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You might have noticed a new byline appearing on Ypulse last week — those posts are from Melanie Shreffler, Ypulse’s new Editor-in-Chief. She comes to us from EPM Communications where she covered marketing and consumer research, frequently... Read the rest of this post

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Congratulations to Melanie Mitchell, who received the 2010 ΦBK Science Book Award for her book Complexity: A Guided Tour! In honor of this, Michelle and Lauren talk with Mitchell about ants, robots, the economy, and more.

Melanie Mitchell is Professor of Computer Science at Portland State University and External Professor and Member of the Science Board at the Santa Fe Institute. Her research interests include artificial intelligence, machine learning and complex systems.

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From the Phi Beta Kappa Society:

Amazing feats of collective intelligence, such as the colony of army ants that link themselves together to cross daunting precipices, are having an unconventional effect on the future of science. The “complexity” of these naturally occurring events cannot be explained by the traditional method of breaking science down into its most basic parts, in this case, the individual army ants. Instead, the study of complex systems, those made up of simple components with limited capacity for communication, provide a much broader illustration of the science of self-organization and adaptation.

In Complexity: A Guided Tour (Oxford University Press, 2009), Melanie Mitchell draws on her background as a computer scientist and her work with the Santa Fe Institute to study the complex systems that have evolved in nature and how they may contribute to the future of computer programming, specifically with regards to artificial intelligence. Mitchell also looks at the human brain’s ability to create consciousness from a complex network of electrically charged neurons, axons, and dendrites, as well as the immune system’s unique collection of cells, which work together in an effective and efficient way without any central control.

The song featured in this podcast is “In the Middle” from the album Can’t You See by The Ben Daniels Band. Get it here.

Happy birthday to my friend and poet, Rebecca Kai Dotlich who was born on July 10 in Indianapolis, Indiana. She is also a featured poet in my new book, Poetry People Here is an excerpt from my piece on her and her work.

She grew up in Indiana in the backyard of the Indy 500 and attended Indiana University. She began writing even as a young child on a toy typewriter and eventually published her first collection of poetry for children, Sweet Dreams of the Wild, in 1995. She is a mother and grandmother, as well as a frequent conference speaker and writer-in-residence in the schools. In addition, she has been a poetry advisor for Creative Classroom magazine. Rebecca Kai Dotlich has a particular talent for writing poetry for our youngest readers and listeners.

Dotlich has two collections that are full of movement, in their strong rhythms and in their content. Over in the Pink House: New Jump Rope Rhymes (Boyds Mills Press, 2004) includes 32 original rhymes for chanting aloud while jumping rope. With In the Spin of Things: Poetry of Motion (Boyds Mills Press, 2003), Dotlich finds movement in ordinary things like ice cubes, pencil sharpeners, etc. Both books are full of playfulness with words and actions. Combine them with Jane Yolen's Street Rhymes around the World (Wordsong, 2003) and Joanna Cole's Anna Banana: 101 Jump-Rope Rhymes (HarperTrophy, 1989) for more playtime rhymes. Other jump-rope resources include The Jump Rope Book by Elizabeth Loredo and Martha Cooper (Workman, 1996), Double Dutch: A Celebration of Jump Rope, Rhyme, and Sisterhood by Veronica Chambers (Hyperion/Jump at the Sun, 2002). And of course, be prepared for spinning, jumping among the children and have the jump ropes ready.

For … summer gatherings, share Dotlich’s Lemonade Sun: And Other Summer Poems (Boyds Mills Press, 1998). She captures childhood experiences with metaphorical language that focuses on natural pleasures like enjoying butterflies and ladybugs, as well as games of jacks and jump rope. Once again, children will enjoy DOING these summer activities or sharing about their favorite summertime pastimes. Brainstorm a group list of favorites and encourage children to try new ones. Other summer poetry can be found in July is a Mad Mosquito by J. Patrick Lewis (Atheneum, 1994), Turtle in July by Marilyn Singer (Macmillan, 1989), and From the Bellybutton of the Moon and Other Summer Poems/ Del ombligo de la luna y otros poemas de verano by Francisco X. Alarcón (Children's Book Press, 1998).

Look for more from Rebecca Kai Dotlich, a gentle, thoughtful, playful poet to watch!

Picture credit: www.highlightsfoundation.org