Tag Archive for 'human to human teachings'

Green City

spoon published on October 27, 2008 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , .

Hey peeps,

I have a bit of a confession to make: I am a sucker for sweet video games.

I try to steer clear and be more productive with my time, but sometimes they are just too good to resist.

That being said, I LOVE it when games can be incorporated into and used as teaching tools. Like putting words to song, it makes it easier to learn when you are having fun.

Well that is exactly what the people over at Alternative Energy have done. Using EA Games’ Sim City Societies, Alternative Energy incorporates a great teaching tool into the already popular video game. Alternative Energy explains:

Through an initial Web tutorial, students will learn to build their own virtual SimCity based on societal model, and in the proceeding lessons, set specific goals, monitor their city’s energy use and chart growth. The students will then control their city, choosing more environmentally-friendly and alternative energy options for city infrastructure.

Students can choose to implement over 500 unique objects into their city, ranging from workplaces to residential buildings and venues, and they can even choose to “bulldoze” pollution-causing buildings or allocate more money to energy research within their city.

As the program progresses, students will monitor their city’s pollution, energy output and health risks, while researching green initiatives, environmental issues and real-world green design applications at home.

Students get to learn how to be more sustainable and get to play video games? Awesome.

It says the lessons are for middle and high schoolers but I bet we could all learn a bit from this great program. If you know any teachers looking for a way to reach out to their students about the environment, this would be a great start!

Hope everyone had a great weekend,

-spoon

(found via treehugger. I believe Sim City Societies retails for about 20 clams, or you can pick it up at Amazon for $9)

Kids on 2 Wheels

jaell published on August 11, 2008 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , .


First of all… what an attractive logo this is.


Second of all… Kids on 2 Wheels is awesome.

Sure, they don’t have a fancy website or a huge following, but they have amazing volunteers that help special needs or disabled kids have the opportunity to learn to ride a two wheel bike.

Its easy to forget the little things that make kids feel free, happy, and like they fit in with their peers. Unfortunately many disabled kids need more attention when learning to do things (like ride bikes and play sports) than their parents are able to give them. This organization has volunteers that spend hours with kids teaching them to hop up on two wheels.
























One touching quote that my roommate overheard when she was volunteering recently involved a young boy who was “such a gentleman” and had a tough time keeping his body moving at a fast enough pace. She was unsure that he was going to be able to get up on those two wheels but just being able to try that hard and get the chance to made him say to her, “I’m just so proud of myself!” When he proved her wrong and did get up on two wheels by himself, he had the biggest grin on his face. She felt great being a part of that moment, because its those little things that really matter to kids.


So… if these are moments that you value, too, then see if there are organizations in your community that allow you these moments. Kids on 2 Wheels is located primarily in Minnesota and Wisconsin so if you’re curious about how you can help (even if you’re not in the area) then here it is:

“There are a couple of ways that you can help us. One way is to send us a check for an amount of your choice. Any amount will help! One year we anonymously received a $10 bill in the mail — that made our day, and it was put to good use! Additionally, you can donate your used bikes and training bars when your child no longer needs them. We will use them for other children who may not be able to afford to buy their own.”

They never have a shortage of kids in need. In fact, they have a long waiting list. So the more money, bikes, and volunteers they can get, the better!

I hope this inspires you to search for organizations in your area, or to start one yourself!

Bike riding…. all the cool kids are doing it!

2-D to 3-D

jackson published on March 20, 2008 in Uncategorized. 0 Comments Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , .

Good Morning All!

We were thinking yesterday about a very interesting development for humankind.
Namely, for the entirety of human history ideas have been communicated in 2-D.

With the exception of human to human teaching, (i.e. “Bend over like this, put this seed in the ground like so, cover and water, and now we’re farming…”) all knowledge, from the Lascaux cave paintings, to the Gutenberg Bible, to Junkyard Wars on our TV’s, ideas have all been as flat as pancakes.*


Flat.

Flat.

Flat.

Until now.

Now, with the advent of the computer, virtual reality, and the refinement of 3-D technology, ideas are beginning to be transmitted in their entirety, in real space, completely unflattened. Super-round, even.

It’s like the difference between looking at a picture of an origami crane and holding one in your hand, able to examine it from any angle, unfold it, play with it.

An enormous paradigm shift in human comprehension is upon us, and it will only get shiftier as more information is added to the web, and the technology for representing it in real space gets cheaper and more accessible.

Here’s the old way:

“Urrmmm, compressed animal skeletons on a flat chunk of rock.”

And, here’s the new way:

“Wheee! I’m flying through ideas!”

Now, that helmet is bulky and ridiculous. But that’s just Version 1.
Version 10 will be either a laser spraying images directly onto the surface of your eye, or a little wire in your brain. Either way, the idea is seamless and elegant transmission of intelligence from one human to the next.

The children being born now will have access to an mountain of information so high and wide, it makes us seems like 13th Century peasants.

Very exciting times.

We are at the very beginning.

Love to all,

Team SF

*(With the exception of sculpture, but sculptures are singular things, unsuited for mass distribution,1 so sculpture don’t really count.)

(chalkboard image via aspirecommunity.co.uk)
(VR helmet image via techliberation.com)

  1. there’s only one Venus De Milo, [↩]