Colleges are finding more uses for 3D printing, from art students creating sculptures of futuristic animals, to engineering students developing zero gravity fuel storage, to biology professors replicating dinosaur bones. All disciplines have the potential to benefit from 3D printing, the Chronicle of Higher Education reports, especially as the technology becomes more sophisticated and less expensive. Many professors are supporters of controversial open-source 3D printers, an affordable do-it-yourself approach where printers are designed from online instructions based on expired patents. Despite impending patent disputes, proponents see open-source 3D printers as a way to bring the technology to the masses, offer more experimentation in the classroom, and attract younger students to STEM fields. One university class even printed 8,000 edible cookies for visiting high-school students—a huge hit for the potential engineers of the future. More
Broadband Access Increases Test Scores in Michigan
A Connect Michigan study has found that broadband availability in school increases test scores, CBS Detroit reports. As e-learning becomes an essential part of learning, increased access to broadband allows for critical online interaction, both in and out of the classroom. Broadband availability increases math and reading proficiency scores for students in grades 3 through 8, the study found, as well as the number of students who meet ACT college readiness benchmarks. More
Energy & Green Tech Manufacturing Techonomy Detroit
Techonomy Detroit in the News: Was Tim Draper Wrong About Detroit’s Electric Car Future?
At Techonomy Detroit last week, venture capitalist Tim Draper had some harsh words for the local crowd. Detroit automakers have lost the electric-car battle to Tesla Motors, he said, and the only hope for the Big Three is to make something as innovative as a flying car. But Todd Woody at Forbes says Draper was wrong: “The electric car battle has only begun and if the objective is to win the war against fossil fuels then Tesla needs Detroit, Tokyo and Munich to join forces and sell as many cars as possible." More
Google’s Autocomplete Function Spreads Rumors, Says Lawsuit
Google’s helpful Autocomplete function has landed the Internet giant in German court. Former German first lady Bettina Wulff filed a lawsuit against Google after finding that searches for her name automatically adjust to include rumors of a sordid past. When a user types “Bettina Wulff” into the search bar, Google automatically suggests “Bettina Wulff prostitute” and “Bettina Wulff escort,” the New York Times reports. But Google says it’s not to blame, as all queries in Autocomplete have been previously typed by other Google users. More
Skills Gap May Be Narrower than Feared
The recession has amplified discussion about the skills gap, accompanied by speculation that 21st century jobs will require college degrees and advanced skills training still inaccessible to many. This compounds worries about a growing barrier to entry into America's middle class. But, as reported by Jeff Tyler on American Public Radio's Marketplace, a study from Georgetown University's Center on Education and the Workforce concludes that there are 29 million openings for jobs that pay between $35,000 and $72,000 but don't require a bachelor's degree. The surprising finding should be welcome news in much of the country, with the possible exception of New York City, where $35,000 hardly translates into a middle-class lifestyle. More
Schools Let Students Bring Their Own Devices, Then Struggle to Keep Up
Walk through one of the high schools in the Katy Independent School District in Texas and you’ll see students staring at cell phones, headphones in their ears and fingers on their keypads. On every table in the lunchroom is a mobile or wireless device. Peek into a classroom and you’ll find students using laptops, tablets, and smartphones to research assignments. Last year, for the first time, all K-12 Katy students were allowed to bring their own devices to school, and the move was a predictable hit, says Lenny Schad, chief technology officer of the district. More
Election Government Security & Privacy
Obama Campaign Uses Big Data to Target Voters Block by Block
As reported by Richard McGregor in the Financial Times, one voter whose name, age, and address were published in the "Obama for America" app, which helps canvassers target doors to knock on, was decidedly nonplussed about having his personal information downloadable by anyone with a smartphone. "Everything is an invasion of privacy these days," he said. "If I got excited about it, I would have had a coronary by now." Others are less sanguine about the ways the Obama campaign is using technology, and data culled from social media, to micro-target voters. But both campaigns have tools that tell them a lot more about voters than their ages and addresses, and they're using them to "slice and dice" the voting population in a way Barack Obama could have never envisioned when he gave his seminal 2004 convention speech. More
Business Jobs Techonomy Detroit
Why I Believe in Detroit
In this session from Techonomy Detroit, four Detroiters share perspectives on life and work in their city, and where Detroit may be in 10 years. The speakers are: Tonya Allen of The Skillman Foundation; Catherine Kelly, publisher of Michigan Citizen; and Bruce Schwartz, the Detroit Relocation Ambassador for Quicken Loans/Bedrock Real Estate. Detroit Free Press columnist Rochelle Riley moderates. More
Business Government Techonomy Detroit
Our Challenge in an Era of Global Competition
In this session from Techonomy Detroit, jointly organized with the Council on Foreign Relations, James Dougherty, adjunct senior fellow at the CFR, leads a discussion about how the U.S. can bolster its infrastructure and education system to remain globally competitive. Speakers include Edward Alden, director of the CFR's Renewing America Program; Vivek Kundra of salesforce.com; Ford CTO Paul Mascarenas; and Michael Teitelbaum of Harvard Law School and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation. More
