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Jim Stiefelmaier‚ known for his work on the Gex series before getting involved in the PS2/Xbox version of Area 51 and the sequel Area 51:Blacksite‚ shares some tips for anyone looking to build a team to make a video game. 1: Surround yourself with excellence and surrender to it. Too often I creatively fought with the core team directors‚ especially over trivial matters. Over the years‚ I have learned to only work with the best‚ committed teams and when you disagree with them‚ unless it directly violates a core pillar of the game (and very‚ very‚ few issues do)‚ to trust in your teammates and let them run with it. As our industry matures‚ I find the very best in the game business aren’t unilateral dictators‚ but world-class collaborators.  2: If you wake up and don’t want to come into work‚ something is very wrong. If this persists‚ find another project to work on. Life is short‚ you need to be passionate and 100 percent engaged‚ and if you aren’t – then you are wasting precious time.  3: Don’t underestimate the difficulty and value of fostering a creative culture. We drank together‚ we played games together‚ we ate together. When tragedy struck‚ the team cared for each other. This culture was not created by accident but was the direct result of the team leads spending significant time on team-building efforts and countless hours interviewing and hiring teammates that were an excellent cultural fit. If the leads weren’t 100% engaged‚ then they wouldn’t have built such an amazing team. Amazing teams build amazing games. The post Three Tips on Game Design From Area 51’s Jim Stiefelmaier appeared first on Old School Gamer Magazine.

Welcome back to our weekly behind-the-scenes glimpse at what’s getting our team talking. Let us know what you think at info@reasonstobecheerful.world. Read on In the fall of 2021‚ all three of New York City’s library systems abolished late fees. Two and a half years later‚ according to a story that Executive Editor Will Doig shared from The City‚ the effects have been resoundingly positive. Will says:   David Byrne wrote for us about libraries going “fine-free” back in 2021. In New York City‚ the move has resulted in “a spike in materials taken out‚ library cards issued‚ and program attendance.” Park life Next month‚ 1‚600 acres of California’s Central Valley will officially become a state park‚ the Associated Press reports. For Editorial Director Rebecca Worby‚ the park’s name rang a bell: Reasons to be Cheerful covered its history and reinvention earlier this year. The Tuolumne River (below right) flowing into the San Joaquin River at the site of the future state park. Credit: Saxon Holt / PhotoBotanic Becca says:   Dos Rios‚ a former ranch that’s now rewilded riverside habitat‚ is set to open on June 12 as California’s first new state park in 10 years. One of our Waterline stories described the ranch’s restoration back in January. What else we’re reading Also Migrating From Latin America: A Wave of Urban Innovation — shared by RTBC founder David Byrne from Bloomberg This nonprofit is repairing Philly rowhouses one block at a time to keep residents in their homes — shared by Rebecca Worby from the Philadelphia Inquirer Can corals be saved&;#63; — shared by David Byrne from the Washington Post Elsewhere in our channels… We are excited to announce that Contributing Editor Peter Yeung and Lima-based journalist Melanie P&;eacute;rez Arias have been awarded the Solutions Journalism Network Award for General Excellence for their story‚ “The Backyard Farmers Who Grow Food With Fog.” According to the Solutions Journalism Network‚ competition for its first-ever awards program was fierce‚ with more than 400 entries submitted. All of us at RTBC are honored and proud that Peter and Melanie’s excellent story took the top prize. The post What We’re Reading: Fine-Free Libraries‚ a New California Park and More appeared first on Reasons to be Cheerful.

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Researchers are using new technology to decipher the ancient papyrus on Plato. Source: Italian National Research Council.   Newly deciphered text from an ancient papyrus scroll details the final hours and burial place of Plato‚ a foundational figure in Western philosophy. The centuries-old text reveals that the Greek philosopher was listening to music before he died. The scroll was preserved beneath layers of volcanic ash after the eruption of Mount Vesuvius buried Herculaneum  and neighboring Pompeii and 79 C.E. It was rediscovered in 1750 but was considered illegible until now.     Plato’s Final Moments and Burial Site Were Previously Unknown Plato’s Symposium by Anselm Feuerbach‚ 1869. Source: Staatliche Kunsthalle Karlsruhe.   The ancient papyrus scroll‚ titled “The History of the Academy‚” was penned by Philodemus of Gadara‚ an Epicurean philosopher who studied in Athens. It discusses the life and accomplishments of Plato‚ including a previously unknown narrative of Plato’s final hours. The text describes how Plato‚ suffering from a severe fever on his deathbed‚ listened to music played on a flute by an enslaved Thracian woman. According to a written dialogue in the text‚ Plato had just enough energy to critique the musician for her lack of rhythmic abilities. He died soon after in Athens around 348 or 347 B.C.E. at age 80 or 81.   Plato’s burial site was also revealed in the deciphered text. It was previously known that Plato was laid to rest somewhere at the Academy of Athens‚ the world’s oldest university‚ which he founded. The deciphered text suggests the Greek philosopher was buried in his designated garden at the academy‚ a private area created for the Platonic school. Additionally‚ the text explains that Plato was sold into slavery between 404 and 399 B.C.E. Historians previously believed that this occurred in 387 B.C.E.   New Technology Used to Decipher Ancient Text A carbonized ancient scroll from Herculaneum‚ photographed by Antonio Masiello. Source: Smithsonian Magazine.   Graziano Ranocchia‚ a philosopher and researcher at the University of Pisa‚ and his colleagues used a combination of artificial intelligence and other technological advances to read the ancient papyrus‚ which belongs to the National Library of Naples. These include infrared and ultraviolet optical imaging‚ thermal imaging‚ and tomography. The team has deciphered approximately 30% of the the text on Plato so far‚ which Ranocchia described as an “extraordinary outcome that enriches our understanding of ancient history.”   Ranocchia further explained‚ “Thanks to the most advanced imaging diagnostic techniques‚ we are finally able to read and decipher new sections of texts that previously seemed inaccessible. For the first time‚ we have been able to read sequences of hidden letters from the papyri that were enfolded within multiple layers‚ stuck to each other over the centuries‚ through an unrolling process using a mechanical technique that disrupted whole fragments of text.”   The Plato Papyrus Was Considered Illegible For Centuries Excavations at Herculaneum‚ photographed by Jer&;oacute;nimo Roure P&;eacute;rez. Source: Wikimedia Commons.   “The History of the Academy” was discovered in 1750. The papyrus scroll about Plato was carbonized and buried beneath layers of ash in a grand villa in Herculaneum‚ an ancient Roman city near Pompeii that was destroyed by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius. This particular dwelling is known as the Villa of the Papyri‚ named for its uniquely large library of preserved papyri scrolls. Since their discovery in the 18th century‚ scholars have unsuccessfully attempted to decipher the words on these scrolls‚ including the text on Plato. The application of new technologies to read these ancient texts is still in its beginning stages‚ the full impact of which will take years to unfold‚ according to researchers.

What's your favorite country song for May 2024&;#63; Continue reading…