Recent Pew Research Center Studies

Posted on July 18, 2013 by infophile

Pew Study: Technology Aids Students’ Writing Skills Though Challenges Remain | The Digital Shift
Digital technologies are impacting American middle and high school students’ writing in many ways, both good and bad, a new national report from the Pew Research Center shows.

Internet adoption becomes nearly universal among some groups, but others lag behind | Pew Research Center
New data from the latest survey by the Pew Research Center’s Internet Project in the spring shows that 85% of Americans adults use the internet at least occasionally. Five years ago, in an April 2008 survey, 73% of adults used the internet. Ten years ago, in May 2003, 63% of adults used the internet.

Personal. Portable. Participatory. Pervasive. from Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project

Young Adults, Mobile Phones and Social Media:Technology and the Transition to adulthood

How Teachers Are Using Technology at Home and in Their Classrooms | Pew Internet
A survey of teachers who instruct American middle and secondary school students finds that digital technologies have become central to their teaching and professionalization. At the same time, the internet, mobile phones, and social media have brought new challenges to teachers, and they report striking differences in access to the latest digital technologies between lower and higher income students and school districts.

Vinyl Making a Comeback?

Posted on July 16, 2013 by infophile

UVinyl — Universal Music’s vinyl branch — is developing a “crowd-funded vinyl service” that will release limited-edition records of old “deleted” albums if there’s enough demand. “The Vinyl Project” will re-press deleted and rare records into vinyl, and release them with digital downloads and personalized art prints.

via Universal Music Reviving Vinyls With Crowdfunding Service | Mashable.

The power of crowdfunding used to revive outdated technology. I’m not sure this would have happened if DJs, sound mixers, musicians and artists were not still using vinyl records and continuing their popularity. One area at least where the music industry is creating goodwill and partnerships promoting music development instead of restrictions.

A Library Brings Back Vinyl | Annoyed Librarian | Library Journal
Share the love: vinyl lending library opens in London | theguardian
Third Man Records (Jack White’s vinyl records store)

Take A Graphic Stroll Through Your Own Personal Meta Data | Co.Exist

Posted on July 15, 2013 by infophile

With the recent reveal that the NSA has been monitoring Americans’ email “meta-data,” the term has suddenly transformed from an obscure, techy vocabulary word into something on the tip of the average cable-news watcher’s tongue. Email meta-data is, of course, information about an email (like who sent it and when it was sent) as opposed to the content of the email itself. But if it isn’t clear what that means exactly, a recent visualization project by researchers at the MIT Media Lab called Immersion provides “a people-centric view of your email life” by providing an interactive tool to dive into your own meta-data.

via Take A Graphic Stroll Through Your Own Personal Meta Data | Co.Exist: World changing ideas and innovation.

immersion: a people-centric view of your email life. You will need to login via a Gmail account. You can also check out the demo.

Immersion will only display interactions between your personal contacts in a visualization map. It will not actually display more specific metadata than this.

The Digital Museum Where Outdated Apps Can Live Forever | Gizmodo

Posted on July 14, 2013 by infophile

There’s a crew of hero historians [and librarians!!] out there slurping up the Internet for posterity in case we want to see it later, but what about all the apps? Well now there’s a place for them too. Parts of them, at least.

Capptivate.co was put together by Alli Dryer of Bottle Rocket Apps, and serves as the realitely new resting place for apps of old. The site doesn’t index full copies of the apps, or provide any of their functionality, but instead it hosts a distinct kind of snapshot: a little five-second video that showcases each’s signature look and feel.

via The Digital Museum Where Outdated Apps Can Live Forever | Gizmodo.

35 Free Live Webinars for Librarians in July | Ellyssa Kroski – OEDB.org

Posted on July 14, 2013 by infophile

35 Free Live Webinars for Librarians in July | Ellyssa Kroski – OEDB.org

Ellyssa usually publishes a new list early every month. I highly recommend following her blog, the iLibrarian on the OEDb website.

McKinsey disruptive technology report | Business Insider

Posted on July 12, 2013 by infophile

Even though we don’t always see it every day, technology and businesses are moving at a breakneck pace, dismantling industries, saving lives, and transforming the world.

McKinsey recently released a report on the 12 technologies that are disrupting the global economy, from advanced robotics and next-generation genomics to self-driving cars.

Here’s a chart from the report on how fast these technologies are getting better:

via McKinsey disruptive technology report | Business Insider.

World Futurist Society: 20 Forecasts for 2013-2025 | Stephens Lighthouse

Posted on July 7, 2013 by infophile

World Futurist Society: 20 Forecasts for 2013-2025 | Stephens Lighthouse. Some intriguing hypothesized forecasts in this article including Smart phones help spur political reform in Africa, A handheld “breathalyzer” will diagnose diseases and the Amish Boom.