News 01-30-2001
Syllabus Spring2001 Conference to Address Infrastructure, IT Planning, and
Strategic Issues
The Syllabus Spring2001 conference, to be held April 5-8 in Cincinnati, Ohio,
will encompass five tracks. Track 3, Infrastructure, IT Planning, and Strategic
Issues, will explore the various implications of campus-wide technology decisions
and consider what it takes to upgrade a whole campus in its technology use,
what kinds of coordination we might employ, and what models are available for
the planning process.
This year's latest hot application or device may be forgotten next year, and
investing in the wrong direction now can make it difficult to adjust course
next year. The key challenge for technology planners is to identify available
options for campus-wide integration of technology and determine how best to
involve principal academic leadership in technology planning.
Sessions will cover a variety of issues, including:
- What students really thought about the laptop program at Seton Hall: some
surprises
- How to prepare for changes in technology
- How to inform people on campus about technology changes
- Effects on the registration process of distance learning
- Case studies in planning
- An approach to technology planning
The Syllabus spring2001 conference will be held at the Albert B. Sabin Convention
Center in Cincinnati, Ohio April 5-8. The five conference tracks to be presented
are Wireless Technologies; Interactive Communications, Conferencing, and Collaboration;
Infrastructure, IT Planning, and Strategic Issues; Web Technologies: Portals,
Resources, and Development; and Distance Learning: Issues and Programs, as well
as a featured track concerning Virtual Teaching, Learning, and Technology Centers.
For detailed session descriptions and online registration, visit www.syllabus.com.
Also, be sure to check out the conference brochure in the January issue ofSyllabus
magazine.
Adobe and Barnes & Noble.com to Offer PDF-Based eBooks
Adobe Systems Incorporated and Barnes & Noble.com recently announced the availability
of the free Adobe Acrobat eBook Reader 2.0 and a range of new graphics-rich
Portable Document Format (PDF)-based eBooks. The Acrobat eBook Reader 2.0, an
upgrade to the Glassbook Reader acquired by Adobe last year, offers consumers
visually accurate representations of graphics-intensive eBooks, such as cookbooks,
children's books, college textbooks and travel books. eBooks delivered in Acrobat
eBook Reader 2.0 and Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) can display print
electronic titles with colorful pictures, complex graphics and rich fonts, exactly
as intended by the publisher.
For more information, visit www.adobe.com.
Stroke Prevention and Robots
New treatments to prevent stroke and robots assisting surgeons with heart surgery
were featured last week at the International Symposium on Endovascular Therapy
(ISET) hosted by Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute.
Physicians at Miami Cardiac
& Vascular Institute are researching a new protection device that is used to
clear blocked carotid arteries, the vessels that carry blood from the heart
to the brain. According to the American Heart Association, 600,000 strokes are
reported each year and 20-30 percent are caused when particles of plaque break
off and travel to the brain. The Institute is one of 30 sites in the nation
participating in FDA-approved clinical trials researching a protection system
that filters fragments of plaque that may be - during a procedure, thus decreasing
the risk of stroke.
Also featured at the conference is a robotic arm that assists heart surgeons
in the operating room. The robot positions and maneuvers a camera and light
through voice commands from the surgeon. The robotic arm enables heart surgeons
to make a small incision between the ribs to perform the surgery. Since the
chest in not completely opened, there is less pain and a quicker recovery for
patients.
IMAGE Spacecraft Spots Earth's Tail
The first large-scale pictures of the hidden machinations of the Earth's magnetic
force field are now available, including confirmation of a suspected--but previously
invisible-- "tail" of electrified gas. The tail, which streams from Earth towards
the Sun, was spotted by NASA's Imager for Magnetopause to Aurora Global Exploration
(IMAGE) spacecraft. IMAGE is offering researchers a view of the transparent,
electrified gas trapped within Earth's magnetic field, providing the first visual,
global perspective on magnetic storms.
The Earth's magnetosphere traps electrified gas, called plasma. The new IMAGE
pictures show a tail-like structure in the Earth's own plasma cloud that forms
as some of the gas streams toward the Sun. The structure was predicted 30 years
ago, but previous spacecraft were unable to confirm its existence.
The tail structure is believed to be a return flow of plasma that occurs when
the solar wind buffets the magnetosphere and distorts its shape. For example,
a falling raindrop is at first roughly spherical. As it falls and gains speed,
air resistance causes the droplet to change shape as water is dragged from the
bottom (head) to the top (tail). Surface tension prevents most of the water
from simply dispersing from the tail, so it is forced instead to flow within
the raindrop and return to the head.
For more information, visit http://science.nasa.gov.
Virtual Pen Enables Writing Into Digital Devices
GOU Lite, an Israeli company specializing in optical technology, has developed
apen-like product that enables writing messages into digital devices--anywhere
and at any time. Instead of having to hit the buttons on a cellular phone, users
will be able to write text --SMS, e-mail or signature--on any surface available.
The Virtual Pen is based on patented optical technology: Called the Vpen, it
measures its motion relative to any writing surface and transmits the information
via Bluetooth link to cell phones, PDAs, set-top boxes, or PCs. The Vpen is
expected to hit the market within a year.
For more information, visit www.goulite.com.
Celera Genomics to Provide Database Subscription
Celera Genomics, an Applera Corporation business, announced recently a multi-year
agreement with the University of California (UC) system allowing UC investigators
access to all of Celera's database products. The UC subscribers will access
Celera's database information through its Celera Discovery System, an integrated,
web-based system that allows subscribers to use Celera generated databases,
additional non-proprietary genome and biological datasets, computational tools,
and super-computing power to advance the discovery programs of researchers.
Celera intends to enable therapeutic discoveries both through its own application
of its scientific capabilities and in partnership with pharmaceutical and biotechnology
companies. The Applied Biosystems Group develops and markets instrument-based
systems, reagents, software, and contract services to the life science industry
and research community. Customers use these tools to analyze nucleic acids (DNA
and RNA) and proteins in order to make scientific discoveries, develop new pharmaceuticals,
and conduct standardized testing.
For more information, visit www.applera.com.
SolidWorks Donates Software to Universities in China
SolidWorks Corporation recently announced that it has donated 123 licenses
of its 3D CAD software to the China Education Association of Mechanical Engineering
(CEAME) in Shanghai, China. The CEAME oversees the educational and technical
curriculum for 12 universities throughout Shanghai. In addition to the software
donation, SolidWorks is working with the CEAME to establish two CAD training
facilities at the Shanghai University of Science and Technology and the Shanghai
Vocational Training Directive Center. Students from universities in Shanghai
will have access to these CAD training centers.
For more information, visit www.solidworks.com.
Report to Congress: Financial-Aid Rules Hurt Distance Education
The U.S. Department of Education said in a report to Congress last week that
the inflexibility of financial-aid regulations hurts the advancement of distance-education
programs. Regulations determining which institutions can provide federal financial
aid are complex and inhibiting, the report says, and should be updated to reflect
the growth of alternative education.
One rule prevents institutions offering more than 50 percent of their courses
as distance education from providing federal student aid. Another rule requires
that students enroll in at least 12 hours of course work per week to qualify
for full-time status and maximum student aid.
For more information about the report, visit www.ed.gov/offices/OPE/PPI/DistEd/.
Technology Review Re-Launches Web Site
Technology Review, MIT's Magazine of Innovation, recently announced the re-launch
of its Web site, technologyreview.com, as its flagship print publication increases
its frequency to monthly.
The redesigned and expanded site will complement Technology Review's print
coverage of emerging technologies with Web-exclusive stories and columns, in
addition to featured vertical topic channels covering info-technology, biotechnology,
and nanotechnology. Features will include in-depth discussion forums, mailing
lists, polls, and reader surveys.