The Becker Blog

In Today’s MIT Tech Review: A Better, Cheaper Multitouch Interface

A new pressure-sensitive pad could improve large and small touch screens.

I’ve thought for some time that the SMART Technologies’ White Board which is marketed so vigorously to Alberta schools relies on physical technology that has become obsolete. Note the Wii mote stuff developed by Johnny Chung Lee. That technology’s been known for a few years now.

As if that’s not enough, Ken Perlin and his crew have come up with this. SMART Tech isn’t even mentioned in the article.

C’mon SMART, any chance you can try and live up to your name?

Compare: (these are all taken from the Environment Canada Weather Site)

The day before there had been a severe winter storm warning. Nothing happened. Read the rest of this entry »

Intellagirl posted a note about this article today and I was curious, so I read it too…
She suggested that the article had entirely missed the point, and she is absolutely right!

The Chronicle of Higher Education, March 16, 2009

Students Stop Surfing After Being Shown How In-Class Laptop Use Lowers Test Scores

The article seems to be reporting on a victory in the reduction of laptop use in the classroom. Yup, you heard right, they are actually HAPPY that their students are no longer using modern technology in the classroom. The belief seems to be that using the laptop causes the students to do less well on tests.

Now, to be fair, they do admit that those students who had lower scores were in fact using their computers to check out their FB pages, ’surf’ (apparently we *still* have a problem with surfers), watch YouTube, etc.

Churchill’s Commentary on Man:
Man will occasionally stumble over the truth, but most of the time he will pick himself up and continue on.

Read the rest of this entry »

We are getting a new puppy this week.

Arrow & the Turkeys

In the spring of 1997 we got our first Livestock Guardian Dog (LGD). A  Great Pyrenees. Scanner. She changed my life. My birds were safe from local predators – all day long AND all night. You see, LGDs work 24/7. They like it. It’s what they do.

They protect the critters in their territory in whatever way is necessary. Now, before you go thinking that this is some sort of macho, kill the nasty coyotes deal, understand that LGDs are among the most natural canines there are. They are VERY intelligent, but they are also VERY independent. They have been selected and bred, for centuries (at least), to live with and protect the flocks and possessions of the human shepherds who depend on them. This means a number of things:

Read the rest of this entry »