Research Question Two

From Horizon.au

NOTE: This wiki is the archive for the 2008 and 2009 Horizon Project: Australia-New Zealand Edition projects. Please refer to the current Project Wiki for the latest information.
Jump to: navigation, search

Horizon.au » Research Question | One | Two | Three | Four | Five

PROCESS: Please enter your responses to the research question in the space below.

You may list as many items as you wish (and we hope you will!), but please list each item separately -- that is, if you say wish to list widget1, process2, and idea3 as important, please list each item as a separate bullet point (asterisk), as we will be rank ordering these later. Do not list them as a single paragraph, as that will hamper the process.

Please also add your name or initials after each item so that we can follow up with you if we need additional information or leads to examples-- use your initials, or preferably, the signature button in the wiki editor button_sig.jpg If an item on your list is already listed here, just add your comment to the end of it, with your initials/signature.

Research Question Two

What technologies that have a solid user base in consumer, entertainment, or other industries should learning-focused institutions in Australia and New Zealand be actively looking for ways to apply?

NOTE: This question pushes the notion of "established" technologies outside of education, and seeks to uncover things that are well established "in the world", but not yet in education. Answers should be easy to support with actual examples and pointers to things people outside of education are actually doing.


Apple's purchase of chipmaker PA Semi also points to a new generation of mobile internet devices which should appear in the next year or so. --KeeneH 20:30, 31 May 2009 (PDT) The smartbook revolution powered by ARM processors instead of Atom will user in a new type of device to compete with the netbook genre. ARM processors offer significantly better battery life but less computing power of the Atom among other things. --KeeneH 20:30, 31 May 2009 (PDT) The emergence of personal hotspot technology will truly deliver broadband WiFi anywhere 3G networks are available. Novatel's MiFi offered initially by Verizon is a good example See NYTimes article.--KeeneH 20:34, 31 May 2009 (PDT) The recent release of the HTC Magic exclusive in New Zealand to Vodafone and Vodafone’s first Android-powered smartphone (http://www.geekzone.co.nz/content.asp?contentid=8206) is a signal of things to come, with lease conditions that makes it competitive with simply renting one of their vodem cards.(http://www.geekzone.co.nz/content.asp?contentid=8206) The key thing is that these mobile devices may take a range of forms, and the indication of a trend here is at last we are seeing the ability to realise the "any place, any time, any device" dream of truly ubiquitous computing. --Dwenmoth 21:38, 31 May 2009 (PDT) Many students (tertiary and secondary) have this ability already but do not use it because of cost/pricing plans for data and lack of mobile formatted or specific content - for example http://www.acu.edu/technology/mobilelearning/index.html --Achurches 23:41, 31 May 2009 (PDT) Forbes has an article about Apple's plans for its new ARM processors. The article gives a peak a what sort of things one can expect from such a processor and sort of new opportunities will arise for mobile devices. --KeeneH 09:13, 1 June 2009 (PDT), I believe that the potential offered by such technology, particularly that of providing an increasingly rich media learning experience is great, but I think that matters such as pricing policies and their impact on practicality of use should not be underestimated in terms of uptake --Ashfordrowe 19:41, 1 June 2009 (PDT) I agree. Many of the excellent applications for mobile devices will be held back in Australia/NZ if we don't reach agreement with carriers and service providers on the cost effective provision of capacity --NickTate 21:09, 2 June 2009 (PDT)

  • Electronic Readers. Devices like the Kindle and Kindle DX, along with supporting technologies like e-Ink, are reaching a critical mass and attracting the attention of major publishers. Watch the video at http://www.niemanlab.org/2009/05/the-new-york-times-envisions-version-20-of-the-newspaper/ --Larry 00:26, 13 May 2009 (PDT){a very real option --porophil 04:03, 28 May 2009 (PDT) In the next 12 months or so a number of e-readers will hit the market. Aside from the Kindle, others include iRex Iliad,eSlick Reader, Plastic Logic'soffering, Sony Reader,Bookeen Cybook, and the flexible display Readius Pocket Reader. I also added this to Question One. --KeeneH 17:28, 31 May 2009 (PDT) A repeat of my note from Q1 too - The readers are here (or coming in myriad forms); they are convenient and increasingly comfortable to use; now we wait (because we must) for mainstream text publishers moving from what they know and profit well from to addressing this seriously. No shortage of 'airport/popular/classic reading' out there; not too many science/engineering texts yet -a few chemistry, engineering or biology texts are a serious backpack load - we live in hope.--Patreg 05:12, 2 June 2009 (PDT)
  • Alternative Interfaces. Interaction models that move beyond the computer-mouse-keyboard paradigm. Examples include gestural interfaces, multi-touch interfaces, voice recognition, mobile bar codes and presence detection (ambient interaction). Multi-touch screens, for example, allow users to manipulate content intuitively, using natural gestures like flicking the wrist or sweeping the fingertips over a display. Accelerometer-based devices use speed, direction, and momentum as inputs. [...from the 2009 Horizon Report Short List] [Great for engineering - --Lydiak 21:51, 23 May 2009 (PDT)]More tactile interactive interfaces with haptic cues have so much application --CarolineS 23:59, 27 May 2009 (PDT) See the Future of Touch at NYT via ReadWriteWeb--KeeneH 17:16, 31 May 2009 (PDT) Just a Touchpad and a Screen --KeeneH 17:19, 31 May 2009 (PDT) SMART table in my classroom--KeeneH 17:24, 31 May 2009 (PDT), I think that such technology (being freed from the mouse and keyboard) 'might' enable us to realise application benefits that could transcend access issues with IT literacy.--Ashfordrowe 19:41, 1 June 2009 (PDT)
  • Geolocation. Geolocation technology is not new, but it is now beginning to appear in an increasing range of common devices like mobile phones, cameras, and other handheld devices. Similarly, mapping geolocative data is not new; but the ability to easily create map mashups online using multimedia and geotagged data is. This cluster of technologies is developing very rapidly. [...from the 2009 Horizon Report Short List] [As the ownership of geo-aware devices increases this will be a very powerful technology --Ttreagus 22:17, 24 May 2009 (PDT)]--CarolineS 23:59, 27 May 2009 (PDT) [this is an incerdible resource to develop for environmental/geographical disciplines --porophil 04:03, 28 May 2009 (PDT) [Likely to see increased use in the next couple of years in certain disciplines. --Gcrisp01 19:05, 28 May 2009 (PDT)] Also, disciplines outside of traditional geosciences will embrace this technology as many areas of the humanities deal with location based content such as literature, film, archaeology, fine arts and social work. HASTAC has a good thread at Mapping the Digital Humanties--KeeneH 13:56, 29 May 2009 (PDT) I may have mentioned this guy in last years' work, but Greg Giannis from Victoria Uni has been doing some interesting work in "Peripato Telematikos" http://www.peripato.net --Athoman 22:06, 30 May 2009 (PDT) Geotagging has entered the mainstream, especially for imagery and increasingly for video. Flickr, YouTube, Panoramio and iPhoto are all good examples of how this is becoming commonplace. The process of geotagging is getting easier and devices like the iPhone can geotag your pictures seamlessly. Any device that can be moved will become geolocation aware. Apple's upcoming Snow Leopard reports to be geolocation aware and Google's recently released Latitude along with a number of geo-aware iPhone apps such as Loopt and Whrrl are gaining traction. --KeeneH 20:15, 31 May 2009 (PDT. I am very much in agreement with KeeneH here, and think that the challenge here will be to establish educational uses in the short term. --Ashfordrowe 19:41, 1 June 2009 (PDT). Agreed - this has great potential --Patreg 05:12, 2 June 2009 (PDT)
  • Virtual Worlds. Hundreds of educational institutions have chosen to enter the virtual arena over the past few years, and now we are seeing increased use of these spaces for truly immersive forms of learning and for a level of collaboration that is erasing traditional boundaries and borders rapidly. The technology that supports virtual worlds is advancing at a rapid rate, paving the way for more realistic environments, connections between different platforms, and new ways to enter and use virtual spaces. [...from the 2009 Horizon Report Short List] [Still only being used on a small scale, this will increase over the next year or two in a whole range of disciplines --Ttreagus 22:17, 24 May 2009 (PDT)]--CarolineS 23:59, 27 May 2009 (PDT) [pontial use in undergrad research experience --porophil 04:03, 28 May 2009 (PDT) [Will see a major use of these systems when it is easy for teachers to create their own activities. At the moment it is still a steep learning curve for many teachers. Requires more intuitive educational tools to be incorporated into the systems, not just technical tools to move and interact in a 3D environment. --Gcrisp01 19:05, 28 May 2009 (PDT)]The greatest hurdle for adopting this technology is risk averse environments where control outweighs the opportunity for experimentation and innovation. This acts to restrict the infusion of cutting edge technologies into the educational sector, It is necessary to consider the use of the technology in a closed environment. Virtual worlds provide the means to rethink how subjects might be reconstituted to create both an in-world and an out-world experience. The development of the virtual world can be an integral part of the learning experience i.e students do the research and desgin of the world --Craven 21:33, 30 May 2009 (PDT) 'Nebraska' is on the way? https://blogs.secondlife.com/community/workinginworld/blog/2009/04/01/second-life-lives-behind-a-firewall; or some such solution that might make this more attractive in 'school situations' --Patreg 05:12, 2 June 2009 (PDT) Virtual worlds built around real world data is coming into its own. With the maturation of the Google Earth browser plug-in and richer API, the door is opening for many possibilities that are getting increasingly interactive. See Google Earth Plug-in Gallery. Also see the detailed 3D rendering of Disneyland Paris as an example of what can be done. The video shows the detailed 3D imagery. Finally, the recently released Ships game from PlanetinAction shows the potential of this real world virtual platform. --KeeneH 20:04, 31 May 2009 (PDT) Alternatively, mashing really world data into Second Life is becoming a reality. See ReadWriteWeb article Finally, A practical use for Second Life. --KeeneH 20:51, 31 May 2009 (PDT. I believe that these types of technologies have terrific potential to mediate a situated and 'authentic' learning environment, but that they have a way to go yet. --Ashfordrowe 19:41, 1 June 2009 (PDT)
  • The Personal Web. Online publishing tools like blogs, Twitter, Tumblr, Facebook, and the like have become mainstream – online publishing tools are being employed in the process of education as a means for personal and professional reflection, collaborative work, research, and the development of a public voice. The same set of technologies is being harnessed to create highly flexible, unique personal learning environments. [...from the 2009 Horizon Report Short List] Yes and with the rapid development in mobile technologies this personalised web can be easily transformed into highly portable personalised learning and social environments --CarolineS 23:59, 27 May 2009 (PDT) --porophil 04:03, 28 May 2009 (PDT)Students should be afforded the opportunity to publish their material and to read the work of other students - the good bad and the ugly. This provides the opportunity to compare and contract and to learn from others and will make the assessment process more transparent. Novatel's MiFi offered initially by Verizon is a good example of truly delivering a personal Wifi web connection. See NYTimes article --KeeneH 20:51, 31 May 2009 (PDT) The newMyGeoDiary website offers an example of personalizing geo-stories and sharing them online. Meehive offers the promise of truly personalized "newspaper" delivering information finely tuned for you. --KeeneH 20:58, 31 May 2009 (PDT)Many students make regular use of social networking sites as the personal web. Most secondary and tertairy students have accounts on facebook, bebo, myspace etc. The potential here for educational institutions (in a similar vein to what music groups have done) to become an integral part of the students personal communication and collaboration platforms. --Achurches 23:44, 31 May 2009 (PDT) . (http://technagogy.learningfield.org/2007/11/19/are-you-building-a-creepy-treehouse/)I think the potential is vast, particularly in facilitating the role of the learner, but the note of caution is to determine, 'how far the academy embeds itself into the 'personal' life of the student. In this instance, I believe that we should look to the 'real' world to provide us with practical guidance as to how and how far to go. --Ashfordrowe 19:41, 1 June 2009 (PDT)
  • Google Earth-type rich information storage The ability of a number of users to construct layers of different types of data. Again, great for engineering, fostering a systems-approach to design. [--Lydiak 21:55, 23 May 2009 (PDT)]incredible potential for application in so many disciplines --CarolineS 23:59, 27 May 2009 (PDT) [powerful tool --porophil 04:03, 28 May 2009 (PDT)[integration of the learning and assessment activities will continue to be a challenge. Access to these technologies is becoming more common, teachers can redesign their learning activities around students exploring and accessing this data in live sessions --Gcrisp01 19:05, 28 May 2009 (PDT)]--KeeneH 11:55, 29 May 2009 (PDT) Also the release of the new Google Maps v3 API and upgraded Google Earth Plugin API both point towards a convergence of 2D and 3D geo-content that can be visualized easily in either environment. See Google 2D/3D merging Also See Google Maps v3 api documentation --KeeneH 11:55, 29 May 2009 (PDT) Also see the recently updated Google Earth plug-in Gallery.--KeeneH 19:53, 31 May 2009 (PDT)
  • Emergence of Video Aggregators and TV Platforms. While not entirely new, video aggregation and sharing is now commonplace in mainstream web media. There is a consolidation and emergence of mainstream tv media now having an impact on the web as well such as the rise of Hulu]. As more educational video content becomes available these types of models might be worth considering for distribution and aggregation of motion based content. See Internet Video Trends: Video Aggregators and TV Platforms (Robin Good at masternewmedia.org)--KeeneH 13:48, 29 May 2009 (PDT)
  • Storage and creation of presentation materials in the cloud. The use of the cloud as a way to share and distribute large media files is commonplace in business and industry (see Slideshare; increasingly presentations are being created in the cloud as well with tools like Vuvox and Presi. See a presentation done in Presi for the 2009 Horizon Report. --Larry 16:22, 31 May 2009 (PDT) Syncing to the cloud will make computing between the desktop and cloud seamless. Services such asDropBox and Drop.ioalong with Apple's iDisk Sync capabilities allow one to compute on the desktop but always have access and sharing capabilities without any extra effort. --KeeneH 20:51, 31 May 2009 (PDT) The Educause publication released at the end of last year titled "The Tower and the Cloud" (http://www.educause.edu/thetowerandthecloud/133998) provides some excellent insights into the way that Cloud computing may impact on our traditional institutions. --Dwenmoth 21:44, 31 May 2009 (PDT) - I'll second The Tower and the Cloud. --KeeneH 23:42, 31 May 2009 (PDT). I believe that the potential (and the impact) of the cloud are only just beginning to emerge, but huge opportunities, particularly where increased media richness in the educational experience is likely to require storage beyond that achievable within individual institutions. --Ashfordrowe 19:41, 1 June 2009 (PDT)This will be hugely important in the future and is being used now by many students who, for example, have access to the skydrive in Microsoft's live@edu suite. One of the big issues for universities in Australia and New Zealand is the jurisdiction in which the data is stored. This is because of privacy issues. For example, the US is difficult but the EU is probably fine. It would, of course, be much easier if there was an ANZ facility. --NickTate 18:50, 2 June 2009 (PDT)
  • Storage & distribution of visual galleries - similar to the above. At UNSW we're currently evaluating solutions that enable students to upload and store their visual work in such a way that enables them to manage permissions, automate image sizes, assign to public/course groups, build into presentations/RSS badges etc and embed into pages. IN the interim we're running with FlickR to do this. --Robynjay 23:28, 31 May 2009 (PDT) CooIris could be an example of visual galleries. --KeeneH 23:42, 31 May 2009 (PDT) The ABC Pool project is another potential example http://www.pool.org.au --Gputland 03:43, 1 June 2009 (PDT). -- There was a great example at last years ASCILITE conference of a photography lecturer using Flickr to, what I see, its full potential. By asking students to upload and share their creative works using Flickr there were great affordances for both students and staff. What was cool form the teachers perspective was that Flickr was 'smart' about the camera, settings, etc that the students had used in their compositions which acted as valueble reference material for both students and teachers in informal formative assessment. I will try to find the eact reference. GregorK
  • Point of View (POV) - 'spy camera' technologies that enable both educators and students to record fine levels of detail with audio voice over. Loads of interest in VET and HIgher Ed for producing instructional material and enabling students to record assessment evidence of procedures at a distance via video streaming etc See EDUPOV--Robynjay 23:33, 31 May 2009 (PDT). Great potential in increasingly authentic assessment particularly in more competency related, vocational fields. --Ashfordrowe 19:41, 1 June 2009 (PDT)
  • Personal Video Cameras - 'Flip Cams' and the genre of very inexpensive digital video recorders is flooding the consumer market. These provide striking ways to create digital stories, record clinical practice procedures, and otherwise demonstrate skills that mentor academic staff can comment on providing terrific opportunities for formative assessment. e.g., http://carol-carolrb.blogspot.com/2009/04/flip-cam.html, "Life Skills:

Pre-Driver Education" http://www.flexiblelearning.net.au/flx/go/home/States_and_Territories/VIC/pid/615, --Longpd 09:25, 3 June 2009 (PDT)

  • Edit this page to add your response(s) [Larry]
  • Edit this page to add your response(s) [LJ]

Tools

To reach the other research questions, use the navigation links below:
Horizon.au » Research Question | One | Two | Three | Four | Five


Formatting for wiki entry

For adding responses to the research questions, use this format below. Do not enter a carriage return except at the end of your entry. The asterisk makes it a bulleted list item, and the three quotes make text bold. 

* '''Technology Title'''write a few sentences explaining the item
and include reference links for examples 
http://www.somewhere.com/somthing/cool
and end your comments by clicking the Signature button on the wiki
oe entering the code --~~~~

wiki-buttons.jpg

Retrieved from "http://horizon.nmc.org/australia/Research_Question_Two"
Personal tools
horizon.au archive
project partners