Global Game Jam + Twitch Tech Talk + Scholarship & Internship Opportunities

Thanks for coming out to FrIDeATe and visiting the VR...er, Burrito Alcove. The next FrIDeATe is February 28th.
Photography and expert editing by IDeATe staff Tim Parenti.

Global Game Jam Signup Code for IDeATe students

The Pittsburgh IGDA is hosting the 2020 Pittsburgh Global Game Jam once again January 31st-Feb 2nd, 2020. The Global Game Jam is a worldwide jam event held annually where thousands of people across hundreds of sites all make games based around a singular theme in just one weekend. It's fun! There's food! Camaraderie! Stamina! You should join.
We have a very limited number of signup codes for IDeATe students. If you would like to participate, sign up at bit.ly/ggjcmu2020 and enter the code IdeATeGeneral (just copy and paste, the mixed case is all goofy).

Twitch Tech Talk & Watch Party

You're invited! Come learn how to have a career in gaming technology at Amazon at the live virtual tech talk with Ethan Evans, VP Twitch Prime, Thursday, February 6th, 6 pm EST, Gates Hillman 6115. There will also be snacks and surprise gaming guests! RSVP is requested. If you can't make it in person, the talk will also be livestreamed.

Scholarship Opportunity for Game Designers

Breakout Games, the nation's leading escape room brand with 44 locations nationwide (including two in Pittsburgh), is seeking those who are interested in gaming and exploration that brings people together through fun, games and experiential entertainment. This semester, the brand will award four $2,500 scholarships to support the education of individuals looking to pursue a career in gaming. We want to help students achieve this dream through the Breakout Games Escape Room scholarship. Details area available at breakoutgames.com/pittsburgh. Questions can go to scholarship@breakoutgames.com.

Friedman Internship Program + Info Sessions

Are you interested in spending summer 2020 in Washington, DC, pursuing a policy-related internship? Attend an upcoming information session to learn more about the Summer 2020 Friedman Internship program:

• Wednesday, February 5, 4:30 pm, Porter Hall 223D
• Tuesday, February 11, 4:30 pm, Porter Hall 223D

All Carnegie Mellon undergraduate and graduate students from any college or school who have a strong academic record and would value the opportunity to spend a summer gaining firsthand policy experience in a public or private sector in Washington, DC, are invited to apply. Graduating seniors are not eligible. Students are responsible for finding their own internships. Grants of up to $3,500 are available. Internships usually cover a 10-week period. Applications for summer 2020 are due by Monday, March 2, 2020. Please contact Emily Half with questions.

Spring Research Assistantships

Multiple positions are open for undergraduate research assistants on an NSF-funded project Smart Spaces for Making: Networked Physical Tools to Support Process Documentation and Learning. This NSF Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) fellowship is for a part time position (up to 15 hours/week). Candidates are sought for four roles:

• Design Research (skills: observation + ethnography, co-design, interview, sketching, data collection and management, qualitative research analysis)
• Technical Prototype Development (skills: hardware prototyping, fabrication, server-side programming)
• Physical Computing Lab Assistant (skills: hardware and electronics, inventory management, database management)
• Communications Designer & IDeATe Reporter: Conduct interviews with IDeATe faculty and students about Spring 2020 courses and explore students' documentation strategies and portfolio practices. Develop stories and spotlight student's project work and process for IDeATe communications and dissemination materials.

Project Details:

The Learning Media Design Center is looking for undergraduate research assistants to help design and develop smart documentation tools to support learning practices in creative, maker-based studio environments. They will work with an interdisciplinary team of design researchers, technology developers and learning scientists from CMU’s HCII, School of Architecture and Integrated Innovation Institute (III), the University of Pittsburgh’s Learning Research and Development Center (LRDC) and the Children’s Museum. Students will participate in design research and technology development activities working with project site partners including Quaker Valley High School, CMU’s IDeATe program, and AlphaLab Gear’s Startable youth program at the Community College of Allegheny County.

Students should have a genuine interest in inclusive education and the design of learning technologies. 

The prospective candidates will work with project team members on: 

• Design Research: synthesize generative design research, analyzing qualitative research, facilitate visioning activities to inform iterative prototyping. We are seeking strong skills in communication and interaction design, experience with qualitative research methods, and in developing excellent user experiences, and skills with synthesizing and modeling research findings and insights to understand the problem space and collaboratively refine solutions with the project team and users.
• Technical Prototyping: prepare working prototypes of smart IoT prototypes for deployment to three educational co-design partners. We are seeking strong skills in hardware and software (Arduino, Raspi) development towards an integrated platform for context-aware documentation tools. Ideal candidates should have also exposure to human-centered design methods and experience in collaboratively developing, testing and refining solutions within an interdisciplinary team.
• Physical Computing Lab Assistant: work closely with a physical computing lab faculty to study, understand and deploy a tool that integrates NFC tags with inventory management and other tools to create in-situ, open, community documentation practices to improve student learning on campus. Ideal candidates should have also exposure to electronics and hardware laboratories and experience in collaboratively developing, testing and refining solutions within an interdisciplinary team.
• Communications Designer & IDeATe Reporter: Conduct interviews with IDeATe faculty and students about Spring 2020 courses and explore students' documentation strategies and portfolio practices. Develop stories and spotlight student's project work and process for IDeATe communications and dissemination materials.

The Human-Computer Interaction Institute (HCII) faculty mentor and Principal Investigator, Marti Louw, Director of the Learning Media Design Center, will serve as project lead and advisor with co-principal investigator, Daragh Byrne, School of Architecture. 

To apply:

Upload your Resume and a link to your portfolio to the following Box Folder: http://bit.ly/2zKGsZk .

Note: Undergraduate students supported with NSF funds must be citizens or permanent residents of the United States or its possession.

TEDxCMU Opportunity for Students and Faculty

TEDxCMU is March 28th, 2020! During the event's 1.5 hour intermission is The Expo where creators, makers, researchers, startups, and others pursuing wonderful ideas informally showcase and discuss their work with the 400+ attendees in an exhibit-style setting. This is a wonderful opportunity for IDeATe students and faculty to showcase what they’ve been working on with the broader community. We would love to have some students and faculty from IDeATe present! If you are interested, please apply at http://bit.ly/tedxcmuexpo2020. Questions can go to Bennett Huffman, Head of Innovation for TEDxCMU.