What do Kansas City, Chicago, and Seattle have in common? Extremely fast internet paving the way for ubiquitous computing.

Emerging technology has had a strong geographical component. With Google Fiber up and running in Kansas City and tech start-ups burgeoning in Des Moines, we may see yet another wellspring of innovation in the Midwest. This could have significant implications on rural education and agtech.

My guess is that insufficient momentum or critical mass exists in other regions, Danna. The article mentions the Southwest and Great Plains as two regions with an increase in angel investors. The Southwest probably represents spillover from Silicon Valley, while the Great Plains benefits from large metropolitan areas, good universities, and a concentration of young professional residents. I also think that tech start-ups and VC firm naturally promote the growth of one another.

I'm interested to see where this might lead and whether it'll have any implications for education.

In light of our recent Blackboard Collaborate class during Sandy, I got curious as to what other good online delivery platforms are out there. I am preparing to teach the MIT App Inventor curriculum to some high school girls on the other side of the world and am wondering if maybe there's a better alternative to Skype. I came across Piazza, which is free and seems to be gaining traction in higher ed. I also once took an online course with Kaplan and really liked their interface, but don't remember what it was and now it seems they are moving toward a platform called "KapX." If anyone can recommend additional platforms, please let me know.

Although most apps are geared toward the iPad, here are some for Android OS, which could be a more economical alternative for schools and consumers.

For EDC research group

Great list of award winning apps for ESL learners.

For EDC research group.

Free iPad app for ESL learners ranked by community member votes

For EDC research group