[MUSIC]
This is the story of NASA and Angry Birds.
An unlikely duo pushing the boundaries of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics
education through video games…
Wait.
Video games?
Seriously video games partnering with deep space exploration agency; NASA?
Did this really happen?
At least….that is how this Hollywood story started.
[ROCKET NOISE]
WHOAAAA!
[MUSIC]
Pluto is a dwarf planet once it was a planet but then it was reclassified in 2006.
Pluto was smaller than a number of moons in our solar system, including the Earth’s
moon
Ok, now they have the head of NASA’s Planetary Science Division talking about Pluto, in the
presence of some annoyed piggies?
Someone has to tell me how this started.
Ironically it was through a tweet.
Seing this twitter conversation go on about how polwerful the mobile phone devices are
today as being more powerful than they were during the Apollo era and that we sent humans
to the moon and they shot birds at pigs.
And I didn’t quite understand what shooting birds at pigs was so I had avoided on purpose
a lot of the Facebook and mobile gaming material so called someone and they said they are referring
to Angry Birds was like ok I’m going to have to look at this now
After a bit of research – code for game play – he tweeted an offer to help the birds
get to space.
And Rovio, the makers of Angry Birds saw this and immediately responded.
Well who would not want to work with NASA it was amazing opportunity to combine a super
popular game with exciting educational content.
Twitter, mobile gaming, space, and, BUT WAIT, now a Hollywood 3D CG-animated movie?
Ok so this is getting better…
[WOOD SLAMS TO GROUND]
[MUSIC] Greetings from my world.
The world of the pigs.
What’s a pig?
I am a pig
This combo was pretty darn cool.
NASA informed kids and adults about space exploration, orbital mechanics, microgravity,
and its pioneering work…
through Rovio’s game…..all while slinging birds around on mobile devices!
Well Angry Birds is not just any video game it has to do with trajectories it has to do
with velocities it has to do with accelerations where you’re shooting little birds around
as projectiles and asteroids and things like that.
And I’m going to show the trajectory that Red Bird is going to have when I fire him
with this orbital sling shot.
All of them involves physics, all of this involves science and so Angry Birds is a venue
to get kids wrapped up into the game and then you slide a little science in at the same
time you slide in a little physics
That’s an example of a trajectory.
Guess what Astronauts have to worry about these things because if you’re in a rocket
and you’re trying to get from one orbit and rendezvous with space station you end
up going in curved trajectories and you need to know how to fire your rocket engines so
you can go from where you are to where you want to be.
With 265 million downloads of Angry Birds Space alone that’s over 6 billion sessions
of “interplanetary education”!
It has been so successful that the ANGRY BIRDS got noticed by Hollywood and they will now
make a debut appearance on the silver screen!
Who would’ve thought!
An ANGRY BIRDS MOVIE!
Yeah when birds fly.
After a few years, millions and millions of downloads, major updates about everything
from asteroids to Mars, and countless public events… the epic struggle between birds
and pigs continues!
The future of the Angry Birds keeps expanding with knowledge and exploration at its core.
From the International Space Station to deep into the cosmos.
We are interested in giving back to society and helping teach the next generation to come
and do our job is part of our current job and when it’s time for me to sit in a rocking
chair I’m hoping some of the kids that have seen these educational teachings that myself
and my colleagues have done I’m hoping to see those kids come up and take my job.
[MUSIC]