Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: economy, editorial, education, government, jobs, reform
The New York Times published an opinion piece… End the University as We Know It. The Op-Ed calls university graduate programs the Detroit of higher education. The editorial makes a lot of interesting points, and is worth checking out. Six substantive suggestions are made to improve both graduate education and universities as a whole.
According to an article in MacWorld (http://www.macworld.com/article/140109/2009/04/broadband_embarrassment.html?lsrc=rss_main) the United States has the 2nd most Internet subscribers. The U.S. at 79 million subscribers, is only second to China with 83 million.
However, in terms of percentage of population connected, the United States lags at 25% – this is 15th out of 30 developed countries, where this metric was available.
Further, the United States also lags in speed and cost competitiveness compared to other nations. Many of the examples of greater bandwidth at the same or lower prices, come from countries where the telecommunications industry is highly subsidized. Therefore, the question is — how can the United States through policy create a more competitive atmosphere, for market based expansion and price competition?
Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: commentary, economy, education, politics, polls, whataretheythinking
Rasmussen Reports (http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/politics/general_politics/just_53_say_capitalism_better_than_socialism) a new poll today that just 54% of Americans prefer Capitalism over Socialism. What has happened to the United States? Has out education system become so bankrupt that we don’t understand the fundamental differences, and what this country was founded on? The polling is closest with adults under 30, possibly indicating the our education system is failing to communicate fundamental American values.
In addition to a gap in beliefs based on age, there is also a partisan gap as well. Republicans overwhelmingly support Capitalism by an 11 – 1 margin. Just 39% of Democrats support Capitalism, and Socialism garners 30% support from the Dems.
The Detroit News reported earlier this week that a family moves out of Michigan every 12-minutes.
Even worse, those migrating into Michigan are… less affluent and less educated. Michigan is in a systemic downward spiral, and can it be stopped. Our Governor is focused on alternative energy, and not finding ways to make existing base industries relevant again.
This state is a train wreck. Now to go check Monster and see what is happening in Colorado, Minnesota, Indiana, or any number of other states that are not laggards.
Have an iPhone, and want a Kindle too? But maybe you don’t want to pay the $349 for a unitasker? Well, Amazon released Kindle for iPhone today, and books look great! The is a free application, give it a try… download here: http://itunes.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewSoftware?id=302584613&mt=8
The Silicon Alley Insider (http://www.businessinsider.com/2009/1/printing-the-nyt-costs-twice-as-much-as-sending-every-subscriber-a-free-kindle) estimated the cost for the New York Times to publish paper copies of its newspaper, just for subscribers. The NY Times has about 830,000 subscribers, who are current and have subscribed at least the last 2 years. The SAI estimates that the cost to print and distribute the paper to subscribers is around $644 million per year.
What if the NY Times purchased a Kindle-2 for every subscriber, who is willing to convert to electronic distribution? Well, for $297 million the NY Times could purchase a Kindle for every subscriber. That is less than half of the estimated material, printing, and distribution costs.
So why am I posting this? Well, I live in an area that has a significant forestry industry, and a number of value added wood products companies — including paper mills. Will paper mills be going the way of the horse and buggy? A quick review of the Amazon Kindle Store shows newspapers and periodicals that can be subscribed to for a fraction of the cost of a print copy. Combine that with the free 3G service that powers the Kindle, with no need for a computer… do we have a category killer? What will the future demand be for paper and our most renewable resource?
When promises such as these are being made:
Obama Says USA will rebuild and emerge stronger…
Obama vows to increase number of soldiers…
Obama vows to seek cure for cancer ‘in our time’…
Obama says bank bailout may cost more than expected…
Obama promises universal EDUCATION THROUGH COLLEGE…
Obama promises universal health care…
Lets revisit a time when government was considered part of the problem and not the solution:
Apple today released a beta version of Safari for both the Mac and Windows OS. Apple claims that the new version of Safari is faster than both IE and Firefox. I’ve been using the beta this morning, it feels snappy, and some of the new features – such as the new Top Sites dashboard is very cool. You can learn more about Safari and download at: www.apple.com/safari
