12-18-2008
Randy Pausch is Pittsburgher of the Year
The January issue of Pittsburgh magazine names Randy Pausch as the Pittsburgher of the Year. “He lived an extraordinary life, and in dying he inspired others on how to live,” the magazine said in explaining its choice. The issue features a long profile of Randy, written by Geoffrey W. Melada, that highlights his academic career, including the creation of the Alice software environment and the co-founding of the Entertainment Technology Center.
The magazine’s previous Pittsburghers of the Year have included Bill Strickland, Henry and Elsie Hillman, and August Wilson.
Byron Spice
12-15-2008
Panda3D, Alice Honored
Carnegie Mellon University has received a $50,000 Mellon Award for Technology Collaboration (MATC) for its role in developing Panda3D and Alice, two open-source software tools that provide significant benefits to higher education and, in particular, to the arts and humanities.
Mike Christel, senior systems scientist in the Computer Science Department, accepted the award from Vint Cert, vice president and Chief Internet Evangelist at Google Inc., at a Washington, D.C., ceremony Dec. 8. Ten institutions, including MIT, the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, and the University of Washington received the awards, which are presented by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.
Panda3D is a game engine originally developed by the Disney VR Studio to create virtual reality rides, such as Aladdin’s Magic Carpet, at Disney theme parks. It eventually was used to build Disney’s online game, Toontown. It was released as open source software in 2002, but was not in a form that could be easily used by most game developers. Carnegie Mellon’s Entertainment Technology Center worked with Disney to create documentation, add features and generally make Panda3D more suitable for use by the public.
Alice is a software environment that enables computer novices to create 3-D animations using a drag-and-drop interface and, in the process, provides an introduction to computer programming principles. The software, which Carnegie Mellon makes available as a free download, is used in about 15 percent of U.S. colleges and universities. Originally spearheaded by the late Randy Pausch, the Alice Project is now directed by Wanda Dann, associate teaching professor. Alice 3.0, a new version featuring animation characters created by Electronic Arts for its best-selling “The Sims,” is now undergoing alpha testing.
(Above, Carnegie Mellon's Mike Christel (right) accepts the award from Vint Cert of Google, Inc.)
Byron Spice
12-10-2008
Randy Continues To Inspire
Randy Pausch was the “Most Inspiring Person of 2008,” according to the editors of Beliefnet.com, a religion and spirituality Web site.
“Pausch was selected because of his huge, far-reaching impact and because even after his death he continues to inspire legions of viewers,” the editors explained. “Pausch's lecture, delivered for a small audience at Carnegie Mellon University where he was a professor of computer science, became an Internet phenomenon. … By 2008, his inspiration had reached almost 20 million people. His message was simple and powerful: ‘We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand.’”
The two other finalists were the Midwestern Boy Scouts who responded heroically when a tornado struck their camp in Iowa last June and Steven Curtis Chapman, a Christian music star and adoption advocate who became a model for suffering parents after the accidental death of his adopted daughter. Others considered for the award included the late Paul Newman and actress Christina Applegate, a breast cancer survivor who inspires and motivates others to join the fight against the deadly disease.
Byron Spice
11-26-2008
Acker Wins Public Health Award
Associate History Professor Caroline Acker will receive the 2008 Benjamin Rush Individual Public Health Award Jan. 31 at the Allegheny County Medical Society Gala at the Westin Convention Center Hotel in Pittsburgh. Established in 1947, this award honors a layperson who has made an outstanding contribution to the betterment, health and welfare of citizens in Allegheny County.
In 1995 Acker and James Crow co-founded Prevention Point Pittsburgh (PPP), a needle exchange program aimed at reducing the risk of HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis C and other blood-borne infections in intravenous drug users. At the time, providing this service was illegal, and Acker and other volunteers risked arrest to provide clean needles to drug users in the Hill District once a week.
Dedicated to improving public health for vulnerable populations, her efforts to legalize needle exchange were realized in 2001 when a needle exchange program was authorized by the Allegheny County Health Department. Furthermore, in 2008 Allegheny County Council passed an ordinance to regulate the operation of a needle exchange.
Because of Acker’s advocacy, more than 5,000 active drug users have accessed disease prevention services, and PPP has grown to include case management services, risk reduction education, crisis counseling and intervention, overdose prevention and free on-site HIV/Hepatitis C testing.
“By challenging the preconceived notions of how individuals struggling with addiction are viewed, Caroline works to bring health services to a group in society that often has no voice,” said Dr. Melinda Campopiano, who nominated Acker for the award.
Bruce Gerson
