Category Archives: Technology

Calgary Public Library’s #IdeaLab @Kickstarter Needs Your Support #libraries #crowdfunding #makerspace #yyc @CalgaryEconomic @calgarylibrary

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Photo Credit: CBC News | Calgary

The Calgary Public Library Foundation has launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund a makerspace called IdeaLab. IdeaLab will reside in Calgary’s New Central Library scheduled to open in 2018. The public space will be dedicated to increasing the digital and creative skills of Calgary’s citizens and provide the opportunity to explore technology and engage in hands-on learning.

The Calgary Public Library Foundation needs your help Calgarians! Of the $100,000 pledged goal for the project, only ~$19,000 has been raised with just a few days left in the campaign. Please fund this project so our New Central Library includes a space where people of all ages have access to innovative technologies.

It only takes $1 to participate. Higher pledge reward tiers include tote bags, mini-figures, LEGO models, exclusive tour and dinner party with Craig Dykers of Snøhetta (the lead architect of the New Central Library) and a plaque recognizing your contribution to the IdeaLab in the New Central Library. READ MORE: The Calgary Public Library Foundation’s IdeaLab Kickstarter Needs Your Support | Calgary Economic Development

5 Lessons #Library #Websites Can Learn from @Buzzfeed | Weave #digital #content #marketing #webdesign #socialmedia #user #engagement #UX

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Since its 2006 launch, Buzzfeed has become an Internet institution by recognizing and capitalizing on the insatiable life-cycle of viral media. The idea behind the website is relatively simple: bring together trending content (e.g., news, celebrity gossip, entertainment, quizzes) from around the web and organize it into a format that is short and eye-catching…

…Buzzfeed’s business model relies on shareability, something it has in common with today’s library, which is why library website designers have the opportunity to learn from Buzzfeed’s overwhelming success. Here are the top lessons library website designers can learn from Buzzfeed… READ MORE: 5 Lessons Library Websites Can Learn from Buzzfeed | Weave

Laura and John Arnold Foundation Announce $1.9 Mm Grant to Develop #InternetArchive #SearchEngine | Arnold Foundation #search #digital #preservation #libraries

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The Laura and John Arnold Foundation (LJAF) today announced a $1.9 million grant to the Internet Archive, the world’s largest public digital library, to develop a search engine that will provide unprecedented access to its extensive collection of webpages, also known as the Wayback Machine. The search engine will allow researchers, historians, and others to retrieve data and information from the billions of webpages and websites stored in the Wayback Machine and will ensure that there is a comprehensive, open record of the Internet that is accessible to all. READ MORE: Laura and John Arnold Foundation Announces $1.9 Million Grant to Develop Internet Archive Search Engine | Laura and John Arnold Foundation

‘Codegirl’ #Documentary to hit YouTube Before Theaters, At No Charge | CNET #film #coding #tech #documentaries #STEM #education #free

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CODEGIRL: Free to Watch on YouTube until November 5, 2015

Now playing on YouTube: a new documentary that tells the story of teenage girls who use computer code to solve problems. The film “Codegirl” is hitting YouTube before it gets to theaters and video on demand, and in that initial window you won’t have to pay to watch it. “Codegirl” follows high-school-age girls from around the world who enter a competition to try to better their communities through app design. READ MORE: ‘Codegirl’ documentary to hit YouTube before theaters, at no charge | CNET

Short Story Vending Machine Promises Old-School Distractions | Engadget #reading #fiction #stories #storytelling #format #tech #selfserve #literature #free

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In the French city of Grenoble, there are unusual vending machines that don’t dispense soda or snacks — they print out short stories that look like paper receipts instead. These machines were built by a publishing company called Short Édition, which placed eight of them in public locations (such as the city hall and libraries) as part of a pilot project. Each dispenser has 1-minute, 3-minute and 5-minute buttons, so readers can choose how long their stories are, all of which were written by members of the Short Édition community. SOURCE: Short story vending machine promises old-school distractions | Engadget

Colorful Children’s Book Introduces #kids to the Basics of #Code | Mashable #books #coding #tech #reading #skills #literacy @Kickstarter

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On one page, you’ll see an illustration of kid scientists assembling multi-eyed orange creatures. On another, an amicable blue furry creature leads a march of kids and an alien. At first glance, these look like pages from a normal children’s fantasy book. Look again and you’ll realize these are all characters on a journey decorated with HTML tags. The Wonderful World of Creatures & Code (WWoCC) is an A-Z style book with the purpose of introducing kids to code. But it’s not available for purchase just yet. It’s currently on Kickstarter until Oct. 31 with a goal of $25,000. READ MORE: Colorful children’s book introduces kids to the basics of code | Mashable

#Google Turning Its Lucrative #Web #Search Over to #AI Machines | Bloomberg #tech #machinelearning #searchengines #algorithms #informationretrieval

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For the past few months, a “very large fraction” of the millions of queries a second that people type into the company’s search engine have been interpreted by an artificial intelligence system, nicknamed RankBrain, said Greg Corrado, a senior research scientist with the company, outlining for the first time the emerging role of AI in search. RankBrain uses artificial intelligence to embed vast amounts of written language into mathematical entities — called vectors — that the computer can understand. If RankBrain sees a word or phrase it isn’t familiar with, the machine can make a guess as to what words or phrases might have a similar meaning and filter the result accordingly, making it more effective at handling never-before-seen search queries. READ MORE: Google Turning Its Lucrative Web Search Over to AI Machines | Bloomberg

The Surprising #Benefits of #RolePlayingGames + Top 10 Ways #VideoGames Can Improve Real Life | LifeHacker #RPG #gaming #skills #creativity #fun #wellness

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The Surprising Benefits of Role-Playing Games (and How to Get Started) | LifeHacker
When you hear about role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons, you probably picture a dimly-lit basement filled with people in silly robes rolling dice, but there’s much more to it than that. Not only are role-playing games incredibly fun, but they can actually teach you skills you’ll use in the real world.

Top 10 Ways Video Games Can Improve Real Life | LifeHacker
We love video games for their fun and entertaining nature, but even when we put the controllers down, video games or at least thinking like a gamer can positively influence the rest of our lives. Here are ten ways video games do us good.

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How To #Scan 50 Miles of #Historical Documents Into an #Online #Archive | Gizmodo #VeniceTimeMachine #tech #digital #preservation #digitization

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Tracking the lightning quick development of modern cities is easy with Google Street View, but the [Venice Time Machine] project aims to provide context for the past 1,000 years of urban evolution in Venice, Italy. The Venice Time Machine will digitize and catalog a staggering amount of historical documents—a combined 50 miles worth of shelves!—then turn the data into an internet archive and adaptable 3D model. READ MORE: How To Scan 50 Miles of Historical Documents Into an Online Archive | Gizmodo

How #BigData Might Change The Way You Find A #Job | FastCompany #employment #careers #search #workplaces #resources

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CareerLabs uses big data to explore all aspects of a company, from maternity leave to morale, growth, and financial health…

…The way CareerLabs works is simple: You sign up for free (you can use a Facebook or a LinkedIn profile) and start browsing job listings aggregated from other online job boards. CareerLabs layers in data on companies’ financial health and growth prospects, compensation, health care, career progression, culture, and management, among other criteria, to show candidates as full a picture of the business and its staff as possible…

…CareerLabs currently tracks and monitors 70% of all U.S. companies, which amounts to over 22 million organizations, and gathered some 10 million data points. He says that though basic service is free, subscription packages offer more filtering tools… READ MORE: How Big Data Might Change The Way You Find A Job | FastCompany