TeenTech Weekly: College ranks, 'racist' tweets, MIT, MySpace convictions
This edition of TeenTech weekly rounds up the resources concerning Generation Y and student tech that you may have missed. This week we’ve read about innovation, MySpace convictions, racist tweets and university rankings.
1.) MIT's Alandi campus to host UoP’s research meet. (Indian Express)
The University of Pune’s (UoP) annual research conference will now be organised by MIT's Maharashtra Academy of Engineering (MAE), Alandi. Innovation 2012, the regional research conference for 16 different disciplines such as engineering, science, management, architecture and biotechnology will be held on March 19 and 20 at MIT's Alandi campus.
2.) MySpace predator convicted for grooming girls online. A man from California who trawled the social networking site MySpace in order to groom and exploit young female users has been convicted of felony charges.
At the Riverside County Superior Court, 34 year-old Joshua David Threlkeld was found guilt of 79 felony charges and one misdemeanor.
3.) Swansea University student arrested over 'racist' Fabrice Muamba tweet. (Metro)
A Twitter user has been arrested after allegedly posting 'racially offensive' comments about stricken Bolton Wanderers midfielder Fabrice Muamba on the micro-blogging site.
4.) Paying to pay it forward. (Inside Higher Ed) Reed College alumni are paying for the privilege of connecting their younger counterparts with jobs. 17 individual alumni and alumni couples are so eager to help their fellow Reedies that they'll donate $40 to the college each time a current Reed student or recent graduate reaches out and asks for help.
5. ) New law bans student researchers from unionizing. Should graduate research students be able to form unions, or is the move to prevent such efforts a case of government overreach?
Gov. Rick Snyder of Michigan signed a controversial bill this week which bars graduate research assistants in public universities from forming any type of union. It came into being after a group of research assistants based at the University of Michigan attempted to unionize.
6.) Fight cyberbullies, play Angry Birds. In a new attempt to raise awareness concerning the issue of cyberbullying, Rovio and MTV have teamed up in order to promote the fight — through the use of Angry Birds.
Under the Twitter hashtag #ihavearight, MTV’s ‘A Thin Line’ campaign is aimed at fighting elements of digital misbehaviour — including sexting, constant messaging, spying, cyberbullying and abuse.
7.) Can YouTube be used as an appropriate teaching tool? Some view it as a cluttered platform, full of time-wasting cat videos, parody pop songs and whimsical cartoons. However, if you have the time to clear away the dross, there are a number of videos uploaded by users that have been developed for educational use. Due to this potential, the video streaming service created YouTube for Schools, a platform that allows educational institutions to access and use videos that are cleared of comments, inappropriate links, and use the YouTube EDU library — which contains only educational material.
8.) Student faces campus expulsion after coming out on Facebook? Kiah Zabel, a Michigan College student, is reported to have been threatened with campus accommodation expulsion after revealing her sexuality on Facebook.
Zabel claims she has been informed that unless all references to her sexuality are removed from the social networking account on Facebook, then it is possible that the student will be expelled from her accommodation on the christian colleges’ campus.
9.) Asian universities challenge US-UK domination of rankings. (The Guardian) Britain has better universities than any other country apart from the U.S., but Asian nations are catching up fast, a survey of the world's top thinkers shows.
10.) West Kirby student crowned Young Scientist of the Year. (Wirral Globe)
West Kirby student Kirtana Vallabhaneni is top of the class after being named the UK Young Scientist of the Year. The from West Kirby Grammar School was one of 360 chosen to showcase their work to a world-class panel of judges. She impressed the judges with a research project for the University of Liverpool.
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