The ATLAS Speaker Series

The ATLAS Speaker Series, which is made possible by a generous donation by Idit Harel Caperton and Anat Harel, hosts distinguished visitors from academia, industry and the arts as part of the ATLAS Institute’s mission to explore information and communication technologies and their effect on society.

The series is an educational and experiential resource for students, faculty and the larger community to discuss the challenges, opportunities and innovative applications of technology. Talks usually run from 4-5 p.m. in the Cofrin Auditorium, ground floor, ATLAS 100 (enter from lobby), unless otherwise noted.

Previous events and videos

Mystery, Music and Digital Innovation

Nicolas Jaar, an international multi-media performing artist, will talk about his digital music work and creative process. Record label colleagues plus emerging Colorado-based music producers will join him in a Q&A discussion. Jaar is founder of the record label Clown & Sunset and released his debut album “Space Is Only Noise” in 2011. He has performed around the world including an acclaimed five-hour improvisation at NYC’s Museum of Modern Art. The talk is a collaboration between ATLAS Institute and the Communikey Festival of Electronic Arts, http://communikey.us. 6-7:30 p.m. Friday, April 26, Cofrin Auditorium, ATLAS 100

ATLAS Speaker Series:
Learning to Love Technology by Making Arts and Crafts

Leah Buechley discussed her work developing accessible technologies that allow people of all ages – including those who might not otherwise be attracted to computing – to sketch, design, paint and sew while incorporating electronic technology during an ATLAS Speaker Series presentation on April 10, 2013.

Buechley, who received her master’s and Ph.D. degrees in computer science from CU and is currently an associate professor at MIT and directs the High-Low Tech Media Lab, showed student projects that blend computing with traditional arts, crafts, textiles, paper and wood.
To view a video of this presentation, click here.

ATLAS Speaker Series: Ge Wang mixes computing, music, art

Ge Wang, a Stanford University assistant professor in the Center for Computer Research in Music and Acoustics, discussed the transformative possibilities of music and computing to make art, strange new instruments and connections to people around the world during an ATLAS Speaker Series presentation on March 18, 2013.

Wang researches programming languages and interactive software systems for computer-generated music. He is the author of the music programming language ChucK, which is an audio programming language for real-time synthesis, composition, performance and analysis (see http://chuck.cs.princeton.edu/). He demonstrated apps that can turn an iPhone into a flute or an iPad into a stringed instrument.

His talk explored the development of laptop and mobile phone orchestras (including the local Boulder Laptop Orchestra, also known as BLOrk), computer music languages and social music apps – all examples of an emerging, growing space where computers, music and people interact.

The ATLAS Speaker Series is made possible by a generous donation by Idit Harel Caperton and Anat Harel.
To view a video of this presentation, click here.

Women and the Web: Bridging the Gender Internet Gap in Developing Countries

Renee Wittemyer discussed the data on the large Internet gender gap in developing countries and the social and economic benefits of securing Internet access for women during an ATLAS Speaker Series program on Feb. 25, 2013.

Recent studies find that on average – across the developing world – nearly 25 percent fewer women than men have access to the Internet and the gap soars to nearly 45 percent in sub-Saharan African regions. Wittemyer discusses this research and a call-to-action to double the number of women and girls online in developing countries from 600 million today to 1.2 billion in 3 years.

Wittemyer, director of social impact in Intel Corporation’s Corporate Responsibility Office located in Ft. Collins, develops strategies for Intel’s girls and women’s campaign and manages relationships with strategic alliances, such as USAID, NGOs, and U.N. Women.
To view a video of this presentation, click here.

ATLAS Speaker Series: How Open Source Software is Changing Technology

Stormy Peters talked about predicting the future of technology by observing the use and development of open source software during an ATLAS Speaker Series program on Feb. 18, 2013.
Examples included how nonprofits and open source software projects set technology directions and make bold statements about how to make the world a better place. She also discussed her work at Mozilla and shared insights about the future of information technology (IT).
Peters is director of websites & developer engagement at Mozilla. She is an advocate and supporter of open source software and its potential to change the software industry. She is also the founder and vice president of Kids on Computers, a nonprofit organization that sets up computer labs in developing countries.
The ATLAS Speaker Series is made possible by a generous donation by Idit Harel Caperton and Anat Harel.
Click here for a video of her presentation.

DJ Spooky: Digital Media and Music as an Instrument for Social Change

Paul Miller (aka DJ Spooky) discussed his recent work exploring digital media, music and the ways that art can open minds and help people gain new perspectives on issues like climate change during an ATLAS Black Box performance on Feb. 6, 1013.
He performed his mix of electronic compositions (using his own DJ app and wall to wall graphics) accompanied by CU College of Music cellist Megan Knapp and violinist Emily Lenck. Miller is a multimedia digital artist, musician, composer, remixer, author of “The Book of Ice” and the first artist-in-residence at NYC’s Metropolitan Museum of Art. His visit is a collaboration between the ATLAS Institute, the Program for Writing and Rhetoric and the President’s Fund for the Humanities. See the Colorado Daily article.
Click here for a video of his performance.

Entrepreneurship, Lessons and Challenges

Wendy Lea, an entrepreneur and CEO of Get Satisfaction, a leading customer engagement platform, discussed her experience and lessons as a successful entrepreneur during an ATLAS Speaker Series presentation on Dec. 3, 2012.

An investor, strategic adviser and mentor to TechStars Boulder, she is recognized as a Top 100 Women of Influence in Silicon Valley.
The talk is part of the Entrepreneurs Unplugged series and is co-sponsored by the ATLAS Speaker Series, Silicon Flatirons Center for Law, Technology and Entrepreneurship and the National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT).
For a video of her presentation, click here.

Digital Media Design, Gender and Games

Yasmin Kafai is a professor of Learning Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania. Her work has been instrumental in launching youth digital media design activities and communities for learning. It has been supported by funding from the National Science Foundation, the Spencer Foundation and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
Her collaborations with MIT researchers have resulted in the development of Scratch, the largest and most popular youth programming community for creating and sharing games, animations and stories. Current projects examine creativity in the design of computational textiles with urban youth that will be showcased in the upcoming book "Textile Messages: Dispatches from the World of Electronic Textiles and Education" (Peter Lang Publishers). Other recent publications include "Beyond Barbie and Mortal Kombat: New Perspective on Gender and Gaming" (MIT Press) and "The Computer Clubhouse: Constructionism and Creativity in Youth Communities" (Teachers College Press).
Kafai earned a doctorate from Harvard University while working at the MIT Media Lab. She works, lives and plays in Philadelphia.
4 p.m. Monday, Nov. 5

To view a video of this presentation, click here.

ATLAS Speaker Series: Is Google Making Us Stupid?

Nicholas Carr, a Boulder-based author of the Pulitzer Prize-nominated bestseller, “The Shallows: What the Internet is Doing to Our Brains,” and the Atlantic Magazine piece, “Is Google Making Us Stupid,” examined how digital media influence the ways people think, read and interact during an ATLAS Speaker Series program on Oct. 22, 2012.
Referencing media theorist Marshall McLuhan, Carr pointed out, “media are not just passive channels of information. They supply the stuff of thought, but they also shape the process of thought.” If the Web is shaping thought processes, what are people gaining? What are they losing? As people and society become increasingly dependent on the Web, how are they changing?

ATLAS Speaker Series: The Entrepreneurial Ecosystem

Nicole Glaros, an entrepreneur and managing director of TechStars Boulder, a tech accelerator program, gave a talk entitled "The Entrepreneurial Ecosystem" as part of the ATLAS Speaker Series on Oct. 15, 2012.
Glaros, who works with seed-stage Web software companies, talked about the importance of innovation, fearlessness and leadership in entrepreneurship. She covered Colorado’s evolving entrepreneurial ecosystem and the hows and whys of entrepreneurship for students.
The ATLAS Speaker Series is made possible by a generous donation by Idit Harel Caperton and Anat Harel.
To view a video of this presentation, click here.

Entrepreneurs Unplugged: Dan King, CEO, ReadyTalk

Silicon Flatirons, ATLAS, the Boulder Software Club, and Quick Left presented Dan King, CEO of ReadyTalk, as the featured entrepreneur on Oct. 10, 2012, with moderators Brad Bernthal and Jill VanMatre.

King is actively involved in the company's strategic direction and day-to-day operations. He has more than 25 years of experience in the telecommunications industry and related fields. Prior to ReadyTalk, King held senior positions in business development and financial management for ICG Communications.

King and his brother, Scott, were recognized as Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year in 2008 in the Software Services category for the Rocky Mountain Region.
To view a video of this presentation, click here.

ATLAS Speaker Series: Help! My avatar was robbed!

Greg Lastowka, a professor at Rutgers University Law School and author of “Virtual Justice: The New Laws of Online Worlds,” discussed how real-world laws are being adapted to virtual worlds during ant ATLAS Speaker Series presentation on Oct. 8, 2012.

As billions of dollars are exchanged in virtual worlds like Second Life and World of Warcraft, criminals are defrauding online communities. And as avatars lose virtual property to wrongdoers, people feel cheated and increasingly seek legal remedies. But what law assists people when their avatars are robbed?

Lastowka will discuss how governments respond to cyberspace chaos and explore the laws of property, crime and copyright in virtual worlds.
The ATLAS Speaker Series is made possible by a generous donation by Idit Harel Caperton and Anat Harel.
To view a video of this presentation, click here.

ATLAS Speaker Series: How has technology changed writing and literature?

Matthew G. Kirschenbaum, a professor of English at the University of Maryland and director of the Maryland Institute for Technology in the Humanities, talked about how changes in technology might be affecting writing during an ATLAS Speaker Series presentation on Oct. 1, 2012.

Drawing from his book, “Track Changes: A Literary History of Word Processing,” Kirshenbaum addressed questions such as: How has the word processor changed the history and culture of authorship? How has technology changed the relationship of writers to their craft? The talk will explore questions of technology, research, content and writing at the intersection of literary and technological history.

This event is a collaboration of the CU-Boulder ATLAS Institute, Department of English, ICJMT Initiative, University Libraries ScriptaLab and Friends of the Libraries.
To view a video of this presentation, click here

Entrepreneurs Unplugged: TheBlogFrog

Silicon Flatirons, ATLAS, ITP, and Quick Left presented Holly Hamann and Rustin Banks as their featured entrepreneur with moderator Brad Bernthal on Sept. 24, 2012. Speaker: Holly Hamann,VP of Marketing and Co-Founder Holly is a serial entrepreneur who has spent her career launching and growing start-ups in the social media, entertainment, video, and other tech industries. She is a blogger, public speaker, contributing writer on technology and marketing to various publications, is an American Marketing Association "Marketer of the Year" award recipient and guest blogger for The HuffingtonPost. She lives outside Boulder, Colorado and blogs about social media, triathlons and parenting teenagers.

Speaker: Rustin Banks, CEO and Co-Founder Rustin Banks (co-founder, CEO) started building online communities 15 years ago by hosting bulletin board systems (BBS) in his parents' closet. With an MS in Electrical Engineering, he left his position in Aerospace designing next-gen satellite systems to start BlogFrog in 2009. He and his wife, Tara, live in Colorado and he blogs about leadership and being the father of three small children.

Entrepreneurs Unplugged is a meeting place where faculty, students and community members with technical backgrounds learn about and get involved in entrepreneurship. In particular, the program offers students and faculty an opportunity to learn how a successful start up is created as well as an opportunity to network. Each Entrepreneurs Unplugged meeting features food, drink and - most importantly - an experienced entrepreneur to discuss his/her start-up experiences.

The Deming Center Women's Council is pleased to co-sponsor this Unplugged Session. The Women's Council's provides access and connections for students to successful women business leaders. It aims to nourish both students and other women in our community to live up to their potential as entrepreneurs and leaders in business.
To view a video of this presentation, click here.

ATLAS Speaker Series: The Satellite Imaging Industry

Walter S. Scott is founder, chief technology officer (CTO) and executive vice president of DigitalGlobe, a leading global provider of commercial high-resolution Earth imagery products and services. He discussed the origins of DigitalGlobe, its operation of a three-satellite imaging constellation, plus the birth, growth and future of the industry, during an ATLAS Speaker Series presentation on Sept. 17, 2012.
Scott has held several tehnical, program and managment positions at the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory.
Learn more about DigitalGlobe.
To view a video of this presentation, click here.

ATLAS Speaker Series:
Michael Theodore, Mark Amerika

Michael Theodore, director of the ATLAS Center for Media, Arts and Performance and a College of Music faculty member, and Mark Amerika, a professor of Art and Art History, will talk about their recent work as part of the ATLAS Speaker Series at 4 p.m. Monday, June 25, in the Cofrin Auditorium. A tour of "Field Theory," Theodore’s new exhibit at the CU Art Museum, will follow the presentations. Field Theory creates dynamic fields of color, light and sound inspired by the natural world.

ATLAS Speaker Series: Michael Theodore and Mark Amerika (click here for video)

The ATLAS Speaker Series is made possible by a generous donation by Idit Harel Caperton and Anat Harel.
4 p.m. Monday, June 25, Cofrin Auditorium, Room 100

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Morton Subotnick: The Past, Present and Future of Electronic Music

Morton Subotnick, an international performer, composer and an iconic figure in the field of electronic music, will discuss the history and future of music and technology. He is also performing as part of CU’s Communikey Festival of Electronic Arts. Subotnick was the first music director of the Lincoln Center Rep Company in the Vivian Beaumont Theater in New York.

ATLAS Speaker Series: Morton Subotnick (click here for video)

5 p.m. Thursday, April 26, Black Box

ATLAS Speaker Series: Beyond the Obvious

Phil McKinney, former vice president and CTO of the personal systems group at Hewlett Packard and the author of "Beyond The Obvious: Killer Questions That Spark Game-Changing Innovation," will talk about his Focus, Ideation, Rank and Execution (FIRE) method for business innovation as part of the ATLAS Speaker Series.
McKinney, an innovation consultant, was responsible for long-range strategic planning and research and development of computers and mobile devices while at HP.
For more information, go to http://beyondtheobvious.com/ or http://www.philmckinney.com.
The ATLAS Speaker Series is made possible by a generous donation by Idit Harel Caperton and Anat Harel.
5 p.m. Monday, April 23, in the Cofrin Auditorium (ATLAS 100)

Designing Coursework as a Game -
Can the Multiplayer Classroom Revolutionize Teaching?

Lee Sheldon, author of The Multiplayer Classroom, will look at the synergy between video game design and education occurring when students come to class to play and learn. Sheldon is associate professor and co-director of the Games and Simulation Arts program at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. His talk is entitled "Video Game Design & Education: Can the Multiplayer Classroom Revolutionize Teaching?"

ATLAS Speaker Series: Lee Sheldon (click here for video)

The ATLAS Speaker Series is made possible by a generous donation by Idit Harel Caperton and Anat Harel.
5 p.m. Monday, April 9, Cofrin Auditorium

The Challenges of our Growing Population

Eric Rasmussen will look into the impact of increasing populations on cities and the challenges that result when people migrate into cities from the villages and farms of the world, including poverty, malnutrition, and disaster vulnerability. Eric Rasmussen is a clinical physician and research professor for environmental security and global medicine at San Diego State University.

ATLAS Speaker Series: Eric Rasmussen (click here for video)

The ATLAS Speaker Series is made possible by a generous donation by Idit Harel Caperton and Anat Harel.
5 p.m. Monday, March 19, Cofrin Auditorium

How the End of Moore's Law is Changing the Landscape of Innovation

Moore’s Law is an observation made in 1965 by Intel co-founder Gordon Moore that the number of transistors on integrated circuits would double each year. Andrew A. Chien will discuss the technical factors behind the end of Moore’s law, speculate about the new landscape that will emerge and its impact on innovation. Chien is the William Eckhardt Professor in Computer Science at the University of Chicago.

ATLAS Speaker Series: Andrew A. Chien (click here for video)

The ATLAS Speaker Series is made possible by a generous donation by Idit Harel Caperton and Anat Harel.
5 p.m. Monday, March 12, Cofrin Auditorium

Applied Technology, Design and Creativity

Mark D. Gross, a professor of computational design at Carnegie Mellon University’s School of Architecture and a former CU professor, will discuss the design process, do-it-yourself technologies, the Maker Movement, modular robotics, creativity and the interdisciplinary use of technology and computing. His talk is entitled "Applied Technology, Design & Creativity (or, let’s talk about making really cool stuff!)."

ATLAS Speaker Series: Mark Gross (click here for video)

The ATLAS Speaker Series is made possible by a generous donation by Idit Harel Caperton and Anat Harel.
5 p.m. Monday, Feb. 13, Cofrin Auditorium

Mark Maxham: SMRT DNA Sequencing

Mark Maxham, an engineer and software manager at Pacific Biosciences, led the software team that developed the DNA sequencing technology, Single-Molecule Real-Time (SMRT). The PacBio RS product represents the integration of innovations in many distinct disciplines. In a talk entitled "SMRT DNA Sequencing: Technologies Driving Development," Maxham will discuss how this technology was developed and the biological applications enabled by SMRT in medicine, agriculture and biofuels.

ATLAS Speaker Series: Mark Maxham: SMRT DNA Sequencing (click here for video)

The ATLAS Speaker Series is made possible by a generous donation by Idit Harel Caperton and Anat Harel.
5 p.m. Monday, Jan. 30, 2012, Cofrin Auditorium, ATLAS 100

Carmel Hagen: The Web and Social Media

In a talk entitled "The Web and Social Media: Separating the Noise from the Notable," Carmel Hagen will explore people's growing need to be online, connect with others and share the smallest details of their lives. Her discussion will cover the good and bad of the tweets, links, feeds and Facebook statuses flying through the Web. Hagen is a CU alumna, TEDx speaker and Boulder-based consultant in the fields of social media, branding and marketing.

ATLAS Speaker Series: Carmel Hagen, The Web and Social Media (click here for video)

The ATLAS Speaker Series is made possible by a generous donation by Idit Harel Caperton and Anat Harel.
5 p.m. Friday, Jan. 27, 2012, Cofrin Auditorium

Smart Phones for Poor Farmers

5 p.m. Monday, Nov. 7, 2011
Heather Thorne will talk about her Information and Communications Technology for Development (ICTD) work, which is focused on using smart phones to create sustainable models for delivery of services and micro-businesses. Thorne leads Grameen Foundation's AppLab Indonesia and Uganda programs, the Community Knowledge Worker mobile agriculture program, and advises on other mobile innovation programs.
     ATLAS Speaker Series: Smart Phones for Poor Farmers (click here for video)

Privacy and the Web

5 p.m. Monday, Oct. 31
Jim Harper, director of information policy studies of the CATO Institute and author of "Identity Crisis: How Identification is Overused and Misunderstood," will discuss:

- How do we balance privacy concerns against the trend to live a public life on the Web?
- What are the red flags in default settings? (As in Safari, Facebook and Google.)
- The pitfalls of opting in or out of various privacy settings.
- Is the onus on the individual?
- What are our expectations? Are they reasonable in today's digital market and meeting places?
- Are there cautions and/or benefits to the changing search algorithms that result in predictive
   marketing? Should your past behavior on the Web affect what you see today? Why should we care?
- If students today are the creators and users of tomorrow's digital marketplace,
   why is privacy relevant?

Jim Harper serves as director of information policy studies at the CATO Institute, a public policy research organization and think tank dedicated to principles of individual liberty, limited government and free markets. Harper works to adapt law and telecommunications, intellectual property and security. He holds a J.D. from UC Hastings College of Law and is author of "Identity Crisis: How Identification is Overused and Misunderstood." Read his bio.
     ATLAS Speaker Series: Privacy and the Web (click here for video)

One Laptop Per Child

Laura Hosman and Bruce Baikie discuss leading, proposing and deploying development projects in developing nations and in underserved and impoverished regions. Issues include:
• Team-building and promoting initiative and accountability in students.
• Building project-based courses.
• Fundraising, grant writing & publicity.
• Opportunities to lead vs. facilitate.
• Planning for project sustainability, travel and deployment.
• Administrative and ethical challenges.
     ATLAS Speaker Series: One Laptop Per Child (video)

Ed Tech, Classroom Resources and Impact on Learning

4 p.m. Wednesday, April 13, 2011
Margaret Dickey-Kurdziolek, who is pursuing a Ph.D. in computer science at Virginia Tech and researches issues of human computer interaction, will give a presentation entitled "Technology for Learning: Developing Educational Technologies that Survive in the Classroom."

She will speak about the interactions students and teachers have with technology and each other, and how the details of these interactions can help developers create better learning technologies.
Her recent work investigates the use of alternative design strategies that engage teachers in designing and developing educational technologies that will both “survive” in the classroom and facilitate student learning.

Abstract
The problem of designing for the educational context is complex and multifaceted. In classrooms we see different types of users, with multiple goals, and unclear measures of success. Even when technology has been explicitly designed to address particular student misunderstandings, and has been demonstrated to increase student learning in experimental trials, successful use and adoption of the technology is far from guaranteed.

Stakeholders at the district, school and classroom level do not always see what student-learning gains can be had from using educational technology, and furthermore, do not make decisions regarding technology based on potential student learning alone.

In her talk, Dickey-Kurdziolek will review the case of a particular educational technology, SimCalc MathWorlds, which when used in experimental studies resulted in student learning gains in the mathematics of rate and proportionality. Then, she will describe case-studies of four classrooms using SimCalc MathWorlds with a variety of technological set-ups: traditional computer lab, mobile laptop carts, and one laptop projected on a screen at the front of the classroom.

The case studies will illustrate how the socio-physical classroom space, as well as the teacher perceptions of the technology, students and classroom, deeply impact how the students ultimately interacted with SimCalc MathWorlds. Finally, Dickey-Kurdziolek will report on recent work investigating the use of alternative design strategy, called “zensign”, while engaging teachers as participants in design, to facilitate the development of educational technologies that will both "survive" in the classroom context and facilitate student learning.
     ATLAS Speaker Series: Ed Tech, Classroom Resources and Impact on Learning (click here for video)

Robotics & Music: Robots, Slime, Propane and
Other Ways to Make Strange Musical Instruments

6 p.m. Wednesday, April 13, Black Box (lowest basement level, B2)
The ATLAS Speaker Series presents a discussion with Eric Singer, founder and executive director of the League of Electronic Musical Urban Robots (LEMUR), a group of artists and technologists who create robotic musical instruments. Visit http://lemurbots.org/. Free and open to the public.

Singer also leads a workshop, Introduction to Arduino, same day and place
from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. as part of the Communikey Festval of Electronic Arts.
Visit http://communikey.us/festival2011//. to learn about other festival
events, workshops, enrollment, tickets and tuition.

Building a Molecular Robotics Tool Kit

4 p.m. Wednesday, March 30, 2011, Cofrin Auditorium, ATLAS 100
Nadine Dabby of the California Institute of Technology will give a presentation entitled "Building a Molecular Robotics Tool Kit" that will explore recent experimental work on building a tool kit for programming the active self-assembly of molecules using DNA.

Dabby, who is a Ph.D. student in computation and neural systems, focuses on the theoretical and experimental underpinnings of programming molecular robots using DNA.

Abstract
Computer science and electrical engineering have been the great success story of the twentieth century. The neat modularity and mapping of a language (boolean algebra) onto circuits has achieved robots on Mars, desktop computers and smart phones.

But these devices are not able to do some of the small things that life takes for granted: repair a scratch, reproduce, regenerate, grow exponentially fast, and all the while move around and function. While traditional robots rely on digital computing to control sensing and actuating components, any implementation of single-molecule based robotics must overcome the limited ability of individual molecules to store complex programs.

In this talk, Dabby will discuss recent experimental work towards building a tool kit for programming the active self-assembly of molecules using DNA. See a video of one of her talks at TEDxCaltech.
Read a Caltech article about her work. Look into the Molecular Programming Project, an organization she is affiliated with.

For a video of her ATLAS presentation, click here.

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