Entries for Laura Foy

New Faculty Fellowship: Free Money!

Laura — Thu, 31 Jul 2008 18:25:00 GMT

Microsoft Research External Research group is dedicated to finding the brightest minds out there and giving them money! Each year, five up-and-coming new faculty members are chosen for these awards from universities throughout North America. Because new faculty are so vital to the future of academic computing, the New Faculty Fellowship Program identifies, recognizes, and supports exceptional new faculty members engaged in innovative computing research. I spoke with three previous winners and found out exactly how this all went down

Diving deeper into 3 new applications from the Research Summit

Laura — Wed, 30 Jul 2008 16:06:00 GMT

There is an overwhelming abundance of great software being shown off at this years Microsoft Research Faculty Summit. Lee Dirks gave us a brief overview of 5 new free applications being offered to students and faculty and now, Alex Wade goes deeper in 3 of them to really show off all the new and exciting features.

Microsoft Research offers 5 new applications to students!

Laura — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 16:09:00 GMT

The Microsoft Research Faculty Summit has kicked off and our campus has been overtaken by more than 400 academia superstars. Lee Dirks, a Microsoft External Research Director, just announced 5 new software applications that will be available to students and professors and he talks about them with me. Take a look and get excited.

Microsoft Research Faculty Summit

Laura — Tue, 29 Jul 2008 00:11:00 GMT

This week the Microsoft Research Faculty Summit will once again bring together more than 400 thought leaders from academia, government, and Microsoft to reflect on how the maturing of the computing disciplines has opened an exciting range of opportunities for research and development.
I sat down with Harold Javid to get a little more info on the conference and what you guys can expect to see in my upcoming coverage.

Watch "Eleanor's Riddle": 2nd place film in Imagine Cup 2006 [Watch "Eleanor's Riddle": 2nd place film in Imagine Cup 2006]

Laura — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 18:04:00 GMT

"Elanor's Riddle" is an exploration of the theme "Imagine a world where technology enables us to live healthier lives." This story presents the point of view that every technology that helps people live healthier lives, can also, in some circumstances, destroy the environment, weaken the health of others, or even bring death. Technology can be very powerful, but it is up to us to use it wisely. The filmmakers (team Skylined from Poland) came back in 2007 to win the Short Film category in Seoul.

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Watch "The Loot”-- Award-winning film from Imagine Cup 2006 [Watch "The Loot”-- Award-winning film from Imagine Cup 2006]

Laura — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 17:42:00 GMT

Two sisters search for hidden treasure, but what they find is not what they expect. "The Loot" is an exploration of the theme "Imagine a world where technology enables us to live healthier lives." In the film, two sisters are searching for hidden treasure. As they embark on their quest the older sister must constantly rely on the younger because of poor eyesight. The girls find the treasure, but the older sister finds a pair of glasses which gives her the ability to be self-sufficient and therefore become a healthier person. "The Loot" earned the USA team of Scott Lynch, Zach Lynch and Cam Crosson a third-place finish in the world-wide film competition.

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Watch the film from Brazil’s Team PapaPaçoca that came in 3rd at Imagine Cup 2007! [Watch the film from Brazil’s Team PapaPaçoca that came in 3rd at Imagine Cup 2007!]

Laura — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 16:56:00 GMT

Brazil’s Team PapaPaçoca placed 3^rd in the Imagine Cup 2007 Short Film competition with their thought-provoking film, “Synapse.” Their film addressed the 2007 theme, “Imagine a wor;d where technology enables a better education for all.”

“The goal of our short film is to show, with the help of historic examples and curiosities, that technology has always been present in our lives, even before the digital revolution,” says the team. “Technology has always been used to pass and transmit knowledge through many generations since writing was invented. We've chosen a hyper-link language for our short film to convey connections between knowledge, technology and education. We identify these relations in human culture, animal populations and even in atoms.“

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Watch Team Circle from Taiwan’s Film that placed 2nd at Imagine Cup 2007! [Watch Team Circle from Taiwan’s Film that placed 2nd at Imagine Cup 2007!]

Laura — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 16:21:00 GMT

As we said, Imagine Cup 2008 is coming. Teams are getting ready, optimizing their projects, preparing the presentations, etc.
Team Circle from Taiwan placed 2^nd in the Imagine Cup 2007 Short Film competition with their film, “BR-14's April” which tells the story of a friendship between a robot designed to fight wars and a little girl named April. Their film addressed the 2007 theme, “Imagine a world where technology enables a better education for all.” Says the team, “The message of our film is, Education can change people deeply from their hearts, so if a person has good will in his heart, Peace will last.”
Check out what's going on in the IC forums

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Paper Heart: Canada's entry to the Imagine Cup: India [Paper Heart: Canada's entry to the Imagine Cup: India]

Laura — Thu, 27 Mar 2008 19:13:00 GMT

Paper Heart won the Canadian team entrance in to the Imagine Cup 2006 Short Film category. The film is a playfully dark fairy tale about a young girl who finds a damaged heart in the forest. After taking it back to her small cottage, she enlists the help of a local inventor and nurses it back to health. The film tells a story of perseverance and imagination that celebrates the richness and beauty of any innovation powerful enough to preserve life and love. Also- the Canadian team actually won FIRST Place at the world wide finals in 2006, Short Film!

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What is the IT Challenge? [What is the IT Challenge?]

Laura — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 16:03:00 GMT

I found after spending 2 years at the Imagine Cup that are certain things you can tell about a student based on what category he/she is competeing in. That being said, one of the most hard-core competitions it the IT challenge. These students go through hell to get their projects completed. But don't take it from me, hear it from the source.

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The Imagine Cup Journalists [The Imagine Cup Journalists]

Laura — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 15:57:00 GMT

Ther is no doubt that the imagine cup was covered widely by media outlets from many many nations. But- to get the real scoop, the inside scoop- you have to check out what these students had to say. And talk about enthusiasm, wow!

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Canada in the house!... Well in the cafeteria [Canada in the house!... Well in the cafeteria]

Laura — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 15:49:00 GMT

During our global luncheon held at the Olympic Stadium in Seoul I ran into one of the photography teams from Canada. It turns out that not only do they have a keen eye for photography but also a sharp tongue for sarcasm.

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Romania knows about embedded development [Romania knows about embedded development]

Laura — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 15:32:00 GMT

More matching outfits! I love it. The Romanian team has focused their efforts on improving the classroom experience, stopping cheating and eliminating the use of paper. Pretty ambitious. Take a look and see how they plan to do it.

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What IS embedded development? [What IS embedded development?]

Laura — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 15:27:00 GMT

It's a tricky category at the Imagine Cup. I had some confusion about it so I went straight to the source, Scott Davis, to get some answers. Somewhere between software and hardware lies...embedded development. Then watch as I talk so some students who put this into action in the form of a CPR device.

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Team Ireland at the Imagine Cup [Team Ireland at the Imagine Cup]

Laura — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 15:22:00 GMT

I love Ireland! So I chatted with the boys from Ireland to get to know them a little better and discuss some cultural differences they had noticed from their time in Seoul.

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Team Poland at the Imagine Cup [Team Poland at the Imagine Cup]

Laura — Thu, 11 Oct 2007 15:15:00 GMT

These guys have it all. Head gear, softwear, hardware and snazzy matching outfits. Take some time and get to know the Polish team in the embedded development category.
Do you want to join Imagine Cup 2008? Click here

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The all girls team from Algeria [The all girls team from Algeria]

Laura — Wed, 10 Oct 2007 14:51:00 GMT

In the olden days a group of girls wworking together might be called a sweing circle. Well, in 2007 at the Imagine Cup we call the Software Designers. Meet the Algerian team.

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Intern Life at Microsoft: Texans & Pizza [Intern Life at Microsoft: Texans & Pizza]

Laura — Mon, 24 Sep 2007 18:55:00 GMT

Today we delve deeper into the secret lives of Microsoft interns. This time with Tres (pronounced Trace) who lives firm by the motto "Don't mess with Texas" and also enjoys free pizza. Plus, he's a badass Microsoft intern.

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Intern Life at Microsoft: The Research Intern [Intern Life at Microsoft: The Research Intern]

Laura — Fri, 07 Sep 2007 14:59:00 GMT

A seasoned veteran intern talks about his most recent experience at Microsoft and also how thing have changed. We also get some insight into a rookie's expectations and advice for future applicants to the Microsoft Intern Program- and this guy has been to Bill Gates' house twice!

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Intern Life at Microsoft : The High School Kid. [Intern Life at Microsoft : The High School Kid.]

Laura — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 17:21:00 GMT

Before creating the series on Interns at Microsoft (which will all be published here in the next few days), I had a very different perception of "internship". I assumed interning was for college credit and you were treated primarily as a gopher. That is SO FAR from the truth when it comes to interning at Microsoft. Most interns here have Masters degrees or above and their work is respected and credited. Imagine now...being an intern at Microsoft while only in High School. Let's get to know this prodigy.

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The Arts Competitions at Imagine Cup [The Arts Competitions at Imagine Cup]

Laura — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 19:57:00 GMT

The short film and photography competitions at the Imagine Cup are quite different from the other categories. In fact, this is the first year that photography has even been a category. I took my camera and probed a little deeper to find out who enters these challenges and just what it takes to win them.

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The Finals Ceremony at Imagine Cup '07 [The Finals Ceremony at Imagine Cup '07]

Laura — Mon, 27 Aug 2007 18:58:00 GMT

The final round of celebration and awards are presented in this clip which truly shows what a global experience the Imagine Cup is. And, it's fun too!

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An inside look at Software Design and the Imagine Cup '07 [An inside look at Software Design and the Imagine Cup '07]

Laura — Tue, 21 Aug 2007 19:48:00 GMT

Software design is considered the Crown Jewel of Microsoft's Imagine Cup. In Korea this year, we started with 55 teams and over the course of 5 days, came up with one winning team. Here is my peek into the world of the Software Design Competition.

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