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Special Section of NY Times Circuits: Wi-Fi

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The Wi-Fi Boom Today's New York Times has several articles on Wi-Fi. One highlights how different types of users are taking advantage of Wi-Fi connectivity to transform their workplaces. Several examples involved people who now make Starbucks their branch office. Sounds familiar... :-) Of particular interest was the experience of a high school in the Seattle area. Every student has a laptop with Wi-Fi. Students utilize applications such as instant messaging to share files, and keep in contact. Cell phone use is down, parents message their children to arrange things such as afterschool pickups.

"There's a lot of instant messaging going on," said Diane Burgess, 39, the school's information technology manager. Ms. Burgess said classes were no longer disrupted by cellphones, parents message their children to arrange pickup times, and students regularly share files for collaborative projects. "Wi-Fi lets them do group work from anywhere on campus," Ms. Burgess said. "It's a really freeing experience."

Wired News Syndication...

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Wired News: Member Services Get Your Site WiredPowered by HTML GearTake a little bit of code from HTML Gear, put it anywhere on the page you want, and you too can have the freshest, most up-to-date headlines from Wired News.View Sample or Sign Up This is wired page for subscriptions of all types. They have the regular email type where I can sign up to have updated information sent to my mail box with links to articles and such. They also have a Wired toolbar add on for your browser.

In addition you can take a bit of JavaScript code and embed it on your page and have news headlines flow to your own homepage...

SpaceWeather.com...

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SpaceWeather.com -- News and information about meteor showers, solar flares, auroras, and near-Earth asteroids This is one of my favorite web sites. A good example of a place where someone can share their passion for a subject. Below is an example of what you will find there. ABOVE THE ECLIPSE: Space Station science officer Don Pettit looked out the window on Wednesday during the total solar eclipse of Dec. 4th, and this is what he saw:The dark spot near the Earth's limb is the Moon's shadow, which at the time of the photo (approximately 0756 UT) was racing across the Indian Ocean. This is NASA image # ISS006-E-5065.

SpaceWeather Phone...

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SpaceWeather PHONE: Interesting idea. More and more web sites are delivering their content not only on the web, but also via PDA and cellphone. BBC Learning has a bi-weekly newsletter that is can deliver to your cellphone... Did you sleep through the Northern Lights? Or miss the space station when it flew over your backyard? How about that meteor shower you heard about ... the day after?Sometimes there's no substitute for an old-fashioned phone call. Turn your phone into a SPACE WEATHER PHONE!

Apple Learning Interchange...

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Apple Learning Interchange Teachers, administrators, and Apple Distinguished Educators representing schools, districts, and national organizations created the exhibits showcased on the Apple Learning Interchange. The exhibits reflect authentic practices in teaching and leadership and highlight virtual field trips and educational events that engage educators in discussions around improvement in education. A nice example of a resource site utilizing multimedia. Video and audio clips along with information on standards met and assessment... Similar to Unit Plans...

Wall Street Journal Article: Wi-Fi Cuts in on Cell Carriers...

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"Wi-Fi" gives cell carriers static This article highlights how so called "edge" networks, Wi-Fi (802.11b wireless ethernet) access points at coffee shops, airports, hotels and other public locations, are taking a bite out of cell carriers plans to offer Internet access on cell phones... Quote from the article: At first glance, software executive John Baron would seem to be a cellphone company's dream. He subscribes to the slow Internet browsing option on his cellphone, painfully pecking away on the dial pad to type in Web addresses. Lately, though, he has found a better way: When on the road, he uses Wi-Fi, the technology that gives him wireless access to the Internet on his laptop computer, at blazing speeds. "It's brilliant," he says. "The phone stuff is pretty clunky."

Smart Mobs: Book by Howard Rheingold

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Smart Mobs - Book Summary Quote from the companion website: Smart mobs emerge when communication and computing technologies amplify human talents for cooperation. The impacts of smart mob technology already appear to be both beneficial and destructive, used by some of its earliest adopters to support democracy and by others to coordinate terrorist attacks. The technologies that are beginning to make smart mobs possible are mobile communication devices and pervasive computing - inexpensive microprocessors embedded in everyday objects and environments. Already, governments have fallen, youth subcultures have blossomed from Asia to Scandinavia, new industries have been born and older industries have launched furious counterattacks.

The companion web site is a very good example of adding life to existing content. The website compliments and extends the information shared in the book...

This American Life: NPR Program Web Site...

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From WBEZ in Chicago | This American Life Home page for the weekly radio program produced and hosted by Ira Glass... This weeks show profiles former Mayor Harold Washington. Previous broadcasts are available in Real Audio format... About this weeks program: It's the fifteenth anniversary of the death of the greatest politician you probably never heard of -- at least if you live outside Chicago. Someone funny and smart and inspiring and, rarest of all this fall, a Democrat who stayed idealistic and outspoken after he reached high office. The amazing story of Harold Washington, a parable of race and politics in America.

Am currently listening to the broadcast on the Internet from KCRW out of Santa Monica, California.