Do you have any children in school? I have a 12-year-old and 16-year-old, and when I see what they have to carry in their backpacks on a daily basis, I can only shake my head. All this superfluous paper and books and folders and assorted paraphernalia, only distracts from the learning process, I would argue, instead. One laptop is all that is needed.
These changes are inevitable, I think. But I'm curious: why do you think that a laptop need be any more destructible than hand-me-down text book? And if properly designed, it could easily replace all of this crap. Schedules, tests, quizzes... everything in one simple package. How can you dispute the simplicity of a single device vs. a pile of paper? Heck, alone the paper saved wasted would offset the cost of the laptop, and the daily use breeds familiarization with a device that they will have to use their entire life, in all probability - not paper and pencil. Or do you not use the computer in you daily work?
I'm just amazed how many in Slashdot commenters are so convinced that computers are bad for kids. My kids have been using them since they could move a mouse, and I am quite pleased with the abilities they've developed over the years. I still dream of the paperless classroom and office... the resistance continues.
and how do you search that book, cross-reference it with 100 other works and validate its positions relative to current events or public opinion? Or update it? Or refute it? And in terms of the analogy, try this instead: computer is to car, what horse is to book - I'd be interested in your refutation. Book is powerful and capable of much... but computer is book on steroids, sorry. I'll see your book and raise it a few powers of 10.
I don't recall conservatism being defined quite in that manor, but I know exactly how to interpret your innuendo, and I think you know exactly what I meant. Conservatism and Technology do not go together - never noticed that? Technology is driven by progressive advance, tossing out-moded approaches and replacing them with gradually better and more practical solutions. It's not about validating the status quo, or nay-saying or downplaying new alternatives; it's about solutions to improve and enrich quality of life.
no offense intended, but as an experiment, please subsititute the following words while reading the parent post: computer/laptop/desktop=car, book=horse, school=job. Now ask yourself: is this a progressive or a conservative stance, in restropection of the events around the turn of the 20th century.
Progessive Answer:
1) We simply build cheaper, rugged laptops, e.g. ruggedized http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%24100_laptop, perhaps borrowing designs from the ones built with our tax-dollars to support our military in nation building operations.
2) We include software to reduce tampering and moderate freetime activities (IM, MySpace, Youtube, et al).
3) We develop methods to teach our children how to use this tool to their best advantage to help every child and every human being reach their full potential.
Bottom Line: Every human being deserves access to this resource, and the sooner we can accomplish this feat, the closer we will be to becoming the global society that we must become to avert certain self-extermination at the hands of ignorance.
Slashdot Mirror
Do you have any children in school? I have a 12-year-old and 16-year-old, and when I see what they have to carry in their backpacks on a daily basis, I can only shake my head. All this superfluous paper and books and folders and assorted paraphernalia, only distracts from the learning process, I would argue, instead. One laptop is all that is needed. These changes are inevitable, I think. But I'm curious: why do you think that a laptop need be any more destructible than hand-me-down text book? And if properly designed, it could easily replace all of this crap. Schedules, tests, quizzes ... everything in one simple package. How can you dispute the simplicity of a single device vs. a pile of paper? Heck, alone the paper saved wasted would offset the cost of the laptop, and the daily use breeds familiarization with a device that they will have to use their entire life, in all probability - not paper and pencil. Or do you not use the computer in you daily work?
I'm just amazed how many in Slashdot commenters are so convinced that computers are bad for kids. My kids have been using them since they could move a mouse, and I am quite pleased with the abilities they've developed over the years. I still dream of the paperless classroom and office ... the resistance continues.
and how do you search that book, cross-reference it with 100 other works and validate its positions relative to current events or public opinion? Or update it? Or refute it? And in terms of the analogy, try this instead: computer is to car, what horse is to book - I'd be interested in your refutation. Book is powerful and capable of much ... but computer is book on steroids, sorry. I'll see your book and raise it a few powers of 10.
I don't recall conservatism being defined quite in that manor, but I know exactly how to interpret your innuendo, and I think you know exactly what I meant. Conservatism and Technology do not go together - never noticed that? Technology is driven by progressive advance, tossing out-moded approaches and replacing them with gradually better and more practical solutions. It's not about validating the status quo, or nay-saying or downplaying new alternatives; it's about solutions to improve and enrich quality of life.
no offense intended, but as an experiment, please subsititute the following words while reading the parent post: computer/laptop/desktop=car, book=horse, school=job. Now ask yourself: is this a progressive or a conservative stance, in restropection of the events around the turn of the 20th century. Progessive Answer: 1) We simply build cheaper, rugged laptops, e.g. ruggedized http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%24100_laptop, perhaps borrowing designs from the ones built with our tax-dollars to support our military in nation building operations. 2) We include software to reduce tampering and moderate freetime activities (IM, MySpace, Youtube, et al). 3) We develop methods to teach our children how to use this tool to their best advantage to help every child and every human being reach their full potential. Bottom Line: Every human being deserves access to this resource, and the sooner we can accomplish this feat, the closer we will be to becoming the global society that we must become to avert certain self-extermination at the hands of ignorance.