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TOP STORIES FOR FRIDAY, MAY 26, 2006 Carnegie Mellon Opens Data Center Observatory Campus Landlines Giving Way to Cell Phones Lecturer Drops Lectures for Podcasts List of Hacked Universities Grows New Orleans to Get New Wireless Network
CARNEGIE MELLON OPENS DATA CENTER OBSERVATORY Carnegie Mellon University has launched a new facility that researchers hope will shed light on questions of power consumption in data centers. The Data Center Observatory, which is itself a functioning data center, will let researchers study ways to improve the efficiency of computers in data centers, helping institutions cut costs for energy consumption. Greg Ganger, professor of electrical and computer engineering, said, "These large clusters of power-hungry machines, along with rising energy prices, are generating huge energy bills." The new facility can support 40 racks of computers, which could consume more energy that 750 average-sized homes. The Data Center Observatory, which is a joint project of the university's College of Engineering and its School of Computer Science, will also address questions of lowering administrative costs at data centers. Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, 23 May 2006 http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/news/s_455099.html
CAMPUS LANDLINES GIVING WAY TO CELL PHONES A growing number of colleges and universities are questioning their ongoing investments in providing landline phone services to students. Indeed, some institutions have decided to discontinue landlines altogether. Morrisville State College, for example, no longer offers landline service in dorms. While some universities rely on students to provide their own cell phones, the University of Cincinnati is working with a local phone company to provide free cell phones to all students. Frederick Siff, vice president and CIO at the university, noted that cell-phone technology makes them more attractive for a range of tasks than laptops. "Students don't carry laptops around constantly," he said, "but they always have their cell phones." Officials at other schools expressed concerns about eliminating landline service or limiting it to a few house phones in dorms. Although money spent on landlines could be reinvested elsewhere, some said that safety issues make a strong case for keeping wired phone service. CBS News, 24 May 2006 http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2006/05/24/tech/main1653702.shtml
LECTURER DROPS LECTURES FOR PODCASTS A lecturer in microbiology at Bradford University in the United Kingdom has said he will eliminate traditional lectures from his biochemistry course and replace them with podcasts. Students in Bill Ashraf's class will review the podcasts on their own time. They will submit questions to Ashraf through text messages, and he will respond to those inquiries on his blog. In addition, students needing to meet with Ashraf will be able to check his schedule online and make appointments with the professor through the Web. "Some lecture classes have 250 students," said Ashraf, "so I question the effectiveness of a didactic lecture for an hour." He said the new format will be especially beneficial for distance and part-time students and those with less flexible schedules. BBC, 26 May 2006 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/west_yorkshire/5013194.stm
If you are not sure what a podcast is or would like to better understand what you can do with them / how to make use of them: http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/Technology/podcast.html
LIST OF HACKED UNIVERSITIES GROWS Sacred Heart University, in Fairfield, Connecticut, has acknowledged that its computer systems have been hacked. The intrusion took place on May 8, according to officials from the university, though they declined to provide further details. The university did say it has notified local police and the FBI. A local television station reported that the university has notified about 135,000 individuals that the incident may have put their personal information at risk, including Social Security numbers. An unnamed source reportedly told the station that the university had informed him that information he provided as part of the school's entrance exams was included in the compromised data. Colleges and universities have been the targets of a number of data breaches in recent years, and some analysts fault school officials for not taking adequate precautions. Avivah Litan, a security analyst with research firm Gartner, said institutions do not put enough emphasis--or money--into computer security. CNET, 25 May 2006 http://news.com.com/2100-7349_3-6077212.html
************************************************************************** Educational CyberPlayGround http://www.edu-cyberpg.com/Technology/SECURITYprivacy.html PARENTS, TEACHERS, ADMINISTRATORS, SCHOOL BOARDS WHO IS COLLECTING AND SELLING children's information? **************************************************************************
NEW ORLEANS TO GET NEW WIRELESS NETWORK The city of New Orleans has announced a deal under which EarthLink will build a wireless network for the city, addressing complaints about wireless service previously offered by the city in violation of a state law. The law, intended to create a level playing field for commercial vendors, forbids municipalities from offering wireless Internet service at speeds faster than 128 Kbps. New Orleans had been offering service at 512 Kbps. In the new deal, EarthLink will build a 15-square-mile network that will provide free Internet access at speeds of 300 Kbps. The free service will be supported by advertising; residents will also have the option of paying for faster service without ads. EarthLink will bear the cost of building and maintaining the network. Wi-Fi Planet, 26 May 2006 http://www.wi-fiplanet.com/news/article.php/3609401
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