LEGO Papert Professor of Learning Research, MIT Media Lab Head, Program in Media Arts and Sciences

Mitchel Resnick explores how new technologies can help people (especially children) learn new things in new ways. His Lifelong Kindergarten research group at the MIT Media Lab has developed a variety of educational tools, including the "programmable bricks" that were the basis for the award-winning LEGO MindStorms robotics construction kit.

Resnick co-founded the Computer Clubhouse project, an international network of after-school centers where youth from low-income communities learn to express themselves creatively with new technologies. Resnick's group recently developed a new programming language, "Scratch," which makes it easier for kids to create their own animated stories, video games, and interactive art.

Resnick earned a B.S. in physics from Princeton, and an M.S. and Ph.D. in computer science from MIT. Before pursuing his graduate degrees, he worked for five years as a science and technology journalist for Business Week magazine. He is the author or co-author of several books, including Turtles, Termites, and Traffic Jams.