CHAPTERS Energy and Education “ An ACM SIGGRAPH Student Chapter Update Adam Cohen and Matthew Kapfhammer Art Institute of Pittsburgh Student Chapter While looking through the November issue of Computer Graphics, we came across the article in which Patricia Galvis-Assmus wrote about the value of belonging to ACM SIGGRAPH “ the access to top minds in the computer graphics industry, reports of fellow members ™ successes and all that the individuals within ACM SIGGRAPH learn from one another. Within the last few lines the article, several questions were posed to the reader. Of them, two seemed to stand out: Where are your energies being utilized these days? How can your experiences benefit others? These questions really hit home for the two of us. Taking time to work with others to trade knowledge and gain experience had by then become an almost daily undertaking. We had joined the Pixel Corps (http:// www.pixelcorps.com) together, were both indirectly and directly active in the school ™s chapter of ACM SIGGRAPH, had helped to plan and carry out various student workshops and were always glad to work with fellow students to problem solve any œissues  that popped up on class projects. To be quite honest, a majority of those that surround us, both instructor and student alike, share the same willingness to help one another succeed. It seems this type of atmosphere is a huge benefit to those preparing for an industry that is very teambased. This attitude is especially evident in the student chapter of ACM SIGGRAPH at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. And now, as full members of the chapter, we would like to share what we ™ve been up to, in hopes that news of our œenergies  and œexperiences  will generate ideas and feedback that will benefit us and those we are fortunate enough to associate with. Accomplishments The group has been actively working to help members and other students grow as artists and professionals since it was founded in 2002. Students from the chapter have been making the trip out to the ACM SIGGRAPH convention for the last two years. Forty students along with instructor, Greg Wieder, flew out to Los Angeles to experience SIGGRAPH 2004. The group arranges and participates in workshops, critiques, school events and presentations open to all majors. The most recent workshop covered 3D modeling techniques in various packages and an introduction to Luxology ™s Modo. ACM SIGGRAPH was heavily involved in the Art Institute of Pittsburgh ™s Khymira Experiment, a haunted house built by students and faculty, in which members helped to create the digital content used in the project. Recently, the chapter has begun forming into smaller groups, learning all that we can about a topic/technique and presenting our findings to the group. For instance, both of us have been researching QTVR creation and its applications, finding the technology to be not only good for the somewhat standard use of real estate viewing, but for pre-visualization in level design for video games and background design for animation. Due to the wide spread use of the QuickTime format, QTVR now presents itself as a great medium to showcase 3D work for portfolio purposes. The educational applications are very promising as well “ allowing viewers to go on VR field trips, study artwork, artifacts and scientific models. E-commerce benefits in the form of online stores, product displays and website navigation. All of our research is being prepared for a presentation to the chapter and for posting to the website (http://www.mycomputerisbroken.com). The group routinely invites guest speakers to come share their experience in their respective fields and advise students in their own pursuit of a career Alumni and local companies such as Cinemanix Studios (http://www.cinemanix.com) and Skyline Productions/HR Pictures (http://www.hrpictures.com) have been a massive help in assisting the chapter officers, donating resources and training time. Planning for the Future Networking with other clubs and organizations within the school is another goal that has become a priority, as the interaction has already helped to generate ideas and accomplish goals. The student AIGA chapter at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh has been especially great to work with. Building on this initial success, we are continuing to contact student and professional groups. The chapter website is under design to house news, articles, links and galleries. The site will be a great way to show off and experiment with the capabilities of QTVR. This particular project presents chances for further interaction between majors. Senior members have begun laying out ideas for a new student orientation page that would provide a thorough list of items that are helpful to know from day one. Flowcharts on the page that show how all the skill sets worked at in class relate and build on one another would also be included. Establishing a mentoring program is another goal that has been under discussion and planning. Meetings to help prepare for freelance and augment the professional development classes in the curriculum are also being set up. For all that has been accomplished, we ™ve only just begun to see what is possible when highly focused individuals team up and work together. The Art Institute of Pittsburgh ™s ACM SIGGRAPH is still very young and always eager to learn and share. Hopefully, this glimpse into an ACM SIGGRAPH student chapter has been beneficial to both student and professional alike. If you have any suggestions, comments or questions please email us at aip.siggraph.chair@gmail.com. We look forward to hearing from you! About the Contributors Adam Cohen Chapter member Matthew Kapfhammer Chapter vice chair Email: mkapfhammer@gmail.com May 2005

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