classroom

My Kid’s an Honor Student at iPad University: Apple on the Rebound in Edu

John Paczkowski in News on February 24, 2010 at 10:20 am PT

In the ’80s, Apple’s share of the U.S. education market stood at 50 percent. These days, it hovers around 20 percent, thanks largely to falling PC prices and the advent of the netbook. But that’s changing, and quickly too. With Apple inking multiyear Mac contracts with a number of school districts and the iPad and its promise of hand-held education just a few weeks away from market, the company could be poised to see significant growth in higher ed.

PBS's "Frontline" Considers the "Digital Nation"–A Lot of Handwringing Over the Inevitable, but Watch It Anyway

Kara Swisher in News on February 4, 2010 at 5:26 am PT

Earlier this week, the reliably erudite PBS public affairs program, “Frontline,” aired a documentary called “Digital Nation.” The show’s team races hither and yon interviewing a pile of smart folks–most of whom, thankfully, are not from Silicon Valley–to uncover what’s up with this Internet thing, which the kids seem to love. This egads-no-one-knows-where-this-geekery-is-taking-us worrywartness is probably appropriate, and though nothing new, is well told.

Kara Visits TEDMED (Featuring Synthetic Skin and Heart-Scanning iPhones!)

Kara Swisher in News on October 29, 2009 at 2:05 am PT

Can your cellphone check your blood sugar? What does a wireless BandAid do? Is my pill networked? Can a videogame cure cancer? Will a robot care for my mom? Can an iPhone save my life? And, of course, does synthetic skin feel gross? The answer to the last question is yes, but it is also pretty astonishing to touch, as noted in one of the many tech-heavy talks at TEDMED, the medical and health-care conference, which has returned after a five-year hiatus, to Hotel Coronado near San Diego.