If you’re one of approximately 25,000 interactive professionals who annually descend upon Austin for SXSW, this year I’ll be joining you. The session takes place on Tuesday, March 12 at 3:30 PM and is located at the Austin Convention Center. My presentation will explore “bootstrapping” topics related to the book, as well as a few [...]

A piece in the Wall Street Journal yesterday discussed the use of multitouch technology — such as that used in iPads, smartphones, and tablet devices — are being investigated as therapy for people living with cerebral palsy and autism spectrum disorders. Researchers from three North American universities are developing therapeutic applications for these devices, branching [...]

An article in Wired’s GameLife section details the struggle that players are having in bringing accessibility to video games. This isn’t merely an issue of accommodating users with a physical disability, such as Chuck Bittner (pictured), who has quadriplegia and can only reach certain buttons on standard Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 controllers. The challenge [...]

A Fast Company article this week discussed increased venture capital funding for “brain gyms.” These are subscription websites, originally developed for those with Alzheimer’s or other cognitive difficulties. Interestingly, online game puzzles are finding a growing market for anyone wishing to sharpen their mental abilities. One website (Lumosity.com) is pulling 14 million users from 180 [...]

On May 25, 2011, the New York Times Magazine ran a cover story on two young twins conjoined at the head. Below are two responses which appear in this week’s Letters to the Editor section: The tone of the article is upbeat; let’s call it American optimism in the face of any challenge. There is [...]