Monday, August 29, 2005

Periodic Table Widget

Christopher Fennell has posted an update (v 1.0.3) to his free Periodic Table widget for Mac OS X (Tiger, 10.4.x). While I don't use a lot of widgets at home, mostly because many of them rely on internet access, I can really see where this widget might be helpful on a student's Dashboard.

Sunset Planets

Venus and Jupiter will be visible together just after sunset for the next two weeks. Dr. Tony Phillips has another great mini-lesson, Sunset Planets, on Science@NASA. Phillips writes, "Try catching the pair just after sundown and just before the first stars appear. Venus and Jupiter pop into view while the sky is still twilight-blue. The scene has a special beauty."

Apple to Help Detroit High School

Nolan Finley reports in the Sunday Detroit News that Apple Computer "will help finance, equip and advise a small top-quality high school for Detroit students at most risk of being left behind." Finley states that Michigan Governor Jennifer Granholm will announce the plan tomorrow for a small high school that will eventually serve 400 students. See: Apple brings hope to Detroit.

Kennedy on NCLB Funding (...again)

The Associated Press reports, "Sen. Edward Kennedy in a back-to-school challenge to Republicans, used the Democratic Party's radio address Saturday to lobby for more federal money for education" in Kennedy Urges More Money for Education.

A Trio of Stories from the Indianapolis Star

I don't post a lot of stories from the Indianapolis Star, as it's editorial slant over the years hasn't been to my liking. Today, however, I'll link to three columns from yesterday's Sunday paper. Missing in action and The faces of dropouts both deal with Indiana's abysmal record of getting kids through school to a high school diploma. Both are excellent commentaries.

Dan Carpenter has been a columnist for the Indianapolis Star for years. He's funny, insightful, and also doesn't allow himself to be pushed to the right by the Star's longstanding editorial bias. Carpenter's latest offering, Sheehan as food for thought, echoes the columns and protests of many other writers about the right's now standard practice of character assassination of anyone who opposes them. It's a good read.

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