A few hundred technologists from Minnesota and beyond turned out today at the U of M CECC to experience MinneWebCon — the 5th annual gathering for web, mobile, social, and design professionals.
Organized by a dedicated team of local volunteers, the event is known for big name keynotes, a strong female to male ratio, diversity and depth of content. After attending the past three years, safe to say the standard has again been raised.
User experience pro from New York Whitney Hess kicked things off with her methodical take on research, design and problem solving before the track matrix opened up to niches ranging from the concrete (CSS3, UI, HTML5, etc.) to the abstract (change, strategy, communications, etc.). Overall, the crowdsourced breakout sessions made for a healthy blend of practicality and relevancy.
Via News Release
“WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – A team from St. Olaf College, a private liberal arts school in Northfield, Minn., won the 25th annual Rube Goldberg Machine Contest on Saturday (March 31) at Purdue University. It was the second time St. Olaf has won the national competition. The school also won in 2009, the first year it entered the contest.
This year’s machine had an end-of-the-world theme that incorporated music throughout the run, ranging from the “Jaws” theme to Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony to the “Indiana Jones” theme. The task for the Rube Goldberg machines this year was to inflate and pop a balloon.”
The U of M Mobile App Challenge came to a head last Friday when the judges determined that Wander App had earned the top spot.
Created over the past two semesters by designer Natalie Doud and CSE major Nate Martin, “Wander infuses spontaneity and adventure into moments of stagnant time,” says Doud.
Via News Release
“MINNEAPOLIS / ST. PAUL (03/28/2012) — Two arenas full of screaming fans and more than 120 high school teams from Minnesota and surrounding states are extending the Minnesota tournament frenzy another week at the Minnesota Regional FIRST Robotics Competitions 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Friday and Saturday March 30-31 at the University of Minnesota’s Williams and Mariucci arenas.
The championship matches are 1-4:15 p.m., Saturday, March 31, when there will be non- stop robot action.”
By Ed Stych, Minneapolis – St.Paul Business Journal
“Bloomington tech firm The Nerdery held its annual Overnight Website Challenge over the weekend, tasking 180 programmers with creating new, pro bono websites for 18 Twin Cities nonprofits in 24 hours.
The reworked sites, some of which you can see in a slideshow to the right, include some pretty major revamps: the West African Medical Missions includes highly polished visuals for users in the United States, and a companion, low-bandwidth site for those in Sierra Leone.”
By: Kevin C. Walker
After two semesters and with up to $10,000 in prizes at stake, four teams of student developers pitched judges for the 2012 University of Minnesota Mobile App Challenge last Friday.
Co-sponsored by the Office of Information Technology (OIT) and the Undergraduate Research Opportunity Program (UROP), the Mobile App Challenge aims to reproduce the entrepreneurial experience for current undergrad students at the University of Minnesota through ideating, building and launching a new mobile phone app.
It began this past fall, when over 100 teams submitted a mobile app idea that they believed to be creative, innovative, and salable. Those initial concepts were eventually weeded out and narrowed down through a timeline of delivery dates, combined with financial and logistical support from the University to help them transform their ideas into a functional reality.
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