Minecraft.Print(): Making the Virtual Real
Minecraft is a video game focused on creativity and building. Players build constructions out of textured cubes in a 3D world–everything from a hut, to a train station, to a fully functional computer. Why can't we take those virtual creations, and bring them into the real world? Minecraft.Print() is our attempt to do so by creating a bridge between Minecraft and the real world, via 3D printers. A Minecraft player defines a 3D space to be printed, after which the software extracts the object, structure, or other creation from the virtual space and creates 3D-printable version. Minecraft.Print() takes advantage of the basic CAD functions of the game, thus allowing 10,000,000 (and counting) players to experience 3D modeling and printing–an area previously limited to those with more specific technical backgrounds.
Joichi Ito Chosen as Next Media Lab Director
Today the MIT Media Lab announced that Joichi "Joi" Ito will join the Lab as its new director.
An influential thinker, speaker, and seed investor driving the international development of the Internet, Ito is widely recognized as one of the world’s foremost writers on innovation, global technology policy, and the role of the Internet in transforming society in substantial and positive ways. Through his leadership role in key Internet organizations such as ICNN and Creative Commons, his venture funding, and his advocacy of Internet freedom, he continues to expand his influence worldwide.
His honors include: TIME magazine’s "Cyber-Elite” listing in 1997 (at age 31), selection by the World Economic Forum in 2001 as one of the "Global Leaders for Tomorrow," and Newsweek magazine's "Leaders of The Pack" in 2005. BusinessWeek named him one of the “25 Most Influential People on the Web” in 2008.
The full press release is available at the MIT News site.
