Metaboston

Wikipedia REvolution Discussion at Berkman

Andrew Lih has written the first book on the culture and history of Wikipedia: The Wikipedia Revolution.  He'll be discussing the book with the always-interesting David Weinberger at Harvard's Berkman Center so it should be a compelling interview about the issues surrounding the creation and maintenance of Wikipedia.

"The Wikipedia Revolution is the first narrative account of the remarkable success story of the "encyclopedia anyone can edit." Andrew Lih, a Wikipedia editor/administrator, academic and journalist, tells how the Internet's free culture community inspired its creation in 2001, and how legions of volunteers have emerged to create over 10 million articles in over 50 languages. The book recounts colorful behind-the-scenes stories of how obsessive map editors, automated software robots and warring factions have come to shape a complex online community of knowledge gatherers. Learn about the historical underpinnings of Wikipedia, of how a Hawaiian vacation and a fringe piece software from Apple Computer inspired the wiki concept, and realized the original read-and-write capabilities of the Tim Berners-Lee's World Wide Web. "

If you can't get over to the event, it will also be webcast.

Info:
Wednesday, March 25, 6:00 pm
Griswold Hall 110, Harvard Law School

Boston Games from the Global Game Jam

 
This month's Boston Post Mortem will be featuring games created by Boston teams for the Global Game Jam where teams around the world competed to create video games over a weekend.

This month's meeting of the Boston Post Mortem will be next Wednesday, the 11th, at 7pm at the Skellig in Waltham. Instead of a single speaker, we're going to be doing a showcase and post mortem of the games created last weekend at the Boston site of the Global Game Jam. For those of you who don't know, the GGJ was organized by the IGDA as a game jam happening simultaneously around the world, with over 1600 participants creating over 300+ games in 48 hours. Our Boston site was hosted by the Singapore-MIT GAMBIT Game Lab. All 300 games are on the official website, but you might particularly want to check out the six games that were made in Boston

They're all open-source, too, so feel free to take a crack at the code!

The event will take place on Wednesday, Feb. 11 starting at 7:00pm at the Skellig in Waltham.

Free Agent Jungle: Freelancer Community

Sooz is reviving her freelancer community events as Free Agent Jungle with the first event coming up in a couple weeks.

Free Agent Jungle is the reincarnation of my Free Agent Boston project that I ran 1999-2004. Beginning with the lunch on February 19th, we’ll once again be meeting for a networking lunch for Boston area free agents, freelancers and consultants the third Thursday of every month. The upcoming lunch is taking place at Tavern on The Square in Porter Square (Cambridge).

It seems like a good time to for this kind of thing as a lot of people are likely turning to freelance work to increase or replace income.

Ignite Boston 5: Feb. 12

O'Reilly Media will be putting on another Ignite event in Boston in February.  There are usually some good presentations and it is a good opportunity to see some of the interesting things people around the area are doing.

The fifth Ignite Boston will be Thursday, February 12, from 5pm to 9pm at The Hooley House in the Faneuil Hall area of Boston. There is no cover charge or any sort of fee. The event is free as in 'Free Beer'.

Since there is limited space at the Hooley House, you must RSVP here to secure a chance to attend. By RSVPing you will also have the chance to win $300 worth of O'Reilly books of your choosing. You must be present to win. There will likely be other items like tee-shirts and other promo items for those who alert us ahead that they plan to attend.

From 5-5:45 pm, mingle and talk tech with your fellow FOOs, alpha geeks, and techies from the greater Boston area. After the mingling and social stuff, on to the select keynotes. Then, onto the lightening talks.

Monster Mashup Dance Event: Oct. 25

Banditos Misteriosos has another event coming up a Boston Monster Mashup dance event on October 25.  Now they've released their instructional video of the moves for their collective dance.

If years of Halloween-themed TV specials and music videos have taught us anything, it’s that come late October, monsters and ghouls love to get together and dance.  Thus, it is with pride, that Banditos Misteriosos announces our very own Monster Mash-up!

Consider this a Halloween Dance Party but with all your fellow dancers dressed as ghosts!  But, to give this dance another dimension, we will be your choreographers.  On October 17th, we will be releasing an instructional video, complete with dance moves and your very own mentor ghost. 

Specifics

Costumes:
Everyone should come dressed as a ghost, bedsheet style. No white sheets, though — that is *so* last Halloween. Be creative! (and remember the eye holes!)

Dance Moves: 
The instructional video will be released on our website and will teach you the dance moves that we will be doing. The choreography does not necessarily correspond to the music, but will be based on various signals. (Don’t get it? Don’t worry! It’ll make sense when you watch the video.) Learn the moves for a follow-the-leader style dance!

Boston Greenfest 2008

Boston will hold its Greenfest focusing on ways to increase sustainable efforts around the city with lectures on topics like green architecture and economics on the schedule.

Info:
Time:  September 26-27, 2008, 10 am - 5 pm
Location:  City Hall Plaza, Boston, MA
Cost:  Free

Boldcrits: Bike Racing in Boston

Dirt oval track bike racing will begin Sept. 15th at William E. Smith Field in Allston.  Should be fun to watch.  All for the glory of a six-pack.

Time:  Mondays (beginning Sept. 15) at 6:30pm
Location:  William E. Smith Field, 250 Western Ave., Boston, MA
Cost:  Free

Loren Coleman, Cryptozoologist, at Museum of Science

The Museum of Science ventures into the misty regions of cryptozoology with a lecture by Loren Coleman, the most famous researcher into bigfoot and other great folkloric creatures.

"Could hair samples be used to verify the existence of Bigfoot? Are unexplained animal droppings evidence of a new species? Do footprints hold the key to unlocking the mystery of the yeti? World-renowned cryptozoologist Loren Coleman has spent decades researching the existence of fantastical creatures and interviewing witnesses who have sighted sea serpents, lake monsters, Sasquatch, thunderbirds, and yet-to-be-verified animals.  Join us to explore the science behind these mythic beings.

Time:  Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2008,  7:00 pm
Location:  Museum of Science, Boston/Cahners Theater
Cost:  Free  "Seating passes are available to the general public in the Museum lobby beginning at 5:45 pm the evening of the program.  First come, first served."

Boston Zine Fair: Sept. 20 - 21

 

The Boston Zine Fair is being held at the Art Institute of Boston on September 20-21.  Zines, self-published journals, are another of the ancestors of community and social media, that are so prominent now.

“The Boston Zine Fair is a weekend-long event with the aim of bringing together zinesters, artists, small presses and other producers of independent media. The conference includes two full days of tabling, an opening night show with live bands and readers, as well as potluck meals throughout the weekend. There are also numerous hands-on workshops and discussion panels which give us the opportunity to learn new skills to use in our own creative enterprises, as well as to explore the importance of independent media in a corporate-owned world.

While zines have lost some luster with the rise of blogging and internet publishing in general it should be interesting to check out what local people are doing with this medium and the whole culture that surrounds it.

Info:
Time: Sept. 20 - 21
Location:  Art Institute of Boston, 601 Newbury Street, Boston, MA
Cost:  Free

Renaissance Ferret Faire!

Not sure what else there is to say about this.  Two great things put together.

"Take heed that you do not miss this royal event. Many more surprises will be revealed as we near the the date for our celebration to honor King Ranger and present young Queen Tuesday. Renaissance apparel is urged.

Info:
Time:  September 20th, 11:00am - 4:00pm
Location:  Borderland State Park, Sharon, MA
Cost:  $4 + $2 parking

Reminder: Ignite Boston 4: Sept. 11 (6pm - 10pm)

A reminder that Ignite Boston 4 is coming up on Thursday (Previously on Metaboston).

Info:
Time:  Thursday, September 11, 6 - 10pm
Location:  Hooley House, 25 Union Street, Boston, MA,

The list of speakers has been announced and Tim O'Reilly will be giving a presentation.

"Speakers:

• Mansour Raad - Disaster Routing Application in 24hours
  

•      Deconstructing the 24 hours to build a re-routing application for the Minneapolis I35 bridge collapse.
• Jon Radoff - Megatrends in Video Gaming
       A presentation on the who, what and where of current videogame market trends.

Introduction to New Media Art at AXIOM on Sept. 9

AXIOM Gallery is holding a panel to help introduce people to new media art on Tuesday.

""What Is New Media?"
An open panel discussion constructed with the JP community in mind, featuring local professionals and artists from the field of new media. This talk is intended to help de-mystify the genre by furthering understanding and access.

Panelists include:
George Fifield - Director, Boston Cyberarts
Dana Moser - Director, MassArt SIM Program
Helen Thorington - Founder, Turbulence
Halsey Burgund - New Media Artist

Info:
Location: AXIOM Gallery, 141 Green Street, Jamaica Plain, MA
Time: September 9 at 7:00 P.M.
Cost: Free

Neal Stephenson in Cambridge: September 20

Neal Stephenson, author of a long string of geek icon titles like Zodiac, Snow Crash, Cryptonomicon and the trilogy the Baroque Cycle, will be presenting his highly anticipated new book Anathem in Cambridge on September 20th but tickets go on sale at the Harvard Book Store today, Friday, August 29th.  Run, don't walk! 

Date:  September 20 at 7:00 PM
Location: First Parish Church Meetinghouse
Cost:  $5

Ignite Boston 4: Sept. 11 (6pm - 10pm)

The next Ignite Boston event will be September 11 (6pm - 10pm). It's a great free event where you can hear some interesting ideas in a short format. Unlike a lot of events like this, Ignite Boston also allows you to propose your own short (5 minutes max) presentation.

"The fourth Ignite Boston will be on Thursday, September 11, from 6 to 10pm at the  Hooley House, one block from Faneuil Hall in Boston, MA. THIS IS A LARGER VENUE. So the acoustics will be better than our last event and there will be room to sit, stand and mingle.

From 6-6:45 pm, mingle and talk tech with your fellow FOOs, alpha geeks, and techies from the greater Boston area. After the mingling and social stuff, we'll have a couple of special keynote presentations to kick off our Ignite talks. Then, onto guest speakers who'll catch you up on the cool, new, innovative stuff going on in technology today. Don’t blink or you’ll miss their lightning-fast, five-minute presentations. During intermissions, get a cold beer and chat with speakers, sponsors, and O’Reilly’s own editors. Join us Thursday, September 11th, for a fun, energetic evening of talking, learning, collaborating and drinking!

RSVP If you plan to attend, email IgniteBoston at oreilly dot com for the chance to win $300 worth of O'Reilly books of your choosing. You must be present to win. There will likely be other items like tee-shirts and other promo items for those who alert us ahead that they plan to attend. Presentation Guidelines

Ignite is a user-generated event. If you’re interested in speaking, then submit a proposal for consideration.

Presentations must:

* Be no longer than 5 minutes

* Be on an innovative topic (no sales pitches, please!)

* Be viewable on a PC [a MacBook Pro with Powerpoint and Keynote, and PDF] with standard AV equipment

* Did we mention, no Sales Pitches.

Revolutionary Water Gun Battle

The Revolutionary Water Gun Battle took place over the weekend courtesy of Banditos Misteriosos.

Geocaching Treasure Hunt: August 14th at 6:30pm

The Boston Social Media Club is sponsoring a geocaching treasure hunt.  If you want to try and use your GPS unit for something other than navigating Boston's confusing streets this could be a good free oppportunity.  And you don't need to have a GPS unit to participate.

"Geocaching, according to Wikipedia, is an outdoor treasure-hunting game in which the participants use a Global Positioning System (GPS) receiver or other navigational techniques to hide and seek containers (called “geocaches” or “caches”) anywhere in the world. For the Social Media Geocaching Treasure Hunt, we’ll have three teams competing on three different geocache courses to get the ultimate and shared goal—but we’re not going to tell you what that is until you find it.

We’ll meet at the Leif Ericsson statue, located at Charlesgate East and Comm Ave or N 42 20 922 / W 071 05 488, at 6:30pm. From there, we’ll break into teams and depart from statue around 6:45pm. If you’re coming late to the hunt, shoot @skalik a DM or call her at 503-320-0048, and she’ll match you up with a team already on the road.

You don’t need to bring a GPS unit to play; however, if you have one, please bring it, because we still need one or two!

As usual, we’ll end things with a visit to a nearby pub."

Info:
Thursday, August 14, 2008
6:30pm – 9:30 pm and beyond
Charlesgate East and Commonwealth Ave.
Boston, MA

Inventor of the Video Game Console at Boston Postmortem

Ralph Baer, the inventor of the videogame console, will be speaking at the Boston Postmortem game developers meeting on August 5th.  If you weren't an early gamer the matching game Simon above, also invented by Baer maybe more familiar.  Looks like there'll be some free food and drink as well.  (Image:  Wikimedia)

"[O]ur speaker is Ralph Baer, inventor of the home video game console! His "brown box" prototype, initially created in 1968, was refined and released in 1972 as the Magnavox Odyssey, the first ever console as we know it. Some of Baer's other game-related inventions include the light gun and Simon. He remains an active inventor to this day.

Mr. Baer is undoubtedly one of a handful of people who launched our entire industry, but if that weren't enough to get you to come out, he will be bringing one of his "brown box" prototypes with him! (You can see another one at the Smithsonian.) He gave the highest-rated talk at GDC 2008, and will be gracing us with a discussion of what it was like to create an industry."

Details
7pm, Tuesday, August 5
The Skellig, Waltham, MA

Podcamp Boston 3: July 19-20

PodCamp Boston 3 brings social media, with an emphasis on podcasting, in a welcoming informal and relatively inexpensive ($99) to novices and veterans this weekend.

"How many times have you heard this old saw:

“The best part of a conference is the conversations in the hallway.”

"What if the conference WAS the hallway? That’s the power of PodCamp Boston, the power of community, the power of conversation. The power of putting smart people from every walk of life together for two days to learn, share, and grow their new media skills. 480 people gathering to share their ideas, lessons learned and earned, cutting edge developments, and stories. From blogging to podcasting to Twitter to virtual worlds and more, whether you’re a veteran of new media or just getting started, PodCamp Boston has something for YOU"

Could one good idea change your world? What about a weekend full of them?

PodCamp Boston promises to help you learn, share, and grow your new media skills. If you’ve been wondering how to get more involved in new media and social media, if you’ve thought about starting a blog, podcast, or Twitter presence, PodCamp Boston is for you. If you’re a veteran adventurer of new media, come to share and learn from your peers, and make partnerships & friendships! PodCamp Boston offers something for everyone, no matter where you are on your new media journey."

The conference is being held at the Joseph Martin Conference Center at Harvard Medical School.

Registration is now $99 with about half going to charity.

Full schedule of presentations. 

Davis Square LiveJournal Homeless Benefit

 

From virtual to real community:

"The Davis Square LiveJournal Community will hold a community yard sale with proceeds to benefit the Somerville Homeless Coalition. The yard sale will be held in Hodgkins Park, located on Holland Street between Simpson Avenue and Paulina Street, on Sunday July 27 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., with a rain date of Sunday, Aug. 3."

Ignite Boston 3 on May 29th

O'Reilly will be putting on another Ignite Boston on May 29th at Tommy Doyle's in Harvard Square (6pm to 10pm).

"This time, we're using two floors at Tommy Doyle's, so the acoustics will be better than our first event there. From 6-6:45 pm, mingle and talk tech with your fellow FOOs, alpha geeks, and techies from the greater Boston area. After the mingling and social stuff, we'll have a couple of special keynote presentations by Jonathan Zdziarski of iPhone notoriety and John Viega of Security notoriety to kick off our Ignite talks. Then, onto guest speakers who'll catch you up on the cool, new, innovative stuff going on in technology today. Don’t blink or you’ll miss their lightning-fast, five-minute presentations. During intermissions, get a cold beer and chat with speakers, sponsors, and O’Reilly’s own editors."

You can still propose your own short presentation if you stick to the ground rules:

"Presentations must:

• Be no longer than 5 minutes
• Be on an innovative topic (no sales pitches, please!)
• Be viewable on a PC [a MacBook Pro with Powerpoint and Keynote, and PDF] with standard AV equipment
• Did we mention, no Sales Pitches."

The short time limit makes the presentations you aren't interested in fairly painless.  The last Ignite Boston was a good fun mixed bag although quite hard to hear so hopefully Tommy Doyle's will have better acoustics. 

New England Horror Writers at Pandemonium Books

A group of member-authors of the New England Horror Writers will descend on Pandemonium Books in Central Square to sign and discuss their books.  Festivities begin at 2 PM on Saturday, May 3rd.

"There'll be a broad spectrum of writers in attendance this time around -- participants include Inanna Arthen (Mortal Touch), Scott Goudsward (Trailer Trash, Shadows Over New England), Nate Kenyon (Bloodstone), Alisa M. Libby (The Blood Confession), L.L. Soares (published in Cemetery Dance, Horror Garage, Lullaby Hearse, and others), and Morven Westfield (Darksome Thirst, The Old Power Returns)"

Yochai Benkler and Cass Sunstein Discuss the Wired World with Henry Jenkins

Harvard Law professors Yochai Benkler (left)and Cass Sunstein will discuss the pros and cons of a digital age in a discussion moderated by MIT media professor Henry Jenkins and called Our World Digitized:  The Good, The Bad and the Ugly:

"Much discussion of our impending digital future is insular and without nuance.  Skeptics talk mainly among themselves, while utopians and optimists also keep company mainly within their own tribal cultures.  Today’s forum challenges this unhelpful division, staging a conversation between two of our country’s most thoughtful and influential writers on the  promise and the perils of the Internet Age."

It could be a good discussion;  too often the person bringing up any negative points is someone with shallow arguments like Andrew Keen.

Info:
Thursday, April 10, 2008
5-7 p.m.
Bartos Theater
MIT
Cambridge, MA

Bouncement 3: 3 DJs, Street Bass: April 11

Bouncement 3 brings together DJ C and DJ Ripley with Jamaica Plain-based DJ Flack a Mass College of Art instructor to slice through "genres of street bass: jungle, dancehall, breakcore, dubstep, baltimore breaks, hiphop, d'n'b, gliitched-out breaks, and dub."

Info:
The Milky Way Lounge & Lanes
403-405 Centre St.
Jamaica Plain, MA 02130
April 11, 9:00pm
Cost: $5 before 11:00, $7 after

DJ Ripley will also be at the Boston 826 benefit on April 12

Boston and Cambridge Official Poets Meet: Populist and Laureate

Sam Cornish, Boston's first poet laureate, and Peter Payack, Cambridge's more democratically titled first poet populist (above), will meet up for a cross-Charles River poet-palooza.

"Spreading the word about poetry on both sides of the Charles River, Peter Payack and Sam Cornish will join together Tuesday, April 22, at 7 p.m. at the Central Square Library at 45 Pearl St. to read selections of their work.

This event is hosted by the New England Poetry Club, the oldest poetry reading series in the country, in partnership with the city of Cambridge, Cambridge Arts Council, and the Cambridge Public Library. Poet Charles Coe of the Massachusetts Cultural Council will introduce the poets. All are welcome to this free reading."

David Hajdu on Comics: April 3

David Hajdu will discuss his new book The Ten-Cent Plague:  The Great Comic Book Scare and How It Changed America and  how comics became a symbol of moral decline.
         

"In the years between World War II and the emergence of television as a mass medium, American popular culture as we know it was first created—in the pulpy, boldly illustrated pages of comic books. No sooner had this new culture emerged than it was beaten down by church groups, community bluestockings, and a McCarthyish Congress—only to resurface with a crooked smile on its face in Mad magazine. 

 

Created by outsiders from the tenements, garish, shameless, and often shocking, comics spoke to young people and provided the guardians of mainstream culture with a big target. Parents, teachers, and complicit kids burned comics in public bonfires. Cities passed laws to outlaw comics. Congress took action with televised hearings that nearly destroyed the careers of hundreds of artists and writers."

You can see the same impulse in the recent Massachusetts bill to ban sales of some video games.

Lawrence Lessig to Speak in Cambridge: April 4

Lawrence Lessig, the founder of Creative Commons and author of books like Free Culture and Code and Other Laws of Cyberspace (both downloadable at those links) will be speaking at a free event  at Harvard on April 4th discussing his new project Change Congress.

"Change Congress is a movement to build support for basic reform in how our government functions. Using technological and internet tools, both candidates and citizens can pledge their support for basic changes to reduce the distorting influence of money in Washington. The Change Congress community will link candidates committed to a reform with volunteers and contributors who support it.

Change Congress organizes citizens to push candidates to make four simple commitments:

1. No money from lobbyists or PACs
2. Vote to end earmarks
3. Support publicly-financed campaigns
4. Support reform to increase Congressional transparency "

Important Info:
Friday, April 4, 2008
5:00 p.m.
Ames Courtroom, second floor of Austin Hall on the Harvard Law School Campus (map)
Free and Open to the Public

Tibetan Vigils in Harvard Square

The Tibetan Association of Boston will be holding candlelight vigils in Harvard Square through March 31 to increase awareness of the Tibetan crisis.

Anime Boston: March 21-23

Anime Boston, the largest anime convention in New England starts today (and runs through Sunday) at the Hynes Convention Center in Back Bay.

On Sunday there will be life-size cosplay chess:

"Chess is back and better than ever at Anime Boston 2008! Cosplay Human Chess is a cosplay gameshow event in which a giant chess-board is set up on stage and convention attendees in costume serve as the pieces, moving, fighting and dying live on stage at the direction of two chess masters. Highlights from last year's "Angst vs. Sugar" match included Tifa (FFVII) poisoning Count D (Petshop of Horrors) with Nutrasweet, Cloud (FFVII) defeating Sephiroth with a giant sack of pink Pocky, Rock Lee (Naruto) and Jack Sparrow (Pirates of the Carribean, Kingdom Hearts II) getting drunk on stage together, Scar (Fullmetal Alchemist) and Aizen (Bleach) hijacking the host's microphone and an epic final battle between dozens of Ninjas, Shinigami, Alchemists and the Ouran High School Host Club. These combats are not pre-scripted but take-place live on stage and no one knows what the outcome will be until the match is over."

Post-Mortem Game Developers' Meeting: March 12

Boston Post Mortem lets you get a peak into the world of video game development.  Tonight the speaker is a NY game developer from Kaos Studios.

"From Boards to Binks: Creating the Cinematics of Frontlines: Fuel of War

Delve into the occult world of cinematic development for Frontlines: Fuel of War from THQ's Kaos Studios. Join us as Coray Seifert presents all of the nitty gritty details, from early storyboards and ritual sacrifices, to final export and playing Dungeons and Dragons. Takeaway is a deeper knowledge of this studio's cinematic process, and a resonant fear of your neighbors to the south."

Info:
Wednesday March 12, 7pm
The Skellig
Waltham
Directions here: http://bostonpostmortem.org/SkelligDirections.htm

Atwood Tavern's Bacon-Eatin' Contest

Inman Square's Atwood Tavern holds its bacon-eatin' contest.  How much can you eat in 5 minutes?  Mmmm pig!

Mixed Realities Exhibit/Symposium Begins

 
A reminder that the Mixed Realities Networked Art Exhibit and Symposium that we previously posted about kicks into gear today with seminars on virtual economies and immersive worlds.

"Mixed Realities is an exhibition and symposium that explores the convergence—through cyberspace—of real and synthetic places made possible by computers and networks. Mixed Realities links and overlays Huret & Spector Gallery (Boston), Turbulence.org, and Ars Virtua (Second Life)."

"Venues: Huret & Spector Gallery, 10 Boylston Place, 6th Floor  [MAP: select #4, The Tufte Performance and Production Center], Emerson College, Boston, Massachusetts; Ars Virtua (Second Life - Teleport         >> *) and Turbulence.org."

"Bill Bordy Theater, 216 Tremont Street [MAP: select #2, 216 Tremont Street; Emerson Island* (182, 112, 23), Second Life."

 

Brad Sucks, David Weinberger and Music on the Web

How does a musician get paid in a world where music is available for free online?   You can hear one musician's answers at a discussion between BradSucks/Brad Turcotte and David Weinberger on Feb. 11 in Cambridge (free).

"The traditional music industry is crumbling. From the dust comes … BradSucks. Brad Turcotte is the very paragon of a Webby, open source musician. At his site (http://www.bradsucks.net) you can download his music for free or pay him a little money. You can reuse his music as you’d like, subject to the Creative Commons license. Not only can you remix it, but Brad posts especially good remixes. He has even open sourced the paint job for one of his guitars. At this Web of Ideas, Brad will play some music and talk with David Weinberger of the Berkman Center about whether he’s the future of the music industry."

Above (a fan video of BradSucks' song "Fixing My Brain")

Info:
Monday, February 11, 7:00 PM
Griswold Hall Room 110 
Harvard Law School
Cambridge, MA

Inside MIT's screening of upcoming scifi movie Jumper with movie stars and physics professors

Inside MIT's screening of upcoming scifi movie Jumper with physics professors examining the plausibility of the movie's science.

"On one side of a vaunted cultural divide were Doug Liman, director of the coming movie “Jumper,” about a young man who discovers he can transport himself anywhere he wants just by thinking about it, and Hayden Christensen, the film’s star.

On the other were a pair of the institute’s physics professors, Edward Farhi and Max Tegmark, experts on the type of physics the movie was purporting to portray, who had been enlisted to view a few scenes from it and talk about science.

In the middle were hundreds of MIT students who had waited for hours to jam into a giant lecture hall known as Room 26-100 and who proved that future scientists and engineers could be just as rowdy and star-struck as the crowds outside the MTV studios in Times Square.”

MIT Sneak Preview of Jumper with Hayden Christiansen

Sneak Preview at MIT of upcoming science fiction movie Jumper with Hayden Christiansen.  Time and date:  Wednesday, January 16,  at 8:00pm in MIT building 26, Room 100,

There will be geekery and there will be science:

"The screening will be followed by a discussion panel about the film and the physics of teleportation featuring lead actor Hayden Christiansen, director Doug Liman, and MIT Physics Professors Max Tegmark and Edward Farhi."

One problem, if you're not at MIT or don't know anyone who is this might be a tough ticket to get:

"This is a FREE Sneak Preview, with preferred admission for members of the MIT Community with an MIT ID or brass rat. Tickets will be distributed in Lobby 16 at 6pm on January 16."

234th Boston Tea Party Reenactment: Dec. 16

The Old South Meeting House hosts the 234th Boston Tea Party Reenactment on Dec. 16: 

"Add your voice to those of other Patriots and Loyalists concerning the fate of the “bainfull weed”!  Authentic volunteer reenactors portraying the faces from your history books will recreate the most famous protest in American history--from the lively, interactive town meeting to the dramatic "destruction of the tea." Will you side with Samuel Adams and the other Patriots? Or will you be among the Loyalists? The evening will conclude with the colonial fife and drum of the Musick of Prescott’s Battalion and other revelry on the Border's plaza.

Although Boston 1775 notes that the end of the reenactment won't be as dramatic as in years past:

"When the Tea Party Ship Museum was open, these reenactments ended with the crowd streaming down to the waterfront to watch (from an increasing distance) the men on that ship toss boxes into the water. There’s no ship to march to right now, so Old South has arranged for fife and drum tunes from the Musick of Prescott’s Batallion outside, and—here’s the part I can’t picture yet—the chance to “photograph your own tea party in our staged scene on the Borders Plaza.” (Borders Plaza is apparently the commercial name for what I think of as the site of the godawful Irish Famine Memorial.)"

List of Free New Year's Events in Boston

A list of free New Year's activities  in Boston.

December Philosophy Cafe at McIntyre & Moore, Davis Square

McIntyre & Moore and the Center of Naturalism are presenting the December installment of the long-running Davis Square Philosophy Cafe on December 18

"December’s topic, “Reductionism and Responsibility: Did My Neurons Make Me Do It?" will focus on the following:
Brain scans reveal that murderers prone to extreme violence tend to have poorer functioning in the pre-frontal cortex, the area of the brain responsible for impulse control. Such findings spark the worry that if behavior results just from neural processes, then people aren’t legitimate targets of praise and blame. Do we have powers that transcend what neurons can do, and are such powers necessary to justify holding each other responsible? If we don’t, might that change our ideas about responsibility and criminal justice?"

Boston Santacon December 9th (?)

Boston Santacon to be held December 9th (?) at least according to this page.  Santacon is a gathering (often in bars) of people dressed in Santa costumes as another way of celebrating the season.

Location has yet to be announced but signs look hopeful.

To give an idea of the spirit of the event some helpful rules and reminders have been posted:

"Santa's Rules:
Be Jolly.

Santa apparel is mandatory. A Santa hat is not enough. Get a Santa suit. Make a Santa suit. Steal a Santa suit. Buy a Santa suit. If you don't have any money, be creative. If you don't have any creativity, slap yourself three times and ask your mom to help you. Glue cotton balls to red long johns. Already have a Santa suit? Make a spare so Santa can assimilate strangers. Past examples: pimp Santa/Santa garcia/Santa's naughty little helper. Traditional suits can be bought at local party stores or ordered online for $12 and up.

      Santa's Reminders:

The schedule is open to liberal interpretation by Santa. If you can't show up for the start, get the cell number of someone who can talk you in later.

Santa does not make children cry (unless they whine, snivel, or otherwise deserve it). Really - If you see kids, give them nice toys, candy, or something pleasant. Feel free to urinate on their parents.

      Watching Santa get drunk and obnoxious is fun. Babysitting Santa while they vomit in an alley is not.

Twisting the holiday paradigm until it screams for mercy is fun! Getting arrested is not. Santa Claus is friendly and cooperative with cops, security guards, park rangers, and secret service agents, and doesn't break any laws (unless they're stupid and deserve to be broken).

  Bring gifts -- Naughty gifts to give grown ups; nice stuff to give kids.

     Pay your own damn bar tab."             

 

Joss Whedon to attend writers' strike rally in Harvard Square

Joss Whedon of Buffy and Firefly fame is to attend a writers' strike rally in Harvard Square on December 14th according to plans for the rally organized by fans4writers.  The plans so far:

"We are planning the event for Friday, December 14th from 12 noon - 3 pm. There will be an assembly of writers, fans (and potentially celebrity guests!) at the distinguished public affairs program Cambridge Forum in the Meeting House of the historic First Parish (Unitarian Universalist) Church, 3 Church St., Cambridge, MA 02138. There, guest speakers (which so far include Joss Whedon, Rob Kutner with a few of his Daily Show crew, and [Jaime (Eureka) Paglia]) will say a few words of thanks to our fans and talk about the cause they’re supporting. Once we are sufficiently pumped up, everyone will march with picket signs and pamphlets through Harvard Square to a rally outside of the famed Harvard Lampoon building, where so many great television comedy writers cut their teeth."

(via HubArts)

"Shooting War" Creators at Million Year Picnic, Harvard Square

"Shooting War" creators Anthony Lappe and Dan Goldman celebrate the publication of the book version of their webcomic  at the Harvard Square comics store Million Year Picnic from 4pm - 6pm on Nov. 27th.

Wired described Shooting War by  saying:
'Calling Shooting War a web comic is like calling Crime and Punishment a mere tale of murder. The multichapter online graphic novel by Anthony Lappé and Dan Goldman is set in a disturbingly plausible 2011: After a suitcase nuke explodes in Bangalore, US president John McCain responds as a worldwide call-center disaster looms – HOMELAND SECURITY TO ANSWER AOL CUSTOMER SERVICE CALLS, reads the CNN crawl. Shooting War tracks hipster Jimmy Burns from the obscurity of video-blogging Brooklyn's anticorporate beat for his own site to his reluctant fame gained by vlogging an endlessly occupied Iraq for the Global News network."

Million Year Picnic information:
99 Mt. Auburn Street (downstairs)
Cambridge, MA 02138
671-492-6763

Crime Mob Song Incites Fight at Harvard Party

Crime Mob Song "Knuck If You Buck" (video above) playing blamed for inciting fight at Harvard party.

"More than 20 police patrol cars, including six state police cruisers and several Cambridge and HUPD cars, were deployed to the scene as additional brawls broke out."

Knuck if you buck definition for the uninitiated.

Harry Potter in Harvard Square

Images and description of the recent Harry Potter event in Harvard Square.  Although they got their copy through Amazon.

Boston Early Music Festival 2007

The biannual Boston Early Music Festival is underway.  Early music focuses on medieval, renaissance and baroque music and often uses "archaic" instruments like harpsichords and lutes.  The centerpiece of the festival is  Psyché a 1678 opera by French composer Jean-Baptiste Lully but there are many more events going on.  Probably the best way to dip a toe into this would be one of what's called the "fringe" events where tickets are more like $10-$20 and are available all throughout the remainder of the festival period.

Davis Square Backyard Movies

Willoughby and Baltic Gallery in Davis Square will kick off a season of Thursday night backyard movies in the Boloco Burritos parking lot on June 7th.  The first night will be a selection of movies by the Brothers Quay (left) the highly original animation filmmakers.  A great mix of homespun and artistic.  Bring your lawnchairs!

New England Gerbil Show: 5/18-5/19

Muriphobics will likely want to steer clear of Bedford for the next few days as the New England show of the American Gerbil Society comes to town. There'll be judging of animals, athletic competitions and a showing of exotic hedgehogs for those who aren't afraid of a few hairless tails.

Duckling Day Parade

To counteract images of zombie horror for sensitive readers we include images of Boston's supercute overload event:  the Duckling Day Parade.  The stroll commemorates classic Boston children's book Make Way for Ducklings as little kids dress up as ducklings and walk through the streets of Beacon Hill to the Duckling statue in the Public Garden.  Along the way they're led by a quacking, good-humored Harvard marching band.

The Harvard band gets the crowd ready

Duckling kids listen to the band

The Parade heads down Beacon Street

Zombie March 2006 Video

2006 Zombie Walk through Somerville and Cambridge.  The next one is May 12th:

Urban Dare: Amazing Race-Like Trivia Contest

At $90 per two-person team it's pretty pricey, but if you dream of running the Amazing Race you could test your interest with Urban Dare on April 28th.  You can use PDAs, GPS, cellphones while you run through Boston answering trivia questions by taking photographs of riddle locations or facing dares (skill events). Some people take it very seriously and others are repeat competitors so don't think the race will be easy.

A competitor describes taking part in the San Diego Urban Dare.

The race begins at noon on the Boston Common.

Visual Music Marathon

A sample of one of the works from the Visual Music Marathon taking place at Northeastern at the Egan Research Center at 120 Forsyth Street.  There'll twelve hours of audiovisual work playing during the day. Six of the twelve hours will be devoted to works submitted to the event (64 works chosen from 300 submitted). (via Cartoon Brew) Check our calendar for details.

Zombie Walk: Davis to Harvard: May 12th

Halfway to Human's Second Annual Zombie March will take place on May 12th, 2007.  Zombies will congregate in Davis Square around 6:30pm before beginning their slow undead lurching walk down to Harvard Square.