Conference Hound-Up February 8, 2012: Don’t Worry, Scientists Will Save Us

From Asteroids to World Hunger, today’s events are tackling some of our biggest universal (and personal) problems.

The Inside Social Apps event convenes in San Francisco today and tomorrow, bringing together industry experts from companies like Zynga, Facebook, Disney Interactive Media Group, Panda Games and more.  Topics will include monetization, design, marketing and distribution.

By 2050, the world will have a population over 9 billion.  The Earth’s resources are being drained at a rapid pace.  Fresh water and food supplies are becoming increasingly scarce and climate change challenges our ecosystem.  Feeding the World 2012 couldn’t have loftier goals.  The inaugural summit in Switzerland that begins today aims to tackle the World’s biggest universal problems by gathering progressive experts and scientists across diverse fields, putting them all together in a conducive environment and praying that some solutions emerge.

D.I.C.E. stands for design, innovate, communicate and entertain at the annual D.I.C.E. Summit in Las Vegas.  This is a gathering of video game executives delivering sessions and speeches to educate industry leaders.  The event will feature some cool keynote speakers and presentations, and includes the participation of the guy who created Asteroids and Centipede.  I might stop by to demand he return to me the cumulative 100′s of hours I’ve spent addicted to those games.

Also today: A huge event for builders, the NAHB International Builders Show begins in Orlando.  MobiTech Europe is held in the United Kingdom today to enhance the mobile and wireless ecosystem.  The Buffalo Auto Show offers the hottest new car models to upstate NY.  PCD discusses the latest in packaging & showcasing for perfume and cosmetic design products in Paris.  And more!

As I got older and less interested in playing video games, it seemed to me like it was the same for most of the other people around me.  But video games have become so realistic, complex and let’s face it, awesome, that more and more people are investing their time and money into them.  In fact, this report indicates that the population of gamers in the U.S. has nearly tripled in the last few years.

I’m gonna file this NASA innovation under “the future of medicine.”  I’m having trouble believing this isn’t ripped out of a sci-fi movie or a Star Trek episode.  It baffles me that some people are smart enough to actually build something like this…  I have trouble figuring out what I’m going to eat for lunch.

It’s John Williams’ birthday.  If you’re not familiar with Mr. Williams, watch any movie with an incredible orchestral soundtrack and chances are he composed it.  Especially if Steven Spielberg directed it.  Happy 80th Mr. Williams!

Mystery link!  http://snff.in/wkklll