William J. (Chip) Walter

Chip Walter may be best known at the ETC as the man who introduced Randy Pausch to Captain Kirk, but he is also an author, journalist, multimedia/game producer, filmmaker and former CNN bureau chief. He has published three mainstream science books -- Thumbs, Toes and Tears - And Other Traits That Make Us Human for Walker & Company; I'm Working on That; (Simon and Schuster), written with William Shatner; and Space Age for Random House.

Chip has also done time in Hollywood as a screenwriter where he sold screenplays to Columbia-Tri Star, Universal and Warner Bros. During his career he served as National Programming Executive at WQED-TV, was CEO of Digital Alchemy Inc., Vice-President and Executive Producer of ENGAGE Games Online and Senior Strategic Communications Manager at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center (UPMC). While at Digital Alchemy he developed learning games for the National Geographic Society including its popular GeoBee game inspired by the National Geography Bee.

Chip is an adjunct professor at Carnegie Mellon University's professional writing program where he sometimes teaches science writing, and Senior Manager in charge of strategic educational initiatives at the Mellon Institute for Green Science where he is also Author-in-Residence. He has consulted with several nationally recognized organizations to develop creative online business strategies, content, and services in an effort to help tap emerging technologies.

Chip's work as a science journalist has included writing and directing several award-winning science documentaries for PBS, each produced in association with the National Academy of Sciences. Variety called his documentary on the evolution of intelligence (Fires of the Mind), "Handsomely produced, beautifully written...a fascinating hour." He has also written for Discover Magazine, Scientific American and Scientific American Mind magazines, The Boston Globe and The Economist, among others.

Chip has spoken at Xerox PARC, NASA, Harvard Law School and Carnegie Mellon University and many smaller organizations around the country and around Pittsburgh. He is a member of the Writers Guild of America and the National Association of Science Writers. He is a native Pittsburgh-er and that's where he currently lives with his two daughters, Molly and Hannah.