A Capella Science - Molecular Shape of You

A student e-mailed me a link to this awesome video last week. I can't contain my excitement about it. So many key concepts in Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, and Biochemistry covered so cleverly and is such a short time. Catchy!!!

Dr. Jennifer Doudna in conversation with Dr. Siddhartha Mukherjee

Adjunct Life

Free Community College in the US?

On Thursday January 8th President Obama announced a proposal to make the first two years of community college free for anyone who is willing to work for it. This plan is marvelous for so many reasons. It will serve to further diversify the workforce, make for a more informed electorate, and drive the economy. Here's hoping for the follow-through.

Jason Carter For Governor!

Pale Blue Dot

Earth from six billion miles out.  Image Credit - NASA - from Voyager 1 ~1990.

A long time ago in a grad school far far away I watched a you tube video that changed my life. The you tuber who posted the video went by the name Silverseer and the video consisted of Carl Sagan's Pale Blue Dot monologue overlaid by Enya's "Boadicea." The video was just a series of Ken Burns moves with the original pale blue dot photograph. I loved that video so much, I must have watched it at least a hundred times. Eventually it was taken down; probably due to a copyright claim by Enya's record label. But today, after years being deprived of my Voice-of-the-Sagan induced spine tingles something similar has been produced! I give you a new window onto the world through the voice of Sagan, the sounds of Hans Zimmer, and the vision of Adam Winnik.

Pale Blue Dot - Animation from Ehdubya on Vimeo.

Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs)

Why you were addicted to Pandora and now Spotify

University of the People: An Online School for the Masses

Guest Post by Rachel Higgins

The University of the People is an online institution that claims to be “the world's first, tuition free, nonprofit, online university.” Since it's inception, the school has managed to educate thousands of students who would have otherwise never had an opportunity for higher education while turning its idealistic founder Shai Reshef into a star in non-profit and education circles. Yet, despite its early successes, many still question the long term feasibility of such a revolutionary school. In order to take on the educational needs of poverty-stricken potential students around the globe while maintaining solvency, the institution will likely need to restructure and make some difficult choices.

The University of the People aims to offer higher education to poor students around the globe who lack the means to attend university of any sort. After making millions of dollars from several for-profit, online education ventures in the US, Europe and the Middle East, Shai Reshef founded the university in 2009, and today, continues to run it with only two people. It has no campus, no visitors center, and no signage whatsoever. It is simply exists in a downtown high rise in Pasadena, CA. Despite his previous global education ventures, Reshef chose to base The University of the People in the US “because students from all over the world want an American degree. They want to study, and want to find a job, and they want their degree to be recognized.”

Today, the school has enrolled 1,300 students from 129 countries, mainly from Nigeria, Indonesia, Haiti and the US. Upon registration, students must verify that they are at least 18 years old and pay a one-time application fee ranging from $10 to $50, which varies according to the comparative wealth of the student's home nation. Otherwise, there are no tuition or book costs. So far, the school offers two- and four-year degrees in business administration and computer science, but Reshef has been meeting with academics at many top universities, developing plans to expand the course offerings Instructional materials are provided for free online by an open-source consortium, with Yale and Hewlett Packard expected to partner with the university soon as well. “Of course, you see 'free' and right away you're suspicious,” says Villanueva Sanchez, University of the People student from northern Peru. Sanchez contends that after reading the school’s mission statement, though, she was convinced the school is for people like her who lack the money or opportunity to attend college.

“Listen, everyone should be educated,” says Reshef. “I care about the people who don't have the right to an education right now, and they should have the right.” Regardless of the school’s ideals and the lofty goals of its founder, many wonder how a school that essentially requires no tuition from students could possibly remain solvent. “I think the concept of the University of the People is a nice idea,” says Philip Altbach, head of the Center for International Higher Education at Boston College, but adds, “I think it's a bit half-baked at this point.”

“I have a bunch of concerns that we're all still trying to figure out,” says Dalton Conley, former dean of social sciences at New York University, who is currently on loan to help the school expand course offerings. Indeed, the school remains unaccredited, a significant limitation on the future prospects of its graduates, and while the courses are still ostensibly free, new expenses are already being incorporated. In September, for instance, new students will be required to pay a $100 fee for every final exam. Meanwhile, while more than 30,000 people have applied to the school, so far, only about 1,000 have met the school's admission criteria: attainment of a high school diploma, and English proficiency.

Yet, Reshef insists the university will yet survive, with its mission intact. “We're building a model,” says Reshef, “[all of higher education] can do it for sure. So we're showing that it is possible.” Aiding Reshef's cause is a partnership with New York University announced last year, which may allow University of the People students to enroll at NYU's Abu Dhabi campus and receive financial aid. The ambitious and philanthropic nature of the project have also proved a major asset, one which Reshef may well utilize to ensure the university remains solvent in the coming years, perhaps drawing on the benevolent supporters to handle administrative duties or fundraising if the organization ever outgrows its humble office space. While the school already utilizes almost 3,000 volunteering professors, as well as volunteer librarians, in 2011 Reshef said “We have 2,000 volunteers, we don't know what to do with them.”

However, once students graduate, goodwill will no longer be enough to ensure their education will be acknowledged in a competitive global marketplace. If the school is to thrive in the long term, accreditation is key. Reshef asserts “when a student from anywhere in the world is taking an exam, we send the exam to a reputable person from his community. This could be a clergy member or a public official. It's a tedious process, but we want to verify that the person taking the exam is the same student.” Despite these measures, Reshef maintains the school continues to work on accreditation.

For many students around the world, it is apparent that The University of the People remains the best hope for a healthy and prosperous future. Dalton Conley claims that Reshef once stated “We're not the future of higher education, we're the last resort.” While this mindset is an noble place for any organization to start, the most trying work may yet be ahead if Reshef and his cohorts are to turn the concept of free (or almost free) higher education into a sustainable reality. 

While Reshef may be offering hope to a thousand individuals in poverty throughout the globe with focused efforts toward bringing his school into the mainstream, The University of the People could yet transform education for those in poverty well into the foreseeable future.

Neil deGrasse Tyson - Where are the tomorrow articles?

Paul Otlet predicts internet and iPad in 1934!

In this bit of historical futurism we can all be amazed at the eerie accuracy with which Paul Otlet predicted how people would access information in the year 2012.

What is the World Science Festival?

MISSION OF THE WORLD SCIENCE FESTIVAL 

To cultivate and sustain a general public informed by the content of science, inspired by its wonder, convinced of its value, and prepared to engage with its implications for the future. The World Science Festival takes science out of the laboratory and into the streets, theaters, museums, and public halls of New York City, making the esoteric understandable and the familiar fascinating. 

So said my volunteer handbook last year anyway. I am excited to be going back this week for a third consecutive year of blogging the World Science Festival. Please have a look at the event list and help me decide where to focus my attention while on Manhattan. My love affair with this smörgåsbord of science continues to mature. From my first year of volunteering where I darted back and forth over the island, via bus, subway, or taxi carrying VIP packages to festival speakers, to last year's adventure blogging about the nature of uncertainty, the Moth Story-telling series at the Player's Club, and the troubled history of portrait two chemists. The ubiquity of the maestro overseeing it all - Brian Greene - like a symphony conductor with an entire city as his stage, has been a perpetual pleasure to observe. I have no doubt that this year will be filled with as many new connections, dialogues, and overall syntheses as year's past.

Bonus! This year I will be there for the famed Manhattanhenge! Score :)

Charter Schools - Opinion

By Kristopher Hite

When I say I do not like charter schools I mean it. I mean it because I see their proliferation as a shift towards privatization in general. I perceive privatization as an all-encompassing ideological philosophy of many politicians; Margaret Spellings, George W. Bush, and Donald Rumsfeld to name a few. I agree with the Democrats who were outraged at W for slipping in "school vouchers" to his last re-signings of No Child Left Behind (NCLB).

From the Washington Post -

"Democrats in Congress assailed the plan -- which also would allow low-performing schools to override union contracts or become charter schools despite state laws limiting their creation -- and expressed concern that the politically charged proposals could delay the reauthorization, which is scheduled for this year." ~ from July 2007. 

I see school vouchers as a more extreme version of charter schools - a move away from public schooling as traditionally understood. While reading about NCLB I came across several provisions of the act leading to increased number of charter schools.

"A fifth year of failure results in planning to restructure the entire school; the plan is implemented if the school fails to hit its AYP targets for the sixth year in a row. Common options include closing the school, turning the school into a charter school, hiring a private company to run the school, or asking the state office of education to run the school directly."

It seems as though all roads out of NCLB lead to a privatized world which upsets me. To me, many of the most powerful Republicans somehow swoon over the teachings of a man with whom I vehemently disagree - Milton Friedman.

From the school voucher wiki -

 "Nobel Prize winning economist Milton Friedman argued for the modern concept of vouchers in the 1950s, stating that competition would improve schools and cost efficiency. The view further gained popularity with the 1980 TV broadcast of Friedman's series Free to Choose for which volume 6 was devoted entirely to promoting "educational freedom" through programs like school vouchers. In some Southern states during the 1960s, school vouchers were used as a method of perpetuating segregation. In a few instances, public schools were closed outright and vouchers were issued to parents. The vouchers, in many cases, were only good at privately segregated schools, known as segregation academies. Today, all modern voucher programs prohibit racial discrimination."

This brings me full circle to my stance on charter schools vouchers and NCLB in general. I perceive NCLB as a well intentioned act of congress carrying a Trojan horse filled with little pro-privatization Milton Friedman time-bombs. I see these privatization ideals as detrimental to communities throughout our educated democracy.

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Evolution on Manhattan

Here is the first video I've seen from a new branch of the TED talks called TED-Ed. The idea of these videos is to animate lessons making them widely available to any curious person with an internet connection. I applaud the advocacy of creativity and transparency.

The contemporary illustration of accidental evolution at the hand of human development is particularly poignant.

Obama and McCain on higher education

Barack Obama proposes an excellent plan for higher education, the American Opportunity Tax Credit. This plan would allow students to exchange 100 hours of community service for a $4,000 Tax credit. Any student that has ever looked for a part time job to fund their college education knows that it is impossible to compete with this rate of $40/hour! This would pay for 2/3 of the average annual tuition at a 4 year public college and would completely cover community college tuition. This plan would be an addition to existing government funding opportunities. The greatest part of this plan is the increased integration of students into the community for mutual benefit. Community internships add considerable value to a student's education. Providing this opportunity to more students is a truly nobel and excellent policy for strengthening students and communities.

McCain's plan for higher education, is focused on simplifying tax credits and financial aid application by "consolidating programs." However, Obama trumps McCain in simplification reform by eliminating the financial aid application process altogether, allowing parents to simply check a box on their income tax forms.

McCain's education policy includes a 250 million dollar program that will increase post-secondary opportunities for high school students by providing tax credits for online college preparatory courses (SAT/ACT).

Obama's education policy supports an infrastructure for preparing high school students with college outreach programs (GEAR UP, TRIO and Upward Bound). Obama also proposes a "Make College a Reality" policy that would actively encourage enrollment in AP classes and provide grants to high school students seeking resources at community colleges not available at their high schools.

McCain proposes 250 million so that "States can use these funds to build virtual math and science academies to help expand the availability of AP Math, Science, and Computer Sciences courses, online tutoring support for students in traditional schools, and foreign language courses." This program would provide important resources for many under-privileged schools and students. Although not specifically listed under McCain's higher education policy, McCain proposes to "target $500 million in current federal funds to build new virtual schools and support the development of online course offerings for students. These courses may be for regular coursework, for enhancement, or for dual enrollment into college." I am in support of increasing and developing online tools that enhance traditional education and provide students with more options. However, I am concerned that this would be seen or encouraged as an alternative to traditional post-secondary education instead of enhancing it, especially for students with funding issues. Student/mentor relationships and the vast support networks for students are critical in the retention of students and in their growth! Why the online-centric approach?

In short, Obama's higher education policy includes support programs for high school students and an element integrating college students within the community, adding value to a students education and benefiting the community. In stark contrast, McCain's policy involves an online education approach that would be great in enhancing education but is not a viable policy to supplant broad reform for student support programs.

Debate Simulcast

Highlights -
As an example of "wasteful" government spending McCain cites Obama's request for federal money to repair a Chicago planetarium's overhead projector. In other words he thinks talking about about this --->
is important enough to mention when the economy is "cratering." This speaks to how out of touch McCain is with the world outside the bubble of his 7 houses. Also, I see it as ironically metaphorical that he talks about a science museum's overhead projector with disdain. This is a tool of education - a light - an instrument of understanding. You know, the type of thing Bush and McCain fear the most. If McCain and Palin are elected we might have it taught in public schools that the earth is 6,000 years old. Kids don't need planetariums, because if they knew how many light-years wide our galaxy is their brains would explode from confusion.

McCain on Obama's nuclear policy - "He said it had to be safe... or somethin like that."

(I'm paraphrasing in all quotes below )

On Science...
McCain - "Government research projects should be turned over to the private sector."
Obama - "The computer was invented within a government research project."

On Health Care...
McCain - "If Obama's health care plan passes he will fine struggling single moms struggling to insure their kids."
again using fear to take a jab at Obama's character.
"I don't know but I may need hair plugs."
yeah I'm sure the people at serious health risk because of the state of
health care in the US were rolling around on the floor at that one.

On Foreign Policy...
McCain - Trying to quote Teddy Roosevelt - "Talk softly and carry a big stick"
Obama - Softly correcting him "SPEAK Softly" - This is the actual verb Teddy used.