BUCAT

Excellent post by the author who was not looking to use Facebook in a "formal" sense, as a platform to present specific course content. Instead, his goal was to use Fb in an "informal" manner, encouraging each member of the class to see him or herself as a part of the whole

A really neat real-time counter of social media activity

A pretty comprehensive list of ePortfolio tools

Personal profile pages and rich media are coming to Twitter!

Some really neat apps on this list!

Mandatory: an iPod Touch, iPhone or iPad (I would argue a tablet in general). "It's getting to the point where there are a number of professions students are going into where knowing how to use technology is required." The article notes "many technology trends become mandatory over time. Today's college students are expected to participate in online forums, e-mail professors and submit papers electronically."

"First off, where are the books? There are almost none left on the first floor. Thousands of volumes have been moved to the upper floors, along with the circulation desk. Some have been jettisoned."

The polling and inline MP3 player could be really useful!

Does FERPA ban schools from allowing students to post their schoolwork on the open Web? Yesterday, Georgia Tech deleted all student history and participation from the school's "Swikis," the wikis that students use for their coursework. Georgia Tech has been using wikis for this purpose since 1997, pioneering the usage of the collaborative tools for undergraduate education. One of the features of the school's wikis was that they allowed for cross-course and cross-semester communication. You could, should you choose, remain in a wiki for a class you'd taken previously, for example.

A Bluetooth page-turning device operated by the feet. I saw this used by a pianist in a recital this past weekend. Cool!

British researchers scanned the brains of 125 college students who used Facebook, then compared the scans with the number of online and real-world friends the students had. Findings show people with more friends have certain areas of the brain that are larger than those with fewer friends, but the link is not clear.

A list of educational hashtags and other sources about academic uses of Twitter

Includes a comparison chart (Diigo, Delicious, Browser) and a high level overview of Diigo (including screenshots). According to Ruffini, Diigo "fosters research-sharing and collaboration in new ways. Not only can students bookmark, organize, and collaborate on various projects and research, but this service gives them - and teachers - the opportunity to organize and manage web resources and documents. Diigo has useful educational applications, as well, such as organizing bookmarks for resources and research, collaborative learning, and professional development."

Defines social bookmarking and provides uses within classroom.

Good tools for keeping track of things

"Students moving into a newly renovated dormitory at the University of Kentucky signed up for a hyperwired college experience: Each one was given an iPad and required to take a series of tech-themed courses."

Good post on effective writing

Women use social networks to connect with their friends, family and colleagues more than men, finds a new survey. Men, however, are more likely to use voice/phone communication than women.

Good, concise thoughts about a professional portfolio