Adds alt tags for images in newsletters section

Author: microcosm

app/_newsletters/2016-10-05-panel-residency-art-a-hack.markdown

@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ Join us for a discussion with Thoughtworks Arts Residents [Heather Dewey-Hagborg
 
 {% include image file='body-technology.jpg'
    link='http://www.meetup.com/volumetric/events/234274881/'
+   alt='Heather Dewey-Hagborg, Neil Harbisson and Moon Ribas'
    caption='The panel will be on Tuesday, October 11, 2016 - 6:30 PM to 9:30 PM<br>@ Thoughtworks, 99 Madison Ave., 15th Floor, New York, NY ([map](https://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&amp;hl=en&amp;q=99+Madison+Ave.%2C+15th+Floor%2C+New+York%2C+NY%2C+10016%2C+us"))' %}
 
 <!--excerpt-ends-->
@@ -18,7 +19,7 @@ During her time at Thoughtworks, Heather intends to begin a new body of work, cu
 
 {% include image file='face-masks.jpg'
    link='https://thoughtworksarts.io/blog/introducing-heather-dewey-hagborg/'
-   alt='Heather Dewey-Hagborg' %}
+   alt='Face masks on a gallery wall' %}
 
 Heather joins our current Artist Residents, the [Cyborg Foundation](http://www.cyborgfoundation.com/) (Neil Harbisson and Moon Ribas), as they continue their work creating new human senses with technology. Read more about their [projects](https://thoughtworksarts.io/blog/team-gets-started-on-research/) and [progress](https://thoughtworksarts.io/blog/cyborg-senses-weaving-materials/) on our blog.
 
@@ -32,7 +33,7 @@ We also created a 2-minute overview of Art-A-Hack 2016, including projects in VR
 
 {% include image file='art-a-hack.jpg'
    link='https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l1hfv_GlvGg'
-   alt='Art-A-Hack 2016' %}
+   alt='Art-A-Hack 2016 overview video' %}
 
 We are happy to share good news from this year's teams following the Art-A-Hack sessions:
 

app/_newsletters/2017-03-01-bio-feedback-vr-meet-hannes-bend.markdown

@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ Our latest artist-in-residence, [hannes bend](https://thoughtworksarts.io/bio/ha
 
 {% include image file='hannes.jpg'
    link='https://thoughtworksarts.io/bio/hannes-bend'
+   alt='Portrait of hannes bend'
    caption='hannes at an opening in Miami, USA' %}
 
 During his residency at Thoughtworks, hannes intends to extend the range of biosensors which can be used in the VR environment, and to develop the user experience of the program towards an aim of increasing personal awareness and mindfulness.
@@ -19,6 +20,7 @@ In addition to this, Heather had previously created [a unique DNA-based portrait
 
 {% include image file='suppressed-images.jpg'
    link='https://suppressedimages.net'
+   alt='Cover page of comic'
    class='no-border'
    caption='The cover page of <a href="http://suppressedimages.net/">suppressedimages.net</a>' %}
 
@@ -28,6 +30,7 @@ They named the story "Suppressed Images", a reference to the fact that Chelsea w
 
 {% include image file='heather-shoili.jpg'
    link='https://thoughtworksarts.io/projects/suppressed-images/'
+   alt='Icons of Heather Dewey-Hagborg and Shoili Kanungo'
    class='no-border'
    caption='Heather Dewey-Hagborg and Shoili Kanungo' %}
 
@@ -39,6 +42,7 @@ The Cyborg Foundation [joined us](https://thoughtworksarts.io/blog/introducing-c
 
 {% include image file='cyborg.jpg'
    link='https://thoughtworksarts.io/projects/'
+   alt='Icons of Neil Harbisson and Moon Ribas'
    class='no-border'
    caption='Neil and Moon experimenting with prototype \'exo-senses\'' %}
 

app/_newsletters/2017-05-16-ai-biometrics-vr-brain-surveillance.markdown

@@ -14,15 +14,17 @@ Join us on Wednesday, May 17, 2017 at Thoughtworks, 99 Madison, New York, for [t
 
 {% include image file='insulin.png'
    link='https://jahya.net/works/insulin/'
-   caption='Insulin, an blood-glucose visualization by Andrew McWilliams' %}
+   caption='Insulin, an blood-glucose visualization by Andrew McWilliams'
+   alt='Three stills of a blood glucose reponsive visualzation in a gallery' %}
 
 ## Creative Tech Week Lightning Talks
 
 You can also [join the Creative Tech Week conference](http://creativetechweek.nyc/sessions/afternoon-lightning-talks/) on Saturday, May 20, 2017 to hear the residency directors Andrew McWilliams and Ellen Pearlman talk about their work. Creative Tech Week is an industry-wide gathering for the creative technology field, held annually in New York City.
 
 {% include image file='noor.jpg'
    link='http://www.isea-archives.org/sample-page/isea2016/isea2016-art-events/isea2016-artist-statement-ellen-pearlman-noor-a-brain-opera/'
-   caption='Noor: A Brain Opera by Ellen Pearlman' %}
+   caption='Noor: A Brain Opera by Ellen Pearlman'
+   alt='A female face leans backward with the word "surveillance" in the background' %}
 
 ## Directors and Alumni News
 

app/_newsletters/2017-07-28-implications-ai-meet-our-new-resident.markdown

@@ -4,7 +4,8 @@ title : "Implications of AI: Meet our New Resident"
 We are pleased to welcome our newest resident Karen Palmer, a London-based digital filmmaker and storyteller.
 
 {% include image file='karen-palmer.jpg'
-   caption='Karen Palmer speaking at TEDxSydney' %}
+   caption='Karen Palmer speaking at TEDxSydney'
+   alt='Karen Palmer on a large stage' %}
 
 During her Thoughtworks Arts Residency, Karen will be furthering development of her interactive film, RIOT. This project is an emotionally responsive live-action film with 3D sound, and uses Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology, machine learning, and facial recognition to allow users to navigate through a dangerous riot in progress.
 
@@ -21,6 +22,7 @@ We reviewed sixty three exceptional applications for the AI residency from artis
 [Shirin Anlen](https://www.shirin.works/), an Israeli interactive creator working at the intersection of technology and exploratory arts. Her work looks at issues of mental illnesses, and how they apply to AI, and how we can use virtual reality and avatars to explore the nature of AI systems and their responses.
 
 {% include image file='tzina.jpg'
+   alt='A VR landcscape with two human figures in it'
    caption='A still from Tzina: Symphony of Longing, webVR documentary by Shirin Anlen' %}
 
 **Olento Collective**, Jani Hietanen, Jaana Ristola and Ismo Torvinen, are working on a new theory of aesthetic motion. Their implementation is a new form of emotional AI, providing machines the ability to recognize the emotional content of embodied motion in a new way.
@@ -32,6 +34,7 @@ We reviewed sixty three exceptional applications for the AI residency from artis
 Our previous resident Heather Dewey-Hagborg joins forces with Chelsea Manning for [A Becoming Resemblance](https://www.fridmangallery.com/a-becoming-resemblance), an Exhibition at Fridman Gallery opening August 2nd. Frames from graphic short [Suppressed Images](http://deweyhagborg.com/projects/suppressed-images), a Thoughtworks Arts sponsored collaboration between Heather and Shoili Kanungo will be on view.
 
 {% include image file='suppressed-images.jpg'
+   alt='A still from the comic'
    caption='A frame from Suppressed Images' %}
 
 Noor: A Brain Opera, by Director, Ellen Pearlman, has been selected for [WomenCinemakers, special issue]( http://womencinemakers.com/) featuring independent filmmakers.

app/_newsletters/2017-09-07-ellen-pearlman-awarded-fulbright-specialist-grant.markdown

@@ -5,7 +5,8 @@ title : "Residency Director Ellen Pearlman Awarded a Fulbright Specialist Grant"
 Congratulations to Residency Director Ellen Pearlman, who has been awarded a Fulbright Specialist Grant to Liepaja University in Liepaja, Latvia. The program pairs highly qualified U.S. academics and professionals with host institutions abroad to share their expertise, strengthen institutional linkages, hone their skills, and learn about other cultures while building capacity at their overseas host institutions.
 
 {% include image file='ellen-pearlman.jpg'
-   caption='Ellen Pearlmen at NetGain Conference' %}
+   caption='Ellen Pearlmen at NetGain Conference'
+   alt='A picture of Ellen Pearlman smiling' %}
 
 There she will expand her groundbreaking Art-A-Hack art and technology collaborations, assist program directors at Liepaja University with international digital project proposals, run faculty training and development seminars, and lend her expertise toward the design of an M.F.A. Program in art and technology.
 
@@ -18,7 +19,8 @@ Parsons School of Art and Design, where Ellen is on faculty has said, “Ellen c
 ## Welcome to New Resident Karen Palmer
 
 {% include image file='riot.jpg'
-   caption='Still from RIOT by Karen Palmer' %}
+   caption='Still from RIOT by Karen Palmer'
+   alt='Karen Palmer in mid-air doing parkour' %}
 
 A warm welcome to Karen Palmer, a London based digital based filmmaker and storyteller, who will be starting her AI residency with us later this month. Karen will be further developing her interactive film RIOT. The film is an emotionally responsive, live-action film with 3D sound using AI technology, machine learning, and facial recognition to navigate through a dangerous riot in progress.
 
@@ -27,7 +29,8 @@ A warm welcome to Karen Palmer, a London based digital based filmmaker and story
 Past resident Neil Harbisson is mentioned in Man-Machine: [How bio-hacking can change the future of music](http://www.factmag.com/2017/08/20/how-bio-hacking-can-change-the-future-of-music/) in FACT and [See the world from a cyborg’s point of view: A chat with Neil Harbisson](https://www.techly.com.au/2017/08/25/world-cyborgs-point-of-view-neil-harbisson/) in Techly.
 
 {% include image file='neil-harbisson.jpg'
-   caption='Photo of Neil Harbisson' %}
+   caption='Photo of Neil Harbisson'
+   alt='Neil Harbisson against a psychedlic color backdrop' %}
 
 Cyborg Futures, a class taught at Parsons School of Design by Resident Director Ellen Pearlman, past resident Neil Harbisson and past resident Moon Ribas are all mentioned in [Sense Hacking: The Real-Life Cyborgs of the DIY Augmentation Scene](https://howwegettonext.com/sense-hacking-the-real-life-cyborgs-of-the-diy-augmentation-scene-e339ac9855bf) in How We Get to Next published by the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
 

app/_newsletters/2017-10-17-how-art-technology-predict-future.markdown

@@ -6,7 +6,8 @@ Over the summer, **Director Andy McWilliams** spoke at TEDxVilnius, and shared d
 
 {% include image file='andrew-mcwilliams.jpg'
    link='https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yrPegku0znk'
-   caption='Director Andrew McWilliams at TEDx' %}
+   caption='Director Andrew McWilliams at TEDx'
+   alt='Andrew McWilliams speaking on a large stage' %}
 
 “Sometimes looking into the future can be scary, because by definition it is unknown. But with art and technology, we can tell real stories about what is coming, and bring these issues into the light.”
 
@@ -31,6 +32,7 @@ RIOT 2, by current Resident **Karen Palmer** is included in [The Future of Story
 Past resident and cyborg **Moon Ribas** had [two new sensors](https://www.facebook.com/cyborgfoundation/?hc_ref=ARSUtaMkSJ3), partially developed while at Thoughtworks, implanted in her feet to feel moonquakes. [An interview of her](http://www.straitstimes.com/lifestyle/arts/walking-earthquake-detector), Artist Moon Ribas translates Earth's movement into art, appears in Lifestyle.
 
 {% include image file='moon-feet.jpg'
+   alt='Two feet with stitches on the legs'
    caption='Past Thoughtworks Arts Resident Moon Ribas shortly after receiving earthquake sensor implants in her feet' %}
 
 [An interview](https://issuu.com/women.cinemakersreview/docs/vol8/70) of Director **Ellen Pearlman** appears in WomenCinemakers, an annual magazine offering readers insight into the work of emerging women directors, producers and writers from around the world, and she participated in the closing panel of [Jump into VR Fest.](https://www.jumpintovrfest.com/)
@@ -42,6 +44,7 @@ Past resident **hannes bend** is participating in [Peace Boat NYC](https://www.e
 Art-A-Hack alum **Mark Ramos** showed his work at [Future Robot](http://mailchi.mp/1e69639179d5/futurereboot) in New York.
 
 {% include image file='neil-harbisson.jpg'
+   alt='Neil showing his headband'
    caption='Neil Harbisson gets a good fit' %}
 
 An interview, [I am a Cyborg and I Have Nature at Heart](http://www.lifegate.com/people/news/neil-harbisson-cyborg-interview), of past resident, **Neil Harbisson** appears in Lifegate.

app/_newsletters/2017-12-07-thoughtworks-arts-rixc-art-science-festival.markdown

@@ -5,6 +5,7 @@ title : "Thoughtworks Arts at RIXC Art Science Festival"
 This fall the RIXC Art Science Festival, Virtualities and Realities, in Riga, Latvia hosted three members of the Thoughtworks Arts community. RIXC Art Science Festival is an internationally renown gathering for artists and scholars working at the intersection of arts, digital humanities, and science. The Festival includes conferences, exhibitions, performances, and VR artwork showcases.
 
 {% include image file='ellen-pearlman.jpg'
+   alt='Ellen Pearlman standing outside of an exhibition'
    caption='TWA Director, Ellen Pearlman, at the RIXC Center for New Media Art in Riga, Latvia' %}
 
 Director Ellen Pearlman was a conference keynote speaker with her topic: _The Approaching Storm: AI, Biometrics, Big Data, Immersion and Surveillance._ Director Andrew McWilliams’s multimedia installation _Insulin_, and Art-A-Hack alum Annie Berman’s video and VR experience, _Utopia 1.0_, were all included in the festival’s contemporary digital art exhibitions.
@@ -18,7 +19,7 @@ For a detailed recap on the Festival including Director Ellen Pearlman’s keyno
 Storytelling is as old as time itself. But with the advent of emerging technologies such as virtual/mixed/augmented reality, and AI storytelling, technology has the power to effect and impact our cognitive and neurological faculties like never before. What's new? What's not? In the age of information and unrest, when facts are under so much scrutiny, at least we know we can trust our feelings. Right...?
 
 {% include image file='karen-palmer.jpg'
-   alt='Karen Palmer' %}
+   alt='Karen Palmer on a large stage' %}
 
 Join us on Tuesday, December 12th, 6:30 PM at Thoughtworks NYC for a conversation about the ethical considerations of these forms of storytelling featuring Karen Palmer ([http://karenpalmer.uk/](http://karenpalmer.uk/)), current Thoughtworks Artist-in-Residence, and TED Fellow.
 
@@ -29,7 +30,8 @@ Sign up [here](https://www.meetup.com/Ethical-Tech/events/243577410/).
 We are excited to announce a special Art-A-Hack™ in collaboration with CYBERFEST at the Cyland Media Art Lab in St. Petersburg Russia on January 21, 22, 28, and 29, 2018.
 
 {% include image file='dual-brains.jpg'
-   caption='Dual Brains performance from Art-A-Hack Summer 2016' %}
+   caption='Dual Brains performance from Art-A-Hack Summer 2016'
+   alt='Two people sharing a 3D-printed brain computer interface with projected visuals behind them' %}
 
 The topic of this year’s program is “Weather forecast: digital cloudiness,” and we will bring together artists and technologists to build projects exploring this theme.
 
@@ -51,7 +53,8 @@ October 19 - 21, 2017
 Riga, Latvia
 
 {% include image file='utopia.jpg'
-   caption='Utopia 1.0: Post-Neo-Futurist-Capitalism in 3D! By Annie Berman' %}
+   caption='Utopia 1.0: Post-Neo-Futurist-Capitalism in 3D! By Annie Berman'
+   alt='A still from the video' %}
 
 **Annie Berman (Art-A-Hack)**  
 [Virtualities and Realities](http://virtualitiesandrealities.rixc.org/10-2/)  
@@ -97,6 +100,7 @@ Thoughtworks Arts
 Engadget
 
 {% include image file='leonardo.jpg'
+   alt='The cover of Leonardo with face masks in a gallery'
    caption='Heather Dewey-Hagborg, Stranger Visions. Cover of Leonardo, October 2017' %}
 
 **Heather Dewey-Hagborg (Past resident)**  
@@ -130,6 +134,7 @@ Leipaja, Latvia
 Riga, Latvia
 
 {% include image file='neil-harbisson.jpg'
+   alt='Neil Harbisson speaking'
    caption='Neil Harbisson speaking at \'Human Hardware\' in Barcelona, October 2017' %}
 
 **Neil Harbisson (Past Resident)**  

app/_newsletters/2018-02-01-art-a-hack-special-edition-cyfest.markdown

@@ -24,6 +24,7 @@ The teams have many exciting projects underway, including interacting with a hol
 During her work on Karen Palmer's RIOT project, Thoughtworks employee Stephanie Weber researched the [role AI is playing in the criminal justice system](https://thoughtworksarts.io/blog/artificial-intelligence-criminal-justice-system/). In Weber's write-up of the situation, she goes through topics of sentencing, risk of recidivism, and bias in automated systems, looking at the way AI is changing our perspectives on each topic.
 
 {% include image file='criminal-justice.jpg'
+   alt='A gavel on stylized background'
    caption='Image created by Stephanie Weber' %}
 
 Stephanie worked on Karen Palmer's residency project at Thoughtworks as a researcher and software developer during 2017.
@@ -34,6 +35,7 @@ Stephanie worked on Karen Palmer's residency project at Thoughtworks as a resear
 The Volumetric Society ran a series of panels at ThoughtWork NYC on the general theme of artificial intelligence and emotion. Speakers included Patrick Levy-Rosenthal, CEO of EmoShape, Aaron Trucola of Three Form, and filmmaker Noah Hutton.
 
 {% include image file='patrick.jpg'
+   alt='A person speaking to an audience'
    caption='Patrick Levy-Rosenthal presenting at Volumetric Society' %}
 
 Check out Patrick Levy-Rosenthal's presentation on [EmoShape](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nLpW_tL1TLU&list=PL8f-F_Zx8XA_aCgRgLeWblbuaLVsap7ET&index=1&t=50s), [The Digital Body: Giving Technology an Awareness of Form](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WbP1wUyjjJw&index=2&list=PL8f-F_Zx8XA_aCgRgLeWblbuaLVsap7ET) with Aaron Trocola, and [The Case Against Neural Normality](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IX0W3JYyeiQ&list=PL8f-F_Zx8XA_aCgRgLeWblbuaLVsap7ET&index=3) with Noah Hutton. 
@@ -46,6 +48,7 @@ If you are interested in joining the Volumetric Society, please sign up on our [
 [REFRESH](https://refreshart.tech/) is a new art collective dedicated to diversifying the art/tech/science world, co-founded by former TWA resident, Heather Dewey Hagborg. REFRESH is the first biennial exhibit of its kind, showcasing feminist, queer, de-colonial, and historically marginalized artists. 
 
 {% include image file='kiss-my-ars.png'
+   alt='A graphic showing the #KissMyArs campaign'
    caption='#KissMyArs Social Media Campaign Image' %}
 
 This initiative came about following the social media campaign, #KissMyArs, which Heather started in response to the gender problem perpetuated by the international arts and technology prize, the Golden Nika, awarded at the Ars Electronica festival annually. Heather co-authored a piece in the Guardian [explaining the rationale behind the #KissMyArs](https://www.theguardian.com/science/the-h-word/2016/sep/12/ars-electronica-festival-gender).
@@ -85,6 +88,7 @@ Thousand Oaks, CA
 January 19, 2018 - April 15, 2018  
 
 {% include image file='portrait.jpg'
+   alt='A face mask in a box'
    caption='New portrait print for \'Stranger Visions\' exhibition by Heather Dewey-Hagborg' %}
 
 [Unreal. The Algorithmic Present](http://www.chronusartcenter.org/en/unreal/)  
@@ -112,6 +116,7 @@ Fast Company
 Forbes  
 
 {% include image file='riot.jpg'
+   alt='A figure emerging from a fiery landscape'
    caption='RIOT by Karen Palmer' %}
 
 [Inside Out: Emotion, Witness and Self-awareness from Immersive Experiences](https://suppo.site/inside-out-emotion-witness-and-self-awareness-from-immersive-experiences-2ec8d1001a9f)