This 10-minute online test claims to accurately measure brain speed. WARNING: The test is based on a very narrow conceptualization of "brain speed" (and not compatible with Mac's). It does raise some interesting questions about assessment though. Can there be positive applications of tests like the "Brain Speed Test" in contemporay schools? What types of evaluation, if any, are necessary/useful for the "school of the future?" To answer these questions, I think we need to figure out what is important to evaluate...

Check out the first eighth of this article on ESPN. Malcolm Gladwell (and the interviewer) talks about what he thinks makes a "good" college professor/NBA coach. I like his point that we tend to "underestimate the role that teammates and peers can play" in learning. I also like the concept/format of the "Curious Guy" (An interviewer "e-mail questions to somebody successful... [and they] trad...

Check out the William and Ida Friday Institute for Educational Innovation at NC State's College of Education. I think it is important for the Edlab website to have a different feel from their site. I was surprised by some of the similarities I saw between thier website and our conceptual design (e.g., people, projects, etc). You will also see under "Products" (on the RESEARCH page) that they sell a teacher mentor training kit called SUCCEED. I would be interested to see how closely it resembles Prof. Kinzer's work. Also, check...

I came across this RFP. It would be great if Edlab could apply to for it. New Digital Inclusion Funding Opportunity Deadline: January 13, 2006 As part of its commitment to the academic research community, Microsoft Research ( http://www.research.microsoft.com/ ) has announced a $1.2 million Digital Inclusion funding opportunity designed to empower academic researchers world- wide to tackle technological challenges in a way that positively affects health, education, and socioeconomic conditions. Through a Request for Proposal process, Microsoft Research is encouraging academic resea...

Read this article in the Times about Yahoo's book digitization effort. What's interesting is that they are working with University libraries and corporations (e.g., HP, Adobe) to digitize books in the public domain (these books don't require copyright permission). Does anyone know how many books in the Gottesman Libraries are in the public domain (according to the article, nearly 15% of all libraries collections are out of copyright)? I...

Tom Friedman is on C-Span2 (at the National Book Festival, Washington DC) doing a book talk on "The World is Flat: A Brief History of the 21st Century." I haven't read the book yet but his talk raises some interesting questions about the era we are living in (e.g., industrial, post industrial, information, globalization built around nations/corporations, globalization built around individuals). I am not sure when it will be aired again, but it might be helpful if someone could record it the next time it came on.

Check out this article in Yahoo Finance about Digital Backpacks. There are obviously lots of implications for education as people are able to think of additional features to load into the Digital Backpack. Currently, the product includes: 1) Merriam-Webster's (TM) Pocket Dictionary, 2) a choice of one SparkNotes(TM) Study Guide, 3) classic literature, 4) a free 30-day trial of Microsoft® Student Graphing Calculator, 5) specialized Web content such as HOMEWORK HUB from Scholastic.com, and 6) Web pages and learning modules created by...

The attachment below contains all the quotes on education that were afixed to the fortune cookies. Thanks to Suzanne and Christine for taking out of their day to help prepare the materials/snacks.

I have posted a synthesis of our edLab Seminar planning meeting from yesterday (July 13). Feel free to comment on any of the "Questions Raised," "Resolved Issues," or "Action Items."