Rise of the Technology Class

These conversations are between students from Ecuador, India, Israel, Japan, Mexico, Spain and the US who see technology serving a higher purpose: A counter-culture to their predecessors. This is evidence of a new type of generative class who apply technology to their creativity with art, music, science and involvement within the community. Their activity is transparent and active to our evolving civility. These multinational students are socially conscious storytellers. The Moderator of this conversation, Michael Davis is an Executive MBA graduate of Steinbeis University Germany, The Berlin School of Creative Leadership.

Rise Of The Technology Class

You’ve landed on Rise of the Technology Class community. The student authors here used this site from 2008-2010 as a guide to track their interests about technology and social media. Dive in, take a look around. Each student is featured based on their home country. 

By Joshua – Pad for all freshmans!

This is the best news of week. Ipads for all. Yes, the entire freshman class of IIT, The Illinois Institute of Technology. That’s the school where famed architect Mies Van Der Rohe was educated. Good for them. This is just the start of educational institutions around the world who can harness the power of computing, access and cost savings. Carry 10 books? Or One iPad?

by Aruna – ‘Grown Ups’ with Adam Sandler

Humour: Any young person can relate to how their parents behave – and every “grown up” can remember when they started feeling that way.

I hope parents can imagine the difference in the lives of their children… compared to their own childhood.  In a way, I hope it has made young people smarter and prepared to live in a global society.

Adam Sandler, Chris Rock, Kevin James, David Spade, Rob Shneider


By Joshua: Kids and health care reform

So who should we believe on health care reform?  Take a look at how it may be helping kids.


Listen KCBS’ Matt Bigler Reports

Dozens of doctors and other health experts gathered at Stanford University Thursday to talk about how the health care reform bill affects children. The conference was sponsored by Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital. Lisa Wise, whose son has been treated at the hospital since he was born, says parents of kids with chronic illnesses often struggle with health insurance.

”That’s going to hit you over the head with a 2×4, because what you’re going to have to constantly do is learn how to navigate and negotiate your way through a maze that is complicated, difficult and never guaranteed, so you’re always concerned that you’ll lose that coverage,” said Wise.

But she says the recently passed health care bill that prevents insurance companies from dropping children with preexisting conditions, is a big step in the right direction.

”It was a really major accomplishment that needed to happen, and I’m glad it happened,” said Dr. Irwin Redlener co-founder of the Children’s Health Fund.

He worries the bill could lead to a shortage of physicians.

”We’re going to have a lot of work to do to make sure that we have enough doctors to provide the care that’s now going to be covered by the insurance,” said Redlener.


by Joshua – Japan students want iPad iAnything

Students in Japan want to buy iNames!

japan pad


Apple’s new tablet PC is not the first product to be called the “iPad”. Japan’s Fujitsu says it launched one year ago, and the name has also been used for small engines and even bra inserts!

Amid the hype about Apple’s latest offering, the device has been hailed as a “Kindle killer” that will upstage electronic book readers, but also mocked on chatrooms for evoking a feminine hygiene product. (in english a “pad” is what protects women during monthly menstruation)


Fujitsu Ltd. said its US subsidiary in 2002 launched the “iPad”, a sleek handheld multimedia device with a 3.5-inch screen, used by retail store clerks to keep inventory data, scan barcodes and manage business operations.

Fujitsu’s device has an Intel processor and a Microsoft operating system and supports both Wi-fi and Bluetooth connections.

In 2003, Fujitsu’s US arm made a trademark application for the “iPad” name with the US Patent and Trademark Office, which is still pending and not yet registered, said Fujitsu spokesman Masao Sakamoto in Tokyo. He said Fujitsu was yet to decide on how it may react to the launch of Apple’s tablet computer, saying: “As we are now sorting out the facts, we have not decided on what action we may take.”

A possible feud between Apple and Fujitsu has sparked debate on Japanese chatrooms, with one observer proposing: “Let’s apply for as many ‘i’ such-and-such names as possible! We’ll make money in the future!!”


By Joshua: Pixar’s “Up” Wins Animated Film Oscar

Disney/Pixar’s balloon adventure blockbuster “Up” won the best animated movie Oscar on Sunday, as the studio continued its dominance of cartoons at the Academy Awards.

That gives Pixar Animation Studios, which was bought by the Walt Disney Co in 2006, an industry-leading five Oscars for animation since that award was first handed out in 2002.

“Up” Director Pete Docter accepted the award on behalf of the studio and his animation team.

Never did I dream that making a flipbook out of my third-grade math book would lead to this,” Docter said.

A flipbook is a crude animation that children often make, with drawings on a series of pieces of paper that seem to move as the pages flip.

“Up” came out last May in 3-D and made more than $700 million at worldwide box offices.

The film is about a curmudgeonly old man named Carl, who is voiced by Ed Asner, and a young boy named Russell who fly off in a house tied to helium balloons.


By Kaito – Students meet Japanese Olympians!

“Musubi”

“The word Musubi is Japanese and is a type of Knot. It symbolises the spirit of co-operation and working together.”

via google translate:

“という言葉は日本語の結び目は結び目のタイプです。それは共同の精神を操作、一緒に働くことの象徴です。”

Southern Hills Community School, Keyworth and the Loughborough University is preparing to meet the Japan’s 2012 Olympic team next month.

It is found that the student organization of the most advanced educational workshops, the event will focus on Japanese language and culture.

Anne Rajakumar, head of East Asian languages in South Hills, said: “this is a great collaboration, this project is to take responsibility for all children to become something that is so special. Such projects is exactly what can be shown to children, we are very proud.


By Joshua – CNN Student News

CNN STUDENT NEWS

It might involve helping one person; it might involve helping hundreds. If there’s someone you know who’s helped your community in any way — large or small — we want to hear about it!

Carl Azuz Anchor, CNN Student News

by Joshua- iPad to the classroom

Software developer ScrollMotion has been tapped to develop iPad-friendly versions of textbooks for education publishers like McGraw Hill, Houghton Mifflin, and Kaplan.

Features that may make it into the iPad textbooks include video, interactive quizzes, the ability to record lectures, highlight and search text, and take notes, according to The Wall Street Journal.

ScrollMotion announced a similar deal to bring textbooks to the iPhone and iPod Touch during Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference in June of last year.

By Kaito: Japan student not cult hero

google translator: Media to promote a bad thing.

Cult hero: Tatsuya Ichihashi (back of picture) has attracted hundreds of fans after being arrested for the murder of British student Lindsay Ann Hawker

Social networking sites Mixi and 2Channel have been innundated with admirers who have awarded him elevated nicknames, such as Ichi-sama (Lord Ichi) and Tobo Oji (the fugitive prince).

Some content themselves with lavishing him with praise while others have fantasised about having sex with him. Bizarrely, some supporters claim he could not have murdered Miss Hawker, 22, as he looks ‘too kind.’

‘When he was arrested, I thought his dishevelled black hair and the line along his neck to his jaw made him look so sexy,’ one blogger wrote. ’He’s really cool!’, another added.

Lindsay Ann Hawker

Lindsay Ann Hawker

The Gyotoku  police station where Ichihashi is awaiting trial has also been struggling to deal with a slew of fan mail -  Masumi Kurata, an expert on criminals and cults in Japan, said: ‘From his image on wanted posters, Ichihashi seemed like a hunk, and I suppose this had a strong impact on young women. They see him as a man of mystery, like a hero in a romantic comic story.

Aya Matsumoto, a clinical psychologist, added: ‘It was a very cruel crime, but it seems that people here are treating it almost as if it were entertainment.

‘It seems to me that anyone who appears on television here in Japan is immediately elevated to some sort of star and these people are unable or unwilling to associate Ichihashi with Miss Hawker’s death.

Miss Hawker’s family, from Brandon, in Warwickshire, have fought a desperate battle to bring their daughter’s killer to justice.

dailymail.co.uk

dailymail.co.uk

By Aruna – Apple iPad for college students

Everyone in the world is conversing about the Apple iTablet.

Here is speculation from the Wall Street Journal.

  • Focused on the home and the classroom
  • Shared by multiple family members [Um, sorry sis, get yer own!]
  • Apple has explored electronic textbooks
  • Has virtual keyboard
  • Working with print media on text content
  • Working with CBS/Disney on video content
  • Working with EA on video game content
  • Talking with Microsoft about search and maps
  • Cable/TV providers resisting giving Apple “best” content (4-6 shows per channel), would rather it be “all” content
  • $499  price point
  • iTablet UI meant to be shareable; Apple has explored “sticky notes” as a way to share messages; facial recognition as a way of knowing who’s using it
  • Apple planning web-based version of iTunes called iTunes.com
  • “Buy” buttons would go wide on as many websites as possible

By Aruna – Obama Tweets or not?

Digital history was made Monday when President Obama became the first commander-in-chief to “tweet” a message on the social networking site, though he had a little bit of help.

When Obama stopped at the headquarters of the American Red Cross’ to promote aid to Haiti, a member of the agency’s new media team wrote a message on Twitter.com telling people he had arrived.

“President Obama and the first lady are here visiting our disaster operation center right now,” the Red Cross staffer wrote.

The new media staffer then asked the president to hit “Update” on the screen and Obama posted the item himself under the @RedCross handle at Twitter.com.

A moment later the Red Cross staffer posted a follow-up tweet: “President Obama pushed the button on the last tweet. It was his first ever tweet!”

White House aides told CNN they believe it is Obama’s first-ever tweet. During the presidential campaign, the Obama team used the @BarackObama account to send out quick messages in the then-senator’s voice, but he did not physically post the items himself, a disappointment to some of his techie supporters.


By Aruna in Mumbai- Text to Canada Saved Woman in Haiti

Text to Canada Saved Woman in Haiti

Thanks to the awesome people at Gizmodo for always keeping us informed when technology is used to save lives.

A Canadian woman trapped under rubble after the recent earthquake in Haiti managed to send out a text message to the Foreign Affairs Department in Ottawa, a place nearly 3,000 miles away. And it saved her life.

Once received, the text message was “relayed to Canadian diplomats back in Haiti” who then provided aid in the search for the woman. There’s not much more information beyond that, but it’s simply good to hear even the tiniest bit of encouraging and happy news in regards to this devastating event—particularly when it shows that a gadget and solid communication between diplomats can save a life.

• MSF/Doctors Without Borders
• The American Red Cross International Response Fund
• Texting “HAITI” to 90999 to donate $10 to the American Red Cross International Response FUnd


By Kaito in Japan – Playstation 3 – Japanese gamers in frenzy

Chaos ensued in Tokyo’s ‘geek district’ with the launch of ‘Final Fantasy XIII.’

Hordes of obsessed Japanese flooded electronics stores across the country in an attempt to pick up a copy of the game. Huge queues gathered outside the major game shops in Tokyo, with more than 300 people queuing in Akihabara at one point.


The game itself has received rave reviews across the Japanese gaming community and has set unprecedented sales for the already popular console. With around 4 million PS3 units sold in Japan, Final Fantasy XIII is now owned by more than 30 per cent of the PS3 owners. Sales of the Playstation 3 itself have increased by nearly 100,000.

Japanese Xbox owners are less fortunate. They will have to wait for the release of the game on their console.
Final Fantasy XIII will be released in Europe on March 9th 2010 on both PS3 and Xbox 360.


by Joshua – TED Talks, texting helps reduce violence!

3 minute video:


TED Talks 2009, Erik Hersman presents the remarkable story of a GoogleMap mashup that allowed Kenyans to report and track violence via cell phone texts. This is an intuitive purpose for the use of technology and social media.


By Kaito/Japan- TED: liquid-filled eyeglasses!

TED TALKS | IN LESS THAN 6 MINUTES

Josh Silver demos adjustable liquid-filled eyeglasses.

THIS is SUPERCOOL

hijō ni goku teion  iken no Googlehon’yaku

by Michael – A message of hope

YOUTH LEADERS – ACTIVISTS AT HOPENHAGEN

A message of hope: This is Irena Ward’s video, 13 years old from Sydney, Australia.  Her message of hope and belief for the future regarding the outcomes of the Cop15 conference.

ETHICAL CONTRIBUTORS

Rachel Butler

by Michael- a new name, ‘Ethical Contributors’

Ethical Contributors.

Ethical Contributors…young people who are participating on this blog. “Rise of the Technology Class,’ was the thesis statement for my MBA in Germany at the Berlin School of Creative Leadership. It served well to highlight why young people ARE NOT actually a technology class who adore technology as marketers believe, but rather a generation who is integrated with devices as appliances. Some exceptions noted, but their behavior proves otherwise. For them, technology creates a bridge to conversations that  previous generations did not connect to.

Technology is often transparent and expected, leaving everyone a ‘creative’ or ‘technology’ class of people. From the posts on this site, it became evident that devices and technology did not create compelling stories, but rather improved a quality of life. Our young students in Mexico want to be online more, but don’t have access to the internet. In Tokyo modern payment methods are common via mobile at retail. In India, there is still a thriving newspaper business. And in the UK and US, young people do talk about technology, but speak much more about themselves.

One blogger, Ryan, wants to turn back time to the era of Sean Connery as James Bond, mid 1960s. No phones, no computer, twitter, facebook or match.com. James was cool and fine on his own with a glass of Smirnoff.

Another blogger, Cristo, asks what happens to our passwords when we die? He wants his family to find his life stored in googlemail. My favorite post is by Veena, who contemplates the complexity of how technology has taken the humanity and personal interaction out of war. Perhaps she has found a philosophical challenge that our society has become to distant from the pain that war causes. Not sure if the Armed Forces on the ground in Afghanistan feel the same way, but her point is well taken. Most modern wars are drone and push-button destruction.

Not money or time is the killer of innovation, but rather FEAR. The young people on this site are brave, thoughtful and fearless to talk about how their contribution to global conversation is based on imagination. Not the technology that enables it.


By Aruna – UK Teenage Reporters – Be Heard!

Usman Ali

Two Halifax, UK teenagers have been chosen to report on key global issues to their peers for the next six months, as part of a youth reporters project.

Calderdale Youth Parliament member Usman Ali, 16, and Denise Donnelly, who is a student at Calderdale College, have been selected alongside 25 other young people from all over the UK to bring a local perspective on key global issues for the next six months, thanks to funding from UKaid from the Department for International Development (DFID).

Youth Reporters: DFID

Usman said: “With the current global economic crisis, the spotlight can effortlessly be taken off international development. However, I believe as a young person I can raise awareness across the UK as to why international development is vital.”

Denise added: “It will give me an insight into a possible career in journalism and give me the chance to have my voice heard, as well as giving other young people a chance to air their views.”

by Joshua – Mobile Devices in Classroom

Phones, netbooks and iPods are finding a place in the curriculum and expanding student access to technology.

Fifth-graders at Chormann Elementary School in the Southgate (Mich.) Community Schools are in their second year of using iPods. This year, they are discussing the novel Coraline with Peers in Australia, England and Singapore.

Technology has finally progressed to where mobile devices are cheap enough and powerful enough to use,” observes Elliot Soloway, a professor at the University of Michigan and at that school’s Center for Highly Interactive Computing in Education. Soloway, who believes that cell phones are the true one-to-one computer option for schools, is also co-developer of GoKnow, a mobile learning environment that runs educational software on handheld computers.

At West Elementary School in the St. Marys (Ohio) City Schools, District Technology Coordinator Kyle Menchhofer helps fifth-graders use cell phones to learn vocabulary terms and definitions in social studies.

In other schools they also take quizzes and tests and store their work in an “e-locker,” from which they can transfer files to other devices such as laptops or desktop computers at home. Teachers can use management tools to record and monitor student progress and time spent on task.


By Aruna: mobileYouth reaches India

mobileyouth team

These people are quite interesting:

MobileYouth researches and consults on youth marketing and mobile culture. Graham Brown and Josh Dhaliwal formed mobileYouth in 2001. They publish regular youth marketingmobileyouth story and mobile culture research as well as share insights through online presentations,research videos, radio show and public speaking.

Feb Week 2

  • Bahrain (1 space left)
  • Dubai (fully booked)
  • Delhi/Mumbai (1 space left)
  • Kuala Lumpur (1 space left)

Feb Week 3

  • Jakarta
  • Singapore (1 space left)
  • Hong Kong
  • Taipei
  • Shanghai

Feb Week 4

  • Tokyo (fully booked)

Mar Week 1

  • Seattle (1 space left)
  • San Francisco
  • New York
  • Toronto

mobileYouth website click here

mobile youth video

by Joshua – Paris Apple Store. Ridunkulously Cool

by Joshua – Paris Apple Store. Ridunkulously Cool

rise of the technology class apple parisFor all of us who are Apple fans, this is another cool first. Stores open in different countries- iPhone goes live in China this week. Soon there will be an ibookstore, although I like to carry a book. This is cool.

New art – meets old:

Thousands flocked to Carrousel du Louvre on Saturday, the scene of France’s first Apple Store opening.

Beneath the Louvre Museum in Paris one can find a host of high-end shops and eateries and can now also find France’s first Apple store. Saturday saw the store’s opening, and thousands were on hand to peruse Apple’s current products – take advantage of the Genius Bar’s knowledgeable staff.

rise of the technology class apple parisThe store “shares several features of the more spectacular Apple stores in the chain – views for visitors.” Lower-level visitors have views of the spiral-glass staircase and can peer through the 30-foot tall window to the outside which is dominated by the inverted glass pyramid unique to the Carrousel du Louvre mall.

During a press briefing at the new location, Apple executives noted that France will see the fastest rate of new store openings of any other country to date. The Montpellier store will open Nov. 14 and in 2010 a store near the Opera Ganier.

rise of the technology class apple paris

rise of the technology class apple paris

Apple opens doors to France's first Apple Store

by Aruna – School chooses Kindle?

I read this online a few days ago. Does the world think that we want technology everywhere? Students will have to pay for devices to save schools money. I have my mobile, I have my laptop.

When are we changing the name of this blog to ETHICAL CONTRIBUTORS?

kindle-students rise of the technology class

Cushing Academy is the very model of a New England boarding school. Clock tower? Check. Maples and meandering footpaths? Check. Flags representing the 193 home countries of its alumni? Check.

But in the past few years, the old library was in danger of becoming a relic. Its 20,000-book collection was barely used, administrators say. Spot checks last year found that, on some days, fewer than 30 books, or about .15%, circulated. And it was becoming rather lonely down there.

So the venerable boarding school west of Boston — the first in the USA to admit both boys and girls — last summer undertook another first: It began getting rid of most of the library’s books. In their place: a fully digital collection.

kindle large rise of the technology class

One student had to say:

Asher Chase, 16, a junior, says anyone who thinks digital books are the future should read a digital book. He remembers his English class last year being assigned Charles Dickens‘ A Christmas Carol on their laptops.

Taking notes on the text? Forget it. “It was terrible: ‘Shade, file, edit, highlight.’ We were like, ‘Wow, reading books on computers is awful.’ “

kindle school rise of the technology class

Here is the full article in the US paper.

I hope we don’t have to use the Kindle.

usatoday rise of the technology class

By Kaito – Aussie University Adds Course on Twitter

Griffith University

Social networking upstart Twitter has made the jump to academia’s hallowed halls, with ‘tweets’ made compulsory writing for would-be journalists at Griffith University.

“Some students’ tweets are not as in depth as you might like. But I don’t know if getting them to write an essay is any more beneficial,” said Jacqui Ewart, senior lecturer at the university.

Twitter microblogs have become an online phenomenon with users sending ‘tweets’ of up to 140 characters, or just a few words, to increasing numbers of ‘followers’.

Twitter is used more frequently by politicians, including Australia’s bookish Prime Minister Kevin Rudd, who has asked followers to recommend movie choices and this week ‘tweeted’ about his visit to a rural bakery.

twitter

Students were using twitter as “an exercise in self-reflection,” Ewart said, citing increasing demand from employers for people to use social networking tools.

“Quite surprisingly, a lot of students didn’t know what Twitter was. There were a couple of really vocal students who were saying they couldn’t believe we were using it and thought it was a waste of time,” Ewart said.

sydney morning herald

By Kaito from Tokyo, top 10 student sites

Prepare for school in the US, this list search of  best websites for students

japan school

Site names are linked, just click.


FreeTranslation

Sprechen Sie Deutsch? Perfect for language studies, this handy Web site automatically converts text from one language into another, such as English to Simplified Chinese or French to English. Simply type and paste up to 10,000 characters (about 1,800 words) into the search window and then select the desired language. Alternatively, you can cut and paste a Web URL to convert the entire site.

HowStuffWorks

Ever wanted to know why earthquakes happen? How CD burners work? What the sun is made of? These questions, and a large amount of others related to computers/electronics, automobiles, science, entertainment, and people, are all answered at this award-winning Web site. Simply type a query into the search window or peruse the topics by category. Extras include free newsletters, surveys, and printable versions of all answers.

Fact Monster

This site features an almanac, atlas, dictionary and encyclopedia made especially for kids, as well as handy search engine and layout designed for easy fact-finding. Check out fun features such as Biographies of the Presidents, the Geography Hall of Fame, and the Tallest Buildings Slideshow.

Download.com

Consider Download.com the ultimate file repository that links to literally tens of thousands of downloadable free or shareware programs. This includes utilities for Windows, Macintosh, and Linux, Internet tools, desktop dictionaries and language translators, Pocket PC and Palm applications, and of course, computer games. Visitors can search by typing in a keyword or by perusing the many sections.

Refdesk

Since 1995, Refdesk.com, which stands for “reference desk,” has served as a one-click springboard to many of the Web’s top dictionaries, encyclopedias, calculators, atlases, news headlines, and search engines. The site also includes a handy “homework helper” section that provides help in all subjects to students in every grade.

MSN Encarta

The free MSN Encarta site features more than 4,500 articles pooled from Microsoft Encarta, the award-winning electronic reference library, and comes with dictionaries, maps, fast facts, interactive quizzes, handy homework tools, and more.

Shakespeare Online

This Web site can be filed in the “where was this when I was a kid?” category. On the aptly named Shakespeare Online site, visitors can read every play or poem from the world’s most celebrated writer and, more importantly, make some sense of his works with free analysis, Old English language translations, and famous quotes.

Novelguide.com

The Web’s answer to those black- and yellow-striped Cliff Notes is Novelguide.com, a reliable and free source for literary analysis of classic and contemporary books such as Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn and Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s Notes from the Underground. The site offers character profiles, metaphor and theme analysis, and author biographies.

Math.com

This site provides help in a number of mathematics-related subjects, including basic grade-school math, calculus, algebra, geometry, trigonometry, and statistics. Practice exercises are automatically graded, plus this free site also features a glossary, calculators, homework tips, math games, and lesson plans for teachers.

Science Made Simple

Science classes—including the ubiquitous science project—aren’t as easy for some to grasp as for others. At Science Made Simple, kids of all ages can get detailed answers to many of science’s questions, read current news articles related to science, get ideas on school projects, and take advantage of unit conversion tables. Users can also find out if their school’s textbooks pass the test.

ALL THE LINKS TO THESE SITES ARE IN THE SITE NAMES, JUST CLICK ONE TIME.

Article written by Marc Saltzman and adapted from an original piece from Microsoft Home Magazine.

by Joshua, I am a MAC

For more reasons that I can tell you I AM A MAC.

iphone-large

What’s the big deal with apps on other phones? or Maps? I have GOOGLE on my iPhone. I can’t imagine having anything but my iphone. It’s become my everything. Everyone should just give it up for a few years. Oh, can’t wait for the Apple Book Store!

By Aruna, UK Rejects Students!

The number of would-be students who failed to get a university place was up 30% on last year in the UK.

Rise of the technology class

Statistics from the UK university admissions service, showed that 141,118 applicants did not find a place this year — up from 109,103 in 2008 — after a cap was placed on admissions. Why?

A further 175,000 students started university without loans or grants after technical problems at the Student Loans Company. (in the UK)

Rise of the Technology Class

Parents have demanded that the Government intervene.

“Ministers must now step in to ensure that the management of the loan situation are held to account for a fiasco that has left hundreds of thousands affected by late payments, lost documentation and a miserable start to their first term at university.” (sounds just like the US)

Classroom college

Carolyn Basham’s daughter is thousands of pounds in debt just weeks after starting university in London because of the delays to her loan payments. She applied before the deadline but has been unable to make contact with the loans company because of constantly busy phone lines.

By Aruna, The Apple Student Facebook forum

apple facebook technology class

apple facebook technology class

Found this useful. It’s the Facebook forum for students who need help with their mac products. Not withstanding, seems an intuitive place for us to learn. Cheers. Aruna

http://www.facebook.com/applestudents

apple facebook students technology

apple facebook students technology

by Joshua – UIST 2009 STUDENT INNOVATION CONTEST

UIST student winners 2009

UIST 2009 | STUDENT INNOVATION CONTEST

Disney

This is cool students of the world! The tech and design geeks at SIGCHI and SIGGRAPH sponsor this contest.

microsoft

UIST (User Interface Software and Technology) is cool forum and contest for innovations in the software and technology of human-computer interfaces. It’s about computer-human interaction and computer graphics, UIST brings together researchers and brainiacs from the world that include traditional graphical & web user interfaces, tangible & ubiquitous computing, virtual & augmented reality, multimedia, new input & output devices etc. It’s the cool place to be… and the winners this year from the student contest will be announced October 9th.

Autodesk

Winners announced here Oct 9: http://www.acm.org/uist/uist2009/call/contest.html

Here is an entry. This is cool. Instead of the keyboard working from digging your finger in a letter key, it has touch sensitive response. Fun my friends fun.

fxpal

by Salvador – Education and Health reform in Spain

In Spain, education is compulsory until the age of 16. If the student doesn’t go to school, his parents can go to the jail.

clase ordenador
All students between 3 and 16 years old go to school.

In Spain, 4 different languages are spoken (Català, Galego, Euskara and Castellano or Español (Spanish).with many dialects.
Lenguas_de_España
Spain is organized like the USA. There are 17 communities and two autonomic cities. Not all the communities recive the same money, and some communities are more rich than others. The state is giving 11 million euros to spend in education and health service.
In 2020 politicians say that all the schools will be fully modernized,
with one computer for every student.

One thing more: The Obama reform will be very good for people in the USA, I think that people who say that reform will be bad are ignorant.

nueva fe 1In Spain we only pay for medicines that doctors don’t give us in the hospital, but the prices of the medicines are inexpensive. (20 cent.€). Vaccines are free.

Almost everything is free. But there are lot of people in hospitals. Many people go to hospitals because they are bored and they invent a disease.

Older entries »
Follow

Get every new post delivered to your Inbox.