Ushahidi is from Kenya; we know how hard it can be to get connected. Those who lack connectivity are at a disadvantage to their more connected peers. Yet the equipment used to connect in Kenya or India is the same as that used in New York and London, even though the conditions are completely different. The modems used around the world were designed for the USA more than a decade ago. They assume ubiquitous electricity connection, years of fiber infrastructure, and are designed for a desktop computer sitting in an office. That scenario is outdated.

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Check out sxsw.media.mit.edu to find all the Media Lab talks & events @ SXSW Interactive 2014 in one place!

Lounge: Future Futures
Location: Moonshine Restaurant (303 Red River)
Dates: Friday March 7 (2:30-5:30pm); Saturday March 8 to Monday March 10 (11am-5:30pm daily)

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#MLSXSW

Dates: Friday March 7 thru Monday March 10 (11am - 5:30pm daily)

Science fiction spurs us on to greater ideas and grander possibilities. As we continue to reach and surpass sci-fi's extraordinary speculative technologies, the Media Lab keeps redrawing the map of what’s possible–and how to get there. Join us for workshops, discussions, demos, and more on the future of the future.

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There's a new upwelling of anti-technology feeling that needs to be countered by sympathetic technologists. We've brought it on ourselves. If we go around bragging that we'll live forever, and that people shouldn't worry about little issues like jobs because the singularity is about to happen, we should expect ridicule. It's entirely possible to articulate a radically interesting approach to technology that doesn't make us out as jerks.

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Digital self-tracking, sometimes called "life hacking" or "personal analytics," involves parsing one's experience (e.g. bodily processes, use of time, emotional states) into digital bits of information and then feeding this information back into everyday life in the form of behavioral adjustments–a trend some have called “algorithmic living.” While people have long used technology to record and reflect upon how they live, the present historical moment is witnessing a dramatic expansion in the practice and scope of self-tracking.

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A live webcast with Media Lab Director Joi Ito from Abu Dhabi and the first Media Lab workshop there.

Join the Hangout live online on Wednesday, February 26, at 2pm Abu Dhabi time (GMT +4): http://live.wamda.com.

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Over the past decade, there has been an explosion of interest in how contemplative practices such as meditation can inform science and how science can inform these practices. Recent advances have begun to unravel the mysteries of how mindfulness practice can affect learning processes leading to positive habit change. Using evidence from clinical trials of smoking cessation, this presentation will first map out how mindfulness targets key components of operant conditioning pathways.

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Dan Novy, a PhD student in the Object-Based Media Group, will be joining Solve for X’s Moonshot Meet Up on Thursday, February 13 at 3pm EST to talk about some of the Lab’s breakthrough technology. Dan will be talking about the Narratarium, an immersive storytelling environment to augment creative play using texture, color, and image.

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The Dallas Opera presents a new production of Tod Machover's Death and the Powers, February 12-16. This visually spectacular robot pageant by the MIT Media Lab's Opera of the Future group tells the story of Simon Powers, a powerful businessman and inventor nearing the end of his life, who downloads his consciousness into “The System” in an effort to project himself into the future. His family, friends, and associates must decide what this means, whether or not he is actually alive, how it affects them, and whether to follow.

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