A post a slashdot about students in Texas receiving suspensions for bypassing online filters has sparked quite a discussion (not surprisingly) about schools, technology and liability. Cliff at slashdot concluded the post by asking this:
While security breaches by students are something to take seriously, should school administrations continue with their knee-jerk mentality to something like this, especially at the times when its obvious that no malicious intent was involved?
I agree that the terms of the punishments, reported to be suspensions of up to three months, may be excessive, but without any details on the school policy or what actually transpired, I can only guess that the administrators felt that the length of the suspensions were appropriate for what was done. However, I disagree with the contributor’s comment that "the school district be liable for their own insecurity." The contributor goes on to ask, "Why are they punishing so many students for something that should be handled from the district’s end?"
It does not matter that the district was unable to prevent students from bypassing the filters. The fact is that the students likely violated an acceptable use policy, and therefore needed to be punished. As a public institution with limited resources, the school district has to prioritize how it manages its technology infrastructure. It is important to patch up any security holes, but it is impractical to spend half your day, every day, trying to block every known proxy server.
The discussion is lively, and like many discussions of socio-political nature, there are some very vocal sides in the discussion. Check it out.
A post at slashdot shows that some guys have too much time on their hands. A couple of guys hacked the Wiimote to control a robotic arm to wield a tennis racket or a sword. There’s a short video on their page to show the results of their work. Impressive, but seriously, way too much time.
I was reading about crazy materials that don’t act like your everyday materials. The first is a liquid that actually firms up when you hit it, allowing you to "walk on water," so to speak. The article linked to a non-English video of the liquid, but it’s amazing to just to watch it. Check it out:
This fluid is called a Non-Newtonian fluid. The Wikipedia article is nice and short.
I’m a couple of weeks behind on my RSS feeds, so this is kind of old news. I thought it was hilarious, so I’m posting it anyway. Congressional aide Todd Schriber, press aid to Rep. Denny Rehberg (R-Montana), contacted attrition.org in August 2006 to hire a hacker to change his grades at Texas Christian University. ATTRITION is a security group that collects and disseminates information about computer security.
This one is for the educators out there to all cringe when they read it. New Zealand’s Qualification Authority (NZQA) will allow students to use IM/SMS/text-speak shorthand on national exams and receive full credit, given that the meaning of shortened words and phrases is still clear. The NZQA will not accept text-speak on all exams, saying that the English exam will penalize such shorthand.
I hope for the sake of America’s education that something like this does not set a precedent that we follow. The American educational system has gone through some insensible changes in the past ten years, but the change in New Zealand might even be too much for our Department of Education to enact.
The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) has spent almost $50,000 on unsolicited phone calls to residents of the Illinois 8th District. David McSweeney is the Republican running for Congress in the Illinois 8th, yet the phone call starts off by saying, "Hello, I’m calling with information about Melissa Bean." Congresswoman Melissa Bean is the Democrat running for Congress in the Illinois 8th. Recipients of the calls who hang up right away are lead to believe that the call is from supporters of Melissa Bean. Those who listen to the remainder of the call hear a smear message about Congresswoman Bean. This is not limited to the Illinois 8th, but it is also happening in the Illinois 6th and other districts across the country.
Will politicians stop at nothing to win these elections? I phrase that question with politicians and not Republicans because I cannot say with any certainty that Democrats are guilt-free in using dirty tactics to win an election. Although according to Keith Olbermann’s Special Comment the other night, President Bush will surely stop at nothing to keep his party in power. What is your take on the dirty tactics being used in our nation’s elections?
Update: The FBI has launched an investigation of deceptive calls received by some Virginia residents. One caller claimed to be from the Board of Elections, and threatened criminal charges against Timothy Daly of Arlington if he voted in Virginia. The reason? The caller said that Daly was registered to vote in New York, not Virginia. Another caller, claiming to work for the Democratic candidate Jim Webb, told Lawrence Baumann that his polling place had been moved to a non-existent street. It appears that these intimidating and deceptive calls were all directed towards Democratic voters. Check one more line crossed!
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