A casual happy hour for the Hyperlink community!

The general theme will be: **What do you want to learn?** and **How can Hyperlink help support your learning goals?**

Specific activities / topics we may explore:

- Courses you'd love to see exist, and/or teach yourself
- Ideas for solo learning adventures
- How we can build a stronger social space for Hyperlink

We'll gather on [Gather](https://gather.town/), a virtual space with audio/video chat. Indeed this will *also* be a fun experiment with social learning spaces. A couple notes:

- The Gather web app doesn't work well on mobile yet; **we suggest joining from a desktop browser**
- RSVPs limited to 30, as the space does have a cap on simultaneous participants; please only RSVP if you plan to drop by (but no obligation to stay the entire time!)

Hyperlink Hyperhour - December 2020 Community Meetup

Join us for a tour of Daniel Miller's [long running blog](http://www.daniel.industries/) and a peek into his thoughts on the ways we manage all the information we put into our websites. 

We'll take a step through the history of the blog, check out different evolutions, and chat about Daniel's writing and ideas around [Personal Information Management](http://www.daniel.industries/2017/12/23/swim-stock-take/)! 

> This blog started in 2001 and now has over 3,000 posts. Some are single links or thoughts, or collections of links, or journals of moments in my life, or longer posts about philosophy, bicycling, music, or the internet. There’s not at present a coherent way to navigate specific types of content, and I consider that a feature, not a bug.

## RECORDING: [youtube.com/watch?v=cXXtx5Lip4Q](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cXXtx5Lip4Q)

Website Tour: Daniel Miller

Join us for a tour through the [vast](https://thesephist.com/) [collection](https://dotink.co/) of Linus's websites. We'll dig into how he designs and builds new [projects](https://thesephist.com/projects/), thinks about his different online writing, and how everything is architected. 

>I’ve written over 350k words about creative work, community, startups, and life on this blog, and about software and computing on my second blog dotink.co. I’ve made 120+ side projects ranging from programming languages and compilers to 3D renderers, original studio albums, interactive learning environments, UI libraries, art projects, and a suite of personal productivity tools that drive my life.

## RECORDING: [youtu.be/KP1UQg9crDs](https://youtu.be/KP1UQg9crDs)




Website Tour: Linus 

Come join us to get a tour of Sarah's [internet web](http://outer-outer.space/where-am-i/), exploring a digital garden, writing in the short and long now, and how to build a node in the IndieWeb.

Website Tour: Sarah Hibner

Join linguist and conlanger Colin Gorrie as he speedruns the invention of a language from scratch, along with some help from you! By the end of the two hours, we'll have enough of a language to translate a short fable.

*Note: this event will be recorded for those who can't make it on the day.*


Conlang With Me #1

Join to share some favorite books from your antilibrary — ones you find intriguing, but have not yet read!

We'll each bring a few of our unread books we're most excited about, share why we find them interesting, and discover the hidden treasures in each other's future reading lists.

Ideas: books that are particularly intriguing as physical objects; books that explore intriguing ideas; books that exemplify an obscure niche; books that are extremely weird; books that pack a wallop…any book(s) you'd like to share!

Antilibrary Book Show and Tell

![](https://media.giphy.com/media/2Wg3G35wyLQSPO8l5R/giphy.gif)
## Learning Goals
During this workshop the aim will be to harness intuitive visual thinking to create comics in a surprisingly effortless way. You will be introduced to image-first comics composition, a skill that you can add to your creative toolbelt.

The goal will be to open doors to new techniques and approaches to the medium.

## Structure
This workshop will be 3 hours long focused on timed, guided drawing, and writing activities. There will be time for participants to share their work in break-out groups to learn from each other.

## Who Should Sign Up
Are you new to comics-making and want to get your feet wet but have struggled to find approaches that work for you?

Are you looking to develop your own personal comics practice? Do you want to spend time learning how to braid images and words together to communicate thoughts and emotions?

Are you looking to shake up your comics-making habits with some new techniques and approaches?

**This workshop is for you.** ✨

### Prerequisites
You should have an interest in making comics and a willingness to get your hands dirty writing and drawing.

### Materials
We'll be working physically so you'll need a stack of 20 or more [index cards](https://www.amazon.com/Oxford-Blank-Index-Cards-10013/dp/B004Z8H8XU/ref=sr_1_7?crid=Q6J7ZCFPZT8I&dchild=1&keywords=index+cards+3x5&qid=1611173090&sprefix=index+cards%2Caps%2C170&sr=8-7) or [post-it notes](https://www.amazon.com/Post-2-Inches-Canary-Yellow-24-Pads/dp/B000GLSJB0/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?dchild=1&keywords=post+it+notes&qid=1611173193&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEySjFPQlpGM0xHRk5LJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNTg5MzU0M1c1MDRYMTNBSlEwViZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMTg1MDA0MU9XMEFYSDRBNUlQMCZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=) and pencil or pen that your comfortable working with. :pencil:

Stream of Consciousness Comics Workshop

[Jake Fee](http://fee.cool/) joins us for an introduction to experiential, active, hands-on learning methods and reflective techniques!

We'll explore topics like Project-Based Learning, Service Learning, Place-Centered Learning, Adventure Learning, and Dewey's Pattern of Inquiry.

Intro to Experiential Learning with Jake Fee

![A doodle by Jenny Odell. ](https://miro.medium.com/max/1400/1*mVXaJWtDW06ggefvvPmRfA.png)
_**A doodle by Jenny Odell.**_

## What is this?

Join us for a workshop about *doing nothing*!  
*Observation + Patience = Discovery*

Together we'll:
- 📚learn about what some writers and artists have made about observation & attention
- 🔎practice a bit of it ourselves together
- :hibiscus: make plans for how to practice it more in our daily lives

This workshop is a demo for an upcoming course inspired mainly by **Jenny Odell**'s [talk](https://vimeo.com/232544904)→[article](https://medium.com/@the_jennitaur/how-to-do-nothing-57e100f59bbb)→[book](https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/42771901-how-to-do-nothing), *How To Do Nothing.* 

## What do I need?
- 📝paper & something to write or draw with! 🖍
- ⏳An hour and a half of time to spend on another #$%@! video call 👥

## Should I Sign Up?
This workshop may be for you if:

- 🐦you are a people watcher, or a bird watcher, a watcher of anything
- 👀you would just like to practice deepening your attention  in your day-to-day life 
- 🌆you want to better appreciate where you live
- ⚙️you feel like you need to give yourself permission to not be ‘productive’


*see ya there!*

Embrace the Mundane! *A Workshop about Attention*

Comics Making for Life is a course that facilitates the creation of unique comics! We learn to design and implement effective comics-making workflows to harness the ideas and life that flow around us.

It's a great way to participate in a community of people who care about creating personal comics that push the boundaries of their personal practices.

---

Find out if this course is right for you by joining this FREE hour-long comics-making workshop. You'll be lead through some fun comics composition exercises and will get an overview of what will be done during the upcoming cohort of this course.



Comics Making for Life - Course Preview

You are an expert in your field or you simply have a deep understanding of a passion of yours. You read tons of books and articles. Nobody knows it because it's all in your mind. Time to change.

Join me in this venture. 

Be ready to  discover your super power.

This 50 minutes session will help you to understand why to change your media diet, to read less and to write more. You'll learn what tools you need to process your ideas and to share what you know with the world.

Presentation: https://we.tl/t-ynnMQkCoD5



Knowledge is (your super) power.  Only if you share it

# What is this?
This is an open and free talk advertising the course starting in March 2021 about "Artificial World Building". This will be a tutorial about how to model different tree shapes using simple rules. At the end of the talk we are going to briefly discuss the rest of the topics that the full course covers.

# About the course starting in March 2021

## Description

Have you ever wondered how tree structure is formed? What about crystals? And what about more complex stuff? How living beings and societies work? If you would like to improve your understanding of the world a little bit more through a practical point of view this is the course for you.

## **I hope to explore the following questions in this class…**

* What are the logic rules behind natural phenomenons?
* How can I simulate and modify them using a computer?

## Course Price

- USD 99

## Structure

* 1 session  per week, for 5 weeks
* 2 hour per session

## Tools

- Python and Colab
- Blender
- NetLogo

## Schedule

### **Week 1:** How things are formed?

We will learn about how simple rules can generate complex figures using different procedural techniques with Python

     1. Tree shapes using L-Tree systems
     2. 2D cellular automatas for spots, stripes and other patterns
     3. 3D cellular automatas for crystals

### **Week 2:** How things evolve?

We will learn about genetic algorithms through a practical examples using python. We will see how to modify the genes of a cellular automata and define a fitness rule to define which shapes pass its genes to the next generation.

Reference: https://victorribeiro.com/randomFractal/

### **Week 3:** How things move and think?

We will learn about reinforcement learning, the algorithm behind how humans and robot vacuum cleaners work. We will train our computer to learn how to move the body of an artificial being.

### **Week 4:** How things work in society?

We will learn how to model simple societies inspired in SimCity and bird flocks using NetLogo

### **Week 5:** How things communicate?

We will learn how language can emerge as a need to solve a problem that requires cooperation. We will train state of the art language models like GPT-2.

## Prerequisites
- Basic programming skills are useful but not required

Artificial World Building - Course Intro

 ⚞*Have you ever thought of having different ways of decoding the information around you? Have you ever imagined writing poetry and creating visual art? Have you ever questioned  what a **file format** is? *⚟ 

☉ ♌︎ ⊛☽ ☉ ♌︎ ⊛☽ ☉ ♌︎ ⊛☽☉ ♌︎ ⊛☽ ☉ ♌︎ ⊛☽ ☉ ♌︎ ⊛☽

**Digital Alchemy** is an experimental course on understanding low level representation of information without requiring a formal computer-science background, though it is recommended having seen a script before.

If you are a curious mind trying to bring light to how computers work; being aware of what is the data we use daily; wanting to expand the boundaries of how we use the computer; or just being part of the creation of the dogma of bits and Alchemy.

Come and join us on the preview of the course. We will walk through some ideas of the course; see some demos; defining symbols; and you will be designing your  ⚝ [“Transmutation Circle”](https://images-wixmp-ed30a86b8c4ca887773594c2.wixmp.com/f/72c19cbf-9570-46d1-bf90-e48f53518b3d/d2vlh05-5bf13e4c-b963-4f8d-bdcf-588c5037f62a.png?token=eyJ0eXAiOiJKV1QiLCJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiJ9.eyJzdWIiOiJ1cm46YXBwOiIsImlzcyI6InVybjphcHA6Iiwib2JqIjpbW3sicGF0aCI6IlwvZlwvNzJjMTljYmYtOTU3MC00NmQxLWJmOTAtZTQ4ZjUzNTE4YjNkXC9kMnZsaDA1LTViZjEzZTRjLWI5NjMtNGY4ZC1iZGNmLTU4OGM1MDM3ZjYyYS5wbmcifV1dLCJhdWQiOlsidXJuOnNlcnZpY2U6ZmlsZS5kb3dubG9hZCJdfQ.80RM6efztoji58Lb59o9dUK35LvdBK0U2Pa0FR50JFc) ⚝ for creating a piece of data.

After the course, you’ll get the necessary tools for transmuting bits.  ⚘

`
“The same data, with all its relationships and intricacies, can be set up in a vast variety of arrangements and styles which are inside-out and upside-down versions of each other.” 
`
Ted Nelson - **Computer Lib/Dream Machines**




Introducing `Digital Alchemy`

![burst](https://i.ibb.co/X4B4jsq/sunburst-featured-preview-copy.jpg)

Have you been quarantining for nearly a year now? Have you felt muted, dull or stuck in a rut? Join the club!! 

In this session, we will begin to reconnect with our dreams, our joys and our creativity, all the stuff that routine can make it hard to connect with. Through a series of guided exercises, you will begin the process of remembering and breathing a new aliveness in to your creative practice- whatever it is you are excited to create or produce! 

There will be:
* guided visualizations!
* paired connection time!
* movement!
* brainstorms!
* ... and more!

You will leave with an actionable list of ideas and projects, and an invigorated sense of engagement with the many facets of *you*!


Reconnect with aliveness through creative play 

Internet-connected devices are now everywhere: across cities, offices and the home. How much control and utility do they really offer in the day to day? In Internet of Absurdity we’ll examine how everything is connected and teach you how to make your own internet-connected (possibly absurd) device!

Absurd internet-connected prototypes made:

1. toilet seat monitor
2. trash-can fill monitor
3. light switch that switches website settings when flipped
4. a light that turns on when an event is happening on your calendar

The course aims to flip the dialog to what can devices do for you! Learn how to make your own whimsical or useful prototypes with this course. 🎛 The cohort will cover technical prototyping, ideation, sensors and coding, and communication tools to use to connect your device. 

This event will be a small preview of the course and an introduction to the topic and tools for the Internet of things. 🕸

Topics We’ll Discuss in the Preview:

1. Absurd machines and inventors

2. Learning how to prototype and connect the physical world to the virtual

3. Tools for building internet-connected prototypes

4. Introduce the structure and goals of the course

About the course:
Internet of Absurdity is a 8-week hands-on practical course introducing topics around rapid prototyping in both hardware and software, focusing on you building your own internet-connected device. There will be around six people in the cohort allowing each cohort member to pursue and learn around their own interest and ideas. All the necessary hardware to get started will be provided and we'll write code for projects in basic python. Some programming experience would be great, but is not required.

About the facilitator:
Iain is a brooklyn-based software engineer who enjoys prototyping and building electronics for in-person experiences. He studied computer engineering and computer science at USC and participated in the winter 2019 cohort of SFPC. 

Internet of Absurdity: Course Preview

## Main idea:
This is a one-time event intended to introduce you to the basics of crocheting through an interactive session so that you can join future crochet clubs. Future crochet clubs may be run by a variety of facilitators and feature different crochet goals or topics (yarn bombing, mathematical patterns, amigurumis, pattern creation, crochet get togethers, etc.)

## Learning goals:
- Learn the basic stitches (US terminology): single, double, triple, half double, slip stitches. 
- Make a back and forth square
- Make a magic circle
- Learn to increase and invisible decrease
- Event project if time allows : Make a small pin cushion / ball.

## Audience
For absolute beginners

## Prereqs:
No previous knowledge required, but you must have all the materials you might need:

- a crochet hook (any size you’re comfortable with. Not too big and not too small. Any around H or 4-5mm is fine.)
- appropriate sized yarn for that hook (any worsted weight / aran should be fine).  Light coloured and not patterned yarn preferable.
- pair of small scissors
- needle with hole size appropriate for your yarn
- a bit of stuffing
- patience and good humour

Feel free to ask for recommendations on what to buy in the forum.

Crochet Foundations


## 📒What is journaling?
Journaling is a method of self reflection and an intimate conversation across time. 

This working definition allows a great deal of fluidity and creativity in how we approach a journaling practice. Is an instagram a journal?,  what about a pedometer log? 


## 🗓️ This event
In this event, we will experiment with several approaches to journaling to tease out what we like (or hate!) about them and start to think about what kind of a journaling practice might be right for us. 


>   In the journal I do not just express myself more openly than I could do to any person; I create myself. The journal is a vehicle for my sense of selfhood. 

 > Susan Sontag

Journaling As Play 

Love em or hate em, join us to collectively explore the future of those hefty tomes of knowledge. 

As we've been running courses on hyperlink, course creators have been making useful resources for their courses, from git repositories, to microtextbooks. 

Could these resources evolve into artifacts to support learners outside of course? 

## A rough agenda

- Explore existing examples and resources (if you're working on something here, we'd love to get a little show & tell!)
- A discussion of the properties we'd like to have future textbooks to have
- A discussion of experiments we could do, or things we could build today!

The Future of Textbooks

Join us for a casual hangout to explore ideas for a **Language Arts** department on Hyperlink!

If you want to learn — or teach — on topics like:

- linguistics
- computational writing
- notation and semiotics
- augmented text
- inventing alphabets
- poetry, publishing, translation and more…

…we'd love to see you there!

Let's explore what things might be useful for such a department — things like a shared resource library, departmental events, social space to learn and work together, ways to support independent research, and more.

We can also talk about courses and clubs you'd particularly like to see, and how to get started facilitating something.

NB: we're doing a similar happy hour on Visual Thinking — feel free to join that as well, and let us know what other Hyperlink departments you'd like to see!

Hyperhour - Language Arts

Did you know that, on average, 95% of museum collections are in storage?

### Description
- Led conversation meant to  introduce us to certain topics and themes common in the conservation of material culture.
- Discussion will be encouraged.
- We will lay the ground with a few basic definitions and go from there.
- Discussion will be cohort-driven, and by extension, different every time, so you are welcome to participate in this event more than once.
- I will try to run it periodically if there is enough interest.

### Is this event for you?
- Anyone interested in the behind-the-scenes workings of museums, galleries, libraries, etc.
- We will focus on topics around material culture conservation and collections management.
- This course is **not** aimed at professionals in museum studies or conservation, but students are welcome.

### Prerequisite
- Interest in material culture, museums, art conservation.

### Objectives
- Provide an introduction to the world of material culture conservation.
- Find out whether you might be interested in further studies on this topic.

### Potential topics
The following is a non-exhaustive list of issues we might touch upon based on where your own interests lie and which way our conversation leads us.

- What’s a curator? What’s a conservator? What do they do?
- Why do we collect? What are we trying to do? How do objects gain/lose value?
- Why do we stop collecting or give things away or throw things out?
- Why do things deteriorate? Can we stop it? Should we?
- What is conservation to you? How do we define it
- Why do we restore things? What kind of ethical aspects may be involved with restoration work?
- Budget. How do we take care of things if we don’t have a real budget? How do museums manage? Can we use their strategies as an example for a home collection?
- Conversations on deaccessioning collections. What does deaccessioning mean? Why do we let things go? Should we? What kinds of feelings does this give us? Is it acceptable to throw things out?
- Who pays for conservation? Who pays for museums? Should museums be run as businesses?
- Brief thoughts on risk assessment for collections.
- Any questions participants have about conservation, collections, museum work, etc.
- How do we think about sustainability and preservation?


### I liked this. What else have you got?
The Home Collection Game (THCG) course is a full 5-week course where we talk about conservation in the context of our own collections: things we keep for various reasons. We will learn about best practice in museums to conserve collections and apply the concepts to protect the items we love. The final product of this full course will be a plan to improve the state of each of our own Home Collections. It’s called a Game because we will play in RPG style in order to birth these plans.

The Secret Life of Objects

In this happy hour workshop, we'll playfully examine some of our assumptions and biases about gender when it comes to the digital tools we use every day. Come prepared with  an open mind (and maybe your beverage of choice), and we'll take a collaborative look at how cultural ideas about gender shape the apps and software we use, both as users and as makers.

This event is aimed at anyone interested in bringing some introspection and interrogation into their relationship with technology. You don't have to be a professional designer or developer to bring a critical eye to the world of software design!

Gender and Interfaces Happy Hour

This low-tech animation workshop is for anyone that is curious about animating but isn't sure where to begin. 

🐱‍🐉    🎃    🎨    🎪    🎭    🕯    🎠    ⛅    🚲    💌     (●'◡'●)

We will watch some videos for inspiration, brainstorm accessible materials and setups for animating at home, and create short  stop-motion animations using Stop Motion Studio: https://www.cateater.com/, or for browsers, Cloud Stop Motion: https://app.cloudstopmotion.com/

Free versions of the Stop Motion Studio are available for mobile devices - 

Apple Store: https://apps.apple.com/us/app/stop-motion-studio/id441651297

Google Play: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.cateater.stopmotionstudio

Principles of Animation Demo

Join us for a casual hangout to explore ideas for a **Visual Thinking** department on Hyperlink!

If you want to learn — or teach — on topics like:

- comics and animation
- craft and creative reuse
- video and personal storytelling
- creative techniques and workflows
- painting, interface design, data viz and more…

…we'd love to see you there!

Let's explore what things might be useful for such a department — things like a shared resource library, departmental events, social space to learn and work together, ways to support independent research, and more.

We can also talk about courses and clubs you'd particularly like to see, and how to get started facilitating something.

NB: we're doing a similar happy hour on Language Arts — feel free to join that as well, and let us know what other Hyperlink departments you'd like to see!

Hyperhour - Visual Thinking

### Description
This one-time event is meant to give you an hour to ask any conservation-related questions you might have.
- Do you want to know how to best take care of your photographs?
- Do you have an object at home that you're worried about
- How should you protect those important items in your life? - Would you like some guidance before you embark on a personal project?
- Are you worried about insects and pests getting at your things?
- Should you wear gloves or not?


### Is this event for you?
This Q&A style discussion is aimed at anyone interested in art conservation matters. I welcome students and/or professionals in related fields who are looking for specialist answers. This course is not aimed at experienced professionals in museum studies or conservation. 

### Prerequisites
Interest in material culture, museums, art conservation.

### Objectives
Provide guidance on conservation topics and basic handling and collections care.

### Potential topics
You may ask whatever you wish regarding your collections and how to best take care of them. 


### I liked this. What else have you got?
The Home Collection Game (THCG) course is a full 5-week course where we talk about conservation in the context of our own collections: things we keep for various reasons. We will learn about best practice in museums to conserve collections and apply the concepts to protect the items we love. When this course is over, you will be able to make your own plan to improve the state of your own Home Collections. It’s called a Game because we will play in RPG style in order to birth these plans.

Ask a Conservator

Hey Hyperlink, my name is Dima and I'm currently participating in the Meta Course Language Arts cohort. This summer I plan to run a course I am tentatively calling "the semiotics of math"---roughly the idea is to offer a broad strokes history of mathematics in terms of how it has evolved via linguistic, conceptual, and epistemic perspectival shifts. This is in contrast to how the field is often presented as progressing via cracking hard problems or modeling application areas in the sciences. We will begin by discussing the origins of mathematical practice and the emergence of  meta-phenomena like notation, definition, and proof and end with introductory sessions on two contemporary meta-mathematical developments: type theory and category theory.

The course will not require any formal mathematical background---just an inquisitive spirit and an interest in mathematics. As for my background, I received a PhD in mathematics (specialising in category theory) with a certificate in the history and philosophy of science. Currently I am working in industry as a Haskell programmer.

This event is meant to be an initial group discussion on both the topic and on how the course could be structured so students can get the most out of the experience.

[Discussion] Semiotics of Math Course

Join linguist and conlanger Colin Gorrie as he speedruns the invention of a new constructed language, along with some help from you! 

This time we'll be making a **romlang**! What is a romlang? It's a conlang built not from scratch but rather derived from late spoken Latin, just as the Romance languages were.

*Note: this event will be recorded for those who can't make it on the day.*


Conlang With Me

In the middle of the year of living under uncertainty, I wanted a writing system, a **writing workflow that not only could survive disorder but get an advantage of it**. 

Antifragile is a good term to use here. I wanted an **antifragile writing to use in the middle of the chaos**. 

A model for antifragile things or systems considers stressors as the trigger or detonator for growing or gaining. So, for antifragile writing, **you have to find your stressors**.

Under that idea, I started to **design a method or workflow** and test the hypothesis. I didn't try to reinvent the wheel, so I started to collect—or recollect because I already have most of the—techniques that could work with it this antifragile writing. 

That's how the course [Antifragile Writing with Roam Research](https://hyperlink.academy/courses/antifragile-writing-with-roam-research/49) was born. 

Join us to know about the core ideas of **antifragile writing**, its relation with apps like **Roam Research** (and other "tools for thought"), **frameworks**, and the way it can help you to grow your *digital jungle*.

Introduction to Antifragile Writing

"Come Hungry, Leave Ignited" is a guided playground for educators and facilitators to experiment with new techniques to make the learning experience more memorable for students. 

If you're an educator and facilitator, I'd love to walk you through the course and get your feedback on it. 









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