Owen Gottlieb (RIT): Medieval and Religious Law in Game Design

Professor Owen Gottlieb comes to Duke to discuss medieval religious law and learning games in this interactive seminar.

Professor Gottlieb is Assistant Professor of Interactive Games and Media at the Rochester Institute of Technology, where he also founded and Directs the Initiative in Religion, Culture and Policy at the MAGIC Center.

His Ph.D. is in Education and Jewish Studies, specializing in Digital Media and Games for Learning. Gottlieb is the founder of ConverJent: Jewish Games for Learning (founded 2010) and, as a digital games innovator, was nominated Most Innovative Game at the 2013 Games for Change Festival.

Gottlieb will discuss his recent design-based research and will share analog and digital prototypes of his team's new project: Lost & Found. Lost & Found is a game system designed to teach religious medieval legal systems. Set in Fustat (Old Cairo) in the 12th Century, the game models laws from Maimonides' Mishneh Torah and is designed to be expanded into Muslim law of the same period and locale.

There will be a lecture and opportunity to play with the digital and analog prototypes. Dinner will be served, and we do ask that you RSVP to serena.elliott@duke.edu.