Blog Smith

Blog Smith is inspired by the myth of Hephaestus in the creation of blacksmith-like, forged materials: ideas. This blog analyzes topics that interest me: IT, politics, technology, history, education, music, and the history of religions.

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Most and Least Religious Colleges

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/08/06/the-most-and-least-religious-schools-in-america-according-to-their-student-bodies/

Week 2, Assignment 2: https://courses.edx.org/courses/MITx/11.132x/3T2014/

  • Does the pitch clearly state the topic to be covered?
  • What is the ideal society?
    And, how would you build it if you had the chance?

    The students will be challenged to build their own civilization in the first part of the course using Sid Meier's game, Civilization. In the second part of the course the class will transition to "Reacting to the Past," a role-playing game which recreates the threshold of democracy in Athens in 403 B.C.

    Humanities classes focus on learning about cultures but why not provide students with the means to try and build one themselves? What is ideal way to govern? Should leaders control the people? Should the people do anything they want? How do you balance social vs. individual needs? Can your civilization survive? Can it thrive? How will you mediate conflicts within your civilization?

    Democracy is one of the options to govern in Civilization and students will experience first-hand its drawbacks and its advantages. They will have to decide if it works or not in practice. As stated by Winston Churchill:

    "Many forms of Gov­ern­ment have been tried, and will be tried in this world of sin and woe. No one pre­tends that democ­racy is per­fect or all-wise. Indeed it has been said that democ­racy is the worst form of Gov­ern­ment except for all those other forms that have been tried from time to time."
    (House of Com­mons, 11 Novem­ber 1947, http://richardlangworth.com/worst-form-of-government)

    The challenge for students is to understand how democracy actually works out in practice. The game will allow them to consider the topic of governing a population and teaching civilization and democracy so that students understand history and the need to balance individual vs. social needs.

  • Does the pitch describe the setting and/or who the learners are?
  • The setting is a for-profit University where learners are working adults in night classes. The challenge is to use technology in an engaging way for students who do not need abstract ideas but need to see the practical challenges of building a civilization, testing whether democracy is the best form of government, and how to reconcile competing needs and priorities. It is important in that it cuts to the heart of issues besetting the American Republic today.

  • How well does the pitch explain why this area is challenging? How strong is the evidence provided?
  • This is a challenging area since students are working all day, have families, and many other adult responsibilities. It is difficult to convey the humanities material without directly involving them and providing a vehicle for them to learn. Many of our students have attended college previously and it did not work for them. Nonetheless, the mission of the University is to make high quality post-secondary education accessible to adults of diverse backgrounds and is organized around three primary goals: Educational Access, Academic Quality, and Student Success. In our University, we have to be conscious of how traditional androgyny does not always motivate our first-generation college students. Also, we also have a certain percentage of active duty military students or retired military who would find the gaming aspect, and the role-playing course work more involving. The curriculum must be innovative, relevant, and engaging for students. The University is investing in enhancing teaching and learning with technology. New technologies are integrated to enhance student learning, student engagement, and relevancy to the workplace.

  • What other insights, if any, can you provide that would help your classmate refine or develop their focus?
  • I will provide a brief description of how I plan to address the learning challenge. As I understand it, that is the next step of the process. Classes meet for four hours in the evening between 6 - 10 pm. Most of the students have put in a full day of work already before attending class and have numerous other adult responsibilities. Thus, the classes need to be dynamic, and engaging. I can schedule classes in a computer Lab thus the proposal is realistic and should work well on campus.

    As described, my pitch has included a brief, concrete description of a situation in which learning is challenging for a number of reasons: full-time working adults, active military, or ex-military adjusting to civilian life, coupled with lengthy 4-hour session classes which can be held in a computer lab. The nature of the content is difficult enough in traditional short session classes, and often students do not obtain actual experience in building a civilization but they just read about it. In my case, I have taught in a wide variety of settings, K-12, traditional college age students, weekend college students, and at my present position which leads me to conclude that this project will go over well.

    Relevant Academic literature, news articles, etc., will be listed


    COURSE DESCRIPTION/PRINCIPAL TOPICS
    This course introduces students to the idea of civilization from its origins in the late Bronze Age to the Renaissance with special focus on Athenian democracy. The course will be introduced with Civilization, a gaming accessory to illustrate the issues of balancing governance, social demands, defense, and a myriad of issues brought on with organizing a society. Thereafter, the class will transition to “Reacting to the Past,” a role-­playing game to enable students to relive important intellectual debates in a specific historical moment. With The Threshold of Democracy: Athens in 403 B.C., students will draw on Plato’s Republic as well as on excerpts from Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War, and other contemporary sources to debate the Reconciliation Agreement between Athens and Sparta after nearly three decades of war (431-­404 BC). Topics may include: Homeric poetry; Greek religion; from Dark Age to city-­state, 900-­600 B.C.; Herodotus and the Persian Wars (490–479 B.C.); Freedom and imperialism: the Athenian Empire; Athenian democracy and society; Attic drama; Thucydides and the Peloponnesian War (431–404 B.C.); Radical ideas and radical reactions; Socrates and Plato. By examining democracy at its threshold, the game provides the perspective to consider its subsequent evolution.

    STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES
    Students will:
    1. Explain how key social, cultural, and artistic contributions contribute to historical changes.
    2. Explain the importance of situating a society’s cultural and artistic expressions within a historical context.
    3. Identify major historical developments in world cultures during the eras of antiquity to the Renaissance.
    4. Identify and describe key artistic styles in the visual arts of world cultures during the eras of antiquity to the Renaissance.
    5. Identify and describe key literary works, styles, and writers from world cultures during the eras of antiquity to the Renaissance.
    6. Explore the presence of cultural parallels between the world’s cultures.
    7. Examine the influences of intellectual, religious, political, and socio-economic forces on social, cultural, and artistic expressions.
    8. Use technology and information resources to research issues in the study of world cultures.
    9. Write clearly and concisely about world cultures using proper writing mechanics.
    10.  Demonstrate their knowledge of basic literary, philosophical, social, and cultural developments that affect the interpretation of texts, artifacts, and historical events.
    11. Develop strategies on how to read and/or interpret literary texts and artifacts from the ancient world, such as art objects, material remains, monuments, inscriptions, and so on.
    12. Appraise information in primary sources so as to appreciate the values of the ancient Greek culture.
    13. Distinguish the different theoretical approaches in evaluating primary sources from the ancient Greek world.
    14. Create and Role - play a character based on primary sources, representing key positions, as outlined in the Student Reader.
    15. Engage in debate through improvisation and composition of consistent, historically accurate and carefully argued speeches.


    Master List assignment


    Civilization is a game created in the 1990s by Sid Meier. There is an article on Wikipedia but fans have created sites as well.

    Assignment 2.2: The Problem Pitch

    INTRODUCTION

    This assignment is the first in a series that will result in your course-long project. At the end of the course you’ll have a “product pitch” for a well-designed and pedagogically-sound educational technology. The first step, what you’ll do in this assignment, is to identify the problem you would like your project to address. From there, you’ll go about incorporating all the elements of a good learning tool, resulting in your final pitch.

    WHAT TO DO

    To start, identify a learning challenge - something that’s hard to teach or hard to learn, and which might benefit from additional resources and alternate approaches. You should have some experience or source that can back up your assertion that there is a need there. In ed tech, we always try to start with the problem and figure out what technology or design would best address the need.
    For example, you might choose high school biology if you have been reading about the lack of students interested in STEM careers. Or even better, you might get more specific and choose the topic of DNA replication if you have a teacher friend who has told you about where and how students struggle with those concepts.

    Next, craft it into a “problem pitch”  which describes the topic and setting, who the learners are, why it’s so challenging, and why it’s important. The pitch should include a brief, concrete description of a situation in which learning is challenging for any number of reasons. Articulate the reasons as best you can. Is it hard because of the nature of the content, the context in which it’s taught, or common misconceptions? Add credibility by grounding your assertions in some evidence, which could include personal experience, observations of your own learning, your classroom, relevant academic literature, news articles, etc.

    Your pitch is focused on the initial idea and by nature probably doesn’t have any fancy visuals. So this assignment will most likely consist of less than a page of text, perhaps with a few links to support your points.

    FEEDBACK CRITERIA

    Although there is no need for a formal rubric in this assignment, these are the areas you should evaluate and respond to for each problem pitch you review:
    • Does the pitch clearly state the topic to be covered?
    • Does the pitch describe the setting and/or who the learners are?
    • How well does the pitch explain why this area is challenging? How strong is the evidence provided?
    • What other insights, if any, can you provide that would help your classmate refine or develop their focus?
    Please note that for this assignment, there may or may not be a description of how the designer plans to address the learning challenge. That is the next step of the process so if it’s mentioned here that’s fine, but if not that’s fine too as next week’s assignment will move on to that step.

    DUE DATE

    Technically the only due date is to submit this assignment by the end of the course. However, to get the benefit of peer feedback, we stronly suggest you submit it by the end of Week 2: October 28th. After that time the majority of course participants will be moving on to Week 3 work and won't be focused on this specific topic.

    DELIVERY FORMAT

    In week 1 you turned in your assignment through the Peer Review tool. This week you will still get feedback from your peers, but in a less formal way. Each of you will post your pitch to the forums where it will hopefully generate some discussion. Once you post your pitch, please read through at least 3 other students’ pitches and comment on them. This way if people are drawn to topics they have experience with, the person writing the pitch can benefit from that expertise and use their classmates as a resource as they develop their idea.


    What is Learning?

    Activity Break: Learn to Juggle










    Monday, October 27, 2014

    Testing Security Around Cameron

    Revere, MA Public School Converts Kids to Islam

    Public school promotes Islam.

    DHS Report States Terrorists Roam USA

    Report

    Liberty Kids Shake Up Republican Party

    http://news.yahoo.com/liberty-kids-shake-l-republican-party-look-other-181234386.html

    Government Bugged, Planted Documents on Reporter

    Bugged

    Sunday, October 26, 2014

    Americans Get $2 Trillion in Goodies for 2013

    http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/ali-meyer/americans-got-2-trillion-benefits-federal-government-2013

    Saturday, October 25, 2014

    Atkinson Tells Us What We Already Know: Enemedia Lies

    Enemedia

    Peace and Liberty Plurality

    http://www.forbes.com/sites/lawrencehunter/2012/11/12/the-grand-old-republican-party-is-over/

    Friday, October 24, 2014

    Cambridge, MA, Center of Islamism

    Cambridge

    Non-Citizens Throw November Election

    Voter fraud

    God's Not Dead | Teaser Trailer

    http://youtu.be/90PWFEeRApA

    Thursday, October 23, 2014

    Islamist Attacks NYPD with Hatchet

    Hatchet

    Cell phone vid

    The Power of Love

    http://www.etv-hellas.net/videos/2014-03-05.html

    Wednesday, October 22, 2014

    Islamist Meets 72 Virgins in Canadian Parliament

    Sergeant-are-Arms 1, Islamist, 0.

    Islamist Plot Unfolds

    Meeting

    Islamicizing Schools

    The Islamic takeover plot of British schools has been long in the planning and the process. Here in America, Islamic supremacist groups are working towards the very same end. I am the founder of the first Muslim school in London in 1981, called London School of Islamics Trust. I am now the consultant of this Trust. I have been campaigning for state funded Muslim schools for the last 45 years.Now there are 188 Muslim schools and only 18 are state funded. I would like to see each and every Muslim child in a Muslim school. I hope one day my dream would come true. This is the Muslim plan for the UK and beyond. Muslim children not only need halal meat or Eid Holidays but they need state funded Muslim schools with Muslim teachers as role models during their development period also. There is no place for a non-Muslim child or a teacher in a Muslim school. Legally, the state has an obligation to respect the rights of parents to ensure that ‘education and teaching(of their children) is in conformity with their own religious and philosophical convictions.’ The schools must satisfy the spiritual, moral, social, and cultural needs of Muslim pupils. State schools with non-Muslim monolingual teachers are not in a position to satisfy their needs. A good school is not just a knowledge factory or a conveyor belt for churning out exam passes – it is a community, a family. A community is held together by common values and principles. Indiscipline, incivility, binge drinking, drug addiction, gun and knife crimes, teenage pregnancies and abortion are part and parcel of British schooling. These are the reasons why majority of Muslim parents would like to send their children to Muslim schools with Muslim teachers as role models during their developmental periods. Only less than 5% attend Muslim schools and more than 95% keep on attending state and church schools to be mis-educated and de-educated by non-Muslim monolingual teachers. There are more Methodist schools than Muslim schools in England and 33% of English state schools are Christian. There’s been a big kerfuffle over a supposed Muslim influence on six schools in Birmingham, with outlets like the BBC and Telegraph alleging a “Trojan horse” takeover by Muslim parents. But whether you agree with religion in schools or not, the faith that is most clearly represented in Britain’s education system is Christianity. There are more Methodist schools (26 or 0.13%) than Muslim schools in England. Out of the total number of state-funded schools (primary and secondary) in England this is what percentage were Muslim in 2012. Some 0.06% or 12 schools are Muslim faith schools. Out of all UK state-funded schools, 33.61% or 6751 schools are Christian. School segregation: 12% of state schools are split into boys and girls. Charges against the six schools in Birmingham include not teaching the curriculum, inviting radical speakers to talk to the children and gender segregating classrooms – to the detriment of girls. A small, but significant number of traditional British schools are split by gender too. British schooling and the British society is the home of institutional racism. The result is that Muslim children are unable to develop self-confidence and self-esteem, therefore, majority of them leaves schools with low grades. Racism is deeply rooted in British society. British schools are not doing enough to tackle racism and promote race relations. Many teachers are unaware of racist attitudes amongst pupils. Schools have a responsibility not only to deal with racist incidents but also to prepare pupils for life in a multicultural and multiracial society. At least one racist incident is reported daily in Bolton schools, according to stats obtained from Bolton Council by Manchurian Matters. Bolton Council of Mosques Manager, Ibrahim Kala, said the data is only the “tip of the iceberg” and that Islamophobia makes up a large portion of the reported incidents. Stats obtained through the Freedom of Information request show 2,397 cases of racism in Bolton schools in the years from 2004 to 2013, meaning on average there are 1.26 racist incidents occur daily – and these are only the ones being reported. There are hundreds of state and church schools where Muslim children are in majority. In my opinion, all such schools may be opted out as Muslim Academies. There is no place for a non-Muslim child or a teacher in a Muslim school. Speaking English does not promote integration into British, American and Australian societies, and broaden opportunities. English speaking Muslim youths are angry, frustrated and extremist, thanks to state schools with monolingual non-Muslim teachers and English language. English language is not only a lingua franca but also lingua frankensteinia. Human right are also covers linguistic right. Cultural and linguistic genocide are very common. British schooling is murdering community languages like Arabic, Urdu and others. English is today the world killer language. Linguistic genocide is a crime against humanity and British schooling is guilty of committing this crime. Language is not just a language. It defines one’s culture, identity and consciousness. It defines how we think, communicate and express ourselves. The fact is the most South Asian Muslims have come to know Islam by way of Urdu, the children’s alienation from the language that connects them the heritage of their parents and grandparents is disturbing. As a matter of fact, one has to get to know his mother tongue well if one is to master any other language. I regard Muslim schools not just Faith schools but more or less bilingual schools. I set up the first Muslim school in Forest Gate London in 1981. Special attention was given to Standard English, Arabic and Urdu languages along with National Curriculum. The teaching of Standard English will help them to follow the National Curriculum and go for higher studies and research to serve humanity. A Muslim is a citizen of this tiny global village, he/she does not want to become notoriously monolingual Brit. The sound knowledge of one’s owns language would appear to help – not hinder the acquisition of a second language and bilingual children may even have cognitive advantages and that the ability to speak more than one language is going to be increasingly important for the world of the future. Therefore, Muslim children and young Muslims have potentially a major educational advantage, although sadly this is not being developed well at present. British policy makers now recognise bilingualism as an educational asset rather than a problem. Education plays a central role in the transmission of languages from one generation to the next. The teaching of mother tongues is essential in terms of culture and identity. Arabic is a religious language for the Muslims but for Pakistanis, Urdu is also essential for culture and identity. Blind Muslim children in Bradford are learning to read Arabic and Urdu Braille, by a blind teacher who travelled from Pakistan. Now blind Muslim children are not going to miss out on culture, religion, language and the social aspects and integration into their own community and identity. As a British Asian myself, and a Muslim, I am deeply proud of my heritage and language. At home i speak my own languages, Punjabi and Urdu. When out and about with family, i speak in Urdu etc. I will speak in whatever language I like. Nobody, absolutely nobody will tell us what language to speak. Obviously I appreciate everyone living here should ve able to speak a bit of English. But its not a must, especially for elders. After all, look at how many Brits move to other nations yet refuse to learn the languages? No, they expect others to learn or speak English, and the Brits just don’t wanna integrate. If u Brits don’t do it when u move to other nations, don’t expect or demand other others, Asians, Africans etc to have to learn English to fit in. Me, I’m Asian, I’m proud of my languages and if it riles others when they cant understand our conversations, well get over it. There is no such thing as multiculturalism, it’s a phallusy, a twisted idealism of the truth, multiculturalism refers to the mixing and integration of different races and beliefs but they don’t integrate, they purposefully segregate themselves to continue their own way of life, I don’t call that ‘integration’. Iftikhar Ahmad London School of Islamics Trust http://www.londonschoolofislamics.org.uk

    CA Government Orders Churches to Kill Babies

    Government issues orders to kill.

    Tuesday, October 21, 2014

    Assignment 1: Draft

    1957 The Joys of 8mm Home Movies

    1970s anti-communist film

    Assignment 1, Design and Development of Educational Technology, Iconoclast1967

    Assignment 1

    http://youtu.be/fitTn23tFTU

    Iconoclast1967

    Rubrics

     Very knowledgeable about chosen current technology and provided an insightful and in-depth analysis.
     Very knowledgeable about chosen earlier technology and provided an insightful and in-depth analysis.
     Thoroughly described the differences and similarities between the two technologies and used each to highlight aspects of the other.
    Utilized multimedia and technology in a creative and inspiring but also relevant presentation format.

    My goal is to express myself knowledgeably about current technology in order to provide an insightful and in-depth analysis of both current technology, and older technology. In terms of the older technology I want to consider 8mm films and in so far as the new technology is concerned, a website: iCivics. The civics game has as its goal to provide a fun and educational experience for the next generation of citizens. They want to demonstrate that participation is important and they promote the ideas of democracy. Although the age range is essentially K-12 they do seem to overlook some of the intricacies and complexities of the actual government. For example, the three branches of government are not precisely three equal branches currently. I would have preferred that they demonstrated the concept of the Imperial presidency and how the two other branches, the legislative and the judicial, have been superseded.

    The student has some choice however and can move through various aspects of the site at their own pace and by choice. The site does seem to favor the view that participatory democracy is the ideal political state. Not surprisingly, it has been endorsed to promote Common Core principles as funded by Bill Gates. The site states:. "Overview:The Next Generation Learning Challenges (NGLC) initiative, provided grants to 19 organizations for implementing proven and emerging technology-enabled instructional and assessment materials to improve students’ mastery of Common Core-aligned content for grades 7 through 9." In addition, the "Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation contracted with the nonprofit research institute SRI International for an independent evaluation of the NGLC Wave II grants." Along these lines, one other site examined, the Khan Academy, also complies with the politics of Common Core: "We're working hard to ensure our math content rigorously and comprehensively covers the Common Core Standards, a set of math standards that most of the states in the U.S. have adopted." In short the iCivics site is a very engaging site in that the design is clean and clear and indeed bright colors and interesting graphics are sprinkled throughout. The student will learn because not only are they memorizing facts and reading they are actually experiencing the dynamic process of democracy. They state their intention clearly enough: "democratic action," which is code for progressive politics.

    What do you think are some of this technology’s goals?
    The goal of the technology is to allow the student to manipulate the data in such a way that they actually understand the promoters of the living Constitution and the progressive ideals advocated by the organizers. In the exercise to Know Your Rights clients come in to interact with the lawyer who may or may not have the expertise needed and then go to trial: it's an interesting approach.

    What does the user “do” when s/he uses the technology?
    The student may choose four main exercises in which they have to interact and think through the issues within that module. It means they have to think while making decisions based on their understanding of the Constitution.

    Does the technology direct the learner toward a specific goal or is it more open-ended?
    The learner is directed towards participatory, direct action progressive politics. It is similar to the Greek notion of direct democracy, as the Founders had written a Constitution to head off such a direction.

    How does it seek to engage and/or motivate the learner?
    The learner is engaged and motivated by moving through various modules. The student is given a semblance of choice in that they could move from preselected silos and categories of thinking.

    How might the learner learn from it?
    The learner might see themselves as oppressed (Pablo Freire) and the learner may raise their consciousness. The designers of the site seemed to intend that the learner understand that activism is the route to pursue.

    Who was/is its intended primary audience?

    The audience of the older technology was school-age in high school kids. I will anticipate part three by contrasting it with the newer technology.

    The intended primary audience of young people are those without a knowledge about American history and a constitutional background. There is no discussion of America as a Republic, or a description of the Res Publica.
    What were/are its goals?

    The older technology had as its goal to stimulate thought and to encourage conversation and discussion

    The new technology goals are to be engaging and relevant while acquainting a student with the living Constitution as one that can be interpreted and expanded upon.

    Based on your personal experiences with it, did the technology meet its goals? Why or why not?
    Yes, the older technology met its goals because it is very memorable even after several decades.

    Yes, the new technology meets its goals in that it is well-designed, attractively arranged, and well laid out to involve a younger, impressionable student to enjoy.


    Did it have other potentially unintentional effects (either positive or negative)?

    The older technology had unintentional effects in that it was bombastic and it turned some students off.

    Insofar as the new technology is concerned the following is one of the more intriguing passages in the game. The game actually shows you how to violate the Constitution of the United States of America. It is an unabashed appeal to the unbridled use of tyrannical power. The site states:
    "Do you like running things? Branches of Power allows you to do something that no one else can: control all three branches of government! You'll have the power to write any laws you want about issues you choose. Careful, though, there's a lot to juggle when you're playing all three branches. Good luck!"

    There is no instructive background to explain a figure like George Washington for example who actually refused the title of Excellency. It appears to take the history out of its context and with no readings or learning objectives that have to do with the times and the culture of the day it is difficult to really grasp why the Founders wrote the document that they did.
    Are their approaches similar or divergent?
    The approach of the older technology is to provoke thought and enjoyment because films in the old days were technologically challenged but very exciting for the day and age. At this time the newer technology is striving to keep up with the better produced more highly commercial products that students have access to already.

    Pick one aspect of the experience across both technologies and contrast them.
    One aspect of the experience across both technologies can be contrasted since the older technology, although not technologically sound, provoked a great deal of excitement and expectation among students. The newer technology by contrast does not enlighten and inform. It appears to titilate but not engender fun and the joy of learning and reading seems missing.

    How do they compare? Did you find one more engaging? More thought-provoking? More memorable? More playful or structured? More motivating?
    They compare in the sense that both want education to be fun. The older technology involved us because it was something very different and out of the ordinary. The newer technology is something that kids experience every day because they've grown up with and have been surrounded by technology. There's no question that the newer technology is more engaging in that the older technology was a more passive medium. We were excited by it since we really had to socialize and discuss the content to make sense of it. But considering the question of which is more thought-provoking I think you can still make a case for the older technology. I have retained the memories of Mr. Deeds and those history classes over several decades but I doubt if students today will remember technology in the same way after several decades. The older technology is more memorable because it really stood out in a day when there was much less technology. It was really something out of the ordinary. I think the newer technology is both more playful and more structured and does not allow for the freedom of thought as the older technology did. You also do not interact and socialize in the new technology. In the older technology there are no limitations of thought. You were free to think of the material as you saw fit including as I suggested in my video presentation. Some students simply laughed at how ridiculous the propaganda was. The newer technology is more structured in that there are silos of thought confining the student to certain pathways to learn. In the case of motivation they probably are just about equal in that the older technology allowed students to think what they wanted. The newer technology motivates students to be activists.

    Why do you think this is the case for you? Is it likely the case for other users as well?

    I see the technology as I do more simply because of the culture of the time and my age. The country is much different and therefore what is most likely be the case is that other users will have a very different experience.

    What other differences or similarities struck you about these tools?

    I found the older technology more engaging in that it is open-ended. Contrast the more narrowly focused iCivics site. The student has only one of four areas: Lawcraft, Election Resources, One Big Party?, or Citizen Me. What if the student had other ideas about civics? There are only four choices to pick from. If you pick Lawcraft for example, you can only be a Democratic or a Republican. Thus, you only have two choices. The student may pick from numerous characteristics to advocate within the confines of those two parties. The provided definition of liberty is misleading. In politics, liberty is freedom from government coercion; however, in the game, it is defined as "people have the freedom to do things that they want to do." Generosity is defined that "the government is providing large benefits or services to citizens." Can non-government NGOs be generous? Perhaps institutions such as churches, synagogues, or non-profits are providing benefits or services too. The difference, not mentioned in the game, is that government is collecting taxes first. The NGOs are simply generous. 

    Common Core References

    Lawcraft and the Annenberg Foundation

    To be posted:
    March 28, 2015
    Liberty Beats Common Core
    https://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/b/post-preview?token=xBPhNUkBAAA.90JQYy3n40_pLZzMVQvqMA.z9qg37U9oJCeIFdKJU0J6Q&postId=889523697381562301&type=POST

    March 24, 2015
    Rare to Common Core: College Degree Over 40 Years

    January 29, 2015
    How to Make Math Hard: Common Core
    Harder Math Harder Subtraction

    December 31, 2014
    Conform Common Core

    December 22, 2014
    Governor Jindal Sues Feds Over Common Core

    November 30, 2014
    Common Core History Nonsense
    Enochs High School principal Deb Rowe in charge in California, social studies teacher Janeen Zambo read from a breakup note to the students ab Nonsense

    October 29, 2014
    10 Catholic Facts Against the CommonCore
    http://www.cardinalnewmansociety.org/Portals/0/Mail/Renewal%20Report/pdf%20for%20web%20Final.pdf

    Media Fawned Over Common Core
    http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/10/media-fawned-over-common-core.html#axzz3GoFkxdc0

    Common Core Promotes Islam
    American Common Core Pro-Islamist
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/10/common-core-promotes-islam.html#ixzz3GoG5thci

    Common Core Toxic
    http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/07/04/public-school-teacher-has-some-harsh-words-for-common-core-and-the-toxic-culture-of-education/

    PA Against Common Core
    http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/08/common-core.html#axzz3GoFkxdc0

    Iowa Ditches Common Core
    http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/08/iowa-ditches-common-core.html#axzz3GoFkxdc0

    Catholics Battle Church Officials Against Common Core
    http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/06/18/catholic-parents-clash-over-common-core/

    10 Reasons to Oppose Common Core
    http://youtu.be/na-JmnHdlZw

    Common Core Data Collection of Every Child
    http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2014/05/22/Study-New-Technology-Development-Pushed-By-Feds-Allows-For-Data-Collection-on-Every-Child
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/05/common-core-data-collection-of-every.html#ixzz3GoHHhbNk

    Common Core Motivator: White Privilege
    http://newsbusters.org/blogs/tom-blumer/2014/05/21/teacher-involved-common-core-development-my-white-privilege-motivated-me http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/05/22/listen-to-the-audiences-reaction-when-teacher-reveals-why-he-helped-write-common-core/

    Common Core Government Propaganda
    https://mobile.twitter.com/ColetteMoran/status/395967716382629889/photo/1

    Feds Threaten Indiana Over Common Core
    http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/05/07/federal-govt-issues-warning-to-state-that-wants-to-opt-out-of-common-core/

    Comedian Comes Out Against Common Core, Standardized Testing – See If You Can Get the Answers to His Kids’ Homework
    http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/04/28/when-the-famous-comedian-who-once-said-i-really-love-barack-obama-says-this-about-common-core-it-makes-news/
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/04/comedian-comes-out-against-common-core.html#ixzz3GoHnA0a6

    Another Common Core Progaganda Site
    opened.io

    Common Core Opponent Suspended
    http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/04/common-core-opponent-suspended-for.html#axzz3GoFkxdc0

    Teacher Tearfully Describes Bullying and Intimidation She Suffered for Opposing Common Core
    Speaking before the Missouri Senate Education Committee, Susan Kimball said she has been “strongly discouraged from saying anything negative about Common Core by my administration and some school board members.”
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/04/teacher-tearfully-describes-bullying.html#ixzz3GoIpTjSx
    http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/04/teacher-tearfully-describes-bullying.html#axzz3GoFkxdc0

    SAT Dumbing Down for Common Core: Gov't to Put Companies Out of Business
    SAT test prep companies out of business and aligning the test to the Common Core Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2014/03/sat-test-prep-makeover-104291.html#ixzz2v81LnhTc
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/03/sat-dumbing-down-for-common-core-govt.html#ixzz3GoIxbi2K

    Common Core Principal Against Common Core
    http://nepc.colorado.edu/author/burris-c-c

    Click the "play" arrow for the Common Common Core audio report
    Common Core audio report http://www.grassrootsaction.com/201105/offer.asp?Ref_ID=25183&p=1&CID=201107&RID=41539123 See more at: http://www.grassrootsaction.com/201105/offer.asp?Ref_ID=25183&p=1&CID=201107&RID=41539123#sthash.v8WrYqgf.dpuf
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/03/click-play-arrow-for-common-common-core.html#ixzz3GoJBcZLj

    Common Core, Wrong
    http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/02/common-core-wrong.html#axzz3GoFkxdc0

    Panelist at Podesta Think Tank on Common Core: 'The Children Belong to All of Us' - See more at: http://cnsnews.com/news/article/penny-starr/panelist-podesta-think-tank-common-core-children-belong-all-us#sthash.g7hUMfGo.dpuf
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/02/panelist-at-podesta-think-tank-on.html#ixzz3GoJRWMxV

    Catholic is Our Core, Not Common
    Catholic Schools Standards Project known as the Common Core Catholic Identity Initiative (CCCII)
    http://www.cardinalnewmansociety.org/CatholicIsOurCore/CatholicIdentityConcerns.aspx
    http://ohioansagainstcommoncore.com/2013/08/catholic-school-parents-your-revolt-is-way-overdue/
    http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/common-core-commotion-is-new-curriculum-catholic-school-friendly/
    http://www.cccii-online.org/images/Resources/CCCII_Project_Overview_Ozar_June_2012.pdf
    http://www.catholicschoolstandards.org/
    http://www.cccii-online.org/images/Resources/Guidelines/CCCII-Guidelines-01-15.pdf
    http://www.ncea.org/events/common-core-catholic-identity-initiative-conference
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/02/catholic-is-our-core-not-common.html#ixzz3GoJXPfty

    FreedomWorks Common Core Course
    Course: Activist Involvement: Common Core
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/01/freedomworks-common-core-course.html#ixzz3GoJdQir9

    Fed-Up Mother Tackles Common Core in Viral Video: ‘Parents Have No Voice’
    Karen Lamoreaux, an Arkansas parent who appeared in a viral video tackling some of the issues associated with the Common Core, appeared on the Glenn Beck Program Wednesday to discuss the “dumbing down of American kids.”
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/01/fed-up-mother-tackles-common-core-in.html#ixzz3GoJkWDGl

    Part 1: Current Technology

    Peer 1

    Excellent analysis

    Peer 2

    Wait, was a new technology described?

    Part 2: Earlier Technology

    Peer 1

    Movies were mentioned but not described. How were they used in the classroom? I liked the part where you talked about your personal connection to classroom movies.

    Part 3: Comparative Analysis

    Peer 1

    It was a well written and in depth analysis between the two technologies.

    Peer 2

    If this was in there, I didn't see it. But then, maybe I totally missed the earlier tech?

    Presentation & Communication

    Peer 1

    It was fun and flashy to do a movie. I expected to be really engaged, so you had that going for you. However, the message was lost, especially at the end. I wasn't even sure if you were trying to slip in some messages against some world ideologies.

    I enjoyed reading your Then and Now submission.




    Obama Record: 11 and a Half Million Left the Work Force

    http://www.cnsnews.com/news/article/ali-meyer/11472000-americans-have-left-workforce-obama-took-office

    Monday, October 20, 2014

    Ian Hunter, MADAM X' GODZILLA INTERVIEW

    Interview

    Maricopa County AZ, Ballot Stuffing

    Surveillance video

    Ballot stuffing

    Obama Weakens Military

    http://p.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/jul/31/obama-military-strategy-too-weak-future-security-p/

    Sunday, October 19, 2014

    Media Fawned Over Common Core

    http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/07/30/educator-the-media-just-collapsed-and-failed-to-ask-basic-questions-about-common-core/

    Saturday, October 18, 2014

    Clinton Admits He Could Have Snuffed Bin Laden

    http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/07/31/new-audio-emerges-of-bill-clinton-admitting-i-could-have-killed-osama-bin-laden-but-its-the-date-of-the-recording-that-is-so-surreal/

    Pope Francis Speech at the Conclusion of the Synod

    Pope

    Ian Hunter, Nalen, Stockholm, Sweden

    (I'm the) Teacher, Words (Big Mouth)

    Wash Away

    When I'm President

    Bastard

    I Wish I Was Your Mother

    23A Swan Hill

    Roll Away The Stone

    High School Nooses

    High school shenanigans

    Friday, October 17, 2014

    Wednesday, October 15, 2014

    A Capella Johnny Cash's Ring of Fire

    http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/07/28/the-absolutely-fantastic-a-capella-cover-of-johnny-cashs-hit-song-ring-of-fire-that-you-have-to-hear-goosebumps/

    Tuesday, October 14, 2014

    Ian Hunter Slammed on No Name Classic Metal Show

    Slam

    Sam Harris, Islam is the Mother Lode of Bad Ideas

    Sam Harris

    Southern Oregon University Students Take Back Their Campus

    Take back the country.

    Another American Killed by Saudi

    Killed

    The Israel Test

    http://www.theblaze.com/blog/2014/07/29/the-single-defining-civilizational-test-that-millions-are-failing-all-over-the-world/

    Jews Attacked in Crown Heights, Brooklyn

    Attack

    Federal Government Failure to Protect

    Federal failure

    Monday, October 13, 2014

    Contempt Holder vs. Citizen

    Citizen

    Massive Government Bubble, Peter Thiel

    History of the Black Flags of Jihad

    Jihadi Black Flag

    Muslim Manhattan: Genital Mutilation, Rape

    Manhattan

    Obama's Traiterous Trade Report Not Released

    Traitor

    Islamist Manual of Mayhem: Infiltrate Western Institutions

    Islamism

    Online Education Research

    http://newsoffice.mit.edu/2014/what-69-million-clicks-tell-us-about-how-fix-online-education

    Sunday, October 12, 2014

    Ian Hunter, Storen kulturhus, Singsas, Norway

    Sweet Jane

    Surveillance Hinders Free Speech

    http://online.wsj.com/articles/surveillance-programs-hinder-journalists-lawyers-report-finds-1406554492

    Saturday, October 11, 2014

    Put Down the Phone

    https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=1463663330539523&set=vb.1444293462476510&type=2&theater

    New Jersey Cop a Bit Too Fastidious

    Glouchester

    Right to Bear Arns Infringed in West Virginia

    Defending himself Sunday School Teacher Arrested.

    Warwick, R.I., Police Receive Letter to Behead School Children

    What religion beheads?

    Ian Hunter, Byscenen, Trondheim, Norway

    Common Core Promotes Islam

    American Common Core Pro-Islamist

    Muslims Attack the Jews on American College Campuses

    Muslims Attack Jews

    Friday, October 10, 2014

    Everybody Hates Obama

    Hate

    Split Second Decision by Cops Who Shoot: Innocent Suspect? Or, not?

    Did the police just shoot an innocent man who was putting the gun down? What do you see?

    Shot

    This video is of actual Detectives attempting to stop a criminal in Chicago which has some of the most restrictive gun laws in the country.

    DON'T READ UNTIL YOU WATCH THE VIDEO!

    Please remember these cops acted in real time.

    What did you see?

    Officers ordered the suspect to put the assault rifle down and that is what he is doing, right?

    He is complying and then they shoot him.

    Is that what you saw?

    Watch the suspect's right hand while he places the rifle down with his left hand.

    What you don't see by facing this criminal face to face, but the Officer behind the suspect does see, is the suspect pulling a hidden handgun from his rear pants, with his right hand.

    The officer yells "Gun" before firing.

    Watch as the bad guy goes down.

    The handgun is still in his right hand.

    What you think you see does not always tell the truth.

    How Obama is Wasting Money on War

    Waste

    Reason: Minimum Wage, Mary Poppins

    http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/07/26/in-80-seconds-reason-takes-apart-the-viral-mary-poppins-minimum-wage-video/

    Thursday, October 9, 2014

    Wednesday, October 8, 2014

    Convention of States - Jefferson Statement

    Jefferson

    Ian Hunter, USF Verftet, Bergen, Norway

    Islamists from ISIS Cross Border

    Obama's army

    Design and Development of Educational Technology

    Assignment 1

    http://youtu.be/fitTn23tFTU

    Iconoclast1967

    Rubrics

     Very knowledgeable about chosen current technology and provided an insightful and in-depth analysis.
     Very knowledgeable about chosen earlier technology and provided an insightful and in-depth analysis.
     Thoroughly described the differences and similarities between the two technologies and used each to highlight aspects of the other.
    Utilized multimedia and technology in a creative and inspiring but also relevant presentation format.

    My goal is to express myself knowledgeably about current technology in order to provide an insightful and in-depth analysis of both current technology, and older technology. In terms of the older technology I want to consider 8mm films and in so far as the new technology is concerned, a website: iCivics. The civics game has as its goal to provide a fun and educational experience for the next generation of citizens. They want to demonstrate that participation is important and they promote the ideas of democracy. Although the age range is essentially K-12 they do seem to overlook some of the intricacies and complexities of the actual government. For example, the three branches of government are not precisely three equal branches currently. I would have preferred that they demonstrated the concept of the Imperial presidency and how the two other branches, the legislative and the judicial, have been superseded.

    The student has some choice however and can move through various aspects of the site at their own pace and by choice. The site does seem to favor the view that participatory democracy is the ideal political state. Not surprisingly, it has been endorsed to promote Common Core principles as funded by Bill Gates. The site states:. "Overview:The Next Generation Learning Challenges (NGLC) initiative, provided grants to 19 organizations for implementing proven and emerging technology-enabled instructional and assessment materials to improve students’ mastery of Common Core-aligned content for grades 7 through 9." In addition, the "Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation contracted with the nonprofit research institute SRI International for an independent evaluation of the NGLC Wave II grants." Along these lines, one other site examined, the Khan Academy, also complies with the politics of Common Core: "We're working hard to ensure our math content rigorously and comprehensively covers the Common Core Standards, a set of math standards that most of the states in the U.S. have adopted." In short the iCivics site is a very engaging site in that the design is clean and clear and indeed bright colors and interesting graphics are sprinkled throughout. The student will learn because not only are they memorizing facts and reading they are actually experiencing the dynamic process of democracy. They state their intention clearly enough: "democratic action," which is code for progressive politics.

    What do you think are some of this technology’s goals?
    The goal of the technology is to allow the student to manipulate the data in such a way that they actually understand the promoters of the living Constitution and the progressive ideals advocated by the organizers. In the exercise to Know Your Rights clients come in to interact with the lawyer who may or may not have the expertise needed and then go to trial: it's an interesting approach.

    What does the user “do” when s/he uses the technology?
    The student may choose four main exercises in which they have to interact and think through the issues within that module. It means they have to think while making decisions based on their understanding of the Constitution.

    Does the technology direct the learner toward a specific goal or is it more open-ended?
    The learner is directed towards participatory, direct action progressive politics. It is similar to the Greek notion of direct democracy, as the Founders had written a Constitution to head off such a direction.

    How does it seek to engage and/or motivate the learner?
    The learner is engaged and motivated by moving through various modules. The student is given a semblance of choice in that they could move from preselected silos and categories of thinking.

    How might the learner learn from it?
    The learner might see themselves as oppressed (Pablo Freire) and the learner may raise their consciousness. The designers of the site seemed to intend that the learner understand that activism is the route to pursue.

    Who was/is its intended primary audience?

    The audience of the older technology was school-age in high school kids. I will anticipate part three by contrasting it with the newer technology.

    The intended primary audience of young people are those without a knowledge about American history and a constitutional background. There is no discussion of America as a Republic, or a description of the Res Publica.
    What were/are its goals?

    The older technology had as its goal to stimulate thought and to encourage conversation and discussion

    The new technology goals are to be engaging and relevant while acquainting a student with the living Constitution as one that can be interpreted and expanded upon.

    Based on your personal experiences with it, did the technology meet its goals? Why or why not?
    Yes, the older technology met its goals because it is very memorable even after several decades.

    Yes, the new technology meets its goals in that it is well-designed, attractively arranged, and well laid out to involve a younger, impressionable student to enjoy.


    Did it have other potentially unintentional effects (either positive or negative)?

    The older technology had unintentional effects in that it was bombastic and it turned some students off.

    Insofar as the new technology is concerned the following is one of the more intriguing passages in the game. The game actually shows you how to violate the Constitution of the United States of America. It is an unabashed appeal to the unbridled use of tyrannical power. The site states:
    "Do you like running things? Branches of Power allows you to do something that no one else can: control all three branches of government! You'll have the power to write any laws you want about issues you choose. Careful, though, there's a lot to juggle when you're playing all three branches. Good luck!"

    There is no instructive background to explain a figure like George Washington for example who actually refused the title of Excellency. It appears to take the history out of its context and with no readings or learning objectives that have to do with the times and the culture of the day it is difficult to really grasp why the Founders wrote the document that they did.
    Are their approaches similar or divergent?
    The approach of the older technology is to provoke thought and enjoyment because films in the old days were technologically challenged but very exciting for the day and age. At this time the newer technology is striving to keep up with the better produced more highly commercial products that students have access to already.

    Pick one aspect of the experience across both technologies and contrast them.
    One aspect of the experience across both technologies can be contrasted since the older technology, although not technologically sound, provoked a great deal of excitement and expectation among students. The newer technology by contrast does not enlighten and inform. It appears to titilate but not engender fun and the joy of learning and reading seems missing.

    How do they compare? Did you find one more engaging? More thought-provoking? More memorable? More playful or structured? More motivating?
    They compare in the sense that both want education to be fun. The older technology involved us because it was something very different and out of the ordinary. The newer technology is something that kids experience every day because they've grown up with and have been surrounded by technology. There's no question that the newer technology is more engaging in that the older technology was a more passive medium. We were excited by it since we really had to socialize and discuss the content to make sense of it. But considering the question of which is more thought-provoking I think you can still make a case for the older technology. I have retained the memories of Mr. Deeds and those history classes over several decades but I doubt if students today will remember technology in the same way after several decades. The older technology is more memorable because it really stood out in a day when there was much less technology. It was really something out of the ordinary. I think the newer technology is both more playful and more structured and does not allow for the freedom of thought as the older technology did. You also do not interact and socialize in the new technology. In the older technology there are no limitations of thought. You were free to think of the material as you saw fit including as I suggested in my video presentation. Some students simply laughed at how ridiculous the propaganda was. The newer technology is more structured in that there are silos of thought confining the student to certain pathways to learn. In the case of motivation they probably are just about equal in that the older technology allowed students to think what they wanted. The newer technology motivates students to be activists.

    Why do you think this is the case for you? Is it likely the case for other users as well?

    I see the technology as I do more simply because of the culture of the time and my age. The country is much different and therefore what is most likely be the case is that other users will have a very different experience.

    What other differences or similarities struck you about these tools?

    I found the older technology more engaging in that it is open-ended. Contrast the more narrowly focused iCivics site. The student has only one of four areas: Lawcraft, Election Resources, One Big Party?, or Citizen Me. What if the student had other ideas about civics? There are only four choices to pick from. If you pick Lawcraft for example, you can only be a Democratic or a Republican. Thus, you only have two choices. The student may pick from numerous characteristics to advocate within the confines of those two parties. The provided definition of liberty is misleading. In politics, liberty is freedom from government coercion; however, in the game, it is defined as "people have the freedom to do things that they want to do." Generosity is defined that "the government is providing large benefits or services to citizens." Can non-government NGOs be generous? Perhaps institutions such as churches, synagogues, or non-profits are providing benefits or services too. The difference, not mentioned in the game, is that government is collecting taxes first. The NGOs are simply generous. 

    Common Core References

    Lawcraft and the Annenberg Foundation

    To be posted:
    March 28, 2015
    Liberty Beats Common Core
    https://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/b/post-preview?token=xBPhNUkBAAA.90JQYy3n40_pLZzMVQvqMA.z9qg37U9oJCeIFdKJU0J6Q&postId=889523697381562301&type=POST

    March 24, 2015
    Rare to Common Core: College Degree Over 40 Years

    January 29, 2015
    How to Make Math Hard: Common Core
    Harder Math Harder Subtraction

    December 31, 2014
    Conform Common Core

    December 22, 2014
    Governor Jindal Sues Feds Over Common Core

    November 30, 2014
    Common Core History Nonsense
    Enochs High School principal Deb Rowe in charge in California, social studies teacher Janeen Zambo read from a breakup note to the students ab Nonsense

    October 29, 2014
    10 Catholic Facts Against the CommonCore
    http://www.cardinalnewmansociety.org/Portals/0/Mail/Renewal%20Report/pdf%20for%20web%20Final.pdf

    Media Fawned Over Common Core
    http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/10/media-fawned-over-common-core.html#axzz3GoFkxdc0

    Common Core Promotes Islam
    American Common Core Pro-Islamist
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/10/common-core-promotes-islam.html#ixzz3GoG5thci

    Common Core Toxic
    http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/07/04/public-school-teacher-has-some-harsh-words-for-common-core-and-the-toxic-culture-of-education/

    PA Against Common Core
    http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/08/common-core.html#axzz3GoFkxdc0

    Iowa Ditches Common Core
    http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/08/iowa-ditches-common-core.html#axzz3GoFkxdc0

    Catholics Battle Church Officials Against Common Core
    http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/06/18/catholic-parents-clash-over-common-core/

    10 Reasons to Oppose Common Core
    http://youtu.be/na-JmnHdlZw

    Common Core Data Collection of Every Child
    http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Government/2014/05/22/Study-New-Technology-Development-Pushed-By-Feds-Allows-For-Data-Collection-on-Every-Child
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/05/common-core-data-collection-of-every.html#ixzz3GoHHhbNk

    Common Core Motivator: White Privilege
    http://newsbusters.org/blogs/tom-blumer/2014/05/21/teacher-involved-common-core-development-my-white-privilege-motivated-me http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/05/22/listen-to-the-audiences-reaction-when-teacher-reveals-why-he-helped-write-common-core/

    Common Core Government Propaganda
    https://mobile.twitter.com/ColetteMoran/status/395967716382629889/photo/1

    Feds Threaten Indiana Over Common Core
    http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/05/07/federal-govt-issues-warning-to-state-that-wants-to-opt-out-of-common-core/

    Comedian Comes Out Against Common Core, Standardized Testing – See If You Can Get the Answers to His Kids’ Homework
    http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/04/28/when-the-famous-comedian-who-once-said-i-really-love-barack-obama-says-this-about-common-core-it-makes-news/
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/04/comedian-comes-out-against-common-core.html#ixzz3GoHnA0a6

    Another Common Core Progaganda Site
    opened.io

    Common Core Opponent Suspended
    http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/04/common-core-opponent-suspended-for.html#axzz3GoFkxdc0

    Teacher Tearfully Describes Bullying and Intimidation She Suffered for Opposing Common Core
    Speaking before the Missouri Senate Education Committee, Susan Kimball said she has been “strongly discouraged from saying anything negative about Common Core by my administration and some school board members.”
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/04/teacher-tearfully-describes-bullying.html#ixzz3GoIpTjSx
    http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/04/teacher-tearfully-describes-bullying.html#axzz3GoFkxdc0

    SAT Dumbing Down for Common Core: Gov't to Put Companies Out of Business
    SAT test prep companies out of business and aligning the test to the Common Core Read more: http://www.politico.com/story/2014/03/sat-test-prep-makeover-104291.html#ixzz2v81LnhTc
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/03/sat-dumbing-down-for-common-core-govt.html#ixzz3GoIxbi2K

    Common Core Principal Against Common Core
    http://nepc.colorado.edu/author/burris-c-c

    Click the "play" arrow for the Common Common Core audio report
    Common Core audio report http://www.grassrootsaction.com/201105/offer.asp?Ref_ID=25183&p=1&CID=201107&RID=41539123 See more at: http://www.grassrootsaction.com/201105/offer.asp?Ref_ID=25183&p=1&CID=201107&RID=41539123#sthash.v8WrYqgf.dpuf
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/03/click-play-arrow-for-common-common-core.html#ixzz3GoJBcZLj

    Common Core, Wrong
    http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/02/common-core-wrong.html#axzz3GoFkxdc0

    Panelist at Podesta Think Tank on Common Core: 'The Children Belong to All of Us' - See more at: http://cnsnews.com/news/article/penny-starr/panelist-podesta-think-tank-common-core-children-belong-all-us#sthash.g7hUMfGo.dpuf
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/02/panelist-at-podesta-think-tank-on.html#ixzz3GoJRWMxV

    Catholic is Our Core, Not Common
    Catholic Schools Standards Project known as the Common Core Catholic Identity Initiative (CCCII)
    http://www.cardinalnewmansociety.org/CatholicIsOurCore/CatholicIdentityConcerns.aspx
    http://ohioansagainstcommoncore.com/2013/08/catholic-school-parents-your-revolt-is-way-overdue/
    http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/common-core-commotion-is-new-curriculum-catholic-school-friendly/
    http://www.cccii-online.org/images/Resources/CCCII_Project_Overview_Ozar_June_2012.pdf
    http://www.catholicschoolstandards.org/
    http://www.cccii-online.org/images/Resources/Guidelines/CCCII-Guidelines-01-15.pdf
    http://www.ncea.org/events/common-core-catholic-identity-initiative-conference
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/02/catholic-is-our-core-not-common.html#ixzz3GoJXPfty

    FreedomWorks Common Core Course
    Course: Activist Involvement: Common Core
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/01/freedomworks-common-core-course.html#ixzz3GoJdQir9

    Fed-Up Mother Tackles Common Core in Viral Video: ‘Parents Have No Voice’
    Karen Lamoreaux, an Arkansas parent who appeared in a viral video tackling some of the issues associated with the Common Core, appeared on the Glenn Beck Program Wednesday to discuss the “dumbing down of American kids.”
    Read more: http://blogsmithconsulting.blogspot.com/2014/01/fed-up-mother-tackles-common-core-in.html#ixzz3GoJkWDGl



    The following are some current educational technologies you are welcome to explore:

     Assignment 1.1: Ed Tech Then and Now

    INTRODUCTION

    As we begin our explorations of the theory and design of educational technologies, we start by developing a framework for considering and discussing educational technology.  As we continue through the weeks together, our models of individual learners and the contexts in which people learn will develop. But it’s useful to see some concrete examples right away to start analyzing the designs of existing technologies built for learning and teaching.

    PART 1: CURRENT TECHNOLOGY

    So as a starting place, we’d like you to jump right in, find a new piece of current educational technology and try it out yourself. Some examples you might want to consider are listed on the next page. We’ll get the most variety as a class if everyone chooses something they find or know about independently, but if you’re stuck for ideas feel free to work with one from the list. We’ll refer to this as your “current technology”. Spend some time using the technology as a learner would - you don’t need to become an expert in it, but work with it until you feel like you have accomplished something cool, and you could explain to a friend what the technology is all about.
    Now do some critical thinking about the technology and your experience with it. There are many ways to analyze and reflect on this experience, but as a start, consider these questions:
    • What do you think are some of this technology’s goals?
    • What does the user “do” when s/he uses the technology?
    • Does the technology direct the learner toward a specific goal or is it more open-ended?
    • How does it seek to engage and/or motivate the learner?
    • How might the learner learn from it?

    PART 2: EARLIER TECHNOLOGY

    Now, think back to a technology which made an impression on you in your own learning experience. This can be positive or negative, and can be from the recent past or something from your childhood. We’ll refer to this as your “earlier technology”. It can be anything you’ve used in an educational context - for example Speak and Spell, a filmstrip, laserdisk, PC software, Excel, etc.
    Give a quick description of the technology for those who might not be familiar with it. Then describe your recollections and impressions of this “earlier technology” and its impact on your learning.
    • Who was/is its intended primary audience?
    • What were/are its goals? 
    • Based on your personal experiences with it, did the technology meet its goals? Why or why not? 
    • Did it have other potentially unintentional effects (either positive or negative)?  

    PART 3 - COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS

    Finally, compare and contrast your experience using the “current technology” with your experience with your “earlier technology”.
    • Are their approaches similar or divergent?
    • Pick one aspect of the experience across both technologies and contrast them.
    • How do they compare? Did you find one more engaging? More thought-provoking? More memorable? More playful or structured?  More motivating?
    • Why do you think this is the case for you? Is it likely the case for other users as well?
    • What other differences or similarities struck you about these tools?

    DELIVERABLE FORMAT

    Your actual turn-in for this assignment may vary from student to student, but the important thing is that it include background information about your chosen technologies, and your responses to the questions (or similar ones) in each of the 3 sections. We imagine that most turn-ins will take the form of a written document, in which case it would also be helpful to include images or screen shots of the technologies being discussed. If you would prefer to create a presentation, video, or other multimedia deliverable, that’s great too. Choose the format that you think best conveys what you want to communicate, and that you will have the most fun with.

    TURN-IN AND EVALUATION

    When you’re ready to submit your assignment, go to the last unit in this ribbon, which is the peer assessment. Since the platform does not conveniently allow document uploads, you will need to post your work online somewhere then paste the link(s) and any special instructions into the submission form. (See these tips on posting shareable documents online.) You’ll then be prompted to evaluate some of your classmates’ work, and in turn some of your classmates will also evaluate your work. The evaluation will be based on the criteria in the rubric, which can be found on the next page. So you will want to look through the rubric ahead of time and keep those criteria in mind as you work on your project.

    Due Date

    Technically the only due date is to submit this assignment by the end of the course. However, to get the benefit of peer feedback, we stronly suggest you submit it by the end of Week 1: October 21st. After that time the majority of course participants will be moving on to Week 2 work and won't be focused on this specific topic.

    Share (External resource)

    If you’d like to share the technologies you looked at and your analysis of them, we encourage you to join in the discussion of this assignment on the forum! From the main forum homepage, go to Week 1 then find the "Ed Tech Then and Now" discussion.

    Part 2
    Mitch Resnick and Ricarose Roque describe the inspiration for Scratch and how it makes programming easy for kids to get into. They talk about the goals for Scratch as making programming more tinkerable, meaningful, and social.

    The Turtle Art gallery shows how complex and artistic Logo creations can get - definitely worth a quick browse.
    Start here for a basic step-by-step tutorial.
    Turtle Academy has lessons and sample programs if you want to delve deeper. Just create an account and go to the Playground to get started.
    It seemed redundant to “create” things that were already created. Then, I tried to mix and match to make something original but the coding was too glitchy for me and my skills were not up to par. As a result, I went back to a simple tree but I couldn’t get a screen shot on the computer I was using at the time. I did attach Logo Interpreter.htm though.
    Logo Interpreter.htm: Sorry, this file type is not permitted for security reasons.
    This browser-based logo compiler lets you write and run your logo programs quickly and easily on the web site.

    Activity Break: Turtle Time
    Hal Abelson's bio
    MIT App Inventor, one of Logo's descendants, originated by Hal.
    The Logo Tree Project showing the descendants of Logo.
    "But the real magic comes when this [computation] is combined with the conceptual power of theoretical ideas associated with computation (p. 353)." Herein lies the rub. Most of the technology so far outstrips the conceptual power of the student to explore their own ideas. You can not let the technology dazzle you into submission.
    Papert's Teaching Children Thinking paper
    Papert video
    Part 3
    Part 2
    History of Logo
    Piaget, Childhood
    Papert
    Piaget
    Zone of Proximal Development

    11.132x: Design and Development of Educational Technology

    This project-based course explores educational technologies and the theories underlying their development through interviews with experts in the field.
    • Starts: 8 Oct 2014
    • Instructors: Eric Klopfer
    • MITx
    http://youtu.be/hiU2d0GUN1M
    Video
    About this Course

    To be effective, educational technologies must be designed based on what we know about how people learn. Through interviews with multiple experts in the field, this course examines educational technologies, outlines the theories that influenced their development, and examines their use. The course leads up to a final project – a kickstarter style pitch for a new educational technology - which is worked on iteratively across the weeks. It involves active weekly participation.

    In week 1, we’ll talk about the history of educational technologies and how they change the way we learn. We’ll also discuss two important educational theories that focus on student-centered learning.

    In week 2, we’ll explore what it means to learn something and examine several different approaches to deepen learning. We’ll begin by introducing a specific framework for thinking about learning. We’ll then take a close look at how educational software developers are more deeply engaging learners and even providing feedback to students as they learn.

    Week 3 will focus on forms of Active Learning, where students choose and pursue activities based on their own interests. We’ll also talk with experts about designing to help build important non-cognitive skills, like persistence and developing mastery.

    Week 4 will move from individual learning to collaborative learning in a range of forms, from apprenticeships to communities of practice. We’ll speak with experts about the many ways learning in groups can manifest itself. No matter what the medium, collaborative learning has a lot to teach us.

    Week 5 focuses on assessment. All the clever educational technology design in the world isn’t very useful if we don’t know whether students’ learning is being enhanced by it or what changes need to be made to increase its effectiveness. We’ll talk with teachers, students, and assessment experts who will provide an overview of the different types of assessment and how technology is changing the field of assessment.

    Finally, in week 6, we’ll talk about design-based research, a methodology for research and design of educational innovations in which you create projects that embody the educational change you wish to study.

    Week 0 of this course is a 'ramp-up' week for participants to introduce themselves to one another and become familiar with the forums and other course platform features.

    This course is part of the EdTechX series from the MIT Education Arcade. Build your understanding of the use and design of technologies for learning. Check out the other course modules.


    Reading List
    Behaviorism (or behaviourism), is an approach to psychology that combines elements of philosophy, methodology, and theory. It emerged in the early twentieth century as a reaction to "mentalistic" psychology, which often had difficulty making predictions that could be tested using rigorous experimental methods. The primary tenet of behaviorism, as expressed in the writings of John B. Watson, B. F. Skinner, and others, is that psychology should concern itself with the observable behavior of people and animals, not with unobservable events that take place in their minds. The behaviorist school of thought maintains that behaviors as such can be described scientifically without recourse either to internal physiological events or to hypothetical constructs such as thoughts and beliefs.
    From early psychology in the 19th century, the behaviorist school of thought ran concurrently and shared commonalities with the psychoanalytic and Gestalt movements in psychology into the 20th century; but also differed from the mental philosophy of the Gestalt psychologists in critical ways.[4] Its main influences were Ivan Pavlov, who investigated classical conditioning although he did not necessarily agree with behaviorism or behaviorists, Edward Lee Thorndike, John B. Watson who rejected introspective methods and sought to restrict psychology to experimental methods, and B.F. Skinner who conducted research on operant conditioning.
    In the second half of the 20th century, behaviorism was largely eclipsed as a result of the cognitive revolution. While behaviorism and cognitive schools of psychological thought may not agree theoretically, they have complemented each other in practical therapeutic applications, such as in cognitive–behavioral therapy that has demonstrable utility in treating certain pathologies, such as simple phobias, PTSD, and addiction. In addition, behaviorism sought to create a comprehensive model of the stream of behavior from the birth of a human to their death (see Behavior analysis of child development).
    In psychology, cognitivism is a theoretical framework for understanding the mind that gained credence in the 1950s. The movement was a response to behaviorism, which cognitivists said neglected to explain cognition. Cognitive psychology derived its name from the Latin cognoscere, referring to knowing and information, thus cognitive psychology is an information-processing psychology derived in part from earlier traditions of the investigation of thought and problem solving. Behaviorists acknowledged the existence of thinking, but identified it as a behavior. Cognitivists argued that the way people think impacts their behavior and therefore cannot be a behavior in and of itself. Cognitivists later argued that thinking is so essential to psychology that the study of thinking should become its own field.
    Constructivism is a theory of knowledge (epistemology) that argues that humans generate knowledge and meaning from an interaction between their experiences and their ideas. During infancy, it was an interaction between human experiences and their reflexes or behavior-patterns. Jean Piaget called these systems of knowledge schemata. Constructivism is not a specific pedagogy, although it is often confused with constructionism, an educational theory developed by Seymour Papert, inspired by constructivist and experiential learning ideas of Piaget. Piaget's theory of constructivist learning has had wide ranging impact on learning theories and teaching methods in education and is an underlying theme of many education reform movements. Research support for constructivist teaching techniques has been mixed, with some research supporting these techniques and other research contradicting those results.
    The Characteristics of Excellence in Higher Education
    Writing Learning Objectives: Beginning with the End in Mind

























































    Record income gap fuels US housing weakness

    income gap

    VA Congressman Supports Islamist Terrorism

    Congressional support for terrorism.

    Qasim Rashid Whitewash the Koran

    http://pamelageller.com/2014/07/huffington-post-ahmadi-muslim-leader-qasim-rashid-whitewash-qurans-teaching-subjugating-infidels.html/

    Tuesday, October 7, 2014

    First We Warn Civilians Then We Bomb Islamists: Israeli Bombing Policy

    http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2014/07/25/at-25-seconds-incredible-video-actually-captures-israeli-bomb-in-the-air-before-it-hits-its-target/

    Ian Hunter, Festiviteten, Haugesund, Norway

    Monday, October 6, 2014

    Turkish Academic Gets Grant for Jewish Gas Chambers

    Holocaust

    Obama Hand Delivers Praise for Beheader's Mosque

    Praise

    Mott The Hoople, 45th Anniversary by Morgan Fisher

    Morgan Fisher

    Mott The Hoople and Me

    Boston Jihad Again

    http://youtu.be/loUDnk5QGcI

    Islamist Justification for Beheading

    Koran on beheading.

    Netanyahu@UN: 'Would you let terrorists fire rockets at your cities?'

    http://youtu.be/rmrHIUJKF0g

    Ian Hunter, Mott The Hoople with Morgan Fisher, Live in NYC

    Great show with the entertaining Morgan with one caveat. While Morgan was presenting the cameraman would constantly concentrate on Morgan while he was trying to show something on the screen. Morgan did his own versions of MTH songs which was difficult for him to play keyboards and sing at the same time. He usually does not perform that way.

    Recorded Live 7 pm - 9:30 pm EST at the DROM Club.

    Mott The Hoople article

    Sunday, October 5, 2014

    Mott The Hoople, Morgan Fisher, World of Echo with Dave Mandl: Playlist from October 5, 2014

    Morgan Fisher

    Muslim Anti-Islamic State Draws All of Ten People

    10

    Obama Support for Islamic Caliphate

    But he’s done so much to fund the muslims? http://therightscoop.com/despicable-obama-sends-more-armored-vehicles-to-hezbollah-despite-listing-it-as-terrorist-organization/ http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-07-05/obama-call-for-muslim-brotherhood-role-overtaken-in-egypt.html http://www.redstate.com/diary/matthewclark/2014/06/13/88-senators-gravely-concerned-obama-administration-funding-hamas-terrorist-led-palestinian-government/ http://www.businessinsider.com/america-sells-patriots-to-qatar-2014-7?utm_source=hearst&utm_medium=referral&utm_content=allverticals http://www.dallasblog.com/201407231010538/dallas-blog/obama-funds-hamas-with-11bn-us-weapons.html http://www.frontpagemag.com/2014/dgreenfield/obama-to-illegally-fund-hamas-plo-terror-state/ http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2014/06/obama-administration-we-support-new-hamas-government/ http://www.ldjackson.net/obama-approves-direct-funding-for-hamas/ http://zoa.org/2014/06/10245979-zoa-condemns-obama-admin-for-maintaining-tiesfunding-to-new-hamasfatah-pa-govt/ http://www.frontpagemag.com/2013/dgreenfield/obama-negotiating-with-hezbollah-terrorists/ http://twitchy.com/2013/06/27/cairo-protesters-to-obama-stop-supporting-the-muslim-brotherhoods-fascist-regime-photos/ http://www.frontpagemag.com/2013/joseph-klein/the-obama-administrations-muslim-brotherhood-policy/ http://www.usnews.com/news/blogs/washington-whispers/2012/09/20/new-ad-implies-obama-is-cozy-with-muslim-brotherhood http://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/23/opinion/roger-cohen-working-with-the-muslim-brotherhood.html http://freedomoutpost.com/2013/07/barack-obama-ignores-congress-sends-500-million-of-taxpayer-money-to-hamas-palestinian-authrority/ http://hotair.com/archives/2012/04/28/friday-night-news-dump-obama-bypasses-congress-funds-palestinian-authority/ http://palestineisraelconflict.wordpress.com/2012/11/25/obamas-400-mil-funded-hamas-mass-child-wedding-in-gaza-with-6-9-year-girls/ http://online.wsj.com/articles/why-should-americans-fund-hamas-1401913021 http://creepingsharia.wordpress.com/2012/08/20/obama-funding-1-billion-in-infrastructure-projects-in-hamas-run-gaza/ http://www.israelnationalnews.com/Articles/Article.aspx/15140#.U9FNtvldV8E http://freedomoutpost.com/2013/06/kerry-waive-restrictions-on-foreign-aid-sends-egypt-1-3-billion/ http://www.reuters.com/article/2009/02/23/us-palestinians-clinton-idUSN2350280520090223 http://christwire.org/2009/03/obama-is-spending-1-billion-dollars-to-aid-palestinian-hamas-terrorists/ http://www.dcclothesline.com/2013/08/02/obama-aids-enemy-muslims-to-hamas-military-contracts-to-talibanal-qaeda/ http://www.truthrevolt.org/israel-revolt/obama-supported-palestinian-govt-kidnapped-american-citizen http://wizbangblog.com/content/2009/02/07/obama-signs-executive-order-allowing-palestinians-loyal-to-hamas-to-resettle-in-us.php http://www.exposeobama.com/2010/06/11/why-is-obama-handing-out-millions-of-dollars-to-terrorists/ http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2011/01/31/obama_didn_t_back_iranian_revolt_but_supports_muslim_brotherhood http://freedomoutpost.com/2013/05/obama-claims-that-working-with-muslim-brotherhood-will-bring-victory-over-terrorism/ http://www.cogwriter.com/news/prophecy/obama-vows-to-support-muslim-brotherhood-backed-leaders-in-libya/ http://www.examiner.com/article/obama-administration-supporting-objectives-of-the-muslim-brotherhood-egypt http://www.cogwriter.com/news/prophecy/egypts-muslim-brotherhood-satisfies-us-government/

    Saturday, October 4, 2014

    Immigration and Gumballs

    https://www.youtube.com/embed/LPjzfGChGlE

    Cartoon Character Offends Muslim: Couple Thrown Off Bus

    Cartoon

    Ian Hunter, O2 Shepherds Bush, London, U.K.

    Once Bitten, Twice Shy

    When I'm President

    Roll Away The Stone

    Roll Away The Stone

    Roll Away The Stone

    Roll Away The Stone

    Sweet Jane

    All The Young Dudes

    All The Young Dudes

    Photo credit: cludgie AKA fluffy

    Review

    U.S. Taxpayers Pay for Mosque Security

    Map of Islamist attacks on Americans.

    2 Million Muslims Celebrate Pagan Practice

    Re-enactment of a pagan practice.

    American Muslim Convert to be Beheaded: 'it is only right to continue to strike necks of your people'

    American Muslim convert about to be beheaded quotes from the Koran to justify his own beheading.

    Friday, October 3, 2014

    OK Mosque Preached Killing

    Beheader's mosque

    Aw-laki FBI Asset

    Asset

    President's Response to Shot Down Plane

    http://www.theblaze.com/contributions/mr-president-the-80s-called-with-some-advice-on-russia/

    Total Pageviews

    Popular Posts

    FEEDJIT Live Traffic Feed/Site Meter

    FEEDJIT Live Traffic Map

    Where From?

    site statistics

    Search This Blog

    Reading since summer 2006 (some of the classics are re-reads): including magazine subscriptions

    • Abbot, Edwin A., Flatland;
    • Accelerate: Technology Driving Business Performance;
    • ACM Queue: Architecting Tomorrow's Computing;
    • Adkins, Lesley and Roy A. Adkins, Handbook to Life in Ancient Rome;
    • Ali, Ayaan Hirsi, Nomad: From Islam to America: A Personal Journey Through the Clash of Civilizations;
    • Ali, Tariq, The Clash of Fundamentalisms: Crusades, Jihads, and Modernity;
    • Allawi, Ali A., The Crisis of Islamic Civilization;
    • Alperovitz, Gar, The Decision To Use the Atomic Bomb;
    • American School & University: Shaping Facilities & Business Decisions;
    • Angelich, Jane, What's a Mother (in-Law) to Do?: 5 Essential Steps to Building a Loving Relationship with Your Son's New Wife;
    • Arad, Yitzchak, In the Shadow of the Red Banner: Soviet Jews in the War Against Nazi Germany;
    • Aristotle, Athenian Constitution. Eudemian Ethics. Virtues and Vices. (Loeb Classical Library No. 285);
    • Aristotle, Metaphysics: Books X-XIV, Oeconomica, Magna Moralia (The Loeb classical library);
    • Armstrong, Karen, A History of God;
    • Arrian: Anabasis of Alexander, Books I-IV (Loeb Classical Library No. 236);
    • Atkinson, Rick, The Guns at Last Light: The War in Western Europe, 1944-1945 (Liberation Trilogy);
    • Auletta, Ken, Googled: The End of the World As We Know It;
    • Austen, Jane, Pride and Prejudice;
    • Bacevich, Andrew, The Limits of Power: The End of American Exceptionalism;
    • Baker, James A. III, and Lee H. Hamilton, The Iraq Study Group Report: The Way Forward - A New Approach;
    • Barber, Benjamin R., Jihad vs. McWorld: Terrorism's Challenge to Democracy;
    • Barnett, Thomas P.M., Blueprint for Action: A Future Worth Creating;
    • Barnett, Thomas P.M., The Pentagon's New Map: War and Peace in the Twenty-First Century;
    • Barron, Robert, Catholicism: A Journey to the Heart of the Faith;
    • Baseline: Where Leadership Meets Technology;
    • Baur, Michael, Bauer, Stephen, eds., The Beatles and Philosophy;
    • Beard, Charles Austin, An Economic Interpretation of the Constitution of the United States (Sony Reader);
    • Benjamin, Daniel & Steven Simon, The Age of Sacred Terror: Radical Islam's War Against America;
    • Bergen, Peter, The Osama bin Laden I Know: An Oral History of al Qaeda's Leader;
    • Berman, Paul, Terror and Liberalism;
    • Berman, Paul, The Flight of the Intellectuals: The Controversy Over Islamism and the Press;
    • Better Software: The Print Companion to StickyMinds.com;
    • Bleyer, Kevin, Me the People: One Man's Selfless Quest to Rewrite the Constitution of the United States of America;
    • Boardman, Griffin, and Murray, The Oxford Illustrated History of the Roman World;
    • Bracken, Paul, The Second Nuclear Age: Strategy, Danger, and the New Power Politics;
    • Bradley, James, with Ron Powers, Flags of Our Fathers;
    • Bronte, Charlotte, Jane Eyre;
    • Bronte, Emily, Wuthering Heights;
    • Brown, Ashley, War in Peace Volume 10 1974-1984: The Marshall Cavendish Encyclopedia of Postwar Conflict;
    • Brown, Ashley, War in Peace Volume 8 The Marshall Cavendish Illustrated Encyclopedia of Postwar Conflict;
    • Brown, Nathan J., When Victory Is Not an Option: Islamist Movements in Arab Politics;
    • Bryce, Robert, Gusher of Lies: The Dangerous Delusions of "Energy Independence";
    • Bush, George W., Decision Points;
    • Bzdek, Vincent, The Kennedy Legacy: Jack, Bobby and Ted and a Family Dream Fulfilled;
    • Cahill, Thomas, Sailing the Wine-Dark Sea: Why the Greeks Matter;
    • Campus Facility Maintenance: Promoting a Healthy & Productive Learning Environment;
    • Campus Technology: Empowering the World of Higher Education;
    • Certification: Tools and Techniques for the IT Professional;
    • Channel Advisor: Business Insights for Solution Providers;
    • Chariton, Callirhoe (Loeb Classical Library);
    • Chief Learning Officer: Solutions for Enterprise Productivity;
    • Christ, Karl, The Romans: An Introduction to Their History and Civilization;
    • Cicero, De Senectute;
    • Cicero, The Republic, The Laws;
    • Cicero, The Verrine Orations I: Against Caecilius. Against Verres, Part I; Part II, Book 1 (Loeb Classical Library);
    • Cicero, The Verrine Orations I: Against Caecilius. Against Verres, Part I; Part II, Book 2 (Loeb Classical Library);
    • CIO Decisions: Aligning I.T. and Business in the MidMarket Enterprise;
    • CIO Insight: Best Practices for IT Business Leaders;
    • CIO: Business Technology Leadership;
    • Clay, Lucius Du Bignon, Decision in Germany;
    • Cohen, William S., Dragon Fire;
    • Colacello, Bob, Ronnie and Nancy: Their Path to the White House, 1911 to 1980;
    • Coll, Steve, The Bin Ladens: An Arabian Family in the American Century;
    • Collins, Francis S., The Language of God: A Scientist Presents Evidence for Belief ;
    • Colorni, Angelo, Israel for Beginners: A Field Guide for Encountering the Israelis in Their Natural Habitat;
    • Compliance & Technology;
    • Computerworld: The Voice of IT Management;
    • Connolly, Peter & Hazel Dodge, The Ancient City: Life in Classical Athens & Rome;
    • Conti, Greg, Googling Security: How Much Does Google Know About You?;
    • Converge: Strategy and Leadership for Technology in Education;
    • Cowan, Ross, Roman Legionary 58 BC - AD 69;
    • Cowell, F. R., Life in Ancient Rome;
    • Creel, Richard, Religion and Doubt: Toward a Faith of Your Own;
    • Cross, Robin, General Editor, The Encyclopedia of Warfare: The Changing Nature of Warfare from Prehistory to Modern-day Armed Conflicts;
    • CSO: The Resource for Security Executives:
    • Cummins, Joseph, History's Greatest Wars: The Epic Conflicts that Shaped the Modern World;
    • D'Amato, Raffaele, Imperial Roman Naval Forces 31 BC-AD 500;
    • Dallek, Robert, An Unfinished Life: John F. Kennedy 1917-1963;
    • Daly, Dennis, Sophocles' Ajax;
    • Dando-Collins, Stephen, Caesar's Legion: The Epic Saga of Julius Caesar's Elite Tenth Legion and the Armies of Rome;
    • Darwish, Nonie, Now They Call Me Infidel: Why I Renounced Jihad for America, Israel, and the War on Terror;
    • Davis Hanson, Victor, Makers of Ancient Strategy: From the Persian Wars to the Fall of Rome;
    • Dawkins, Richard, The Blind Watchmaker;
    • Dawkins, Richard, The God Delusion;
    • Dawkins, Richard, The Selfish Gene;
    • de Blij, Harm, Why Geography Matters: Three Challenges Facing America, Climate Change, The Rise of China, and Global Terrorism;
    • Defense Systems: Information Technology and Net-Centric Warfare;
    • Defense Systems: Strategic Intelligence for Info Centric Operations;
    • Defense Tech Briefs: Engineering Solutions for Military and Aerospace;
    • Dennett, Daniel C., Breaking the Spell: Religion as a Natural Phenomenon;
    • Dennett, Daniel C., Consciousness Explained;
    • Dennett, Daniel C., Darwin's Dangerous Idea;
    • Devries, Kelly, et. al., Battles of the Ancient World 1285 BC - AD 451 : From Kadesh to Catalaunian Field;
    • Dickens, Charles, Great Expectations;
    • Digital Communities: Building Twenty-First Century Communities;
    • Doctorow, E.L., Homer & Langley;
    • Dodds, E. R., The Greeks and the Irrational;
    • Dostoevsky, Fyodor, The House of the Dead (Google Books, Sony e-Reader);
    • Dostoevsky, Fyodor, The Idiot;
    • Douglass, Elisha P., Rebels and Democrats: The Struggle for Equal Political Rights and Majority Role During the American Revolution;
    • Doyle, Sir Arthur Conan, The Hound of the Baskervilles & The Valley of Fear;
    • Dr. Dobb's Journal: The World of Software Development;
    • Drug Discovery News: Discovery/Development/Diagnostics/Delivery;
    • DT: Defense Technology International;
    • Dunbar, Richard, Alcatraz;
    • Education Channel Partner: News, Trends, and Analysis for K-20 Sales Professionals;
    • Edwards, Aton, Preparedness Now!;
    • EGM: Electronic Gaming Monthly, the No. 1 Videogame Magazine;
    • Ehrman, Bart D., Lost Christianities: The Battles for Scriptures and the Faiths We Never Knew;
    • Ehrman, Bart D., Misquoting Jesus: The Story Behind Who Changed the Bible and Why;
    • Electronic Engineering Times: The Industry Newsweekly for the Creators of Technology;
    • Ellis, Joseph J., American Sphinx: The Character of Thomas Jefferson;
    • Ellis, Joseph J., His Excellency: George Washington;
    • Emergency Management: Strategy & Leadership in Critical Times;
    • Emerson, Steven, American Jihad: The Terrorists Living Among Us;
    • Erlewine, Robert, Monotheism and Tolerance: Recovering a Religion of Reason (Indiana Series in the Philosophy of Religion);
    • ESD: Embedded Systems Design;
    • Everitt, Anthony, Augustus: The Life of Rome's First Emperor;
    • Everitt, Anthony, Cicero: The Life and Times of Rome's Greatest Politician;
    • eWeek: The Enterprise Newsweekly;
    • Federal Computer Week: Powering the Business of Government;
    • Ferguson, Niall, Civilization: The West and the Rest;
    • Ferguson, Niall, Empire: The Rise and Demise of the British World Order and the Lessons for Global Power;
    • Ferguson, Niall, The Cash Nexus: Money and Power in the Modern World, 1700-2000;
    • Ferguson, Niall, The War of the World: Twentieth-Century Conflict and the Decline of the West;
    • Feuerbach, Ludwig, The Essence of Christianity (Sony eReader);
    • Fields, Nic, The Roman Army of the Principate 27 BC-AD 117;
    • Fields, Nic, The Roman Army of the Punic Wars 264-146 BC;
    • Fields, Nic, The Roman Army: the Civil Wars 88-31 BC;
    • Finkel, Caroline, Osman's Dream: The History of the Ottoman Empire;
    • Fisk, Robert, The Great War For Civilization: The Conquest of the Middle East;
    • Forstchen, William R., One Second After;
    • Fox, Robin Lane, The Classical World: An Epic History from Homer to Hadrian;
    • Frazer, James George, The Golden Bough (Volume 3): A Study in Magic and Religion (Sony eReader);
    • Freeh, Louis J., My FBI: Bringing Down the Mafia, Investigating Bill Clinton, and Fighting the War on Terror;
    • Freeman, Charles, The Greek Achievement: The Foundations of the Western World;
    • Friedman, Thomas L. The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century Further Updated and Expanded/Release 3.0;
    • Friedman, Thomas L., The Lexus and the Olive Tree: Understanding Globalization;
    • Frontinus: Stratagems. Aqueducts of Rome. (Loeb Classical Library No. 174);
    • Fuller Focus: Fuller Theological Seminary;
    • Fuller, Graham E., A World Without Islam;
    • Gaubatz, P. David and Paul Sperry, Muslim Mafia: Inside the Secret Underworld That's Conspiring to Islamize America;
    • Ghattas, Kim, The Secretary: A Journey with Hillary Clinton from Beirut to the Heart of American Power;
    • Gibson, William, Neuromancer;
    • Gilmour, Michael J., Gods and Guitars: Seeking the Sacred in Post-1960s Popular Music;
    • Global Services: Strategies for Sourcing People, Processes, and Technologies;
    • Glucklich, Ariel, Dying for Heaven: Holy Pleasure and Suicide Bombers-Why the Best Qualities of Religion Are Also It's Most Dangerous;
    • Goldberg, Jonah, Liberal Fascism: The Secret History of the American Left, From Mussolini to the Politics of Meaning;
    • Goldin, Shmuel, Unlocking the Torah Text Vayikra (Leviticus);
    • Goldsworthy, Adrian, Caesar: Life of a Colossus;
    • Goldsworthy, Adrian, How Rome Fell: Death of a Superpower;
    • Goodman, Lenn E., Creation and Evolution;
    • Goodwin, Doris Kearns, Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln;
    • Gopp, Amy, et.al., Split Ticket: Independent Faith in a Time of Partisan Politics (WTF: Where's the Faith?);
    • Gordon, Michael R., and Bernard E. Trainor, Cobra II: The Inside Story of the Invasion and Occupation of Iraq;
    • Government Health IT: The Magazine of Public/private Health Care Convergence;
    • Government Technology's Emergency Management: Strategy & Leadership in Critical Times;
    • Government Technology: Solutions for State and Local Government in the Information Age;
    • Grant , Michael, The Climax of Rome: The Final Achievements of the Ancient World, AD 161 - 337;
    • Grant, Michael, The Classical Greeks;
    • Grumberg, Orna, and Helmut Veith, 25 Years of Model Checking: History, Achievements, Perspectives;
    • Halberstam, David, War in a Time of Peace: Bush, Clinton, and the Generals;
    • Hammer, Reuven, Entering Torah Prefaces to the Weekly Torah Portion;
    • Hanson, Victor Davis, An Autumn of War: What America Learned from September 11 and the War on Terrorism;
    • Hanson, Victor Davis, Between War and Peace: Lessons from Afghanistan to Iraq;
    • Hanson, Victor Davis, Carnage and Culture: Landmark Battles in the Rise of Western Power;
    • Hanson, Victor Davis, How The Obama Administration Threatens Our National Security (Encounter Broadsides);
    • Hanson, Victor Davis, Makers of Ancient Strategy: From the Persian Wars to the Fall of Rome;
    • Hanson, Victor Davis, Ripples of Battle: How Wars of the Past Still Determine How We Fight, How We Live, and How We Think;
    • Hanson, Victor Davis, The End of Sparta: A Novel;
    • Hanson, Victor Davis, The Soul of Battle: From Ancient Times to the Present Day, How Three Great Liberators Vanquished Tyranny;
    • Hanson, Victor Davis, Wars of the Ancient Greeks;
    • Harnack, Adolf Von, History of Dogma, Volume 3 (Sony Reader);
    • Harris, Alex, Reputation At Risk: Reputation Report;
    • Harris, Sam, Letter to a Christian Nation;
    • Harris, Sam, The End of Faith: Religion, Terror, and the Future of Reason;
    • Hayek, F. A., The Road to Serfdom;
    • Heilbroner, Robert L., and Lester Thurow, Economics Explained: Everything You Need to Know About How the Economy Works and Where It's Going;
    • Hempel, Sandra, The Strange Case of The Broad Street Pump: John Snow and the Mystery of Cholera;
    • Hinnells, John R., A Handbook of Ancient Religions;
    • Hitchens, Christopher, God Is Not Great: How Religion Poisons Everything;
    • Hogg, Ian V., The Encyclopedia of Weaponry: The Development of Weaponry from Prehistory to 21st Century Warfare;
    • Hugo, Victor, The Hunchback of Notre Dame;
    • Humphrey, Caroline & Vitebsky, Piers, Sacred Architecture;
    • Huntington, Samuel P., The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order;
    • Info World: Information Technology News, Computer Networking & Security;
    • Information Week: Business Innovation Powered by Technology:
    • Infostor: The Leading Source for Enterprise Storage Professionals;
    • Infrastructure Insite: Bringing IT Together;
    • Insurance Technology: Business Innovation Powered by Technology;
    • Integrated Solutions: For Enterprise Content Management;
    • Intel Premier IT: Sharing Best Practices with the Information Technology Community;
    • Irwin, Robert, Dangerous Knowledge: Orientalism and Its Discontents;
    • Jeffrey, Grant R., The Global-Warming Deception: How a Secret Elite Plans to Bankrupt America and Steal Your Freedom;
    • Jewkes, Yvonne, and Majid Yar, Handbook of Internet Crime;
    • Johnson, Chalmers, Blowback: The Costs and Consequences of American Empire;
    • Journal, The: Transforming Education Through Technology;
    • Judd, Denis, The Lion and the Tiger: The Rise and Fall of the British Raj, 1600-1947;
    • Kagan, Donald, The Peloponnesian War;
    • Kansas, Dave, The Wall Street Journal Guide to the End of Wall Street as We Know It: What You Need to Know About the Greatest Financial Crisis of Our Time--and How to Survive It;
    • Karsh, Efraim, Islamic Imperialism: A History;
    • Kasser, Rodolphe, The Gospel of Judas;
    • Katz, Solomon, The Decline of Rome and the Rise of Medieval Europe: (The Development of Western Civilization);
    • Keegan, John, Intelligence in War: The Value--and Limitations--of What the Military Can Learn About the Enemy;
    • Kenis, Leo, et. al., The Transformation of the Christian Churches in Western Europe 1945-2000 (Kadoc Studies on Religion, Culture and Society 6);
    • Kepel, Gilles, Jihad: The Trail of Political Islam;
    • Kiplinger's: Personal Finance;
    • Klein, Naomi, The Shock Doctrine: The Rise of Disaster Capitalism;
    • KM World: Content, Document, and Knowledge Management;
    • Koestler, Arthur, Darkness at Noon: A Novel;
    • Kostova, Elizabeth, The Historian;
    • Kuttner, Robert, The Squandering of America: How the Failure of Our Politics Undermines Our Prosperity;
    • Lake, Kirsopp, The Text of the New Testament, Sony Reader;
    • Laur, Timothy M., Encyclopedia of Modern US Military Weapons ;
    • Leffler, Melvyn P., and Jeffrey W. Legro, To Lead the World: American Strategy After the Bush Doctrine;
    • Lendon, J. E., Soldiers and Ghosts: A History of Battle in Classical Antiquity;
    • Lenin, V. I., Imperialism the Highest Stage of Capitalism;
    • Lennon, John J., There is Absolutely No Reason to Pay Too Much for College!;
    • Lewis, Bernard, The Crisis of Islam: Holy War and Unholy Terror;
    • Lewis, Bernard, What Went Wrong?: The Clash Between Islam and Modernity in the Middle East;
    • Lifton, Robert J., Greg Mitchell, Hiroshima in America;
    • Limberis, Vasiliki M., Architects of Piety: The Cappadocian Fathers and the Cult of the Martyrs;
    • Lipsett, B. Diane, Desiring Conversion: Hermas, Thecla, Aseneth;
    • Livingston, Jessica, Founders At Work: Stories of Startups' Early Days;
    • Livy, Rome and the Mediterranean: Books XXXI-XLV of the History of Rome from its Foundation (Penguin Classics);
    • Louis J., Freeh, My FBI: Bringing Down the Mafia, Investigating Bill Clinton, and Fighting the War on Terror;
    • Mackay, Christopher S., Ancient Rome: A Military and Political History;
    • Majno, Guido, The Healing Hand: Man and Wound in the Ancient World;
    • Marcus, Greil,Invisible Republic: Bob Dylan's Basement Tapes;
    • Marshall-Cornwall, James, Napoleon as Military Commander;
    • Maughm, W. Somerset, Of Human Bondage;
    • McCluskey, Neal P., Feds in the Classroom: How Big Government Corrupts, Cripples, and Compromises American Education;
    • McCullough, David, 1776;
    • McCullough, David, John Adams;
    • McCullough, David, Mornings on Horseback: The Story of an Extraordinary Family, a Vanished Way of Life and the Unique Child Who Became Theodore Roosevelt;
    • McLynn, Frank, Marcus Aurelius: A Life;
    • McManus, John, Deadly Brotherhood, The: The American Combat Soldier in World War II ;
    • McMaster, H. R., Dereliction of Duty: Johnson, McNamara, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Lies That Led to Vietnam;
    • McNamara, Patrick, Science and the World's Religions Volume 1: Origins and Destinies (Brain, Behavior, and Evolution);
    • McNamara, Patrick, Science and the World's Religions Volume 2: Persons and Groups (Brain, Behavior, and Evolution);
    • McNamara, Patrick, Science and the World's Religions Volume 3: Religions and Controversies (Brain, Behavior, and Evolution);
    • Meacham, Jon, American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House;
    • Mearsheimer, John J., and Stephen M. Walt, The Israel Lobby and U.S. Foreign Policy;
    • Meier, Christian, Caesar: A Biography;
    • Menzies, Gaven, 1421: The Year China Discovered America;
    • Metaxas, Eric, Bonhoeffer: Pastor, Martyr, Prophet, Spy;
    • Michael, Katina and M.G. Michael, Innovative Automatic Identification and Location-Based Services: From Barcodes to Chip Implants;
    • Migliore, Daniel L., Faith Seeking Understanding: An Introduction to Christian Theology;
    • Military & Aerospace Electronics: The Magazine of Transformation in Electronic and Optical Technology;
    • Millard, Candice, Theodore Roosevelt's Darkest Journey: The River of Doubt;
    • Mommsen, Theodor, The History of the Roman Republic, Sony Reader;
    • Muller, F. Max, Chips From A German Workshop: Volume III: Essays On Language And Literature;
    • Murray, Janet, H., Hamlet On the Holodeck: The Future of Narrative in Cyberspace;
    • Murray, Williamson, War in the Air 1914-45;
    • Müller, F. Max, Chips From A German Workshop;
    • Nader, Ralph, Crashing the Party: Taking on the Corporate Government in an Age of Surrender;
    • Nagl, John A., Learning to Eat Soup with a Knife: Counterinsurgency Lessons from Malaya and Vietnam;
    • Napoleoni, Loretta, Terrorism and the Economy: How the War on Terror is Bankrupting the World;
    • Nature: The International Weekly Journal of Science;
    • Negus, Christopher, Fedora 6 and Red Hat Enterprise Linux;
    • Network Computing: For IT by IT:
    • Network World: The Leader in Network Knowledge;
    • Network-centric Security: Where Physical Security & IT Worlds Converge;
    • Newman, Paul B., Travel and Trade in the Middle Ages;
    • Nietzsche, Friedrich Wilhelm, The Nietzsche-Wagner Correspondence;
    • Nixon, Ed, The Nixons: A Family Portrait;
    • O'Brien, Johnny, Day of the Assassins: A Jack Christie Novel;
    • O'Donnell, James J., Augustine: A New Biography;
    • OH & S: Occupational Health & Safety
    • Okakura, Kakuzo, The Book of Tea;
    • Optimize: Business Strategy & Execution for CIOs;
    • Ostler, Nicholas, Ad Infinitum: A Biography of Latin;
    • Parry, Jay A., The Real George Washington (American Classic Series);
    • Paton, W.R., The Greek Anthology, Volume V, Loeb Classical Library, No. 86;
    • Pausanius, Guide to Greece 1: Central Greece;
    • Perrett, Bryan, Cassell Military Classics: Iron Fist: Classic Armoured Warfare;
    • Perrottet, Tony, The Naked Olympics: The True Story of the Olympic Games;
    • Peters, Ralph, New Glory: Expanding America's Global Supremacy;
    • Phillips, Kevin, American Dynasty: Aristocracy, Fortune, and the Politics of Deceit in the House of Bush;
    • Pick, Bernhard; Paralipomena; Remains of Gospels and Sayings of Christ (Sony Reader);
    • Pimlott, John, The Elite: The Special Forces of the World Volume 1;
    • Pitre, Brant, Jesus and the Jewish Roots of the Eucharist: Unlocking the Secrets of the Last Supper;
    • Plutarch's Lives, X: Agis and Cleomenes. Tiberius and Gaius Gracchus. Philopoemen and Flamininus (Loeb Classical Library®);
    • Podhoretz, Norman, World War IV: The Long Struggle Against Islamofascism;
    • Posner, Gerald, Case Closed: Lee Harvey Oswald and the Assassination of JFK;
    • Potter, Wendell, Deadly Spin: An Insurance Company Insider Speaks Out on How Corporate PR Is Killing Health Care and Deceiving Americans;
    • Pouesi, Daniel, Akua;
    • Premier IT Magazine: Sharing Best Practices with the Information Technology Community;
    • Price, Monroe E. & Daniel Dayan, eds., Owning the Olympics: Narratives of the New China;
    • Profit: The Executive's Guide to Oracle Applications;
    • Public CIO: Technology Leadership in the Public Sector;
    • Putnam, Robert D., Bowling Alone : The Collapse and Revival of American Community;
    • Quintus of Smyrna, The Fall of Troy;
    • Rawles, James Wesley, Patriots: A Novel of Survival in the Coming Collapse;
    • Red Herring: The Business of Technology;
    • Redmond Channel Partner: Driving Success in the Microsoft Partner Community;
    • Redmond Magazine: The Independent Voice of the Microsoft IT Community;
    • Renan, Ernest, The life of Jesus (Sony eReader);
    • Richler, Mordecai (editor), Writers on World War II: An Anthology;
    • Roberts, Ian, The Energy Glut: Climate Change and the Politics of Fatness in an Overheating World;
    • Rocca, Samuel, The Army of Herod the Great;
    • Rodgers, Nigel, A Military History of Ancient Greece: An Authoritative Account of the Politics, Armies and Wars During the Golden Age of Ancient Greece, shown in over 200 color photographs, diagrams, maps and plans;
    • Rodoreda, Merce, Death in Spring: A Novel;
    • Romerstein, Herbert and Breindel, Eric,The Venona Secrets, Exposing Soviet Espionage and America's Traitors;
    • Ross, Dennis, Statecraft: And How to Restore America's Standing in the World;
    • Roth, Jonathan P., Roman Warfare (Cambridge Introduction to Roman Civilization);
    • SC Magazine: For IT Security Professionals;
    • Scahill, Jeremy, Blackwater: The Rise of the World's Most Powerful Mercenary Army [Revised and Updated];
    • Schama, Simon, A History of Britain, At the Edge of the World 3500 B.C. - 1603 A.D.;
    • Scheuer, Michael, Imperial Hubris: Why the West Is Losing the War On Terror;
    • Scheuer, Michael, Marching Toward Hell: America and Islam After Iraq;
    • Scheuer, Michael, Osama Bin Laden;
    • Scheuer, Michael, Through Our Enemies Eyes: Osama Bin Laden, Radical Islam, and the Future of America;
    • Scholastic Instructor
    • Scholastic Parent & Child: The Joy of Family Living and Learning;
    • Schopenhauer, Arthur, The World As Will And Idea (Sony eReader);
    • Schug-Wille, Art of the Byzantine World;
    • Schulze, Hagen, Germany: A New History;
    • Schweizer, Peter, Architects of Ruin: How Big Government Liberals Wrecked the Global Economy---and How They Will Do It Again If No One Stops Them;
    • Scott, Sir Walter, Ivanhoe;
    • Seagren, Eric, Secure Your Network for Free: Using Nmap, Wireshark, Snort, Nessus, and MRTG;
    • Security Technology & Design: The Security Executive's Resource for Systems Integration and Convergence;
    • Seibel, Peter, Coders at Work;
    • Sekunda N., & S. Northwood, Early Roman Armies;
    • Seneca: Naturales Quaestiones, Books II (Loeb Classical Library No. 450);
    • Sewall, Sarah, The U.S. Army/Marine Corps Counterinsurgency Field Manual;
    • Sheppard, Ruth, Alexander the Great at War: His Army - His Battles - His Enemies;
    • Shinder, Jason, ed., The Poem That Changed America: "Howl" Fifty Years Later;
    • Sidebottom, Harry, Ancient Warfare: A Very Short Introduction;
    • Sides, Hampton, Blood and Thunder: The Epic Story of Kit Carson and the Conquest of the American West;
    • Simkins, Michael, The Roman Army from Caesar to Trajan;
    • Sinchak, Steve, Hacking Windows Vista;
    • Smith, RJ, The One: The Life and Music of James Brown;
    • Software Development Times: The Industry Newspaper for Software Development Managers;
    • Software Test Performance;
    • Solomon, Norman, War Made Easy: How Presidents and Pundits Keep Spinning Us to Death;
    • Song, Lolan, Innovation Together: Microsoft Research Asia Academic Research Collaboration;
    • Sophocles, The Three Theban Plays, tr. Robert Fagles;
    • Sound & Vision: The Consumer Electronics Authority;
    • Southern, Pat, The Roman Army: A Social and Institutional History;
    • Sri, Edward, A Biblical Walk Through the Mass: Understanding What We Say and Do In The Liturgy;
    • Sri, Edward, Men, Women and the Mystery of Love: Practical Insights from John Paul II's Love and Responsibility;
    • Stair, John Bettridge, Old Samoa; Or, Flotsam and Jetsam From the Pacific Ocean;
    • Starr, Chester G., The Roman Empire, 27 B.C.-A.D. 476: A Study in Survival;
    • Starr, John Bryan, Understanding China: A Guide to China's Economy, History, and Political Culture;
    • Stauffer, John, Giants: The Parallel Lives of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln;
    • Steyn, Mark, America Alone: The End of the World As We Know It;
    • Strassler, Robert B., The Landmark Herodotus: The Histories;
    • Strassler, Robert B., The Landmark Thucydides: A Comprehensive Guide to the Peloponnesian War;
    • Strassler, Robert B., The Landmark Xenophon's Hellenika;
    • Strategy + Business;
    • Streete, Gail, Redeemed Bodies: Women Martyrs in Early Christianity;
    • Sullivan, James, The Hardest Working Man: How James Brown Saved the Soul of America;
    • Sumner, Graham, Roman Military Clothing (1) 100 BC-AD 200;
    • Sumner, Graham, Roman Military Clothing (2) AD 200-400;
    • Suskind, Ron, The One Percent Doctrine: Deep Inside America's Pursuit of Its Enemies Since 9/11:
    • Swanston, Malcolm, Mapping History Battles and Campaigns;
    • Swiderski, Richard M., Quicksilver: A History of the Use, Lore, and Effects of Mercury;
    • Swiderski, Richard M., Quicksilver: A History of the Use, Lore, and Effects of Mercury;
    • Swift, Jonathan, Gulliver's Travels;
    • Syme, Ronald, The Roman Revolution;
    • Talley, Colin L., A History of Multiple Sclerosis;
    • Tawil, Camille, Brothers In Arms: The Story of al-Qa'ida and the Arab Jihadists;
    • Tech Briefs: Engineering Solutions for Design & Manufacturing;
    • Tech Net: The Microsoft Journal for IT Professionals;
    • Tech Partner: Gain a Competitive Edge Through Solutions Providers;
    • Technology & Learning: Ideas and Tools for Ed Tech Leaders;
    • Tenet, George, At the Center of the Storm: The CIA During America's Time of Crisis;
    • Thackeray, W. M., Vanity Fair;
    • Thompson, Derrick & William Martin, Have Guitars ... Will Travel: A Journey Through the Beat Music Scene in Northampton 1957-66;
    • Tolstoy, Leo, Anna Karenina;
    • Trento, Joseph J., The Secret History of the CIA;
    • Twain, Mark, The Gilded Age: a Tale of Today;
    • Ungar, Craig, House of Bush House of Saud;
    • Unterberger, Richie, The Unreleased Beatles Music & Film;
    • VAR Business: Strategic Insight for Technology Integrators:
    • Virgil, The Aeneid
    • Virtualization Review: Powering the New IT Generation;
    • Visual Studio: Enterprise Solutions for .Net Development;
    • VON Magazine: Voice, Video & Vision;
    • Wall Street Technology: Business Innovation Powered by Technology;
    • Wallace, Robert, Spycraft: The Secret History of the CIA's Spytechs, from Communism to al-Qaeda;
    • Wang, Wallace, Steal This Computer Book 4.0: What They Won’t Tell You About the Internet;
    • Ward-Perkins, The Fall of Rome and the End of Civilization;
    • Warren, Robert Penn, All the King's Men;
    • Wasik, John F., Cul-de-Sac Syndrome: Turning Around the Unsustainable American Dream;
    • Weber, Karl, Editor, Lincoln: A President for the Ages;
    • Website Magazine: The Magazine for Website Success;
    • Weiner, Tim, Enemies: A History of the FBI;
    • Weiner, Tim, Legacy of Ashes: The History of the CIA;
    • West, Bing, The Strongest Tribe: War, Politics, and the Endgame in Iraq;
    • Wharton, Edith, The Age of Innocence;
    • Wilcox, Peter, Rome's Enemies (1) Germanics and Dacians;
    • Wise, Terence, Armies of the Carthaginian Wars 265 - 146 BC;
    • Wissner-Gross, What Colleges Don't Tell You (And Other Parents Don't Want You To Know) 272 Secrets For Getting Your Kid Into the Top Schools;
    • Wissner-Gross, What High Schools Don't Tell You;
    • Wolf, Naomi, Give Me Liberty: A Handbook for American Revolutionaries;
    • Wolf, Naomi, The End of America: Letter of Warning to a Young Patriot;
    • Woodward, Bob, Plan of Attack;
    • Woodward, Bob, The Agenda: Inside the Clinton White House;
    • Wright, Lawrence, The Looming Tower: Al-Qaeda and the Road to 9/11;
    • Wright-Porto, Heather, Beginning Google Blogger;
    • Xenophon, The Anabasis of Cyrus;
    • Yergin, Daniel, The Prize: The Epic Quest for Oil, Money, & Power;

    Computing Reviews

    Handy Tools, Links, etc.

    This Website is a Belligerent Act

    Share |

    SmileyCentral.com

    Radical Christian

    My secure contact form

    Choice Reviews Online

    techLEARNING.com

    CIO and Strategy & Business magazines

    Mil-aero info

    Defense Systems

    Nature: International Weekly Journal of Science

    CIO

    Choice Reviews Online

    SD Times: Software Development News

    KMworld

    SC Magazine for Security Professionals

    Bloggers' Rights at EFF

    The Scientist


    Missile Defense
    33 Minutes

    Government Technology: Solutions for State and Local Government in the Information Age

    Insurance & Technology

    What's Running is a great tool so that you can see what is running on your desktop.

    Process Lasso lets you view your processor and its responsiveness.

    Online Armor lets you view your firewall status.

    CCleaner - Freeware Windows Optimization

    Avast is a terrific scrubber of all virus miscreants.

    ClamWin is an effective deterrent for the little nasty things that can crop into your machine.

    Ad-Aware is a sound anti-virus tool.

    Blog Directory & Search engine

    For all your electronic appliance needs research products on this terrific site.

    Creative Commons License
    This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported License.

    Recent Comments

    Note: Opinions expressed in comments are those of the authors alone and not necessarily those of this blogger. Comments are screened for relevance, substance, and tone, and in some cases edited, before posting. Reasoned disagreement is welcome, but not hostile, libelous, or otherwise objectionable statements. Original writing only, please. Thank you. Subscribe with Bloglines

    Blog Smith Headline Animator

    Library Thing: Chicks Dig Readers

    Blog Archive

    National Debt Clock

    "Congress: I'm Watching"

    A tax on toilet paper; I kid you not. According to the sponsor, "the Water Protection and Reinvestment Act will be financed broadly by small fees on such things as . . . products disposed of in waste water." Congress wants to tax what you do in the privacy of your bathroom.

    The Religion of Peace

    Portrait of Thinking Hero

    Portrait of Thinking Hero
    1844-1900

    Check out:

    Check out:
    Chicks dig readers.
    @ Blog Smith. Powered by Blogger.