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August 15, 2001
Backpage
By Amy Poftak and Kristen Kennedy
Gleanings
Dueling Devices
In the world of handheld computing, Pocket PC devices are gaining significant ground. At press time, Gartner Dataquest projected that Compaq's iPAQ, which is based on the Windows CE operating system, was poised to beat out less-pricey Palm and Handspring units for market share. One reason for this shift, according to analysts, is the iPAQ's wireless messaging capabilities.
The New Divide
Even though student-to-computer ratios are steadily improving, wide gaps exist in how technology is being integrated into classroom learning. Education Week's Technology Counts 2001 survey found that 50 percent of students use school computers one hour or less per week, with 39 percent saying they usually trek to a computer lab to do work. Students also reported that computers are primarily being used for tasks such as writing papers and doing research, with only 29 percent saying that their teachers use computers to help approach problems in different ways.
Model Techie
"I have taught girls how to build things out of electronics and reproduced geeks many times." -Ellen Spertus, a computer science professor recently crowned the Sexiest Geek Alive (sexiestgeekalive.com), referring to her students at Mills College and her volunteer work teaching technology to young girls in Oakland.
The (Im)Moral Majority
A recent study conducted by Donald McCabe of Rutgers University found that 47 percent of high school students think their teachers choose not to confront students they suspect of cheating. Not surprisingly, 74 percent admitted to cheating within the past year, with more than half using the Internet to do so.
Watch Words
Alpha Geek n. The most technically adept person at your workplace.
Brandalism n. Corporate ads, logos, and slogans that are increasingly being strewn about public spaces such as schools and libraries.
Digital Jewelry n. Designed exclusively by the house of IBM, these earrings, bracelets, and toe rings hide tiny transmitters that communicate wirelessly. Want to know when your Nokia stock tanks? Just program your nose ring to sound an alarm.
Google v. To use a search engine such as google.com to scope out information on a person, usually a prospective date, as in "She googled the attractive man who handed her his card at the end-of-conference dance."
Wordo n. The equivalent of a typo in speech-to-text programs, for example, when you tell the computer to type "inscrutable" and it writes "in screw double."
Sources: The New York Times Magazine; The New York Times on the Web (David Pogue coined "wordo" and the example used in the definition); The Word Spy at logophilia.com.
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