But seriously, kids these days ...
what are we going to do with them?
- MSNBC about 14-year-old Robert Nay,
developer of iphone app outselling "Angry Bird" app
Laura Bush's Middle School Initiative,
Teacher Colleges Being Graded,
and Maureen Dowd on the Catholic Church "app"
(yes, you heard right)
what are we going to do with them?
- MSNBC about 14-year-old Robert Nay,
developer of iphone app outselling "Angry Bird" app
Laura Bush's Middle School Initiative,
Teacher Colleges Being Graded,
and Maureen Dowd on the Catholic Church "app"
(yes, you heard right)
by C.J. Westerberg
A few interesting stories in the last 24 hours to check out -
Laura Bush and her new education initiative "Middle School Matters," via Huffpo/AOL.
(Also worth noting, or not, depending on your mood, are the comments, which are really raw. Geez. Does she really deserve such vitriol?) An excerpt from the post:
"The George W. Bush Institute is planning to introduce its second big education initiative Wednesday, a program that seeks to improve graduation rates by focusing on middle schools.
Former first lady Laura Bush, set to announce the initiative, 'Middle School Matters,' in Houston at Stovall Middle School in the Aldine school district, said research has shown that middle school - 6th through 8th grade - is a crucial time in determining future success.
'We know now from research that a lot of kids that drop out in high school really drop out in middle school. They just leave in high school,' she said."
Teacher Colleges Upset by Plan to Grade Them, via Trip Gabriel at The NY Times:
"Grades are the currency of education - teachers give them to students, administrators grade teachers and states often assign grades to schools.
Brian Kelly, the editor of U.S. News & World Report, in his office in Washington.
Now U.S. News & World Report is planning to give A through F grades to more than 1,000 teachers' colleges, and many of the schools are unhappy, marching to the principal's office to complain the system is unfair."
Forgive Me . . .
And, who needs to write about new apps, such as the new hit created by a 14-year-old, the
"Bubble Ball" app, beating the "Angry Bird" app #1 spot (thus far), when you have Maureen Dowd, sharing this I-thought-nothing-surprised-me-anymore op-ed today?
Here's an excerpt from Forgive Me, Father, For I Have Linked. Do check out the entire piece,
it is a gem:
And, who needs to write about new apps, such as the new hit created by a 14-year-old, the
"Bubble Ball" app, beating the "Angry Bird" app #1 spot (thus far), when you have Maureen Dowd, sharing this I-thought-nothing-surprised-me-anymore op-ed today?
Here's an excerpt from Forgive Me, Father, For I Have Linked. Do check out the entire piece,
it is a gem:
Our Father, who art in pixels,
linked be Thy name,
Thy Web site come, Thy Net be done,
on Explorer as it is on Firefox.
"Give us this day our daily app,
and forgive us our spam,
as we forgive those
who spam against us,
and lead us not into aggregation,
but deliver us from e-vil. Amen."
"Nothing is sacred anymore, even the sacred. And even that most secret ritual of the Roman Catholic faith, the veiled black confessional box.
Once funeral homes began live-streaming funerals, it was probably inevitable. But now confessions are not only about touching the soul, but touching the screen.
With the help of two priests, three young Catholic men from South Bend, Ind., have developed an iPhone app to guide Catholics through - and if they are lapsed, back to - confession.
It shot to global success, ranking No. 42 on the best-selling app list, according to iTunes.
The trio got the idea, surprisingly, from the pope . . .
. . . 'Confession: a Roman Catholic App' is not a session with a virtual priest who restores your virtue with a penance of three Hail Mary's and three extra gigabytes of memory.
Rather, its developers say, it's a 'baby steps' program that walks you through the Ten Commandments, your examination of conscience and any "custom sins" you might have, then after confession (purportedly) wipes the slate clean so no one sees your transgressions. . . "
God bless us all, each and every one.
P.S. Video Below. Take a look see at the 8th-grader's app creation, Bubble Ball, below. It really is worthy of some brain power, as we've been told by kids in this age group.
P.S. Video Below. Take a look see at the 8th-grader's app creation, Bubble Ball, below. It really is worthy of some brain power, as we've been told by kids in this age group.
"At this point, "Bubble Ball" has been downloaded more than 2 million times. And it's also available in the Android Marketplace. Not too bad for a kid's first app ever."###Previously published The Daily Riff February 9, 2011
JohnE, appreciate your comment. Dowd definitely pushes the envelope. But her rep is one of being cynical and/or skeptical on just about any topic - so this particular piece doesn't seem out of character for her style. She does have a striking wit, and one would not want to be her subject du jour,
I would venture to guess -
I don't understand the amusement with the confession app. It's a tool to help with an examination of conscience before an actual face-to-face confession with a priest, not a replacement for confession. I can see how distortion and exaggeration could be used for comic effect, but it's much less funny coming from a well-known anti-Catholic bigot like Maureen Dowd.