WoW...!! What a day it was for ourselves.. Today w had a seminar conducted by Microsoft in our university campus... attending this one was really an amazing experience and obviously compell me to attend more n more whenever i get the opportunity...
Most interesting part for me was introduction to Pranav Mistry and his Sixth Sense..
let me tell you guys a little bit about him....
Pranav Mistry is the inventor of Sixth Sense, a wearable device that enables new interactions between the real world and the world of data.
Pranav Mistry is a PhD student in the Fluid Interfaces Group at MIT's Media Lab. Before his studies at MIT, he worked with Microsoft as a UX researcher; he's a graduate of IIT. Mistry is passionate about integrating the digital informational experience with our real-world interactions.
Some previous projects from Mistry's work at MIT includes intelligent sticky notes, quickies, that can be searched and can send reminders; a pen draws in 3D; and TaPuMa, a tangible public map that can act as Google of physical world. His research interests also include Gestural and Tangible Interaction, Ubiquitous Computing, AI, Machine Vision, Collective Intelligence and Robotics.
Today we were shown this video of his sixth sense Demo... the link is gven below... you guys plzz do watch it..
Pranav Mistry: The thrilling potential of SixthSense technology | Video on TED.com

after this lectures were delivered on concept of cloud computing.. this was also very nice concept.. it's a new client-server taking over the traditional one.. then we were told about Microsoft windows Azure whose kernel is entirely different from other operating system coz this one is specially designed for Cloud computing (Cloud computing is internet-based computing, whereby shared resources, software and information are provided to computers and other devices on-demand, like a public utility.)

then it was time for Microsoft Photosynth....
Photosynth is a software application from Microsoft Live Labs at the University of Washington analyzes generates a 3D Model of the photos and a Point Cloud of a photographed object. Pattern recognition components compare portions of images to create points, which are then compared to convert the image into a model.
The Photosynth technology works in two steps. The first step involves the analysis of multiple photographs taken of the same area. Each photograph is processed using an Interest Point Detection and matching algorithm developed by Microsoft Research which is similar in function to UBC's Scale-Invariant Feature Transform. This process identifies specific features, for example the corner of a window frame or a door handle. Features in one photograph are then compared to and matched with the same features in the other photographs. Thus photographs of the same areas are identified. By analyzing the position of matching features within each photograph, the program can identify which photographs belong on which side of others. By analyzing subtle differences in the relationships between the features (angle, distance, etc.), the program identifies the 3D position of each feature, as well as the position and angle at which each photograph was taken. This process is known scientifically as Bundle adjustment and is commonly used in the field of Photogrammetry with similar products available such as Imodeller, D-Sculptor, an Rhinoceros. This first step is extremely computationally intensive, but only has to be performed once on each set of photographs.
The second step involves the display of and navigation through the 3D point cloud of features identified in the first step. This is done with the publicly downloadable Photosynth viewer. The viewer resides on a client computer and maintains a connection to a server that stores the original photographs. It enables a user to, among other things, see any of the photographs from their original vantage point. It incorporates Deep Zoom technology Microsoft obtained through its acquisition of Seadragon in January 2006. The Seadragon enables smooth zooming into the high-resolution photographs without downloading them to the user's machine.

Then we discussed the NATAL Project which is newest gaming technology till date...
Project Natal (pronounced /nəˈtæl/ nə-tal) is the code name for a "controller-free gaming and entertainment experience" by Microsoft for the Xbox 360 video game platform. Based on an add-on peripheral for the Xbox 360 console, it enables users to control and interact with the Xbox 360 without the need to touch a game controller through a natural user interface using gestures, spoken commands, or presented objects and images. The project is aimed at broadening the Xbox 360's audience beyond its typical gamer base.
check out this interesting video n am damn sure that you will be amazed....
http://vimeo.com/4995414

After this it was the time for robotics..... during this session there were lots n lots of controversies which were solved nicely by the visitors... at the end they said robot is just undefined.. this session was not that much interesting...

At the end we were told about the various events organised by Microsoft all around the world especially for the students who have talent but don' get right platform to show it...

so overall it was a very good experience n at present i have no reason to regret for those 3 hours which i spent for getting registered for this event... Thanks a lot to organizers.., Microsoft India and last but not least LPU......
 Gud night Friends.... sorry it's morning now....