Scientists unleash a new & exciting task for robots... playing Guitar Hero 2

If the Terminator could headbang, it would probably be a direct descendent of the Guitar Heronoid, a robot created for the purpose of, well, SHREDDING ON GUITAR HERO. It uses image processing code to "follow" the path of the little nodes on-screen and responds accordingly. Check it out in action.



Thinking of your own robotics projects? Check out our over a hundred books on the subject.

Oh, by the way, we are still having the Guitar Hero 2 tournament on Monday. It starts at 12:00 PM. Even if you aren't registered, we have door prizes for just showing up. Yes, that ties in with my new library theme: "Our giveaways. Let me show you them."

Today at Art Club we made duct tape wallets. As you can see below, we had lots of fun.




We will be doing this event again some time soon. You can keep a look out for it and other fun stuff going on at the Teen Department by checking the events manager.

Teen Sexual & Gender Diversity Alliance IS ON!

After a few issues trying to get a space, we are ON for the Teen Sexual & Gender Diversity Alliance! Here's the scoop:

• Dates 'n times: 1st and 3rd Saturday of each month, starting August 4th. It officially runs from 2:00 - 3:00 PM but can keep going if people are into it!


• The place to be: We're meeting on the second floor of Kiva Han (420 S. Craig St., Pittsburgh, PA 15213)


• What we're up to:podcasting (making our own downloadable radio show), publishing a newsletter, political action, watching movies, making videos for Youtube, mutual support, develop special library programs (in celebration of LGBT history month, Day of Remembrance, or just generally fun stuff), book clubs, just generally fun & awesome things to do in the summer, and more!

Please come out, hang out, and help us get it started!

Volunteering: It's Hot Stuff

Our volunteers are hard at work scanning the shelves for out-of-place books (aka shelf-reading). From front to back, here's what they have to say

“It’s mind-numbing. ‘It makes my heart sore’ to see all the books. And I didn’t get a paper-cut, so I’m proud of myself.”

~Megan H.

“Sweetest thing ever!”

~Kevin L.

“It’s freakin’ awesome!”

~Chen Z.

The Carnegie Library of Pittsburgh Teen department thanks them for blood, sweat, and tears. If this looks good to you, fill out a volunteer application

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Eclipse is coming out soon!

Karen and I saw this poster while at the American Library Association Conference in DC. As you can see, it was plastered over some R. Kelly ads. Interesting! This is the first time I have seen this type of advertising for a young adult book (but I don't get out much).

Holly

Books on Bikes!

Books on Bikes, our charity bike ride for teens, by teens went underway this past Saturday. As of now, we raised a total of $200.00 to buy books for youth shelters and community organizations in Pittsburgh. Hopefully, we'll have more info soon about how you can help put books in the hands of people who could really use them. For now, check out these pictures.

Riders Alana, Aaron, and Ben get pumped on pedaling.

Patrick and Ian bow to the machine.

Patrick wonders, "Hey, you just rode 8 miles! Why the heck aren't you eating all this food I bought?!"

Patrick rocks the party, cake style.

Patrick bows to Ben, winner of our impromptu "Civil War" scavenger hunt.

Thanks to everyone who came--and those who couldn't but still raised money for the cause! Thanks also to Bike Pittsburgh for supporting us.