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"Discovery Communications To Launch New Multimedia, Multi-Year Science Initiative, "Be The Future," Supporting Obama Administration STEM Priorities -- DirecTV Boosts Support of Science Literacy with Move of Science Channel to Total Choice, Offering Millions of Additional Subscribers Access to Quality Science Programming -- November 23, 2009 (Silver Spring, Md.) Underscoring its commitment to leading in science-related programming and education, and answering President Obama's call to action to encourage science literacy, Discovery Communications today announced a new multimedia, multi-year nationwide initiative called "Be The Future." Over the next five years, Discovery will launch a programming block, education curriculum and tools to inspire student learning and careers in the sciences and support the White House's efforts behind science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) education. "Lifting American students from the middle to the top of the pack in STEM achievement over the next decade will not be attained by government alone," said President Obama. "I applaud the substantial commitments made today by the leaders of companies, universities, foundations, non-profits and organizations representing millions of scientists, engineers and teachers from across the country." "The exploration of science, technology and the natural world is central to the mission and DNA of Discovery Communications and we are incredibly proud to put the full muscle of our content and resources behind this critical White House initiative," said John S. Hendricks, founder and chairman, Discovery Communications. "Through 'Be the Future' we will spark the innate curiosity in school-aged viewers and people of all ages, help drive interest and leadership in science-related careers and inspire a lifelong interest in how science shapes our everyday lives." A sweeping, multi-platform initiative, "Be the Future" will be built on two primary Discovery businesse

"We now have an opportunity to bring hands-on, tinkering-based learning to a new level in the United States. The growing body of work supported by foundations coupled with an Administration that is highly supportive of innovation in learning makes for a powerful force. In his April 27th speech to the National Academies of Science, the President made this call to action: "I want to encourage you to participate in programs to allow students to get a degree in science fields and a teaching certificate at the same time. I want us all to think about new and creative ways to engage young people in science and engineering, whether it's science festivals, robotics competitions, fairs that encourage young people to create and build and invent -- to be makers of things, not just consumers of things." To achieve this goal we should provide students the tools to experiment and build their own tools, machines and platforms. This Administration supports hands-on experiences that allow children to learn at their own pace through discovery and building. National Lab Day (NLD) is a platform to scale hands-on learning across the country. Each NLD will encompass a year-long series of training and activities which will culminate in a day of sharing and recognition. We plan on a series of NLD's to build to our goals."

"Good corporate citizenship and operating responsibly are important to Microsoft's long term success. We strive to be a positive partner in communities, and manage our environmental footprint. What Citizenship Means at Microsoft: Our mission is to help people and businesses throughout the world realize their full potential. As the world's largest software company, Microsoft helps to create social and economic opportunities wherever we work, live, and do business. Our technology innovations, our people, our partnerships, and our day-to-day business contribute to the prosperity of communities and the sustainability of the planet. Our commitment to good corporate citizenship reflects our belief that social and economic opportunity go hand in hand. When individuals, communities, and governments thrive, so do we. Our citizenship efforts focus on four key areas that allow us to best use our technology, people, partnerships and business to promote social good and economic opportunity."

Welcome students! Enter for a chance to see your photo displayed on the Bing homepage on the 40th anniversary of Earth Day, April 22nd plus win other great prizes for you and your school.

"A teenager's hands flew in the air as he walked under a cedar tree on the GSD campus. I asked the Superintendent, "What was he saying?" He responded, "Oh nothing, he walked through a spider web." My first day on the job and I didn't know the difference between brushing off a spider web and sign language. I vowed to learn this poetry in motion. As the only art teacher in 1970, I would teach almost 700 students every week in an old civil war era building across the street from the main campus. Talk about total immersion! Students ranged in age from 5 to 21 with a high percentage who had deaf family. Maybe my interest in sculpture and drama helped me pick up the nuances of ASL for in a short time I was interpreting for teacher meetings and then college classes."

"All that has been integrated into NVC has been known for centuries about consciousness, language, communication skills, and use of power that enable us to maintain a perspective of empathy for ourselves and others, even under trying conditions." Marshall B. Rosenberg, Phd Nonviolent Communication contains nothing new. It is based on historical principles of nonviolence-- the natural state of compassion when no violence is present in the heart. NVC reminds us what we already instinctively know about how good it feels to authentically connect to another human being. With NVC we learn to hear our own deeper needs and those of others. Through its emphasis on deep listening-to ourselves as well as others-NVC helps us discover the depth of our own compassion. This language reveals the awareness that all human beings are only trying to honor universal values and needs, every minute, every day. NVC can be seen as both a spiritual practice that helps us see our common humanity, using our power in a way that honors everyone's needs, and a concrete set of skills which help us create life-serving families and communities."

"Automotive Youth Educational Systems (AYES) is a partnership among participating automotive manufacturers, participating dealerships, and select secondary automotive programs. It's designed to encourage young people to consider satisfying careers in retail automotive service, and prepare them for entry-level career positions or advanced studies in automotive technology. Through its dealership and school partners, AYES strives to enhance the public image of dealerships and dealership careers, build local partnerships between dealerships and high quality schools, and foster positive working environments in dealerships. Dealerships today are in competition for qualified employees, not only among themselves, but also among restaurants, mass marketers, other retail outlets and other professions. Dealerships need to reach out to young people and their parents to explain the challenge and rewards of pursuing a retail automotive career. AYES is helping in this effort by providing "how to" ideas and support materials on conducting dealership tours for educators and youngsters, offering "job shadowing" opportunities, and taking part in "career days" and "career fairs" at local schools."

"On the Air: Television's most-watched history series, American Experience has been hailed as "peerless" (Wall Street Journal), "the most consistently enriching program on television" (Chicago Tribune), and "a beacon of intelligence and purpose" (Houston Chronicle). On air and online, the series brings to life the incredible characters and epic stories that have shaped America's past and present. Acclaimed by viewers and critics alike, American Experience documentaries have been honored with every major broadcast award, including twenty-four Emmy Awards, four duPont-Columbia Awards, and fourteen George Foster Peabody Awards, one most recently for Two Days in October. On the Web: American Experience Online premiered in November 1995 and has won accolades from viewers and critics alike. To date, American Experience Online has produced over 130 feature sites. These sites enable viewers to watch films online and encourage in-depth exploration of each film beyond the television screen. American Experience Online has been recognized by online and print publications including Yahoo!, USA Today Online, Broadcasting and Cable, and TV Guide"

"A few years ago, I realized my son, Jack, didn't exactly love books. We'd always read to him as a baby, and he was beginning to read for school. When he got home, him going to the shelf and picking up a book was about as likely as his pulling out a notebook and solving quantum physics problems. Actually, the latter was more likely. He's a smart kid. So Sue and I took it on ourselves to fix the problem if we could. Starting that summer, and every summer since, we went out and found books that I was pretty sure he'd not just read, but would love to read. That was a big part of the inspiration for READKIDDOREAD. But, more than that, the experience with Jack got me writing books that I hoped he and other kids would love to read. Before then, I'd always written books just for grown-ups. In fact, one of my proudest moments as a writer was when I passed him the manuscript of The Dangerous Days of Daniel X. Not only did he like it, he told me it was his favorite. Anyhow, the Daniel X series, the Maximum Ride series, and the Witch & Wizard series were written for just this purpose. Jack got me writing books that I thought other kids would love. To contribute a few books that hopefully, will make kids readers for life. But don't take my word for it. Read some of the feedback these books have gotten from parents, grandparents, teachers, librarians, and even critics. I hope you and your young readers enjoy them, too."

"Our Motivation: On other projects we were left frustrated and overwhelmed when trying to grasp what our users really wanted. Unorganized inboxes and clogged ticket systems ruled the day. Forums were awash with duplication, user support was impossible to determine, and valuable ideas were lost in the shuffle. UserVoice adds structure to feedback and reduces the overhead of an honest dialog with our users - It creates a market around good ideas so we get more quality than quantity"

"iCivics (formerly Our Courts) is a web-based education project designed to teach students civics and inspire them to be active participants in our democracy. iCivics is the vision of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, who is concerned that students are not getting the information and tools they need for civic participation, and that civics teachers need better materials and support."

"Games for Change (G4C) is a non-profit which seeks to harness the extraordinary power of video games to address the most pressing issues of our day, including poverty, education, human rights, global conflict and climate change. G4C acts as a voice for the transformative power of games, bringing together organizations and individuals from the nonprofit sector, government, journalism, academia, industry and the arts, to grow the sector and provide a platform for the exchange of ideas and resources. Through this work, Games for Change promotes new kinds of games that engage contemporary social issues in meaningful ways to foster a more just, equitable and tolerant society"

"Our mission is simple. We want to promote the use of audio and video educational material for personal and professional development. What does this mean? It means that we want to help you to see how you can turn 'dead time' (time spent commuting, exercising, doing chores, etc.) into 'learning time.' Most of us have at least a couple of hours each day where we could be learning a foreign language, deepening our spiritual or philosophical interests or learning about any of hundreds of different subjects. We want to help you find material that is both entertaining and educational. We encourage you to join us in Learning Out Loud. Through our site we will help you discover new content and ways to incorporate audio learning into your daily life. We invite you to check out all of the areas of our site including our catalog (with over 7,000 audio and video titles), our articles and our publisher and author resource pages. We also invite you to participate in our community through our blog, forums, newsletter and podcast. LearnOutLoud.com is based in Santa Monica, California, an area of the country known for horrendous commute times. We're just getting going and hope to offer you a whole lot more in the future. We welcome you to contact us at any time with feedback, suggestions, business opportunities or anything else that you can think of. We're here to serve. Keep letting us know what we can do to help you better utilize the power of audio and video learning in your life!"

"The Associated Press is the backbone of the world's information system serving thousands of daily newspaper, radio, television and online customers with coverage in all media and news in all formats. It is the largest and oldest news organization in the world, serving as a source of news, photos, graphics, audio and video. AP's mission is to be the essential global news network, providing distinctive news services of the highest quality, reliability and objectivity with reports that are accurate, balanced and informed. AP operates as a not-for-profit cooperative with more than 4,000 employees working in more than 240 worldwide bureaus. AP is owned by its 1,500 U.S. daily newspaper members. They elect a board of directors that directs the cooperative. AP supplies a steady stream of news around the clock to its domestic members, international subscribers and commercial customers. It has the industry's most sophisticated digital photo network, a 24-hour continuously updated online news service, a state-of-the-art television news service and one of the largest radio networks in the United States. It also has a commercial digital photo archive, a photo library housing more than 10 million images. AP has received 49 Pulitzer Prizes, more than any other news organization in the categories for which it can compete. It has 30 photo Pulitzers, the most of any news organization. The Associated Press is the essential global news network, delivering fast, unbiased news from every corner of the world to all media platforms and formats. Founded in 1846, AP today is the largest and most trusted source of independent news and information. On any given day, more than half the world's population sees news from AP."

"The Georgia Forestry Association, one of the oldest conservation organizations in the United States, was founded in 1907. At that time, tree farming was a family tradition. Land was passed from generation to generation and with it, a love of the land that became our heritage. Through the years, GFA has worked with landowners in protecting their property rights and adopting sound land management practices to ensure that our forests continue to provide clean air, clean water, soil conservation, wildlife habitat, recreation and products that we all use every day. Georgia's forests are vital to lives of many state residents, from private landowners and foresters to loggers and thousands of others employed by the forestry community. Who better to manage Georgia's forests than the very people who want to see them prosper? The Georgia Forestry Association is committed to protecting our forests and their future. For 100 years, GFA has been the "voice of forestry," working to educate business, environmental and political leaders about responsible forest management practices, reforestation, benefits derived from forestry and landowner rights. In turn, GFA serves as a resource, keeping members informed of legislative and regulatory issues that can affect the long-term health and value of forested land. GFA also provides a diverse resource of technical information that can help you better grow your forestry investment. GFA members can assist in implementing responsible land management practices and offer sound advice on making the most of your resources."

"You know how good it feels to come home to find an unexpected gift from a friend? That's the same excitement you get every day with the KODAK PULSE Digital Frame. Now everyone can send pictures right to your frame, giving you continuous surprises. Adding your own pictures is easy too. It doesn't slow you down with time-consuming software setups or complicated technology. It makes connecting with friends and family simple, so you'll always have new pictures to relive and enjoy."

"Hello, kids! Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Benjamin Franklin. I will be your guide throughout this site. You probably know me best as a Founding Father and from my "shocking" kite experiment. I have been chosen to represent GPO Access since I was involved in setting up the first public library in America and my work during the early days of government printing has led some people to give me the honorary title of "first public printer" of the United States."

"RateMyProfessors.com is the Internet's largest listing of collegiate professor ratings, with more than 6.8 million student-generated ratings of over 1 million professors. Each year, millions of college students use the site to help plan their class schedules and rate current and past professors on attributes such as helpfulness and clarity. Online since 1999, RateMyProfessors.com currently offers ratings on college and university professors from over 6,000 schools across the United States, Canada, England, Scotland and Wales with thousands of new ratings added each day."

"BitTorrent is the global standard for delivering high-quality files over the Internet. With an installed base of over 160 million clients worldwide, BitTorrent technology has turned conventional distribution economics on its head. The more popular a large video, audio or software file, the faster and cheaper it can be transferred with BitTorrent. The result is a better digital entertainment experience for everyone. With tens of thousands of new users every day, BitTorrent has multiple lines of business:"

"A Legacy of Education Education has always been a core value of the Walt Disney Company. Since 1945, when Disney became the first studio to bring educational films into schools, educators have turned to Disney Educational Productions for award-winning classroom media that enhances learning and unlocks student creativity. We believe that kids who succeed at learning grow to love learning, and it's that life-long celebration of curiosity and innovation that built the Walt Disney Company. Building Thinkers Every Day...For more than 60 years, our programs have been receiving numerous awards and accolades -- among them Oscars, Emmys, and honors from organizations such as the National Safety Council and Learning Magazine. Today we are harnessing the timeless power of immersive storytelling with the new possibilities of dynamic multimedia to provide teachers with the tools they need to engage, inform, and inspire learners of all types. We collaborate with educators, curriculum specialists, scientists, mathematicians, historians, writers, musicians, artists, and many other skilled and passionate experts to create compelling content based on national curriculum standards. Our classroom edition DVDs include public performance rights, educator's guides, exclusive educational bonus features, and assessment tools to reinforce key lessons."