What's your digital pareting style?

We thought this was a really interesting link on how adults and adolescents can disagree when it comes to digital and online media. Check it out!

Digital Parenting

Sprite Stitch!

I thought I'd share one of my favorite fan art websites with you: Sprite Stitch is full of crafts made by video game fans of their favorite games. Some of them look like they took an amazing amount of time an effort, such as this crocheted Super Mario Bros. blanket:



This Zelda cross stitch is also really gorgeous:



I'm finishing up my own laborious piece of video game fan art as we speak. I'll be sure to post it if it gets on Sprite Stitch!

New York Times Magazine on Education and Technology

This week's New York Time Magazine includes several interesting articles on education and technology. The cover article includes profiles of educators who incorporate technology like video games in their classrooms, and the quest for research on the effectiveness of these technology in educating a new generation.

Learning by Playing - Can video games transform schooling?

StumbleUpon.com

StumbleUpon is a great way to surf the web. Users fill out information about their interests (e.g. art, literature, humor, cooking) and StumbleUpon finds websites to match those interests. As a user surfs the web they indicate whether they like or dislike the content StumbleUpon finds, and the search is refined even further to fit the user. Users can also bookmark pages to return to them later.

Check it out! StumbleUpon.com

The Seventeen Magazine Project

I'm really impressed with this girl and her project, The Seventeen Magazine project. She is basically following all the advice and ideas (fashion, hair, dating, friendship and whatever else) she sees in Seventeen magazine and blogging about the results. It's a great example of a young person thinking critically about the mainstream media and reacting to it in a creative, thoughtful way.

Here are the rules she is following for the project:

1. I will read the entire June/July issue of Seventeen magazine from cover to cover.

2. Every day I will utilize at least one "beauty tip" (hair/makeup/skincare/whathaveyou) and one fashion tip.

3. I will follow all diet and exercise tips provided in the issue to a T.

4. I will participate in every activity recommended by the magazine (i.e. host a fright night, score your hottest summer hookup ever, be confident in a bikini, etc.)

5. I will apply for every single "freebie" offered by the magazine, every day.

6. I will consume all media recommended by the magazine at least once. (books/movies/music)

7. I will hang all provided pictures/posters of "hot guys" in my living environment.


I can't help but think, if she'd been born ten or twenty years earlier, she would have made a really great zine!

Circuit bending and experimental jazz!

I heard this on NPR today. It's about a pianist and composer named Marco Benevento who used circuit bent toys, Nintendo game consoles and other items in his music. Very interesting!

Digital literacy links

Here are some links to research and information on digital media learning in the classroom:

Three researchers talking about their studies that were funded by the MacArthur Foundation of new digital literacies

Spotlight on Digital Media Learning at http://www.macfound.org

New Media Consortium for information on digital media learning

Circuit bent electronics on Yo Gabba Gabba!

You might have noticed on page 75 of our book there is a photo of a circuit bent Atari made by "noted circuit bender" Corey Busboom. Well, we weren't making that up: he really is someone to watch. You can spy one of his DIY creations being used by Devo on this Yo Gabba Gabba clip. You get a good look at it at 0:21 seconds in.



It's true! Devo frontman Mark Mothersbaugh bought a load of Corey's instruments from his show at Phoenix art gallery Trunk Space in December 2008. It's nice to see they are making use of them!

MAGFest!

I (Diana) spent New Year's 2010 in Alexandria, VA for MAGfest, a yearly convention for fans of video games, especially video game music. People from across the country and world go to this to see the finest in video game music bands, panel discussions and other events.

There were a bunch of cool old arcade game cabinets in the main area. I tried my hand at Tetris and Donkey Kong.

(This was New Year's Eve so many of the gaming aficionados were dressed up!)

Check out some of the neat game art/crafts that vendors had for sale there:

There were concerts every night by chiptune artists and video game cover bands. Here's a picture I took of one of my favorites, the OneUps, who do jazzy covers of video game songs:

This guy, known as Dauragon, performed original chiptunes via a sequencer on his Gameboy.

All in all, it was an awesome time and I can't wait to go back next time I can afford it!