As developers for tablets and smartphones we like to keep abreast of the latest mobile technology developments . This is a daily digest of mobile development and related technology news gathered from the BBC, the New York Times, New Scientist and the Globe and Mail to name a few. We scour the web for articles concerning, iPhone, iPad and android development, iOS and android operating systems as well as general articles on advances in mobile technology. We hope you find this useful and that it helps to keep you up to date with the latest technology developments.
Why Smartphone Use Helps Develop 21st Century Skills in Higher Education
As I lay by the pool, contemplating how to structure this article on the uses of technology in education, I am rudely awoken from my reverie by a group of yammering high school students hunched over their iPhones.
Having lost my train of thought, I decide instead to go investigate which teen heartthrob is on their mind, and discretely inch my sun recliner closer. I am, however, shocked to find that the topic of their interest is ozone depletion, not One Direction.
In fact, the group have efficiently split up their project tasks, with two of them reading out research material off an app, while the third expertly relays said information to group members elsewhere via WhatsApp and coordinates their next steps.
Clearly the process of doing high school homework has changed drastically in the mere five years since I graduated. Education today is a rapidly evolving field in which students, institutions, administrators and research alike are critically challenging what it means to learn, how to assess their growth in learning and thus what their role is in the process.
In an era where we are continuously exposed to novel technologies, we are being pushed to incorporate these advanced tools into our learning processes, which as a whole is taking education in an exciting new direction. This begs the question — what exactly are these tools bringing to our learning outcomes? What are the 21st century skills needed in this new learning environment, and how can mobile technology help us get there?
21st Century Skills 101
In the relevant literature, across various sources, there seems to be a consensus on what exactly these skills entail. Learning and innovation play a huge part. Today’s students are expected to be critical thinkers who collaborate and effectively communicate in order to solve problems through creativity and innovation. Digital literacy is a must in all areas from Microsoft Office usage to social media. Last, but not least, career and life skills constitute an increasingly important part. On top of the obvious development of leadership skills and a sense of responsibility, one must also be willing to take initiative, be productive, but also accountable to themselves.
Knowing what these skills are in itself is not enough. In order to imbue these skills in students today, they must be implemented into educational curricula. In order for this to happen, we must have a better understanding of what kind of learning environments best support these 21st century skills.
Lesson 2: Learning Environments
One of the most effective approaches is through a student-centered learning environment. This is essentially the complete opposite of the traditional lecture-style approach where the main source of information comes from being talked at by teachers, while the students are expected to absorb all the knowledge, like sponges.
The modern approach sees the students at the center, as the builders of their own knowledge, while the teachers act as guides and help facilitate said knowledge building. Rather than being spoon-fed the answers, this approach requires students to be active, aware and engaged.
Add In Some Mobile…
Thus is follows that mobile technology (referring to both mobile apps and the internet) is an ideal tool to help support individualized, hands-on student-centered learning environments. The internet is able to provide access to vast and immediate information, while educational mobile apps provide learning tools and organizational platforms which enable students to be the agents of their own learning.
One of the greatest advantages to mobile technology is that it offers anytime, anywhere access to exactly what is needed, when it is needed. This can be particularly beneficial in tertiary education, where large, lecture hall type courses cater to the needs of the class as a whole, but do not readily support individualized learning for those students who learn at different paces, or through different means.
… And What Do You Get?
Used correctly, mobile can be used to support a plethora of 21st century skills. And no, stalking your exes and crushes on Facebook does not count. Rather, students who use their phones to access relevant information to their learning tasks practice initiative and self-direction. Taken a step further, their ability to assess whether or not the information constitutes a credible source applicable to their learning goal shows the practice of information literacy skills.
There also exist educational mobile apps that are particularly conducive to student-centered learning, which are aimed at helping students self-regulate their own learning. Basically, this means that students are able to consciously take strategic action to plan, monitor and evaluate their learning tasks.
Apps that enable time management (e.g. online calendars), self-evaluation (e.g. calorie tracking) and communication (e.g. a campus wall feed) are especially beneficial in supporting goal setting, self-monitoring and help seeking. Self-regulation in itself is a valuable tool with lifetime value that aids with problem solving, taking initiative and planning, adapting to situations and thinking critically.
Simply put self-regulation is a skill that takes everyday students and turns them into 21st century ninjas.
Where To Go From Here?
Sitting at the Starbucks opposite the NYU campus finishing up this article, I decide to end how I began, by discretely (I hope) observing how the students around me are using mobile to support their education. Again, students hunched over their phones surround me. While I’m sure that many are on Facebook, there are also a significant number reading articles and taking notes from their phones.
As a student-centered learning platform, mobile helps schools bridge the gap between how students live and learn. Mobile allows for a level playing ground where students can access the same information as their peers, with the added benefit of providing an authentic, real-world learning environment, based around their learning needs.
The future of mobile use in education promises apps specifically designed to support 21st century skills like self-regulation, which set a foundation for growth and development throughout a lifetime.
Have A Question? Head To The Microsoft Community Pages
There are a lot of places that Windows Phone and Windows users can get help but one of the best is the free Microsoft Community site. If you haven’t visited them before or forgot about them, now is a good time to go and check them out. You will find everything from problem solving tips to information and insights on how to do something better in the Windows world. Once more, there are a huge number of experts that are in the Microsoft Community sites. Those experts can be MVPs nominated by the community and Microsoft, and fellow users. For
The post Have A Question? Head To The Microsoft Community Pages appeared first on Clinton Fitch.
William Shatner Tweets His Regrets That He Can't Attend Leonard Nimoy's Funeral
William Shatner took to Twitter on Saturday to express his regret over having to miss Leonard Nimoy’s funeral.
Though the two “Star Trek” actors were very close friends, Shatner explained in a series of tweets that he won’t be able to attend Nimoy’s funeral on Sunday, due to a previous commitment to appear at the Red Cross Ball in Florida Saturday night. Though he will not be present at the funeral, Shatner said he plans to honor Nimoy’s life from afar.
I am currently in FL as I agreed to appear at the Red Cross Ball tonight. Leonard’s funeral is tomorrow. I can’t make it back in time.
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) February 28, 2015
I feel really awful. Here I am doing charity work and one of my dearest friends is being buried.
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) February 28, 2015
So maybe tomorrow we come together here and celebrate his life.
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) February 28, 2015
So let’s spend some time tomorrow celebrating Leonard’s life and remembering the man.
— William Shatner (@WilliamShatner) February 28, 2015
Shatner and Nimoy starred as Captain Kirk and Mr. Spock, respectively, on the “Star Trek” television series and in multiple feature films. Nimoy died Friday at his home in Los Angeles, at the age of 83. Following the announcement of Nimoy’s death, Shatner released a statement expressing love for his longtime friend.
“I loved him like a brother,” he said. “We will all miss his humor, his talent, and his capacity to love.”
Tinder Is Building Is Own Ad Product
Dating app Tinder is ready to make some money.
Everyone Thinks #TheDress Broke the Internet
They also thought Kim’s booty broke the Internet. In the noisy, crowded social media world, anything that can captivate an audience’s attention is golden. Of course, by now, everyone knows what #TheDress is…someone today called me and simply said, “Ok, what color do you think it is?”
THAT’s a viral meme. No explanation, no asking ‘did you see it’ — just the assumption that everyone knows. That’s part of what’s so compelling… if you don’t know, you hurry up and find out, so you can be part of it.
Anything that’s in the category of ‘the eye of the beholder’ is intriguing. Beauty, truth, wisdom, color — all subjective to each individual. We’re experiencing an individual phenomenon, collectively, in real-time. No one’s right. Everyone’s right, even if they disagree. WOW, that’s unusual.
Because the cool thing about it is that #TheDress is about science. Wired had a great piece explaining what’s going on:
What’s happening here is your visual system is looking at this thing, and you’re trying to discount the chromatic bias of the daylight axis,” says Bevil Conway, a neuroscientist who studies color and vision at Wellesley College. “So people either discount the blue side, in which case they end up seeing white and gold, or discount the gold side, in which case they end up with blue and black. (Conway sees blue and orange, somehow.)
Every brand out there would love to go viral on the order of #TheDress #KimsButt or #GrumpyCat . Some brands are even trying to cash in on the viral success by ‘hijacking’ the hashtag or the popularity.
It didn’t break the Internet this time, either. Oh, and yeah, #TheDress is white and gold.
Beverly Macy is a thought leader, educator, author and speaker on power of digital media. She teaches at UCLA Anderson School of Management and is the author of The Power of Real-TIme Social Media Marketing.
The Internet Ate My Newspaper
A couple of weeks ago, I went to Newton South High School to see Herbie Ziskend give a speech to a group of 50+ year olds about the current state of news. His compelling speech broke the fact to the group that physical newspapers as they have existed for hundreds of years, are now almost entirely migrated to digital. He cited websites like HuffPost and Vice as important sources of news for younger generations – with Facebook and Twitter as primary distribution platforms for this news. In other words, he said that the Huffington Post and Twitter were part of establishment media.
After seeing his intriguing talk, I concluded that in fact, there is a group of websites that my generation would actually call our establishment media over websites such as The Huffington Post and Facebook/Twitter. One of the main sites that came to my mind was BuzzFeed, a site that aims to create and share viral content on the internet. BuzzFeed appeals to my generation as a source of both entertainment and news. As I’m writing this blog post, the front page depicts an article on the Ukraine conflict side-by-side with a post about 12 Valentine’s Day cards for people you hate. Countless people in my class use BuzzFeed as a way to pass some time and even read some well-crafted news pieces at the same time. A classmate of mine uses BuzzFeed as her daily source of media: “[BuzzFeed] rivals coffee in importance to me.” She believes that the articles have more personality behind their writing than an article from a more formal source. It’s inconvenient for her to go check Facebook or Twitter for the small tidbits of information that she needs to keep in touch with the world when BuzzFeed contains all of her entertainment and news in one app or website.
YouTube is another example of what I would consider my generation’s new establishment media. While YouTube actually started in the same year as The Huffington Post, in the past 3 or so years, it has evolved considerably. YouTube no longer solely harbors cat videos, but instead has transformed into a very respectable way for one to make a living by producing legitimate content. The Phillip DeFranco Show is a great example of a media company to sprout out of YouTube. Phillip DeFranco’s channel currently has about 3.5 million subscribers on the website and creates around 1 news video a day. The host, DeFranco, reports on the day’s stories with an energetic yet informative style. His channel acts as the main source of news for your’s truly and functions as the pause in my watching of gaming videos to transition to something somewhat intellectual. All in all, YouTube appeals to my generation in the same way as BuzzFeed, it is a place to get a quick and entertaining look at the news before moving on to the rest of the content on the website.
Reddit, though, is a different machine entirely. Reddit functions as a close-to-ad-free website that simply facilitates a huge, loyal community. The community creates “sub-reddits,” which function as categories for different types of media. Sub-reddits are as general as “News” and “Tech” and can be as obscure as “Shower Thoughts” and “Animals Being Bros“. A sub-reddit’s community will up-vote good content to the top of the page and will filter out bad content with down-votes. This model works incredibly well considering how anyone can post to a sub-reddit. After using it for about a week, the “news” sub-reddit does a great job of giving me the daily headlines and links to credible sources on the topic. Reddit constantly creates high quality media from a website with minimal ads and no hired content creators.
Overall, there is still a requirement for traditional journalism and original reporting because all three of these websites report the news but don’t do a lot of the original fact finding and investigation like traditional media sources do. Nevertheless, the variety and personality driving new media sources have pulled my generation away from the traditional article format. “For the loser now/ Will be later to win / For the times they, they are a-changin’” (Bob Dylan).
Airbnb Gained A Very Powerful Friend In Warren Buffett
Warren Buffett is a fan of Airbnb.
The billionaire business magnate, who serves as chairman and chief executive of Berkshire Hathaway, endorsed the room-sharing startup in a Saturday morning letter to shareholders.
The so-called Oracle of Omaha suggested the 7-year-old service, which allows users to rent lodging to each other for short periods of time, as an alternative to hotel rooms for attendees of his annual conference in Nebraska’s largest city.
Expecting record attendance, Buffett said he enlisted Airbnb to help obtain extra listings in Omaha around the time of the May conference.
“Airbnb’s services may be especially helpful to shareholders who expect to spend only a single night in Omaha and are aware that last year a few hotels required guests to pay for a minimum of three nights,” he wrote. “That gets expensive. Those people on a tight budget should check the Airbnb website.”
Airbnb said it was thankful for the support.
“Once again, we are thrilled to gain the support of Warren Buffett as we help the residents of Omaha open their homes to travelers for the annual shareholder’s meeting,” Maria Parra Rodriguez, an Airbnb spokeswoman, told The Huffington Post. “Not only does hosting provide guests with a unique, local experience, it also generates supplemental income for hosts that can help in many ways.”
The company has faced challenges in recent months. In October, New York’s attorney general released a report claiming that three-quarters of Airbnb’s listings in New York City were illegal.
Still, Airbnb has ponied onward. The company is raising an enormous round of funding that would value it at $20 billion, according to a report published on Friday by TechCrunch.
This story has been updated with a comment from Airbnb.
New Jersey man hospitalized by exploded iPhone 5c battery
An iPhone has reportedly exploded in a Long Island, New York man’s pocket, sending him to the burn ward for 10 days. Erik Johnson was given a swath of third-degree burns on his left thigh after he bent over to get keys, when he heard a pop and, according to Johnson’s claims, the battery burst and caught on fire, burning the man severely. An iPhone 5c belonging to a MacNN editor isn’t seeing any bulging or any signs of problem, nor have we heard any previous claims for this model, but Johnson has photographic proof of the explosion.
Hands On: Hero Keyboard (iOS)
Hero Keyboard by Corey Stone is a keyboard app that arranges the letters based on the frequency of use in the English language, to make it easier for the user to type with both of their thumbs. The keyboard consists of three concentric rings surrounding a circular “space” button. More frequently-used letters displayed larger and more centrally than less popular letters. As a result of this configuration, the letters at the top of the first ring spell out “HERO,” hence the name of the keyboard.
The Eiffel Tower Just Became A Little More Green. Here Are 8 Other Landmarks That Did It First
Two wind turbines have been successfully installed on the Eiffel Tower to offset some of the structure’s energy use, renewable energy company UGE and the public service authority in charge of the iconic landmark announced this week.
The two turbines, which were placed 400 feet above ground level, are expected to produce 10,000 kWh annually. This will offset the power used by commercial activities on the tower’s first floor, according to UGE. The turbines are of the vertical axis variety, as opposed to the larger and more common horizontal axis turbines that rotate like traditional windmills, and they are painted to match the tower.
The project is part of a larger efficiency upgrade that also includes LED lighting and rooftop solar panels on a visitor pavilion.
The Eiffel Tower might be lighting a greener path in Paris, but there are other landmarks in cities around the world that have undergone updates to become more environmentally friendly. Here are eight of them:
The White House
President Jimmy Carter famously had solar panels added to the White House roof in 1979. The panels, which were intended to heat water, were removed after Ronald Reagan took office. With little fanfare, the George W. Bush administration installed the White House’s first active solar electric system in 2002. President Barack Obama installed another set of panels in 2014.
Vatican City
Solar Panels were installed on the roof of the 6,300-seat Paul VI Audience Hall in the Vatican in 2008. During his papacy, Benedict XVI made calls for greater environmental protection, and his successor, Pope Francis, has acknowledged manmade climate change and lamented a “culture of waste.”
London’s Tower Bridge
In 2012, London upgraded the lights on its iconic Tower Bridge to more energy-efficient LEDs. “The spectacular view of Tower Bridge from my office in City Hall is one of my favorites in London,” London Mayor Boris Johnson said in a 2011 statement announcing the project. “It’s fantastic to now be able to crack on with this work to make it even better, brighter and greener and at no cost to the taxpayer.”
The Empire State Building
New York City’s Empire State Building underwent a significant renovation in 2009 that included retrofitting the skyscraper to be more energy efficient. It received LEED Gold certification in 2011, making it the tallest LEED-certified building in the United States. The building’s retrofit reduced energy consumption by an estimated 38 percent, and put it in the top 25 percent of the most energy-efficient U.S. office buildings.
Berlin’s Reichstag Building
Built in the late nineteenth century, the home of Germany’s parliament was damaged in a 1933 fire and by allied bombing during World War II. It fell into disuse after the war, but a rebuilding was completed in 1999 and it once again hosts the legislature of a unified Germany.
Along with a glass dome that lets in natural light, the building has a biofuel-powered combined heat and power system that produces about 80 percent of the building’s electricity and 90 percent of its heat. The building also has photovoltaic solar panels on the roof and low-flow water fixtures.
George Washington Bridge
In 2009, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey finished upgrading the George Washington Bridge’s light “necklace” to energy efficient LEDs. The Port Authority estimated that the upgrade would cut 260,000 pounds of carbon dioxide emissions annually.
Rio de Janeiro’s Christ The Redeemer Statue
LED lights have illuminated Rio’s famous mountaintop statue of Christ since 2011.
Sydney Opera House
The Sydney Opera House has implemented several steps to improve the facility’s sustainability, including more efficient air conditioners and lighting, along with a cooling system that uses seawater and saves millions of gallons of drinking water annually.
Hands On: RemindMeAt (iOS)
Deep in the recesses of Southern California is a path, in a park, that splits to the left and the right. The left path leads to a duck pond, and the right does not. Once upon a time there was a child, who would always get her family lost in the park, because every time she would forget they had to go left to get to the duck pond. Every. Single. Time. She would think, “this time, I’ll get it right. This time we go right!” And every time, she was wrong. If only smartphones existed back then, she could have used RemindMeAt to set up a note that would appear when she arrived at the park, reminding
Best Tweets: What Women Said On Twitter This Week
The ladies of Twitter talked a lot about orgasms this week. Twitter user Boobston Girl posed an interesting question: “But can I get a Best Actress award for faking orgasms?” (Honestly, we’re not sure, but you definitely should be able to.)
Twitter user Slightly Funny Jew added to the conversation, tweeting, “Dear Women, ‘If you fake it, you will make it’ doesn’t apply to orgasms.” True, but can we still get an award for it?
For more great tweets from women, scroll through the list below. Then visit our Funniest Tweets From Women page for our past collections.
The Girl With the “I Stopped Reading Thinkpieces” Tattoo
— Michelle Dean (@michelledean) February 23, 2015
Sometimes I say stupid shit like, “I do.”
— bubble girl (@JessObsess) February 22, 2015
I will take your secret to the grave. Unless I’m drunk and revealing it will make me popular.
— Noodles (@Dawn_M_) February 22, 2015
But can I get a Best Actress award for faking orgasms?
— Boobston Girl (@bgirl314) February 23, 2015
Dear Women,
“If you fake it, you will make it” doesn’t apply to orgasms.
— Slightly funny Jew (@Dani_Feld) February 24, 2015
I don’t need to walk a mile in someone else’s shoes to judge them, I can do that comfortably from the couch at home.
— Felix Felicis (@LuckoftheDraw86) February 24, 2015
“I’m raging against the machine,” I giggle to myself, nervously placing 13 items on the 12 Items Or Less counter. “Being bad feels so good.”
— Sasshole (@RidiculousSheri) February 27, 2015
Sleeping Beauty is so unrealistic, no woman wants to be woken up from a nap
— PaperWash© (@PaperWash) February 25, 2015
Guy in 50 Shades: I’m a psycho are u in or are u out
Most Guys: I’m gonna waste your time til u discover I’m bad
GIMME THAT 50 SHADES GUY
— AmberTozer (@AmberTozer) February 24, 2015
If you say “alright” in the mirror 3 times Matthew McConaughey will appear and hand you a joint.
— OhNoSheTwitnt (@OhNoSheTwitnt) February 24, 2015
sure the Victoria’s Secret models are pretty, but I bet not one of them ever finds a Cheeto in her bra
— Mary Charlene (@IamEnidColeslaw) February 28, 2015
People will stop going to hell when they get rid of hand baskets. Next question.
— Abbi Crutchfield (@curlycomedy) February 27, 2015
Most adult friendships are just figuring out whose turn it is to cancel plans.
— Erica (@SCbchbum) February 23, 2015
I walked under a ladder today because it felt like a reckless thing to do without any real risk.
— Allison Raskin (@Allison620) February 25, 2015
It’s going down. I’m Yellen, Janet.
— Caro (@socarolinesays) February 24, 2015
My problem isn’t that I’m eating too much at night, it’s that I’m not jogging in the shower
— audrey farnsworth (@audipenny) February 24, 2015
*goes outside*
*sees a couple wearing matching outfits*
*turns around and goes back inside*
— Victoria Sofia (@Ideal_Victoria) February 24, 2015
Ah, Winter, when you can split your lip just by smiling
— Mara Wilson (@MaraWritesStuff) February 25, 2015
I’d Rather Be Watching Netflix” — a T-shirt I’m making, coming to an etsy store near you
— Taylor Trudon (@taylortrudon) February 24, 2015
My husband and I are very aligned on our thoughts about raising kids, mostly “Holy hell, why did we decide to do this?”
— Hot Breakfast (@amydillon) February 26, 2015
You know you’re old when you start carrying around emergency tweezers, not for splinters, but for chin hairs.
— OneFunnyMummy (@OneFunnyMummy) February 25, 2015
When someone says you’re an emotional black hole, they’re basically comparing you to a star, right?
— Alley Cat (@deardilettante) February 26, 2015
[NASA interview]
So why would you like to be an astronaut?
[imagines eating all the food and stepping on scale on moon]
“Space and stuff”
— Terry F (@daemonic3) February 25, 2015
Me: Things will get better
Life: No
— moody monday (@mdob11) February 26, 2015
so i missed the Oscars but i did hit Whole Foods and see several rows of award-winning organic mayonnaise so i think i got the gist
— Alexis Wilkinson (@OhGodItsAlexis) February 23, 2015
Every time I get my period I’m relieved – I don’t really hate all the people!
— Allison Hart (@motherhoodwtf) February 23, 2015
BBC launches Richard III on WhatsApp
BBC launches a WhatsApp service so you can get Richard III updates direct to your phone.
Thanks for reading our digest. Opinions in the articles above are those of the authors and not necessarily those of Digital Workshed ltd.