Monday, December 12, 2005

audio MP3 players get educational spin through podcasts - Charla Bear, San Mateo County Times. Starting this school year, some California college students are able to carry around course lectures and materials stored in their portable MP3 players. It's a move that's raising concerns about possible empty lecture halls and an impersonal education tha [Online Learning Update] 9:57:54 PM    comment

networks Using Interaction in Online Discussion Boards - Margie A. Martyn, Educause Quarterly. As offerings of online courses, programs, and degrees continue to increase,1 universities are grappling for ways to assess and assure quality. The quality and quantity of interaction between faculty and students and among students constitutes a significan [Online Learning Update] 9:56:13 PM    comment

health Pretreating rogue cancer cells with aspirin cripples their resistance to targeted therapy. For years, we have heard about the health benefits of taking low doses of aspirin – preventing everything from Alzheimer's disease to heart attacks and stroke. The news about aspirin just keeps getting better. In a study published in the Dec. 9 issue of the Journal of Biological Chemistry, University of Pittsburgh researchers report that aspirin, combined with a promising new cancer therapy known as tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL), can induce cancer cells previously resistant to TRAIL therapy to self-destruct. The investigators say that if these findings hold up in larger studies, aspirin could become a routine therapy for helping to prevent the recurrence of many aggressive cancers, such as prostate and colon cancers. [Science Blog -] 10:29:40 AM    comment

stress Cell phones can increase your distress level. The ongoing use of this communications technology, as compared to computer-based use such as email, is linked to increased psychological distress and reduced family satisfaction. For both men and women, cell phones allow job worries to spill over into home life. But only women also experience the opposite effect--the spillover of home concerns into their work life. [Science Blog -] 10:27:44 AM    comment

authentication Fingerprint Scanners Fooled By Play-Doh. [Slashdot] 7:48:44 AM    comment

PDA platform Handhelds Go to School. School districts integrate PDAs, laptops and remote-control clickers into curriculums as they try to engage students used to instant messaging and interactive games. Some wonder if these 'digital natives' will grasp the basics. [Wired News] 7:46:21 AM    comment

eContent - live syndication Live From New York!. A DIY comedy troupe goes from online to big-time with nothing but a used Mac, free bandwidth and some gut-busting humor. By Xeni Jardin from Wired magazine. [Wired News] 7:44:53 AM    comment

games Games Tackle Disaster Training. If bird flu becomes a pandemic, we're going to need more health-care workers fast. Luckily, we can beef up the ranks quickly -- training volunteers with video games. By Abby Christopher. [Wired News] 7:42:16 AM    comment

open source The Firefox Hacks You Must Have. With a new version of the open-source browser out, we offer our guide to the nifty, fun Firefox extensions that will change your life. By Quinn Norton. [Wired News] 7:40:46 AM    comment

stress Mental distress due to abortion lasts for years. Women who have had an abortion still experience mental distress related to the abortion years after it happened. A study published today in the open access journal BMC Medicine reveals that five years on, women who have had an abortion suffer higher levels of mental distress than other women and than women who have had a miscarriage. [Science Blog -] 7:38:32 AM    comment