IT Trends :: Thursday, June 22, 2006
New Technology
University of Minnesota Selects BlueArc Storage
This is a technical explanation of why the University of Minnesota’s Supercomputing Institute Basic Sciences Computing Laboratory (BSCL) chose Titan Storage System. The scientific research conducted at BSCL requires a large amount of storage, and according to BlueArc’s vice president of marketing and business development, “Titan directly addresses the needs of storage environments that require unrestricted capacity found at many research facilities as well as in the enterprise.”… (HPCwire)
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Case Study: Virtualization Delivers A Cost-Saving Lesson
In 2003, Maine’s Bowdoin College estimated their data center expansion to cost $2 million and consume twice as much physical space. By using virtual software and servers, the IT department cut the expense down to $200,000. Today, “70% of Bowdoin’s applications are running virtually.” This hugely successful and cost-effective plan gave the IT department enormous respect and credibility, and they are now a huge organizational influence on the school at large… (InformationWeek)
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Centre Plans Internet Kiosks for Education
Electronic testing kiosks may replace physical learning facilities and ease the problem of limited qualified instructors in India’s higher education systems. The country’s Planning Commission created a proposal for self-sufficient individual testing units for the Prime Minister’s consideration. The document encourages implementation of “electronically available content and testing mechanisms so that the pressure on infrastructure is reduced.”… (TCMnet)
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Santa Monica College Launches Pilot Podcasting Program
A federal grant will fund 25 new Apple iPods for students enrolled in Santa Monica College’s pre-freshman year six-week summer program. Students will download supplemental material to complement regular classroom lectures. In this particular pilot program, most of the students are from low income families and don’t have access to many educational resources. The school hopes that iPods, while hip and trendy, can become a real teaching tool… (TCMnet)
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