DSrupted: Second Story’s Lead Engineer Rounds Off Conference Line-up

June 24, 2014 by Dave Haynes

mattarnold

The last of five speakers is in place for DSrupted, and he’s going to be great.

Matt Arnold is Lead Integration Engineer for Second Story, the Portland, Oregon company that has put together some of the coolest and most technically ambitious digital screen projects I’ve seen to date.

One of my go-to reference projects, when people ask me about great work out there, has been the University of Oregon’s Ford Alumni Center, which has these amazing shiftable digital walls called Cascades, as well as sets of interactive tables. The tech behind it is great, and so is the creative.

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Second Story has also done the Emerging Issues Commons at NC State, the US Archives, and work for brands like Coca-Cola, Nike and Intel. I did not know until I looked more closely that the company is now owned by SapientNitro.

Arnold, his company says, provides the studio with engineering leadership specific to interactive hardware, sensors, and media electronics. With a strong engineering background in robotics design and sensor integration, he offers mechanical design and software solutions to projects, enabling the studio to create unique displays and innovative interactive environments. His programming skills and expertise in 3D modeling also allow him to play a leading role in development of real time graphics displays and large data visualizations. Matt received a BS in Mechanical Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University.

When I contacted Second Story about DSrupted, comminications manager Nora Bauman listened to my description of the event focus and immediately said my guy was Arnold. She explained why and I got it. Very strong on the technical side, but also highly creative. And an experienced speaker who will tell a story and explore ideas.

He spoke at a film and media conference recently in Stuttgart on Responsive Environments: Blurring the Lines Between Physical and Digital Worlds,” which “introduced the concepts of more open-ended (non-linear) storytelling experiences and the creation of rich environments that can envelop audiences in layers of narrative.”

We’ll work out the final topic for DSrupted, but his Stuttgart talk would be a good start.

Very pleased to have Matt join an already great line-up. As noted from the start, there are only five speakers through the day – none of them sponsors getting microphone time in exchange for a check. They’re up there because they know their subject matter and will advance understanding and ideas. And each has an hour to talk and field questions.

There is a hard cap on admission numbers because of the room size, and less than 165 seats still available. Though the event is still 11-12 weeks out, I’d encourage people to book in now. It will be a solid day, and there will be a mixer the night before in Toronto. as well. Come get DSrupted on Sept. 17th!

 

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