"Around the world people can, from the comfort of their home, refresh their knowledge on a subject or explore other topics to better themselves intellectually," says YouTube EDU's Obadiah Greenberg. "I think that is rather profound." YouTube EDU is a subsite dedicated to educational content such as lectures.
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One need not be a student to reap the benefits of higher education anymore. In addition to YouTube EDU, Web sites like iTunes U, TED, and Academic Earth allow millions of people to download lectures by some of the world's top experts—for free. Known as open educational resources—or OER—the movement is turning education into a form of mass entertainment. "There is a real appetite for content that is not just a sneezing-cat video," says Peter Bradwell, a researcher for the British academic think tank Demos. "There is a growing desire for intellectually stimulating material that is easily accessible."
The applications are actually much wider ranging: "Imagine what a treasure trove this is for a college teacher in Africa or a student in a developing country in Asia who can access good materials from prestigious universities at their fingertips." Whoever is using OER, the numbers keep growing. MIT's site now gets more than 1.2 million visitors a month. Oxford's iTunes material has surpassed a million uploads and has consistently had 10 podcasts in the global top 100. Oxford philosophy professor Marianne Talbot—whose "Romp Through the History of Philosophy" became a No. 1 iTunes U hit—and UC Berkeley biology professor Marian Diamond have become Web darlings like Pausch. But maybe not quite on a par with Oscar the talking boxer dog. ---Newsweek Asia edition (and online), Nov. 9 issue http://www.newsweek.com/id/220181
It's a sleepy afternoon, and my migraine has taken its toll. Alas, Philippine Fashion Week Spring/Summer 2010 needed to be skipped so I can rest thoroughly. I'm bored, super, and boredom sometimes spawns reflection and nuisance. And this is what I came up with: My girl crushes.
It's not mine but I can claim ownership by affinity (I invented that, by the way;p). My brother was finally able to get a second car and he amped the choice so much he ended up with a truck. I bet it's---as Filipinos would say---super gwapo. They got a four-door model (Toyota calls it CrewMax) in Super White, with beautiful leather seats and like 9,000 features.
I'm really happy that he's doing very well in LA. During the recession, he was swamped with hours and hours of work at his hospital's OR because all the other neighboring hospitals closed down. His wife, already a licensed pharmacist, will be starting her new job soon, and she drives now. I love it that they're living the life, even if it ain't mine. At least now I know that the lucky stardust, while it evaded me so harshly, did fly towards them :)
Learn more about the 2010 Tundra here.
For years, I had been averse to BryanBoy. I worked at one of the country's biggest fashion magazines at age 22, and I thought the experience would forever make me jaded about people of that kin. I even passed on "The Devil Wears Prada" for two years until I finally let Meryl Streep woo me.
I realize now that dreams do, in fact, change. No matter how much you want it. Still, I'm going down swinging. To the consul I debated with against at the US Embassy, this one's for you:
My dear office has blocked facebook(!) and multiply(!) on top of the original firewall all-stars, youtube, myspace, friendster, and stumbledupon. nba.com is blocked, too, and I think flicker and dailymotion are among the next ones on the hit list.
It's the end of the world, and I'm ending it with a big SARCASM note on my forehead.
'Moving back in with nytimes.
I've lost track how many of these hodgepodge posts I've done. Anyhoo, enjoy: