Fonts of wisdom?
Schools could boost students' performance by simply changing the font used in teaching materials. Difficult-to-read fonts make for better learning, according to Princeton University scientists, BBC News reports. The researchers employed volunteers to learn made-up information and found that those reading harder fonts recalled more when tested 15 minutes later. Their study will be reported in the journal Cognition.
Teacher is a robot
"It's a typical classroom scene: Students working at their desks as the teacher calls out instructions," CNN.com reports. "But, unlike your average teacher, this one is made of plastic and computer circuits. This isn't a sci-fi movie; it's an English-language class taught by Engkey, a robot teacher, in the coastal city of Masan in South Korea. Part of a pilot program launched by the South Korean government, students in two elementary schools in the city are being taught English by robot teachers. In high-tech South Korea, robots serve a variety of educational purposes and the government is pressing ahead with plans to expand its robot learning, or 'R-learning,' program."
Disappearing vice
"Scotland Yard's famous Vice Squad has been renamed to reflect the new era of political correctness," The Daily Telegraph reports. The unit, "which deals with prostitution and other aspects of London's underworld, has changed its title to the rather less dynamic 'Serious Crime Directorate 9: Human Exploitation and Organized Crime Command,' or SCD9 for short. … Metropolitan Police sources said the switch had been ordered in part because the word 'vice' was thought to have negative 'connotations.' It reflects a growing trend by law enforcement agencies to treat prostitutes as victims rather than as offenders."
Happier homework
"Motivating kids to learn is at the heart of education," The Boston Globe says. "According to a new study, there is a simple but effective way to encourage kids to want to learn on their own: Give them a choice. In an experiment, high-school students who were allowed to choose their homework assignments (covering the same material) reported more interest, enjoyment and competence regarding their homework, and they scored higher on a subsequent test of the material."
School lunches
"[H]re's a wonderful CBS News report about the French school lunch program," Grist.org reports. "What's notable about it isn't the high-tech food-safety practices (they keep samples of all foods for two months in case of outbreaks!) or the menus themselves (five-course meals every day!) or the secret to getting kids to eat their veggies (deep fry them!), but rather the fact that the program is entirely uncontroversial. It makes you realize that the fight over school lunch in this country [the United States]isn't so much about feeding kids as it is about the proper role of government, attitudes toward race and class, and the studied indifference Americans seem to have about food."
Higher learning: 17 million
"There are 18,000 parking lot attendants in the [United States]with college degrees," Gizmodo.com reports. "There are 5,000 janitors in the U.S. with PhDs. In all, some 17 million college-educated Americans have jobs that don't require their level of education."
Smarter oldsters
"Is it possible that intelligence has increased from one generation to the next?" Psychcentral.com asks. "Findings of a Swedish study that examined 70-year-olds born in 1930 found that they scored higher on intelligence tests than their predecessors born in 1901 and 1902, who were previously assessed in 1971. … 'The improvement can partly be explained by better pre- and neonatal care, better nutrition, higher quality of education, better treatment of high blood pressure and other vascular diseases, and not least the higher intellectual requirements of today's society, where access to advanced technology, television and the Internet has become part of everyday life,' says Simona Sacuiu, resident in psychiatry at Sahlgrenska University Hospital. … The incidence of dementia between the two generations did not change, according to findings. The rate of dementia in people aged 70 to 75 in 2000 was the same as it was 30 years prior."
Ace that interview
From a cartoon at Businesspundit.com: Job interviewer: "Mr. Smith, where can you see yourself in 10 years?" Mr. Smith: "A mirror?" Interviewer: "Welcome aboard!"
Thought du jour
"Everywhere is within walking distance if you have the time."
Steven Wright (1955-), U.S. comedian and writer