Links for 2010-07-17

  • “The assumption that today’s student are computer-literate because they are “digital natives” is a pernicious one, Zvacek said. “Our students are task-specific tech savvy: they know how to do many things,” she said. “What we need is for them to be tech-skeptical.”

    Zvacek was careful to make clear that by tech-skeptical, she did not mean tech-negative. The skepticism she advocates is not a knee-jerk aversion to new technology tools, but rather the critical capacity to glean the implications, and limitations, of technologies as they emerge and become woven into the students’ lives. In a campus environment, that means knowing why not to trust Google to turn up the best sources for a research paper in its top returns, or appreciating the implications of surrendering personal data — including the propensities of one’s bladder — to third parties on the Web. “

  • “We’re looking for someone to take on a once-in-a-lifetime assignment: spend a Month at the Museum, to live and breathe science 24/7 for 30 days. From October 20 to November 18, 2010, this person’s mission will be to experience all the fun and education that fits in this historic 14-acre building, living here full-time and reporting your findings to the outside world.

    Sure, it’s a commitment. But if you are chosen and can successfully complete the Month at the Museum, you’ll walk away with a prize of $10,000, a package of tech gadgets, an honorary lifetime membership to MSI, and new knowledge and experiences that may just transform you.”

  • “- Look at all of us in here. I wonder what the hourly wage of everyone in this room adds up to.

    – Your tax dollars at work. Look, you can refresh the page!

    – He’s looking at me again! Look like you care, look like you care…

    – I wonder if the tech guys think we’re losers, running the demo on an xp machine.

    – Yes, I know how to type in a box. You can stop demonstrating now.

    – Anyone who misbehaves spends the night in the box.

    – Whatever happened to Broderick Crawford, anyway?”