tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61188787218074294342024-03-05T21:51:12.586-08:00Ben FarahmandMusings about entrepreneurship, human centered design, art, philosophy, and engineeringbenhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.comBlogger216125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-91017008499334326872018-01-05T15:02:00.000-08:002018-01-15T15:12:57.524-08:00Inducted into The Game Crafter's Hall of FameSome really cool news I'd like to share with you all. I was <a href="http://news.thegamecrafter.com/post/169041822973/benjamin-farahmand-inducted-into-tgc-hall-of-fame" target="_blank">inducted into The Game Crafter's Hall of Fame</a> because a few months ago <a href="http://www.thefaza.com/" target="_blank">FAZA</a> won the Big Box Challenge. While there's still a ton of work left to do for FAZA, I'm feeling excited to reach this milestone and also honored to have the game design work I've been doing be recognized by the game community.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIpBMHBcJKn19rdY8iBHLswskEvh5q2vALAD3GcoL3M47KN6vlsEHE-OB-k7l0z6O6uCH7pO3zbcga7fnniBvAazrVJdK532Y-5TWJVlko7LGOnsvCJ96lxXZlgoV0m0yxu7ZdDhnmFPtE/s1600/hall+of+fame.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIpBMHBcJKn19rdY8iBHLswskEvh5q2vALAD3GcoL3M47KN6vlsEHE-OB-k7l0z6O6uCH7pO3zbcga7fnniBvAazrVJdK532Y-5TWJVlko7LGOnsvCJ96lxXZlgoV0m0yxu7ZdDhnmFPtE/s400/hall+of+fame.png" width="277" /></a></div>
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The interview questions range from 'how long have you been designing games' to 'where the game idea come from' to 'any words of encouragement or advice to all the designers reading this' and everything in between. Almost every question in the interview could of been turned into a separate blog post, so check it out and let me know what you think.</div>
benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-34949228454785172532017-10-16T20:00:00.000-07:002018-01-15T14:53:40.600-08:00FAZA Wins the Big Box Challenge from The Game CrafterRemember <a href="http://www.thefaza.com/" target="_blank">that board game</a> I was working on for the past year? Well, it won the <a href="http://news.thegamecrafter.com/post/166221033051/big-box-challenge-winner-faza" target="_blank">Big Box Challenge</a> from The Game Crafter!<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCGxGPwMbF7u5-6OtRxPiM5fx6gKveqCMktBdyu2DXaTTWXDoiDE6FaqnYaTvk3yHEUT63Dhyj6tJIZQbO0E4dgCnMIkQG2cO7MctQluEZYgr_LBxKziuHy1iW3zOKC494YS4ZxIfsCjPK/s1600/Screen+Shot+2017-10-09+at+3.03.31+PM.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="695" data-original-width="965" height="287" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCGxGPwMbF7u5-6OtRxPiM5fx6gKveqCMktBdyu2DXaTTWXDoiDE6FaqnYaTvk3yHEUT63Dhyj6tJIZQbO0E4dgCnMIkQG2cO7MctQluEZYgr_LBxKziuHy1iW3zOKC494YS4ZxIfsCjPK/s400/Screen+Shot+2017-10-09+at+3.03.31+PM.png" width="400" /></a></div>
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Alex Coulombe, the judge for the competition, played FAZA with his gaming group multiple times. Check out his <a href="https://docs.google.com/document/d/1NKG_xvq0ebOl8XFCFidvjYd21hOfDkbwasjRDD2rNC8/edit" target="_blank">detailed document</a> outlining what they loved about FAZA, with some highlights below.</div>
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He described FAZA as "far and away the most polished and engaging, while also offering the most value on repeat playt<span id="docs-internal-guid-4d8b3210-fbef-2d57-6020-96edc3f53c21">hroughs, especially across 2, 3, and 4 players." After playing the game multiple times, they "realized there was no 'sure-fire' strategy, and the game forced us to adapt and improvise to changing situations." He went on to say that "FAZA is the best co-op game we’ve ever played."</span><br />
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If you get further into the document, he continues listing out the many wonderful aspects of playing FAZA:</div>
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<li>"Never have I played a game before that is so thoroughly engaging for all players the entire time. While some co-op games achieve this to a certain degree, the level of strategy and planning for an upcoming Faza round in our games had everyone feeling like brilliant tacticians working together."</li>
<li>"Great balance with the different roles and their abilities. Everyone felt like were able to pick a role that suited their play style, and they had something meaningful to contribute every turn."</li>
<li>"The game keeps the pressure on continuously-- from the word go we basically always felt like we were about to die (or run out of drones), then felt enormous exhilaration and relief when we managed to stave off our demise."</li>
<li>"Rules are laid out in such a way that made reading through them easy, which is impressive considering there are some fairly complex elements in this game. The rules are exceptionally well-written with clear graphics and worded with a level of precision that immediately answered nearly every question we had."</li>
<li>"Great synergy between theme and mechanics. I honestly couldn’t tell you which one the designer likely started with."</li>
<li>"Average playtime for a game became 1 hr 30 min, which felt like the perfect length. We ended every game on a high of wanting to play again and adjust our strategies and roles to see how it might affect our next playthrough."</li>
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benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-83468414033991630332017-09-28T14:58:00.000-07:002018-01-15T15:14:14.024-08:00FAZA on Board Game GeekHey you! Yes, you! Do you have a Board Game Geek account?<br />
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Well, I've put together a <a href="https://boardgamegeek.com/boardgame/230860/faza" target="_blank">BGG page</a> for <a href="http://www.thefaza.com/" target="_blank">FAZA</a>. Check it out and leave a comment to let others know you're interested in the game.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMVIbUNviEWn7ljUVO59DodrL67qpvx9vCivokGq9YD20KsRpeaMH1kBmitbOtUbcKich011UmnUjruaUX-BBYhyphenhyphen23KHN3CvMkkaod7lE9jZC_uWoDs1E49aRoOXIomjDkT-Ktv9uuKwda/s1600/Screen-Shot-2017-09-27-at-3.52.20-PM.png" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMVIbUNviEWn7ljUVO59DodrL67qpvx9vCivokGq9YD20KsRpeaMH1kBmitbOtUbcKich011UmnUjruaUX-BBYhyphenhyphen23KHN3CvMkkaod7lE9jZC_uWoDs1E49aRoOXIomjDkT-Ktv9uuKwda/s400/Screen-Shot-2017-09-27-at-3.52.20-PM.png" width="400" /></a></div>
benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-59962388244519629402017-07-14T21:00:00.000-07:002018-01-15T14:10:38.272-08:00FAZA is a finalist in the Big Box Challenge from The Game CrafterThe <a href="https://www.thegamecrafter.com/contests/big-box-challenge" target="_blank">Big Box Challenge</a> started out with 55 board game submissions, and then the list was whittled down to 20 via a community voting process. Now, the list of games has been further refined to 7, and <a href="http://www.thefaza.com/" target="_blank">FAZA</a> is one of them! You can read more about the seven finalists <a href="http://news.thegamecrafter.com/post/162711846692/big-box-challenge-finalists" target="_blank">here</a> and also see the <a href="https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1kvDEeAUmgiH2kCRFEfco-PiD1mQqFK8keQ9HF24SAgs/edit#gid=2098605795" target="_blank">scoring sheet</a> provided by the judge Alex Coulombe.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmi7qh6sUh1Nj0Yq-H045Az5jKEkYQSSF9SRgXkQpesTZ0BskUNy8buK18oVs-kPqp9uAClm_Qhk5lRz_opFQQwQCxVwR0XIoTAOg_Y9TDrz1giXyG87V6UsBBO_rXD97Y9bLTwwMcjZPv/s1600/big+box+challenge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="458" data-original-width="500" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmi7qh6sUh1Nj0Yq-H045Az5jKEkYQSSF9SRgXkQpesTZ0BskUNy8buK18oVs-kPqp9uAClm_Qhk5lRz_opFQQwQCxVwR0XIoTAOg_Y9TDrz1giXyG87V6UsBBO_rXD97Y9bLTwwMcjZPv/s320/big+box+challenge.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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If you start diving into the scoring sheet, you'll notice that Alex gave FAZA a total score of 42 out of 45. This score is then broken down into three categories: Rules/Mechanics (18 out of 20), Art/Style (15 out of 15), Marketing/Hype (9 out of 10). He continued to describe the game as:<br />
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"Great cooperative premise and graphics. Like how the play area is laid out, though looks like there's room for improvement in hierarchy of information. Really glad there's considerations for 'if this is your first time playing.' Rules are super well documented and the examples are helpful. Thrilled to see info for both 'here's what to do on your first game' and 'here's how to make the game harder.' Also nice touch with the considerations made for color blindness."<style type="text/css"><!--td {border: 1px solid #ccc;}br {mso-data-placement:same-cell;}--></style>benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-53334325412091417772017-02-28T16:09:00.000-08:002017-02-28T16:20:02.095-08:00Faza: A Cooperative Sci-Fi Board GameHi Everyone!<br />
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For the past year I've been working on a side project, which I've been calling <a href="http://www.thefaza.com/" target="_blank">Faza</a>. It's a cooperative board game set in a science fiction future. I'm hoping to have it up and running soon, and I've already put together a website. Please check it out, and share this with your friends that are into sci-fi and board games!<br />
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<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><span style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><a href="http://www.thefaza.com/" target="_blank"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjm-7l8Am3NHAj6OFCjLIgI53QsTIHSxeFWRJkfIrxSSzOYVomynAjUXI83nQfs438IKxoA7TkbSNE9otJUfl9YhY1755tlW1q3YxU-G-a0iHPZ5eJkahjIHUlGZSbwZV97GeSQXy90woos/s400/faza-landing-image.jpg" width="376" /></a></span></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><a href="http://www.thefaza.com/" target="_blank">Faza Cover Art</a></td></tr>
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And here's a quick video of the game in action.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="281" mozallowfullscreen="" src="https://player.vimeo.com/video/205976786" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="500"></iframe></div>
benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-27781735710198029862016-05-19T05:30:00.000-07:002016-05-19T05:30:12.308-07:00Binaural Beat Generation, Creating an Illusory Sound with CodeA little while ago I came across a phenomenon known as <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Binaural_beats" target="_blank">binaural beats</a>. It's an auditory illusion that's created when two tones are presented to each ear separately, meaning one ear can't hear what the other ear is hearing.<br />
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I was curious in exploring this and wrote a brief piece of code using <a href="https://processing.org/" target="_blank">processing</a>, which you can try out below if you download the processing environment.<br />
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What I also thought was interesting is the ability of a binaural beat to generate synchronous neuronal activity corresponding to the following mental states:<br />
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<li style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gamma_wave" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;" title="Gamma wave">Gamma</a>, 30 to 50 Hz</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beta_wave" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;" title="Beta wave">Beta</a>, 14 to 30 Hz</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alpha_wave" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;" title="Alpha wave">Alpha</a>, 8 to 14 Hz</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theta_rhythm" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;" title="Theta rhythm">Theta</a>, 4 to 8 Hz</li>
<li style="margin-bottom: 0.1em;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Delta_wave" style="background: none; color: #0b0080; text-decoration: none;" title="Delta wave">Delta</a>, 0.1 to 4 Hz</li>
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<span style="color: #252525; font-family: sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 14px; line-height: 22.4px;">I tested this code on myself for about 10 minutes and was able to quickly enter a meditative state. Anyways, try it out for yourself and let me know what you think.</span></span></div>
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<script src="https://gist.github.com/benfarahmand/e5b895446879c71661e267c68067c636.js"></script>benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-73229049391779609742016-05-18T06:30:00.000-07:002016-05-18T06:30:30.680-07:00Balance Bike Reaches 250 Downloads!<div>
It's been a while since I've written anything about <a href="http://www.m3ntorapps.com/balance-bike.html" target="_blank">Balance Bike</a>, the educational android app I released last year. Young kids engage through pictures, touch, and sound to learn words, colors, numbers, and letters. </div>
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This project was my way of teaching myself how to do android programming. I also haven't been marketing it, people have been discovering it organically and the app has finally reached a milestone, 250 downloads! It only took a year. :)</div>
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You can download it from the <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=m3ntor.animalfriends" target="_blank">play store</a>.<div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcHsbH75FDpXh_Gt5vMQkQ38HVvaK5lBm080tgnFRZAzRJbhQOwgVHjlFm68b_L8DyBrT_FQg-QlYC1PNZbsARb4p0VyU4O8p1zrKaOB4flwWmiytsjMntZoDapoH6EfjFx10s2XjVzyTF/s1600/balance-bike.png" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Balance Bike: A Learning Game" border="0" height="212" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcHsbH75FDpXh_Gt5vMQkQ38HVvaK5lBm080tgnFRZAzRJbhQOwgVHjlFm68b_L8DyBrT_FQg-QlYC1PNZbsARb4p0VyU4O8p1zrKaOB4flwWmiytsjMntZoDapoH6EfjFx10s2XjVzyTF/s400/balance-bike.png" title="Balance Bike: A Learning Game" width="400" /></a></div>
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benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-15865889334363962112016-03-23T06:00:00.000-07:002016-03-23T06:00:09.426-07:00User Research Presentation by Michael MargolisI came across this really great presentation and explanation on how to quickly do user research in the context of the startup. The presenter, Michael Margolis, is a Google Ventures partner and has been doing this kind of work for more than twenty years. He works with the GV startups to help them understand their users and to figure out how they should build their products in order to meet the needs of their users.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/WpzmOH0hrEM" width="560"></iframe><br />
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One argument that sticks out from his lecture is the reason for observing users. He argues that the importance of observing users is to understand the 'why' of particular user actions. He compares observing users to looking at detailed website analytics. Analytics will reveal what people are doing, yet it won't reveal why they're doing what they're doing. Seeing the metrics of a certain website funnel, or being able to see the data of people dropping off at a certain page doesn't give insight into the problem that might be causing users to drop off. Discovering the 'why' behind a certain problem will then reveal the solution.benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-88573490601711632112016-03-22T05:09:00.001-07:002016-03-22T05:09:52.695-07:00I Don't Always Farm, But When I Do, It's VerticalTwo weekends ago I had the bright idea to grow some of my own vegetables in a cardboard box. After a quick trip to the hardware store to get some soil and seeds, I was on my way. I grabbed the easiest veggies to grow: radish, spinach, microgreens, and mixed greens. The results are below.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju8MKcGLGEOwWxcECKa8-AFD-0JhNLM3iUVh2UOsZLCTHyqPHnxrBZU9A657p3SrU7YyNn7RfpslHMCBpsvdY8_WSZ4dIwuc1ZjLNSl0jBebmgS89a2oD0o0_t4Ksh7pyhVSNfx4iejR9e/s1600/20160313_181103.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEju8MKcGLGEOwWxcECKa8-AFD-0JhNLM3iUVh2UOsZLCTHyqPHnxrBZU9A657p3SrU7YyNn7RfpslHMCBpsvdY8_WSZ4dIwuc1ZjLNSl0jBebmgS89a2oD0o0_t4Ksh7pyhVSNfx4iejR9e/s320/20160313_181103.jpg" width="180" /></a></div>
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<a href="http://www.benfarahmand.com/2016/03/well-there-it-is.html" target="_blank">Well, there it is</a>. The vertical farm by my window. I will follow-up with another post showing progress.</div>
<br />benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-12460396332578887752016-03-22T05:07:00.003-07:002016-03-22T05:09:06.337-07:00Well, There It Is<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaugcmfHa1ETFzNlswZtU9pSeErPVpyQHUqodSePvo7Y9WmDZ6SfOcobLwfcHabuJ2KvWNA422ROG95ZodWt0W6dLCAQrsAceGrNTD2xBPDqNKJXEwNcBEOHuDgR0mYHoT9vEJMwhkM0RH/s1600/WellThereItIs.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="216" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiaugcmfHa1ETFzNlswZtU9pSeErPVpyQHUqodSePvo7Y9WmDZ6SfOcobLwfcHabuJ2KvWNA422ROG95ZodWt0W6dLCAQrsAceGrNTD2xBPDqNKJXEwNcBEOHuDgR0mYHoT9vEJMwhkM0RH/s400/WellThereItIs.gif" width="400" /></a></div>
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<br />benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-89034326417664027872016-02-01T10:47:00.009-08:002022-02-11T11:33:39.465-08:00Exploring Tuva's Embed FeatureTesting the updated Tuva Tools embed iframe. CLick more to view it.<br />
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<a name='more'></a><br />
Subdomain dataset embed:
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<iframe width="100%" height="645" frameborder="0" seamless="seamless" scrolling="no" src="https://stemscopes-demo.tuvalabs.com/embed/dataset/mms/"></iframe>
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Plot state embed:
<iframe width="100%" height="645" frameborder="0" seamless="seamless" scrolling="no" src="https://stemscopes-sandbox.tuvalabs.com/embed/plot/ad75f2747a8b48a49f8d9d24d74fc076/"></iframe>
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My datasets embed:
<iframe id="captureThis" width="100%" height="645" frameborder="0" seamless="seamless" scrolling="no" src="https://sandbox.tuvalabs.com/benfarahmand/embed/dataset/2d84564570a04330be5f55a8091077f4/"></iframe>
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<button id="capture_image">Capture Image</button>
<img id="result_img" height="200" width="300">
<script>
// addEventListener support for IE8
function bindEvent(element, eventName, eventHandler) {
if (element.addEventListener){
element.addEventListener(eventName, eventHandler, false);
} else if (element.attachEvent) {
element.attachEvent('on' + eventName, eventHandler);
}
}
// Send a message to the child iframe
var iframeEl = document.getElementById('captureThis'),
capturePlotImage = document.getElementById('capture_image'),
img = document.getElementById('result_img');
bindEvent(capturePlotImage, 'click', function(e){
var data = JSON.stringify({'plotImage': null});
iframeEl.contentWindow.postMessage(data, '*');
});
// Listen to message from child window
bindEvent(window, 'message', function (e) {
var jsonObj = JSON.parse(e.data);
if ('plotImage' in jsonObj){
img.src = jsonObj.plotImage;
console.log(jsonObj.iframeId);
}
});
</script>
benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-40314640671621983032015-12-23T06:17:00.000-08:002015-12-23T06:21:52.694-08:00Board Games: Competitive vs CooperativeI'm feeling a general sense of frustration with competitive board games, like Settlers of Catan, Monopoly, Risk, and the like. When I play these games I end up in last place, or near to last place, and I'm left with nothing to do during the game. The rest of the players continue the fun as I then sit by myself, sip a drink and ruminate over the rule book to see if there was something I could of done differently. Was it my luck? My inability to strategize? Maybe a bit of both.<br />
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Enter cooperative board games: a few years ago I played a cooperative board game called Defenders of the Realm. At first I was drawn in by this game's attention to detail, visually stunning renderings and beautifully crafted backstory setting the stage for the players. Then, I was blown away by being able to get feedback on my strategy as a newbie from other players and also coordinate my moves with other players. I was hooked, and inspired.<br />
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Ever since I learned about cooperative games as a genre, I've been itching to design my own cooperative game. About four months ago I began designing and testing it out with friends.<br />
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Stay tuned for updates as I continue development! And in the mean time, let me know what you think of competitive and cooperative games in the comments section below. What do you like about them? What do you hate about them? How well does it hold your attention throughout the course of the game?<br />
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<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxhomj1FQWvLVOfOfetGVfFyFO74a6iHUx2UF5QevdU2NSrOnpldSKEdent16qyYGf3ak0enMY-fbnQxph7wGcERXV2U9vJJiCqQ6peJm5hGdHZT9l2sBPPqYNSrLGiVIVLfAj7Ytjoqem/s1600/20151219_144424.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjxhomj1FQWvLVOfOfetGVfFyFO74a6iHUx2UF5QevdU2NSrOnpldSKEdent16qyYGf3ak0enMY-fbnQxph7wGcERXV2U9vJJiCqQ6peJm5hGdHZT9l2sBPPqYNSrLGiVIVLfAj7Ytjoqem/s400/20151219_144424.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">A prototype of the game I'm working on.</td></tr>
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benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-54740211145964395762015-11-24T13:39:00.002-08:002015-11-27T09:06:31.928-08:00What are animals thinking and feeling?<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" mozallowfullscreen="" scrolling="no" src="https://embed-ssl.ted.com/talks/carl_safina_what_are_animals_thinking_and_feeling.html" webkitallowfullscreen="" width="560"></iframe><br />
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Of all the TED talks I've seen, and I've seen pretty much every single one, I found this one especially moving. Carl Safina passionately holds up a mirror to who we are and the effect we have on the animals we live with. If you have 20 minutes to watch something today, watch this.benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-40326540637823417442015-04-22T05:25:00.004-07:002015-04-22T05:28:27.893-07:00Balance Bike: A Learning GameOver the past several months I've been hard at work learning to develop android apps. I just published my first app on to the <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=m3ntor.animalfriends" target="_blank">Google Play Store</a>. The app is called <a href="http://www.m3ntorapps.com/balance-bike.html" target="_blank">Balance Bike: A Learning Game</a>.<br />
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Balance Bike is an educational game for young children to learn words, letters, and numbers through touch, sound, and speaking. The app currently contains six categories: farm animals, wild animals, birds, alphabet, numbers, and colors.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpne77p9-VoHGKvkCIAeOYyDAAICiER3EXJ_aquqBA9I0l2B9O6k9hd6-k7zIufPaMSzX93LuBA8-E_vLIu29r3MqinbT0XrDEYldm8riQki-dX7Tdajk0B4aZF2es5aRpLjBRoR8-qKa3/s1600/Screenshot_2015-04-12-11-34-21.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpne77p9-VoHGKvkCIAeOYyDAAICiER3EXJ_aquqBA9I0l2B9O6k9hd6-k7zIufPaMSzX93LuBA8-E_vLIu29r3MqinbT0XrDEYldm8riQki-dX7Tdajk0B4aZF2es5aRpLjBRoR8-qKa3/s1600/Screenshot_2015-04-12-11-34-21.png" height="320" width="205" /></a></div>
Balance Bike starts up with a home screen that allows kids to pick from different categories.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbLtAlxUwI29TUHDLB1nVabpXU1cyYksJKaG3ur1WI4om0oUcvmvSsmy_rb9ra6aRoBWimcad3Enk8tUX4mlDjioUNLad8MSzayqEEJD9QFKWRYUfKykjNWAOi34VLH51YepOFMWJtaW6c/s1600/Screenshot_2015-04-12-12-55-46.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbLtAlxUwI29TUHDLB1nVabpXU1cyYksJKaG3ur1WI4om0oUcvmvSsmy_rb9ra6aRoBWimcad3Enk8tUX4mlDjioUNLad8MSzayqEEJD9QFKWRYUfKykjNWAOi34VLH51YepOFMWJtaW6c/s1600/Screenshot_2015-04-12-12-55-46.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbLtAlxUwI29TUHDLB1nVabpXU1cyYksJKaG3ur1WI4om0oUcvmvSsmy_rb9ra6aRoBWimcad3Enk8tUX4mlDjioUNLad8MSzayqEEJD9QFKWRYUfKykjNWAOi34VLH51YepOFMWJtaW6c/s1600/Screenshot_2015-04-12-12-55-46.png" height="320" width="205" /></a></div>
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Once a kid picks a category, they're presented with a wheel of pictures. Here, they can spin the wheel.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-qb4DhmdcPSHJq4cnv-z0iGwC3rTUWx_ObQmP221D2Edk4gPei8V3WsLJW_Lyp9OqoWjaKx00UjIrxp05_FCgpMUzFmr8hB2s0F-Xn9qlc00e_J18tQfsR2FXVtXooKfc5l6fdHwyg4pV/s1600/Screenshot_2015-04-12-11-34-58.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><br /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-qb4DhmdcPSHJq4cnv-z0iGwC3rTUWx_ObQmP221D2Edk4gPei8V3WsLJW_Lyp9OqoWjaKx00UjIrxp05_FCgpMUzFmr8hB2s0F-Xn9qlc00e_J18tQfsR2FXVtXooKfc5l6fdHwyg4pV/s1600/Screenshot_2015-04-12-11-34-58.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-qb4DhmdcPSHJq4cnv-z0iGwC3rTUWx_ObQmP221D2Edk4gPei8V3WsLJW_Lyp9OqoWjaKx00UjIrxp05_FCgpMUzFmr8hB2s0F-Xn9qlc00e_J18tQfsR2FXVtXooKfc5l6fdHwyg4pV/s1600/Screenshot_2015-04-12-11-34-58.png" height="320" width="205" /></a></div>
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The wheel eventually stops spinning and an animal is selected. On this screen, the first sound we hear is the name of the animal. The second sound we hear is the animal's sound. Clicking on the left and right musical notes repeats the animal name and animal sound, respectively.<br />
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Underneath the picture of the animal is a third button. Pressing the microphone, the app focuses on the word, asking the child to speak what they see. At this point, speech recognition is used to see if the word is said correctly.benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-75016573842448291352015-03-04T13:49:00.000-08:002024-03-04T14:00:13.671-08:00Tuva Embed Feature TestTesting Tuva's Dataset Embed Feature:
User Dataset Embed:
<iframe width="100%" height="645" frameborder="0" seamless="seamless" scrolling="no" src="https://sandbox.tuvalabs.com/benfarahmand/embed/plot/4252593f47394ec783b44c40161853b0/"></iframe>
Partner Demo Subdomain
<iframe width="100%" height="645" frameborder="0" seamless="seamless" scrolling="no" src="https://partner-demo.tuvalabs.com/embed/plot/f9a677c8c6b247dbb523ad96f66be078/"></iframe>benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-1449844110216118202014-08-06T16:15:00.001-07:002014-08-06T16:15:59.914-07:00TuvaLabs at the TechStars+Kaplan EdTech AcceleratorIt's been a while since I've had time to write an update. The past month has been hectic. One piece of amazing news I'd like to share with friends and family is our acceptance into the TechStars+Kaplan EdTech Accelerator. You can read about the <a href="http://kaplanedtechaccelerator.com/presenting-the-accelerators-class-of-2014/">press release here</a>.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNgwiSpxjCRl49clsH2VmPhZXk6M4JkqmmsL8CVHtpsM1TpYqkCRap1fyjYpUuY4d4GZUAOMkGemxGUKB8Cv2Z1bnv1XZPLZf8SsoSQoF13BColURPeMWuU5miVJ4dbZjWBJYELb71OXco/s1600/IMG_20140725_110812.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNgwiSpxjCRl49clsH2VmPhZXk6M4JkqmmsL8CVHtpsM1TpYqkCRap1fyjYpUuY4d4GZUAOMkGemxGUKB8Cv2Z1bnv1XZPLZf8SsoSQoF13BColURPeMWuU5miVJ4dbZjWBJYELb71OXco/s1600/IMG_20140725_110812.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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We're working in their office space in New York City with eleven other amazing educational companies. The program started about a week and a half ago, and we've been learning a lot through their workshops and meetings they've planned out for us. As a team, we know our best has gotten us here, and with the feedback and criticism from the experts in this program we'll be able to take our process and skills to the next level.</div>
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I feel very fortunate to be working on new educational technologies at such a pivotal time in the history of education. Hopefully <a href="https://tuvalabs.com/">TuvaLabs</a> will be able to create a positive and lasting impact in the analytical and critical thinking of students around the world. And in the long run, encourage more students to become data literate by engaging them with <a href="https://tuvalabs.com/datasets/">data that's from the real world</a>.</div>
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And finally, a view from my seat:</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy72VBbXFI8tKmCXUP5FdExdlCaUTe7tyRyvvtB9nonpJWknCUuCdSUfBRo3qnBQzLh-PlLH5zVw2UKJi04vW_6QQZM6YzHxEFWVII8eSqrfWkXO3RA83eQrZPL7LFIiqhWwYeKRJhZKrC/s1600/IMG_20140806_185143.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiy72VBbXFI8tKmCXUP5FdExdlCaUTe7tyRyvvtB9nonpJWknCUuCdSUfBRo3qnBQzLh-PlLH5zVw2UKJi04vW_6QQZM6YzHxEFWVII8eSqrfWkXO3RA83eQrZPL7LFIiqhWwYeKRJhZKrC/s1600/IMG_20140806_185143.jpg" height="300" width="400" /></a></div>
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benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-14118803873501466672014-07-11T07:49:00.000-07:002014-07-11T07:56:10.187-07:00Making Open Data Useful for Teaching and Learning<div style="text-align: left;">
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<a href="https://tuvalabs.com/">TuvaLabs</a> makes open data useful by curating it into easy to use data sets and then developing rich activities around each data set. This enables teachers to bring data-based inquiry into their classrooms. These classrooms can range from civics, health, and history to science, statistics, and economics.<br />
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The way we enable inquiry into real world data is by focusing on three areas. First, we make sure students are able to ask their own questions. Then, we provide opportunities for students to explore, visualize, and analyze real data. And finally, we empower students to communicate their own findings. This means Tuvalabs is a space where students learn from local and global data, affording them to become aware and active members of their local and global communities.</div>
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In collaboration with Teachers, we’ve discovered that third graders are learning the basics of the statistical language from <a href="https://tuvalabs.com/datasets/top_10_movies_of_2013__by_the_numbers/">data about movies</a>. Then, there are fifth grade students creating visual and verbal arguments from data around the <a href="https://tuvalabs.com/datasets/salary_differences_between_men__women_in_the_us/">income inequalities between men and women</a>. Eighth graders from New Jersey are becoming aware of their community through local data on <a href="https://tuvalabs.com/datasets/population_and_energy_consumption_in_new_jersey/">population and energy consumption data</a>. And one more brilliant example is of ninth grade students in the Bronx learning data literacy from their local <a href="https://tuvalabs.com/datasets/population_of_the_bronx_by_zip_code_in_2010/">Bronx population</a>.<br />
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Some of these students have gotten back to us about their learning experiences. One student said, "It is challenging. But we get to learn about <a href="https://tuvalabs.com/datasets/salary_differences_between_men__women_in_the_us/">Gender inequality</a> and how it is affecting us." Another commented that "this was a very interesting topic to explore because I love to go to <a href="https://tuvalabs.com/datasets/top_15_amusement_parks_in_north_america/">theme parks</a>."<br />
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Occasionally, students and teachers want to explore a topic that's not yet covered on TuvaLabs. When this happens, they <a href="https://tuvalabs.com/ask/">request data</a>. For example, learners requested data about the <a href="https://tuvalabs.com/datasets/demographics_of_the_united_states_senate/">demographics of the current US Congress</a> and about the <a href="https://tuvalabs.com/datasets/becoming_barbie/">impact of Barbie's proportions on society</a>.<br />
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The impact we've observed both inside and outside the classroom continues to motivate us. Every teacher that's part of the this community has contributed to making TuvaLabs the way it is today.</div>
benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-49836323019799803122014-06-26T12:26:00.000-07:002014-06-26T12:28:02.378-07:00TuvaLabs Places First at the LinkedUp Vidi Competition<div class="separator" style="clear: both;">
We went to Crete this past month to show our work at the <a href="http://linkedup-challenge.org/">LinkedUp Vidi Competition</a>, which was held at the ESWC conference. We presented how <a href="https://tuvalabs.com/">TuvaLabs</a> is making open data useful for teaching and learning. The competitors' presentations were very impressive and polished, and included Rhizi, Konnektid, DBLPXplorer, LODStories, eDL mobile app, Solvonauts, and agINFRA.</div>
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwn5Ol1CpwfhDhL0cKcmjikyefmD9Hr99XYhPp2qoyCyXriu70UzZTAi7hhNUzFqpu7mNZr6Y2wV1q0jISYjEsyWXYFip0TxXtwhSs94GEoM3NvuG72kUkhxLBL0o80eLfNUxhOVFk_sC5/s1600/IMG_6546.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwn5Ol1CpwfhDhL0cKcmjikyefmD9Hr99XYhPp2qoyCyXriu70UzZTAi7hhNUzFqpu7mNZr6Y2wV1q0jISYjEsyWXYFip0TxXtwhSs94GEoM3NvuG72kUkhxLBL0o80eLfNUxhOVFk_sC5/s1600/IMG_6546.JPG" height="300" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Making Open Data Useful for Teaching and Learning</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="p2">
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<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNYNqyQk7hJGTlptFdBfW384mAuF_gWA-Nm15_I19SAmWUpdSKdo3xElbPCwss7JZjr08khUr8RBv19Ex_pr0iLQwL56MtHLetQ1VdSaT4oSapO9k12aR_5LU3nE6chMOim5gdcg17yjNO/s1600/IMG_6624.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNYNqyQk7hJGTlptFdBfW384mAuF_gWA-Nm15_I19SAmWUpdSKdo3xElbPCwss7JZjr08khUr8RBv19Ex_pr0iLQwL56MtHLetQ1VdSaT4oSapO9k12aR_5LU3nE6chMOim5gdcg17yjNO/s1600/IMG_6624.JPG" height="222" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">Curated Data Sets around a Variety of Topics</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<div class="p1">
After presenting to conference attendees, we received some great feedback and had the opportunity to connect to and build relationships with the open data community and several other startups. Several meetings included people from the Open Knowledge Foundation, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Mozilla Science Lab, software carpentry, and many more.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Vt1LHRv4pHkoFj2bUmUipL4fOw9WcZXUw95M6mB4-KB-CqE5JWIkK5TvrgpmsNuOpdwFcC62nNV017dL0joaQvpIhhU2LHgmGzBCg_edR1PIkOrbEgHstOkDPxbBesxlAGrI72hCHCAg/s1600/vidi-winners.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2Vt1LHRv4pHkoFj2bUmUipL4fOw9WcZXUw95M6mB4-KB-CqE5JWIkK5TvrgpmsNuOpdwFcC62nNV017dL0joaQvpIhhU2LHgmGzBCg_edR1PIkOrbEgHstOkDPxbBesxlAGrI72hCHCAg/s1600/vidi-winners.jpg" height="313" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="font-size: 13px;">The Winners from the Vidi Competition<br />
<div>
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</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
</div>
We feel very fortunate to have placed first, and are very pleased with the 3000 Euros we’ve been awarded. After the competition, the various LinkedUp successes were interviewed about their experiences while being part of the competition. Below, you can see a compiled video of these interviews. Enjoy!<br />
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<div style="text-align: center;">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/5oLPtabkoaE" width="560"></iframe></div>
benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-22785309212985442802014-04-26T18:01:00.000-07:002014-04-26T18:05:02.517-07:00Giving Human Form to Audio Visualizers, Version 1I'll upload a video of this audio visualization when I have some time. In the meantime, try the code out yourself. I'm still tweaking it to figure out what might look best.<br />
<br />
Some requirements to run this code:<br />
1. Download OpenCV for Processing from here: <a href="https://github.com/atduskgreg/opencv-processing/releases">https://github.com/atduskgreg/opencv-processing/releases</a><br />
2. And download and install from here: <a href="http://opencv.org/">http://opencv.org/</a><br />
2.b. Probably need v2.4.5 of opencv from opencv.org, but I was able to get it to work with v2.4.9<br />
<br />
I'm also using processing 2.1.2.<br />
<br />
And finally, copy this gist into processing:<br />
<br />
<script src="https://gist.github.com/benfarahmand/11335079.js"></script>benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-39311129637008269572014-04-21T12:45:00.000-07:002014-04-21T12:45:05.590-07:00Design and its Critics - Deyan SudjicIf you're interested in design history compressed into twenty minutes, listen to this talk. Deyan Sudjic presents the last century of design, how it's been changing, and how it's been used to attain a plethora goals from commercial, social, and technical. Deyan is the director of the Design Museum and the author of a new book, 'B is for Bauhaus.'<br />
<br />
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/rg-uWMsmpKg" width="560"></iframe>benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-44298908336186527292014-02-11T10:32:00.000-08:002014-02-11T10:32:01.557-08:00A Psychoanalysis Perspective on Life and EverythingA great discussion between Adam Phillips, a psychoanalyst and literary figure, and Matthew Taylor, the Chief Executive of the RSA.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/4TwGctui4Uo" width="560"></iframe>benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-22003606951598486502014-01-20T09:18:00.001-08:002014-01-20T09:19:14.103-08:00Visiting the MUSE SchoolCross posting <a href="http://tuvalabs.tumblr.com/post/73364682648/visiting-the-muse-school">an article I wrote for the TuvaLabs blog</a>:<br />
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<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.979999542236328px; margin-bottom: 1.575em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Connecting with <a href="http://museschool.org/bio-leadership/joseph-harper-asst-head-of-school-curriculum-coordinator/" style="-webkit-transition: color, background-color; font-weight: bold; line-height: 13.720000267028809px; text-decoration: none; transition: color, background-color;">Joe Harper</a> at the <a href="http://www.bigpicture.org/2013/03/big-bang-2013/" style="-webkit-transition: color, background-color; font-weight: bold; line-height: 13.720000267028809px; text-decoration: none; transition: color, background-color;">Big Bang Conference</a> in Rhode Island, we were invited and humbled to visit the <a href="http://museschool.org/" style="-webkit-transition: color, background-color; font-weight: bold; line-height: 13.720000267028809px; text-decoration: none; transition: color, background-color;">MUSE School</a>. Each and every school we visit is a special day for us. The teachers we meet and the students we speak to motivate us to keep going. To meet the community at the MUSE School, I flew cross country to Los Angeles. Their school sits at the bottom of two hills. After parking and checking in at their office, I was enthusiastically greeted by <a href="http://museschool.org/bio-specialists/tania-hipple-lopez-math-coordinator/" style="-webkit-transition: color, background-color; font-weight: bold; line-height: 13.720000267028809px; text-decoration: none; transition: color, background-color;">Tania Lopez-Hipple</a> – a math instructor. We toured the campus, went through several rooms and I loved seeing the walls of each classroom filled from floor to ceiling with work produced by their kids. When I say from floor to ceiling, I mean their ceilings drape with student work cause there’s no space to tape anything more. These teachers make a point to showcase their students.</span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.979999542236328px; margin-bottom: 1.575em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><img alt="image" src="https://31.media.tumblr.com/53c5c47c1dfcbf89971d9559aea33a75/tumblr_inline_mzf6x7PyE31s989ns.jpg" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgb(153, 153, 153) 0px 0px 5px; border: 0px; box-shadow: rgb(153, 153, 153) 0px 0px 5px; margin: 0px;" /></span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.979999542236328px; margin-bottom: 1.575em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I learned the faculty at this school take an interest in every child in their classroom. Each teacher works to incorporate subjects like math and English into the child’s current project - they work to intrinsically motivate their students. One kid I met was designing and building his own miniature golf hole by incorporating concepts from geometry.</span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.979999542236328px; margin-bottom: 1.575em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><img alt="image" src="https://31.media.tumblr.com/b6ad4628ef0d50b69cf2a8e8b2ec3ee9/tumblr_inline_mzf6xnUPaX1s989ns.jpg" style="-webkit-box-shadow: rgb(153, 153, 153) 0px 0px 5px; border: 0px; box-shadow: rgb(153, 153, 153) 0px 0px 5px; margin: 0px;" /></span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.979999542236328px; margin-bottom: 1.575em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
</div>
<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.979999542236328px; margin-bottom: 1.575em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">We continued on to the multipurpose room where a quarter of our organic lunch was grown on campus. Tania and I, sitting with another teacher, discussed the value of independent research projects. These types of projects last for three months and engage with kids around their own interests. We discussed how <a href="https://www.tuvalabs.com/" style="-webkit-transition: color 0.55s, background-color; font-weight: bold; line-height: 13.720000267028809px; text-decoration: none; transition: color 0.55s, background-color;">TuvaLabs</a> can be a support tool for the students to incorporate data analysis and mathematical concepts into their independent research projects. This is the beginning of a collaboration that we’re eager to learn from and engage in. We’re excited to see the kids at the MUSE School get excited around data they’re interested in.</span></div>
<div style="background-color: white; line-height: 21.979999542236328px; margin-bottom: 1.575em; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">As we move forward be sure to come back to our blog to see updates and student work being showcased on our blog.</span></div>
benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-37049644286091697662014-01-14T07:53:00.002-08:002014-01-19T10:35:16.896-08:00Source Code: How to Make a Movie in ProcessingThe following code will allow one to save frames with text in <a href="http://www.processing.org/">processing</a>.<br />
<br />
Press 'r' to begin and stop recording.<br />
Press 'n' to go to the next text.<br />
Press 'p' to go back.<br />
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The output will be frames in a folder called 'output.' Then, you'll have to compile these frames in third party software, like QuickTime.<br />
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<script src="https://gist.github.com/benfarahmand/8420475.js"></script><br />benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-72042495534205029372013-11-15T07:24:00.000-08:002013-11-15T09:13:00.191-08:00Chad Dickerson of Etsy - Business is Personal: Putting people and planet before profitChad Dickerson, CEO of Etsy, spoke at the RSA about placing people and planet at the center of the business. He speaks to the shift in mindset that's occurring due to the information revolution, he quotes E.F. Schumacher, "The way in which we experience and interpret the world obviously depends very much indeed on the kind of ideas that fill our minds.If they are mainly small, weak, superficial, and incoherent, life will appear insipid, uninteresting, petty, and chaotic." The internet allows us to read anyone's ideas from anywhere in the world. These ideas include the stories of people's living and working conditions. We empathize with these stories and we feel our interdependence. We've realized the harm human commercial activity has caused around the world.<br />
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Dickerson argues for building a better mindset in order to build a more human world, specifically from "the conscious utilisation of our enormous technological and scientific potential for the fight against misery and human degradation – a fight in intimate contact with actual people, with individuals, families, small groups, rather than states and other anonymous abstractions" (E.F. Schumacher). I think he means leveraging our new mindset, due to new technologies, to place human work-life activities at the center of business. The examples he provides are about leveraging technologies like the internet and new corporate structures like the B-corp to create an inclusive, socially aware, and sustainable society. This shift in mindset should improve the quality of life while also creating sustainable businesses.<br />
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<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="315" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/QLjy9l2UFKI" width="560"></iframe>benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6118878721807429434.post-63015869020058173402013-11-05T10:08:00.002-08:002013-11-05T10:09:05.166-08:00Profiling the Innovators, Early Adopters, Early Majority, Late Majority, and LaggardsIn a meeting a while ago, we were describing our company's early adopters. I realized this should have been an exercise performed earlier when we first began developing our product. From the design perspective, I'll create user profiles of the end user, but sometimes this does not capture the early adopter. The terminology 'early adopter' communicates a go to market strategy. And so far in my short experience in the startup world, the way I've noticed entrepreneurs describing target audience is usually too broad, and it doesn't convey how they're going to reach these first few users or customers - the innovators.<br />
<br />
<a href="http://rcm-na.amazon-adsystem.com/e/cm?t=benfara-20&o=1&p=8&l=as1&asins=0060517123&ref=qf_sp_asin_til&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr"><i>Crossing the Chasm</i> by Geoffrey Moore</a> comes to mind, where it discusses early adopters. Moore places innovators, early adopters, early majority, late majority, and laggards in a sequence of groups over the course of the business's lifetime.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmiQutGpR9yyr6S49KCVH3wrJ7J1CO5Ay5G054aHS7SO6G_9ZwwdJWdmEviYuctNENcPdD2zYkvBCmIJlmrHm9sdCHPUozDju0uy4qsPZpF2oOVdOIdI6TruQ6pL0dVC5ygoxGm1gfhz84/s1600/Crossing-the-Chasm.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmiQutGpR9yyr6S49KCVH3wrJ7J1CO5Ay5G054aHS7SO6G_9ZwwdJWdmEviYuctNENcPdD2zYkvBCmIJlmrHm9sdCHPUozDju0uy4qsPZpF2oOVdOIdI6TruQ6pL0dVC5ygoxGm1gfhz84/s400/Crossing-the-Chasm.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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As a designer, I think doing user profiles is not enough. We should also be doing profiles of each of these user groups. The reason is because the scenarios describing how, when, and why they'll use a product changes based each group. The purpose of profiling each of these user groups is to generate business insights from a design perspective.benhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15078688661409400167noreply@blogger.com0