about the ads in advance, offers still images from many of them and provides links to the few that are available in preview, including United Airlines' extravaganza, a surprising 60-second spot from a company just out of bankruptcy.

Among this year's trends for the $2.5 million-per-30-second ads, according to Ken Phipps, the New York City ad-agency art director who started SuperBowl-Ads.com: more direct appeal to women; lingering concern over taste issues dating back to Janet Jackson's wardrobe malfunction and Budweiser's flatulent horse; blue-chip advertisers rather than upstarts “like the year 2000 when it was all dot-commers trying to make their mark”; and, once again, Web domain-name registry GoDaddy.com masterfully working the media by submitting ads that it says ABC keeps rejecting because they're too darn sexy.

SLASHDOT SAYS DISNEY TO BUY PIXAR TOMORROW

SLASHDOT.ORG REPORTS THAT THE DISNEY/PIXAR DEAL IS GOING THROUGH TOMORROW -- TUESDAY.....we'll be at NATPE and let you know the buzz there.

Disney Buys Pixar Posted by ScuttleMonkey on Sunday January 22, @06:22AMfrom the not-just-for-rumor-mills-anymore dept.

 

BlueDjinn writes to tell us that it appears a great deal of speculation over Disney's buyout of Pixar Animation Studios is in fact true. From the article: "[Pixar] is set to meet tomorrow to approve the company's $7bn (£3.9bn) takeover by Disney. The all-share deal will make Steve Jobs, the chief executive of Apple, around $3.5bn and the single largest shareholder in Disney. Jobs created Pixar in 1986 when he paid $10m for the computer animations division of Lucasfilm, owned by Star Wars creator George Lucas."  For responses from Slashdotters go to www.slashdot.org