Last chance for the MiCTA Service Corporation cellular management webinar
2007 MiCTA conference updates and notes
Security Solutions for Higher Education-a Webinar from Qwest and Juniper Networks
Endorsed MiCTA Vendor, Sprint Nextel, & MiCTA Member, Inkster Public Schools, partner to Provide Parents Additional Peace of Mind with GPS Tracking
MiCTA Endorsed Desire2Learn Unveils Desire2Learn Essentials
An in-depth look at the problems associated with business and personal cell phone use
New Congress wastes no time on net neutrality, from Eschoolnews.com
Neutrality on the net gets high '08 profile
The need for a mobile strategy is now
Wireless LAN security: what hackers know that you don’t
FCC data on high-speed access and LEC competition
Converging Paths - FMC: Where Wireline & Wireless Meet FMC
The real cost of enterprise wireless mobility
Teachers and Educators-check out this month’s Grant Alert
News you can use
Just For Fun
Last chance for the MiCTA Service Corporation cellular management webinar
MiCTA Service Corporation invites you to a Web Conferencing solution for your Cellular Management issues March 15 th at 12 noon eastern time. There are several things that we have found that have affected our cellular society today. We will be bringing you guest speakers from both the wireless industry as well as the telecom management industry to speak about these issues. They will be speaking about effective ways to:
- Manage and control your wireless and inventory through several non-traditional and traditional ways.
- Find out where the cellular companies are hiding the best plans and promotions and effectively use these plans.
- How to maintain a database to control IRS issues and audits.
- Were to find discounts on personal phones if you do not have a company phone.
- Student Resale for colleges and what it takes for you to get started.
- How you can take control of every aspect of cellular.
- Where to find discounts on personal phones if you do not have a company phone.
- Student Resale for colleges and what it takes for you to get started.
- How you can take control of every aspect of cellular.
Please contact me at (586) 360-8421 to get more information or email me jvanduzen@micta.org
2007 MiCTA Conference Updates and Notes
The conference early registration cut-off date has been extended to April 15 th.
Exhibitors currently signed up:
Sprint
ActSoft
Coffman Electrical Equipment Company
Desire2Learn
Sensory Technologies
Verizon
ANGEL Learning
MiCTA 2007 Spring Conference Agenda
The James B. Henry Center for Executive Development
Michigan State University, East Lansing, Michigan
May 8 – 9, 2007
Tuesday, May 8, 2007
Exhibits Open at 7:30 pm
10:00 am - 5:30 pm Registration
10:00 am - 5:30 pm Exhibit Set-up
4:00 pm - 5:30 pm MiCTA Business Meeting – Nonprofit Members Only
7:30 pm - 9:30 pm Opening Reception
Wednesday, May 9, 2007
Exhibits Open at 10:30 am
7:30 am - 4:30 pm Registration
7:30 am - 8:30 am Continental Breakfast Provided
8:30 am - 8:45 am Welcome
8:45 am - 9:45 am Monopolistic Trends: Patents, Mergers, and Buyouts
9:45 am - 10:45 am Exhibits/Demos
10:45 am - 11:45 am State & Federal Regulatory Update
11:45 am 12:30 pm Lunch Provided/Exhibitors
12:30 pm - 1:30 pm Update of the State of Georgia State Wide VoIP Initiative
1:30 pm - 2:30 pmETOM: Intellectual Property and Distance Learning
2:30 pm - 3:30 pm CALEA Update
3:30 pm - 4:30 pm How will Patent & Legal Issues Effect Your Institution?
(Panel Discussion)
MiCTA has negotiated a reduced room rate with the CandleWood Suites, which is directly connected to the James B. Henry Center for Executive Development. The rates are $85 for a Studio Suite and $105 for a 1-bedroom suite. Please contact the CandleWood Suites at (517) 351-8181 to make your hotel reservation. The room cut-off date is April 8, 2007. When calling to make your reservation, please mention MiCTA to receive the reduced room rate.
Security Solutions for Higher Education-a Webinar from Qwest and Juniper Networks
Presented by Juniper Networks and Qwest® for all academic institutions and MiCTA members concerned about security on their campuses.
Please join Qwest and Juniper to learn how policy-based solutions can help you regain control over the internal and external security of your network.
The webinar, using real university scenarios and solutions, will teach you how to regain control over the internal and external security of your network with sophisticated policy-based solutions:
Protect campus network elements with secure routing and intrusion prevention systems.
Secure your remote users with industry leading SSL and key-logging detection
Enhance your security with network based virus protection, spam filtering and anti-
phishing capabilities.
When: March 22, 2007 Register Here
Time: 1PM – 2PM EST
Please read the attached invitation for more details. Upon registration, call in details and webinar links will be sent to your email address.
Endorsed MiCTA Vendor, Sprint Nextel, & MiCTA Member, Inkster Public Schools, Partner to Provide Parents Additional Peace of Mind with GPS Tracking
INKSTER, Mich. --(Business Wire)-- Sprint Nextel (NYSE:S) and the Inkster Public Schools today announced availability of a new tool to help the administration monitor the district's fleet of school buses real time.
The Inkster Public Schools, consisting of four schools (two elementary schools, a middle school and a high school) and approximately 1,600 students, is one of the first districts in Michigan to implement this GPS (global positioning system) solution. The district's 25 buses have been outfitted with mounted Motorola i355 GPS-enabled handsets. Each handset will be equipped with Comet Tracker from ActSoft, a GPS-tracking application, as well as Nextel Walkie-Talkie service, enabling instant voice communication between drivers and the district's transportation office. It also gives drivers the capability to contact 911 in an emergency.
"As Inkster Public Schools begin to grow and offer a variety of new educational programs, we believe the safety of our student population is paramount. We are so proud in partnering with Sprint Nextel to help ensure student safety on the school district's bus transportation system," said Pete Lopez, director, Technology, Inkster Public School District. "This new GPS solution tool will allow administrators to know and locate in real time, the status of every school bus that's transporting our children. Furthermore, it will collect valuable information to help us maintain and operate a more efficient and effective bus transportation department on limited school funds. The Inkster School District puts the safety of all children as a number one priority with GPS!” To continue reading this article, please click this link to the tmcnet.com website.
Please call the MiCTA offices at 888-870-8677 for more information on discounted MiCTA pricing for this great new solution from Sprint Nextel.
Endorsed Desire2Learn Unveils Desire2Learn Essentials
Kitchener – Waterloo, ON, February 27, 2007 - Desire2Learn Inc., today unveiled Desire2Learn Essentials, an exciting new product that offers smaller eLearning programs and institutions the ability to implement a rich and flexible enterprise-scale Learning Management System without a large technical support staff and with the best total cost of ownership. Desire2Learn Essentials is specifically designed for educational clients with fewer than 5000 users.
“Desire2Learn Essentials addresses the core issues smaller institutions face. This solution offers access to a powerful enterprise-scale application, with all the required tools and functionality enabling the rapid development, delivery, and management of the learning environment. Desire2Learn Essentials empowers smaller institutions to maximize their resources and enables them to have the same eLearning opportunities as larger institutions,” concluded Patricia Fellows, Instructional Technology and Training Coordinator at University of Wisconsin Colleges.
Desire2Learn Essentials, similar to the Desire2Learn Learning Environment, offers the foundation for improving learner achievement and ensuring eLearning success. Desire2Learn Essentials provides a web-based suite of easy-to-use tools and functionality enabling effective, and timely course development, delivery and management. This hosted solution provides clients with an integrated offer allowing them to focus on their core mandate.
“Educational institutions are often challenged to implement all the IT infrastructure and support they require, given their resource constraints. As a result, we developed Desire2Learn Essentials,” states John Baker, Desire2Learn President & CEO. “As a company that shares the ideals held by its educational clients, we wanted to find a way to provide clients with the best educational tools possible regardless of their size. This package will allow all our potential clients to have access to enterprise-class tools and functionality; removing another barrier in the delivery of effective education.”
For additional information please visit www.Desire2Learn.com, contact Info@Desire2Learn.com or call 1-888-772-0325.
About Desire2Learn Inc. - Desire2Learn Inc. is a world-leading provider of enterprise eLearning systems that enable organizations to create teaching and learning environments that reflect their vision, values, goals, pedagogical approaches, and branding. Desire2Learn supports over 4 million learners worldwide and clients include schools, higher education, as well as associations, government, and other leading organizations. For more information, please visit www.Desire2Learn.com.
An in-depth look at the problems associated with business and personal cell phone use.
Jay VanDuzen
Employers frequently provide their employees with cellular telephones and pagers to conduct business. This can raise special tax concerns, due to the fact that these items are listed property under the Internal Revenue Code, and because employees may use them for personal as well as business use. Without an auditing system, many organizations face giving their employees a taxable stipend and putting the phone in the employee’s name. The MiCTA Service Corporation Cellular Suite Program addresses the IRS audit requirement and gives your organization an additionalchoice. The MiCTA Service Corporation Cellular Suite Program not only provides an effective audit trail of cell phone usage, but can actually deliver as much detail as you desire. The following are examples of how some organizations are addressing this challenge.
An organization provides an employee a cellular phone for business purposes. The organization’s written policy prohibits personal use of the phone. The organization routinely audits the employee’s phone billings to confirm that personal calls were not made. No personal calls were actually made by the employee. The business use of the phone is not taxable to the employee and is a legitimate expense for the organization.
It would be nice if this situation existed, but in reality is doesn’t.
An organization provides an employee a cellular phone for business purposes. The organization’s written policy states that the phone is not intended for personal use, and requires reimbursement from the employee for any personal calls. The organization routinely audits the employee’s phone billings to ascertain personal calls made. The employee reimburses the organization for all personal calls made. The business use of the phone is not taxable to the employee and the remaining amount is a personal expense.
Intelecel call detail application can be used for a monthly audit of a cellular phone user’s personal calls. Each month the individual call detail is loaded into the Intelecel system. Individual Cellular users would be required by their employer to log-in each month and identify any personal calls that they made. (This is a self-reporting system).
Intelecel system will calculate how many minutes are marked as personal calls and multiply that total number of minutes by a pre-determined cost per minute set by the client. Intelecel will be able to include the functionality that once a phone number is marked as “personal” then subsequent months loaded into the Intelecel system will automatically mark those same phone numbers as “personal”. The employee will just be required to log into the system and verify the personal calls and mark any new phone numbers that are personal in nature. A monthly report can be generated detailing the cell number, employee, the number of personal calls and total minutes of those calls, as well as the total amount “owed” by the employee to the organization. It will be the organization’s responsibility to collect these charges from the employee.
An organization allows an employee to use a personally owned cellular phone for business. The organization has established a written policy on the use and manner of reimbursement for such phones. The organization pays a flat rate monthly allowance to the employee for the use of their phone. The organization does not require documentation identifying the personal and business use of the phone. The entire amount of the monthly allowance is taxable and reported as income to the employee.
The organization would not realize the economies of a corporate plan and also thereby forces the employee to spend time looking for plans that suit them best. The new plans would typically increase the cellular spending by at least 20% over a corporate plan. Furthermore, in cases of investigation and litigation, it would be more difficult and costly to obtain records that reside with the individual.
In conclusion, the Cellular Suite Program allows pooling and optimization of minutes which could save organizations and individuals up to 50% on cellular usage and at the same time have a system for IRS audit defense. For More information on the MiCTA Service Corporation Cellular Suite Program please call Jay VanDuzen at 586.360.8421 or you can email him by clicking here.
Information Week reports that the 110th Congress has wasted no time in announcing the Internet Freedom Preservation Act of 2007, which drew praise from groups that lobbied for net neutrality in 2006. The introduction of this act comes less than two weeks after AT&T agreed to network neutrality commitments in its merger with BellSouth. This bill would ensure that network providers do not prioritize internet content, applications, or services over others. Some internet service providers have proposed charging a fee to give priority of some content from sources that pay the fee, which would allow the companies funding for improvements in the network. However, others argue that this would create unfair disadvantages to individual bloggers and small businesses and websites...
This article is courtesy of Information Week and can be read in its entirety by clicking the following link: http://www.informationweek.com
Neutrality On the Net Gets High '08 Profile
Tech Issue Gains Traction in Election
By Charles Babington
Washington Post Staff Writer
Tuesday, February 20, 2007; D01
Bloggers and other Internet activists made their marks in the past two presidential elections chiefly by building networks of political enthusiasts and raising money for candidates. Now, they are pushing aggressively into policymaking -- and not just over high-profile issues such as Iraq.
They are pressing candidates to back a handful of issues that are obscure to many Americans but vital to those who base their livelihoods on the Internet and track its development.
Armed with massive e-mail lists and high-speed networks, these activists are bypassing the familiar campaign tactics of door-knocking and phone-banking. They are also using their new-age technologies for an old-fashioned purpose: making politicians take note of their legislative priorities.
One of those is "net neutrality." Hardly a household term, it has no overtly partisan or ideological dimensions. Yet it is shaping up as a Democratic issue this year, largely because it’s most fervid advocates are liberal bloggers and other Internet activists who play a big role in the early stages of choosing a Democratic presidential nominee.
Unlike their Republican counterparts, every major Democratic presidential candidate has endorsed net neutrality. The move keeps them in good standing with powerful grass-roots groups, such as MoveOn.org, and costs them little in return -- perhaps a bit of space on campaign Web sites to promote a matter that comparatively few voters might explore.
Net neutrality is a principle that bars Internet providers, primarily phone and cable companies, from charging higher rates to Web-based firms in return for giving their content priority treatment on the pathways to consumers. Without such restrictions, proponents say, a user might find it time-consuming, or even impossible, to call up a favorite site that carriers have relegated to slower lanes for economic or even philosophical reasons.
"It's an issue that really captures the attention of one of their core constituencies, especially the bloggers and 'netroots,' " said Craig Aaron of Free Press, a group that champions net neutrality. “For candidates looking to appeal to those folks, it was important to take a stand," he said, even though "nobody was talking about it a year ago."
A veteran Democratic consultant who spoke on condition of anonymity was more blunt. Among Democratic candidates, she said, "if you're not for net neutrality, then the blogs will kick your" rear. The grass-roots groups that strongly favor it are relatively small but very noisy, she said, "and you just don't want to have to deal with that."
Opposing net neutrality are the telephone and cable companies that control the "pipes" that transport Internet content from producers to users. The companies say they need flexibility to manage Internet traffic, even if it eventually means charging higher rates for priority service.
For several years, the issue has been debated mainly in legal and telecom circles. Recent telecom mergers have raised its profile, however, as regulators considered the possible ramifications of consolidating control over the Internet's major pathways.
Net neutrality restrictions "could prevent broadband providers from offering enhanced levels of service for specialized applications such a telemedicine, or to offer their own branded or co-branded products or services," said Christopher Wolf, co-chairman of Hands Off the Internet, a group sponsored by phone and cable companies. Such arrangements, he said at a recent Federal Trade Commission workshop, "will help pay for the build-out of the next generation of Internet pipes."
Moreover, Wolf said, his industry's critics cannot cite an example in which any U.S. user has been blocked.
But some groups that rely heavily on their Web sites to share information, raise money or promote causes say they fear it's only a matter of time. This article is compliments of eschoolnews.com and can be viewed in entirety by clicking the following link: http://www.eschoolnews.com/news/showclips.cfm?clipid=2165
The Need for a Mobile Strategy is Now
by Allen Bernard
Don't wait too long to put a mobile strategy in place or you'll find yourself digging out of an ever-deeper hole.
As mobile technologies continue to worm their way into businesses of all shape and sizes (what self-respecting businessperson does have a cell these days?), the need for a comprehensive mobile strategy is growing by leaps and bounds.
While the primary uses for PDAs, smart phones, and cell phones is still messaging, Pandora's Box has been open; making it only a matter of time before all manner of corporate intelligence will have to be made available via wireless.
To head off the hodge-podge, ad-hoc manner in which many new technologies have grown up over the years — leading directly to today's heroic efforts to untangle 30 years of organic growth — companies need to put in place a mobile strategy that takes into account security, new uses, current uses and a vision for how far, how deep and how wide they are willing to open up their back-end systems.
"What this means, is organizations … need to really step up and realize that there is a need to develop a mobile strategy within the organization," said Philippe Winthrop, director of Aberdeen's Wireless and Mobility research group. "It's cost management, it's technology management, it's the security issues, it's managing the integration with other systems." To continue reading this article please click, this link to the CIOupdate.com website, this article is property of and was posted with permission from Mr. Allen Bernard and CIOupdate.com.
http://www.cioupdate.com/trends/article.php/3656401.
Wireless LAN Security: What Hackers Know That You Don’t-from Air Defense.net, Inc.
This white paper describes the methods, skills, and tools that hackers use to exploit vulnerabilities in 802.11 wireless LANs. A good understanding of hacker tools and techniques and the vulnerabilities they exploit enables security managers to take pro-active steps to properly secure their wireless networks and mitigate security risks.
▪ The Challenge of Wireless LAN Security
▪ Risks and Vulnerabilities of Wireless LANs
▪ Wireless LANs Allow Strangers Easy Access
▪ The Hacker’s Toolbox
▪ Common wireless LAN Attacks
▪ Anatomy of a Simple Wireless LAN Attack
▪ How to Defend against these Threats
Click on this link to read this white paper in its entirety. For more information or feedback on this report, please contact Kristin Callaway at kcallaway@airdefense.net or visit www.AirDefense.net.
About AirDefense
AirDefense is the market leader in anywhere, anytime wireless security. The company is trusted by more Fortune 500 companies, healthcare organizations and high-security government agencies for enterprise wireless protection than any other company. AirDefense products provide the most advanced solutions for rogue wireless detection, policy enforcement and intrusion prevention, both inside and outside an organization’s physical locations and wired networks. Common Criteria-certified, AirDefense enterprise-class products scale to support single offices as well as organizations with hundreds of locations around the globe. Founded in 2001, AirDefense is based in Atlanta, GA, and serves more than 600 government agencies and blue chip corporations. For more information, please visit http://www.airdefense.net or call 770-663-8115.
FCC Data On High-Speed Access And LEC Competition
High-Speed Internet Connections Increased 26% In First Half
by Stephen Heiser
The Federal Communications Commission has released new data on local telephone service competition and high-speed connections to the Internet in the United States. The following is a breakdown of the FCC’s findings.
High-Speed Internet
Twice a year, all facilities-based broadband providers are required to report to the Commission basic information about their service offerings and types of customers pursuant to the FCC’s local telephone competition and broadband data gathering program (FCC Form 477). Statistics released today reflect data as of June 30, 2006.
For reporting purposes, high-speed lines are connections that deliver services at speeds exceeding 200 kilobits per second (kbps) in at least one direction, while advanced services lines are connections that deliver services at speeds exceeding 200 kbps in both directions. Commencing with the June 2005 data, we collect and report more detailed information about the speeds of in-service lines, provide finer distinctions among technologies, and collect and analyze information about the availability of high-speed Digital Subscriber Line (DSL) connections from incumbent local exchange carriers (incumbent LECs) and high-speed cable modem service from cable TV system operators.
High-Speed Lines
High-speed lines increased by 26% during the first half of 2006, from 51.2 million to 64.6 million lines in service, compared to a 21% increase, from 42.4 million to 51.2 million lines, during the second half of 2005. For the full twelve month period ending June 30, 2006, high-speed lines increased by 52% (or 22.2 million lines). High-speed lines encompass advanced services lines and also include lines that deliver services at speeds exceeding 200 kbps in one, but not both, directions.
Of the 64.6 million total high-speed lines reported as of June 30, 2006, 50.3 million served primarily residential end users. Cable modem service represented 55.2% of these lines while 40.1% were asymmetric DSL (ADSL) connections, 0.2% were symmetric DSL (SDSL) or traditional wireline connections, 0.9% were fiber connections to the end user premises, and 3.7% used other types of technology including satellite, terrestrial fixed or mobile wireless (on a licensed or unlicensed basis), and electric power line.
ADSL lines increased by 3.1 million lines during the first half of 2006 compared to an increase of 2.0 million lines for cable modem service. For the full year, ADSL increased by 6.3 million lines compared to an increase of 4.6 million lines for cable modem service.
▪ Advanced Services Lines
▪ Geographic Coverage
▪ LEC Competition Statistics
Article compliments of Telecommunications: Online. Read the full article by clicking the following link: http://www.telecoms-mag.com/newsglobe/article.asp?HH_ID=AR_2813.
Converging Paths - FMC: Where Wireline & Wireless Meet
FMC is driving fixed-line and wireless service providers to minimize their voice revenue line loss
by Sean Buckley
For the most part, these worlds never collided. The phone company provided the POTS line and data, and the wireless provider, or in some cases the wireless division of the phone company, provided wireless, but neither service spoke to the other.
With increasing competition from cable operators and competitive VoIP providers, however, the advent of fixed-mobile convergence is driving fixed-line and wireless service providers to minimize their voice revenue line loss with integrated FMC services.
Extending the Enterprise
There's one truth about today's enterprise environment: Workers are becoming increasingly mobile. While managing multiple phone numbers falls to individual employees, the burden of managing and maintaining multiple, wired, desk phone sets in addition to mobile devices falls to the IT department.
Take Embarq, formerly Sprint Local Telephone Division. At the recent Citigroup investor’s conference in Las Vegas, Embarq Chairman and CEO Dan Hesse said the drive for their wireless service offered via its MVNO relationship with Sprint is not about minutes.
“If you’re going to be a wireless-only customer or a big power user, we’ll say ‘go see Sprint or Cingular.’ [It only] makes sense for us if you’re going to buy [wireless service] as a package or an interoperable bundle,” Hesse said.
The Wi-Fi/Cellular Connect
With consumers and businesses increasingly adopting Wi-Fi to transmit data, the promise of FMC is its ability to enable users to transfer their voice calls between the Wi-Fi and cellular networks.
Key to this market segment is the advent of the DMH (dual mobile handset) that has both Wi-Fi and traditional cellular capabilities in one. DMH services are finding utility in both the residential and business sectors with the promise of lower calling rates, continuity, and management of calls between the cellular and Wi-Fi networks.
Infonetics Research predicts that the Wi-Fi phone market will climb to $3.7 billion by 2009. A big contributor will be from dual-mode handsets that deliver Wi-Fi and VoIP on one device, but that success will depend on the availability of low-cost phones.
While there are a number of approaches vying for prominence, UMA and VCC have been leading the charge for FMC:
• UMA (unlicensed mobile access): UMA, a recognized 3GPP standard pioneered by Kineto Wireless, gives the user access to the GSM and over the unlicensed Wi-Fi network connection via dual-mode mobile handsets.
• IMS-VCC (voice call continuity): Supported by traditional (e.g., Nortel) and emerging (e.g., New Step and Outsmart) vendors, the VCC function can support roaming and handover between the IMS network and circuit-switched domain for dual-mode handsets. In addition to providing a connection from any wireless network technology (e.g., CDMA, WCDMA) and any VoIP access, VCC provides a single phone number (or SIP identity) in addition to Wi-Fi-to-cellular handovers.
This article is property of Telecommunications: Online. Read more by visiting the following site http://www.telecoms-mag.com/Americas/article.asp?HH_ID=AR_2789.
The Real Cost of Enterprise Wireless Mobility
by Joe Basili, The Aberdeen Group
This benchmark report examines the benefits of life cycle management for telecom expenses. In particular the report examines the challenges that enterprises face and best practices in managing the incremental costs as users step up from cell phones to smartphones.
Budgets for support and connectivity do not provide accurate estimates to address the support costs during a period of rapid transition from simple voice to smartphones and applications. More complex mobile devices demand a new category of management for the full life cycle management of devices from sourcing, procurement, connectivity assistance, applications support, security, data back up, device replacement, through retirement.
- Costs are nearly10 times greater to manage wireless services and devices compared to wireline.
- 80% of respondents plan for increases in PDAs with wireless access.
- 74% of our respondents identify asset management and inventory tracking as one of their second biggest challenges.
- Managing escalating wireless expenses is a top priority for 64% of our respondents.
To view this paper in its entirety click on this link. For further information on this article please contact Joe Basili, Research Director, via email at, joe.basili@aberdeen.com.
Make sure to check out this month’s Grant Alert from eSchoolNews.com
More than $1M for outstanding science and math teachers
Grant Title : Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching
Organization : National Science Foundation
Eligibility: Grades 7-12 math or science teachers
Value: Up to 108 awards of $10,000 each
Deadline : May 1, 2007
Each year, the President of the United States recognizes outstanding mathematics and science teachers by bestowing upon them the Presidential Awards for Excellence in Mathematics and Science Teaching (PAEMST). Awards are given to teachers in each state and four U.S. jurisdictions, including Washington, D.C.; Puerto Rico; Department of Defense Schools; and the U.S. territories ( American Samoa, Guam, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands). The PAEMST program is administered by the National Science Foundation (NSF) on behalf of the White House. The 2007 PAEMST program will honor 7th thru 12th-grade mathematics and science teachers. Each awardee receives a $10,000 award from NSF and gifts from a broad range of donors. Awardees and their guests are honored during events that take place in Washington, D.C., over the course of a week-long celebration. These events include an awards ceremony, celebratory receptions and banquets, and professional development programs.
Contact: http://www.paemst.org/page.cfm?pageID=2
$5,000 to increase awareness of materials science
Grant Title : Living in a Material World Grants
Organization : ASM International Foundation
Eligibility: K-12 teachers
Value: Ten grants of $500 each
Deadline : May 25, 2007
The purpose of these grants is to enhance awareness of materials science and the role of materials scientists in society. Members of ASM International will work closely with winning teachers to develop and implement lessons. Contact: http://www.asminternational.org/content/Foundation/Liv...
$150,000 to help fund arts programs
Grant Title : Learning in the Arts for Children and Youth
Organization : National Endowment for the Arts
Eligibility: Nonprofits
Value: $5,000-$150,000
Deadline : June 11, 2007
The Learning in the Arts for Children and Youth category offers funding for projects that help children and youth acquire knowledge and understanding of and skills in the arts. Projects must provide participatorylearning and engage students with skilled artists, teachers, and excellent art. Funded projects apply national or state arts education standards.
Contact: http://www.nea.gov/grants/apply/GAP08/LITA.html
News You Can Use
THINGS YOU NEVER KNEW YOUR CELL PHONE COULD DO.
There are a few things that can be done in times of grave emergencies. Your mobile phone can actually be a life saver or an emergency tool for survival. Check out the things that you can do with it:
FIRST Subject: Emergency
The Emergency Number worldwide for Mobile is 112. If you find yourself out of the coverage area of your mobile; network and there is an emergency, dial 112 and the mobile will search any existing network to establish the emergency number for you, and interestingly this number 112 can be dialed even if the keypad is locked... Try it out.
SECOND Subject: Have you locked your keys in the car?
Does your car have remote keyless entry? This may come in handy someday. Good reason to own a cell phone: If you lock your keys in the car and the spare keys are at home, call someone at home on their cell phone from your cell phone. Hold your cell phone about a foot from your car door and have the person atyour home press the unlock button, holding it near the mobile phone on their end. Your car will unlock. Saves someone from having to drive your keys to you. Distance is no object. You could be hundreds of miles away, and if you can reach someone who has the other "remote" for your car, you can unlock the doors (or the trunk).
Editor's Note:
It works fine! We tried it out and it unlocked our car over a cell phone!"
THIRD Subject: Hidden Battery Power
Imagine your cell battery is very low. To activate, press the keys *3370# your cell will restart with this reserve and the instrument will show a 50% increase in battery. This reserve will get charged when you charge your cell next time.
FOURTH How to disable a STOLEN mobile phone?
To check your Mobile phone's serial number, key in the following digits on your phone: * # 0 6 # A 15 digit code will appear on the screen. This number is unique to your handset. Write it down and keep it somewhere safe. When your phone gets stolen, you can phone your service provider and give them this code. They will then be able to block your handset so even if the thief changes the SIM card, your phone will be totally
useless. You probably won't get your phone back, but at least you know that whoever stole it can't use/sell it either. If everybody does this, there would be no point in people stealing mobile phones.
And Finally....
FIFTH
Cell phone companies are charging us $1.00 to $1.75 or more for 411 information calls when they don't have to. Most of us do not carry a telephone directory in our vehicle, which makes this situation even more of a problem. When you need to use the 411 information option, simply dial: (800) FREE 411, or (800) 373-3411 without incurring any charge at all. Program this into your cell phone now. This is the kind of information people don't mind receiving, so pass it on to your family and friends
This information has been provided by http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/household/cellphones.asp.
Just for Fun
What is the cliché for each of the following?
1. Members of an avian species of identical plumage congregate.
2. It is fruitless to become lachrymose over precitately departed lacteal fluid.
3. The stylus is more potent than the claymore.
For answers to "Just for Fun", please visit the Members' homepage.
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