R.I.P. Eugene Lang ~ Financed "Dream" Tuition!

James Hagerty in the WSJ writes of Eugene Lang's passing at 98 and his spontaneous philanthropic promise at a Harlem elementary school graduation to underwrite college tuition for all who finished high school. This begat the "I Have A Dream" Foundation which to-date has supported thousands of collegiates. R.I.P.

R.I.P. Hans Rosling ~ Edutainer Extraordinaire

Pancreatic cancer has laid low Hans Rosling, the Gapminder co-founder and my favorite public health statistician and data edutainer extraordinaire.  He has many remarkable TED talks and other videos online, but I personally favor his appearance at TEDIndia speaking on Asia's Rise where he compares global growth over 200 years and predicts exactly when India and China converge with the rich!

En Pointe ~ Custom Surgery & Prosthesis Too!

Very cool to see young Gabi Shull dance again, overcoming knee cancer with novel ankle-as-knee transplant and custom dancing prosthetic! Thanks to John Farrier from Neatorama for spotting this!

The Long Walk ~ Edwin Land's Polaroid at Peak!

In WGBH News Edgar Herwick spotlights How Edwin Land Built Polaroid Into The Ultimate Mass. Consumer Technology Powerhouse, and he notes...

"There’s this fascinating, kind of haunting video from 1970 that you can watch on YouTube, in which Edwin Land -- chemist, inventor, inspiration to Steve Jobs, and co-founder of Polaroid Corp. -- walks through a half-built factory in Norwood where he planned to change the world."

Sci Fab ~ Science Fiction-Inspired Prototyping!

Together with MIT Media Lab colleagues Dan (NovySan) Novy and Joe Paradiso, I'm helping run the next incarnation of the SF-inspired prototyping class Sci Fab this Fall 2015 every Tuesday night 7-9p! We want people to build functional prototypes provoked or inspired by classic and modern science fiction texts and films! Just like Verne inspired Sikorsky's choppers, Wells inspired Goddard's rockets, and Star Trek inspired smartphones and tricorders, we want to see what's next!

This isn't a class for "just listening" since we require regular readings and/or viewings, active discussion, in-class design and other exploratory exercises, two iterations of project prototypes during the first and second month, and a final project. Plus, we don't teach you "how to" build anything -- students should have at least basic experience with fab techniques and/or code ability. Anyone taking How To Make (Almost) Anything and other skillbuilding fabrication, electronics, coding, and similar classes should consider taking Sci Fab concurrently since we help you hone in on the most interesting and compelling things to prototype!

LEGO Brickumentary ~ Sharing a True Toy Story!

A LEGO Brickumentary coming soon; trailer here!

RePlan It ~ Jock Brandis & Co on Indiegogo!

Support our MIT Development Ventures inspiration and CNN Hero Jock Brandis and his crew at Full Belly and fellow documentarians on Indiegogo RePlan It!

R.I.P. Leonard Nimoy ~ Live Long and Prosper...

Alas Leonard Nimoy has passed away at 83 of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, which he attributed to years of smoking cigs. Born and raised in Boston's West End by immigrant Jews from Soviet Ukraine, he's perhaps best remembered for his enduring portrayal of the mostly logical half-Vulcan Mr Spock on Star Trek, where his signature hand-gesture emerged and also the tagline which inspired me and so many others -- "Live Long and Prosper"

Tzafar ~ Spetsioti's Humanitarian Short Film...

Thanks to Prerna Makkar for spotting Tzafar...

Paramedical Tattoos ~ Skin Scar Concealment!

Upworthy's Franchesca Ramsey spotlights the work of Basma Hameed, a paramedical tattoo artist, with her client-patients...

"For serious burn victims, the only thing worse than the injury itself are the scars left behind. But this incredible medical tattoo technology is giving renewed hope to burn victims. [...] Instead of tattooing vibrant, colorful designs, she uses special pigments that match the skin in order to conceal scars. [Patients] can see a dramatic decrease in their scar visibility and discoloration after a few treatments."

Cycling Without Age ~ Kassow's Rides @ TEDx

Copenhagenize's Mikael shares the TEDx talk by Ole Kassow who created the Cycling Without Age movement...

R.I.P. Peter Glaser ~ Solar Power Satelliteer...

Sad to read that visionary engineer Peter Glaser has passed away at age 90. Glaser worked for nearly a half-century at ADL, the pioneering technology & management consultancy, but his big passion was satellite-mounted solar panels which would beam power down to ground.

Negroponte's Advice ~ Mix Market and Mission!

MIT Media Lab co-founder Nicholas Negroponte advises new grads...

"Do mix market with mission. It is, in fact, a period today where you can take an avocation and turn it into something that's very intimately connected with what you do. And if you are, you know, toying with taking a job because it pays well but you hate it, don't do that. Don't ever do that because it is the saddest period. You're gonna wake up every morning and unless you really wake up and not only smile about it but you tell your spouse or your family what happened and how excited you are. That's the life you want to live and more than ever before lots and lots of people can do that. And so that's why I think graduating today would be really interesting. Thirty years ago we were a bit more in lockstep obedience and you did things because you were supposed to and opportunity didn't include making the world a better place."

R.I.P. Pat McGovern ~ MIT Venture Philanthropist

Very sad to hear MIT alum Pat McGovern passed away yesterday March 19th.  Founder of IDG, Pat later reconnected with his early passion for all things neuro and became philanthropic financier of the McGovern Institute for Brain Research at MIT.  On a personal note, he not only hosted me and a couple dozen peer new-admits to MIT at his Silicon Valley mansion -- an eye-opening and inspiring occasion -- but also inspired the various venture Salons I've been part of organizing since the mid-1990s, including thematic ones with Bob Metcalfe (e.g. NanoSalon, SocioSalon, NeuroSalon) and the later MIT Chairman's Salons.

R.I.P. Alex Zaffaroni ~ Great Biotech Entrepreneur

Very sad to hear Uruguayan immigrant-entrepreneur Dr Alejandro Zaffaroni passed away at 91 this past weekend. A pioneer in drug delivery systems and innovative medical technology and co-founder of a dozen Silicon Valley biotech ventures including ALZA, Dynapol, DNAX, Affymax & Affymetrix, and more, he was a magnet for talent and creative provocation for thousands of people.

Iron Suits ~ SF Visualization of Protective Gear++

Tony Stark's various Iron Suits... Plus, of course, his Brass Rat...

Cosmos 2.0 ~ Tyson's Space-Time Odyssey!

DailyGalaxy spots The New Cosmos in Our Dark Universe, Neil deGrasse Tyson's Moyers & Company interview! And here's Cosmos 2.0 trailer!

Seeding Labs ~ Nina Dudnik @ IDEAS Boston

Seeding Labs founder Nina Dudnik @ IDEAS Boston 2013!

This I Believe ~ Heinlein's Broadcast Creed...

Thanks to the Heinlein Prize for Accomplishments in Commercial Space Activities for posting the audio and transcript of science fiction grandmaster Robert A Heinlein's broadcast of This I Believe on the Edward R Murrow radio show in 1952...

The 16th Man ~ Mandela and the Springboks

ESPN's 16th Man documentary... Plus, here's the actual 1995 match...