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TeenTech Weekly: Social democracy, Obama threats, paying student loans in cash

The weekly roundup of Generation-Y and student news & resources you may have missed.
Written by Charlie Osborne, Contributing Writer

This edition of TeenTech weekly rounds up Generation Y and student news that you may have missed. This week we've read about social upheaval online, students threatening President Obama on Facebook, and how expensive university can be.

1.) Meet the tireless entrepreneur who squatted at AOL. (CNet)

For two months last fall, 19 year-old Eric Simons secretly took up residence inside the Internet giant's Palo Alto, Calif., campus, eating free food, enjoying gym access, and building a startup in the process.

2.) Definition of progress for Gen Y drives innovation. (Business 2 Community)

Will the Fortune 500 exist ten years from now? According to a 2012 study by Millennial Branding (conducted on Facebook), a projected 40% of the companies now listed on this esteemed roster probably will not be around by 2025. In a survey of over four million Facebook users, only 7% of respondents indicated that they are currently working for a Fortune 500 company.

3.) Former student ordered to pay $675,000 for sharing 30 songs.

A former Boston University student who was ordered to pay $675,000 for illegally downloading and sharing 30 songs on the Internet in 2005 has insisted he will fight the penalty, even after the Supreme Court refused to hear his appeal this week.

4.) From lawful access to Quebec student riots, democracy goes social. (IT Business)

2012 has been the year the Internet fought back on SOPA, ACTA and Bill C-30, says legal eagle Michael Geist. But social media protest fatigue could set in at any time, he warns.

5.) Florida student pleads guilty to threat on Obama's life. (Reuters)

A college student pleaded guilty in federal court on Wednesday to threatening in a Facebook post to kill President Barack Obama by putting "a bullet through his head."

6.) Microsoft's So.cl network launched amid Facebook press.

Microsoft’s So.cl is now out of beta and available publicly - but is it really aimed at students?

7.) Sandberg talks Facebook, women in the workplace at HBS class day. (The Crimson)

Chief Operating Officer of Facebook Sheryl K. Sandberg ’91 encouraged the Harvard Business School’s graduating class to keep in touch with one another using tools such as Facebook at its Class Day on Wednesday.

8.) Toronto man pays off $114,460 student loan – in cash. (The Globe and Mail)

Alex Kenjeev fulfilled the dream of every indebted student – with a grocery bag of cash. With a recipt as proof, it does stand as a reminder that many of the Generation Y enter the workplace already owing large sums to their respective governments.. and parents. See the image in question.

9.) Which retailers use social media to attract next-gen consumers?

What social media policies affect the positions of the 250 top Internet retailers, and how do they appeal to the youngest wave of customers?

10.) CU-Boulder looking to upgrade student email to Gmail. (The Daily Camera)

The University of Colorado's Office of Information Technology is hoping to upgrade student email to Google mail, or Gmail, almost a year after they were expected to roll out a new Microsoft Live format across campus.

Bonus: Social media PR mistakes and disasters

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