Category Archives: hub2

Hub2 on Smart City

This week, I was interviewed by Carol Colletta of Smart City Radio to discuss Hub2.  You can listen to the radio program here.

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The Geography of Virtual Worlds

I’m editing a special issue of the journal Space and Culture on the “Geography of Virtual Worlds.” Here’s a draft of the introduction. It’s still in process, but it might give some sense of what I think will be a … Continue reading

Posted in article ideas, games, geography, hub2, placeofmedia, second life, SecondLife | 4 Comments

Hub2 Launch Big Success

The key is presented to Mayor Menino The virtual mayor takes the key to the virtual city The Hub2 kick-off event was a big success. We had a packed room, both in first and second life, and there was an … Continue reading

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Hub2 To Present Mayor’s Office with the Keys to Virtual Boston

Below is the press release for our event on December 13. Should be a good time. We’re going to say a few words and symbolically hand Boston Island to the service of the City of Boston. There will be a … Continue reading

Posted in boston, city, citygovernment, gene_koo, hub2, placeofmedia | 1 Comment

Urban Communication Foundation Award

Last week I was in Chicago at the National Communication Association conference. I never used to go to this conference, but over the past several years I’ve been attending a pre-conference seminar with this group called the Urban Communication Foundation. … Continue reading

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Community Networks

In class last week, we spent about 90 minutes arguing over the merits of community networks. The real question was: why would we want network technologies overlaying physical space? Don’t we have enough “connection?” Shouldn’t urban planners and architects help … Continue reading

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Hub2 – Entering the Design Phase

For the last four weeks, we’ve been doing some general thinking about how cities, digital networks and virtual worlds might fit together. We’ve talked about the relationship between play and urban spatial practice, and we’ve pondered the general success of … Continue reading

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Hub2 gets under way

The Hub2 initiative started this week in the form of an upper-division class at Emerson College. The community class is set to begin next Tuesday. At this point, we are enrolled to capacity, and are quite eager to get started. … Continue reading

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Putting Theory into Action

Everything is going full speed ahead. The Boston Redevelopment Authority has agreed to fund the first phase of the Hub2 program. They’re going to pay for student tuition, evaluation, TA support and design. It’s great news and we’re thrilled that … Continue reading

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Placeworlds

As we consider our theoretical justification for using Second Life to facilitate civic engagement, we’ve come up with the notion of placeworlds. Below is a sketch of the concept: Place is experienced space. It is what happens when geographic space … Continue reading

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