Michael Hawley

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Michael Hawley
Computer Science
Doctoral advisorMarvin Minsky

Michael Jerome Hawley (November 18, 1961 – June 24, 2020) was an American academic and artist working in the field of digital media. Previously at MIT’s

Alexander W. Dreyfoos, Jr. endowed chair, Hawley was the founder or co-founder of several major research programs and projects including MIT's GO Expeditions program, Things That Think, Toys of Tomorrow, Counter Intelligence (a culinary research effort), and founder of the nonprofit organization Friendly Planet. He notably was the scientific director of the American Expedition on Mount Everest in 1998, one of the first major scientific expeditions on Everest. Hawley's work has been featured in major media such as National Geographic, Time, The New York Times
, and on numerous television networks. His work at MIT has, in his own words, “sought to creatively stretch digital infrastructures, embedding intelligence into all sorts of artifacts and advancing the web of communications.”

Biography

Hawley was born in November 1961 at

human–computer interfaces
, documentary photography, and more.

Michael Hawley at the piano in Fort Worth, TX (2002)

Hawley was also a pianist and organist. He won first place, tying with Victoria Bragin, at the third International Piano Competition for Outstanding Amateurs, hosted by the

Symphonic Dances from "West Side Story". He also accompanied cellist Yo-Yo Ma in performing the wedding march at the marriage of TV host and scientist Bill Nye and musician and author Blair Tindall at Richard Saul Wurman’s 2006 "The Entertainment Gathering" conference (EG1).[5] Hawley also directed EG3 in Monterey, California, in 2008.[6] He was prominently featured in the 2010 documentary Bach & Friends.[7][8]

He was the scientific director of an expedition to Mount Everest in 1998.[1]

Personal life

Michael Hawley in Paro, Bhutan (November 2009)

Hawley and Cambodian-born Nina You were married in Bhutan in a traditional Bhutanese blessing ceremony held at Kyichu Lhakhang, a 7th-century temple that is considered to be one of the most sacred sites in Bhutan. Previously, he and Nina eloped privately in Venice.

Hawley and You resided with their son in a historic church in Cambridge where he owned three pianos.

Their dogs, Tashi and Karma, are Bjop-chi mastiffs from Bhutan. Virtually unknown outside the Himalayas, this working breed is an ancient Bhutanese mountain form of

Tibetan mastiff
and for thousands of years has been the loyal family dog of high-altitude peoples like the Brokpa seminomadic yak herders of Merak and Sakteng.

Hawley died on June 24, 2020, from colon cancer, at his home in Cambridge.[1]

Notable works

  • Bhutan: A Visual Odyssey Across the Last Himalayan Kingdom (2003) – The world's largest published book, a photo documentary of the kingdom of Bhutan.[9]
  • "Michael Hawley's Bhutan" (2003) – Article and photos for National Geographic's Traveler magazine.[10]
  • Counter Intelligence project (2001:ended)[11] – Integrating high technology into the kitchen to foster a return to the “hearth” as the center of family life.
  • Toys of Tomorrow project (2002:ended)[12] – Exploring and implementing technologies with several major toy companies to improve the way children learn and play.
  • Things That Think project (2000) - Sponsor-driven effort to develop digitally augmented objects and environments.[13]

Advisory and founding roles

References

  1. ^
    ISSN 0362-4331
    . Retrieved June 25, 2020.
  2. ^ Laurans, Penelope. "What is a university for?: Michael Hawley, 1961-2020", Yale Alumni, July 2, 2020. Accessed April 19, 2021. "I have known of Mike ever since he applied to Yale in 1979 from New Providence High School in New Jersey."
  3. ISSN 0895-6340
    .
  4. ^ "Third International Piano Competition for Outstanding Amateurs". Van Cliburn Foundation. Archived from the original on May 12, 2013.
  5. ^ "Archive: EG1 Program". EG Conference. 2006. Archived from the original on January 14, 2012.
  6. ^ "Biography: Michael Hawley – EG Director, Pianist". EG Conference. 2008. Archived from the original on April 29, 2013.
  7. ^ "Bach Project". Michael Lawrence Films.
  8. ^ "Bach Project – Mike Hawley". Michael Lawrence Films.
  9. ^ "FACT SHEET: MIT and FRIENDLY PLANET Present BHUTAN --- the World's Largest Published Book". MIT Media Lab. Archived from the original on January 13, 2013.
  10. ^ Hawley, Michael (May–June 2003). "Place of a Lifetime: Bhutan" (PDF). Traveler.
  11. ^ "counter intelligence". MIT Media Lab.
  12. ^ "Toys of Tomorrow". MIT Media Lab.
  13. ^ "Things That Think". MIT Media Lab.
  14. ^ "About SiOnyx: Directors". SiOnyx Inc. Archived from the original on January 22, 2013. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
  15. ^ "COLOR KINETICS ELECTS JAMES F. O'CONNOR TO BOARD OF DIRECTORS" (Press release). Boston, MA: Color Kinetics Incorporated. June 10, 2004.
  16. ^ Institute of Jazz Studies, Rutgers University
  17. ^ "TTI/Vanguard's Advisory Board". TTI/Vanguard. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
  18. S2CID 31043926
    .

External links

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