Bill Nye the Science Guy to give a talk at WWDC 2013

If you were lucky enough to score tickets to WWDC during the 3-minute time frame in which tickets were available, Apple has an interesting session you might want to check out on June 14.Headlining his own session next Friday at noon will be none other than Bill Nye the Science Guy. Nye, well-known for his PBS Television show from the 90's, will be discussing what type of design changes Apple might implement in iOS 8.In all seriousness, Nye will be talking about, what else, science!The Bill Nye the Science Guy show is celebrating its 20th Anniversary. The Science Guy himself will describe the remarkable chain of events that led to his understanding of the process of science, the need to engage young people and the power and joy of knowing our place among the stars, our place in space. We've had 20 years of the Science Guy; today, there's an app for that...This, of course, isn't the first time Apple has tapped a well-known figure in pop culture to make an appearance at WWDC. During WWDC 2012, for example, Apple held three WWDC talks featuring LeVar Burton (of Reading Rainbow and Star Trek fame), J.J. Abrams (of Lost and, well, Star Trek fame) and William Joyce.Lastly, here's an interesting factoid about Nye -- he studied mechanical engineering at Cornell where one of his professors was none other than Carl Sagan.Bill Nye the Science Guy to give a talk at WWDC 2013 originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Mon, 03 Jun 2013 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments

Reading Rainbow to be rebooted for iPad

Reading Rainbow, a TV show geared toward encouraging children to read books, aired for over 20 years on PBS before the network's financial troubles forced the show to shut down in 2006. Reading Rainbow is coming back, but in a very next-gen fashion; rather than a TV show, Reading Rainbow will now be an iPad app.

According to Fast Company, former Reading Rainbow host LeVar Burton has launched a for-profit venture, RRKidz, that will produce a multimedia twist on Reading Rainbow's old TV format. The venture's first project will be an iPad app. Featuring 300 books at launch, the app will include voiceovers, animation, games, and videos. According to Burton, RRKidz has technology at its disposal that will allow them to enhance a PDF children's book with multimedia content "in a matter of hours." When launched, the app will have a monthly subscription model, which Burton hopes will encourage children to explore more titles.

App developers and ebook writers have already discovered that the iPad is an ideal device for getting kids excited about reading, so Reading Rainbow's move to the device is a welcome one.Reading Rainbow to be rebooted for iPad originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Wed, 14 Sep 2011 18:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Source | Permalink | Email this | Comments

LeVar Burton Snags @ReadingRainbow Twitter Handle To Push New Reading App

While we nerds may best remember LeVar Burton as a VISOR-clad Starfleet officer, he also spent much of the 80s and 90s instilling in children an appreciation for reading. In fact, Burton is still stuck to the idea of encouraging childhood literacy -- he launched a new company called RRKidz this past September that's currently working on (among other things) a "disruptive" new iPad reading app.

But when the time came to set up the all-important Twitter account to provide "the latest info on the upcoming relaunch of [Reading Rainbow] as an app," he found that someone had already laid claim to the @readingrainbow handle. What's more the account owner hadn't so much as made a peep in the last three years.

The White House's First-Ever Vine Stars Bill Nye The Science Guy

Ever since Vine climbed to the top of the U.S. App Store's list of free apps this month, we've been noticing more and more advertisers jumping on the 6-second video social media platform in cool new ways. Today, The White House decided to get in on the action, too. Its first post might not be flashy, but it does star Bill Nye the Science Guy and "Reading Rainbow" / "Star Trek" star LeVar Burton at the White House Science Fair. Five hours later, The White House has 323 followers and seven posts — all about science. Here's President Obama riding a bike-powered water filtration system. The White House is known for its savvy social media strategy, so it was only a matter of time until the adept team took on Vine. SEE ALSO: This Is The Most Impressive Vine Brand Campaign We've Seen Yet > Please follow Advertising on Twitter and Facebook.Join the conversation about this story »    

Reading Rainbow app coming tonight, will be subscription-based (updated)

If you're right around my age (a couple years past 30), you'll probably also have fond memories of watching Levar Burton's Reading Rainbow program on PBS all those years ago. Burton, in addition with his work on Star Trek, has remained a pretty well-known figure for both Trekkies and those in education. Late last year, he announced that Reading Rainbow would be coming back as an iPad app, and the app is arriving on the App Store this evening.

The app isn't quite live yet as of this writing, but it will be a subscription affair for kids. For $9.99 a month (or slightly cheaper if you buy in six-month installments), the app will deliver books, interactive educational content, and other videos and information. Some of the books included (which have been supplied by a number of various educational partners) will be read by Burton himself, while some will be performed by other speakers as well (just like the original TV show).

It might be a bit much for simple nostalgia, but if you have kids currently looking for this kind of content, it sounds like a great deal. The Reading Rainbow app is set to go live later this evening.

Update: The app's now out, so head over to the App Store and check it out!Reading Rainbow app coming tonight, will be subscription-based (updated) originally appeared on TUAW - The Unofficial Apple Weblog on Tue, 19 Jun 2012 23:45:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments

News: LeapFrog debuts on App Store with Scout’s ABC Garden

Educational product manufacturer LeapFrog has released its first application for the iPhone and iPod touch, Scout’s ABC Garden. Designed to teach children to explore letter names and sounds, the app brings LeapFrog’s plush toys Scout and Violet to life to guide the child on an interactive journey through Scout’s garden. The app allows each child’s experience to be customized based on his or her name and favourite food, colour…

What to Wear on a 100-Year Starship Voyage

In science fiction shows like Star Trek, spacefarers can leap from planet to planet as fast as they can change a T-shirt. But star hopping is going to take a lot longer in "real life," assuming it's possible at all.To find out, the 100-year Starship Project is promoting the technologies needed to launch humans to the nearest star (Alpha Centauri, 25.2 trillion miles away) within a century. The voyage itself could take just as long — each way — which means it would span generations, and a lot of wardrobes.Fashion came up as one of the biggest challenges facing the voyage at panel during this week's South by Southwest Interactive conference. The gathering featured astronaut Dr. Mae Jemison, SETI (Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence) Chair of Research Dr. Jill Tarter and Levar Burton of Star Trek and Reading Rainbow fame.

Roku Developer Content: The Deadline Nears

Quick reminder: Along with LeVar Burton, Michael Endelman, Jim Louderback, Anthony Wood, and Dave Zatz, I’m a guest judge for Roku’s developer contest. The company is going to give away $35,000 in prizes for channels created for its Internet entertainment box–categories include video, audio, photo, screensaver (which I’m judging), social media, and founder’s choice. The [...]

News: Apple releases iBooks 1.3 with read-aloud feature

Apple has released iBooks 1.3, the latest version of its e-Reader software for iOS. According to Apple’s release notes, iBooks 1.3 adds support for a new read-aloud feature for younger children that’s included in select children’s books from the iBookstore. The feature uses a real narrator to read the book to you and/or your child, and in some books, will highlight the words as its reading them aloud. Other features include automatic…

Star Trek: TNG S2 Blu-ray detailed ahead of December 4th release

The step-by-step restoration and high-def re-release of Star Trek: The Next Generation continues, and next month Season Two will arrive on Blu-ray. We already got a peek at its trailer during Comic-Con and heard about some of the special features that were on the way but now we have the full list. If you're not waiting 'til Season 3 hits the streets, you can enjoy more than two hours of new special features including a documentary on the making of season two. There's also a couple o different cuts of The Measure of a Man episode, including HD extras you haven't seen before, and a 1988 Reading Rainbow segment featuring our good friend Levar Burton. Check the press release and the trailer after the break for all the details, you can snag the season two set on Amazon for $115 or so.Continue reading Star Trek: TNG S2 Blu-ray detailed ahead of December 4th releaseFiled under: Home Entertainment, HDStar Trek: TNG S2 Blu-ray detailed ahead of December 4th release originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Nov 2012 06:42:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink   |  CBS  | Email this | Comments