The Professor's Notes

I had a discussion recently that centered around academia, and incentives.  The point I was attempting to make centered around the notion that we get as a result not what we “want” but what we “reward.”  It’s a generally accepted concept that people behave based on their perception of the incentives.  Some are positive incentives (annual bonus, the Christmas ham) and some are negative (loss of job, prison, rejection.)  These are, of course, the extrinsic motivators.

There are intrinsic motivators–those things you do because you are just internally motivated to do them.  Perhaps you enjoy a task (graphic design, podcasting), or you feel a “calling” to be doing something (the preacher on the sidewalk, the environmentalist chained to a tree.)

I am wondering–what motivates you? And specifically, what motivates you at work?

Do you live to work, or do you work to live?

I wanted to get some feedback from the readers of the blog (and other places) on what the distinction is between a researcher and a scholar.  My first thought is that a researcher conducts research, but a scholar is one who conducts scholarship.  Sadly, that may not be so simple a distinction.   The “quick and dirty” place for such answers is, of course, Dictionary.com.  There we find:

RESEARCH:

–noun

1. diligent and systematic inquiry or investigation into a subject in order to discover or revise facts, theories, applications,etc.: recent research in medicine.

2. a particular instance or piece of research.

SCHOLARSHIP

noun

1. learning; knowledge acquired by study; the academic attainments of a scholar.

Upon further clickage, a scholar is defined as

“a learned or erudite person, especially one who has profoundknowledge of a particular subject.”

Interestingly, there is no such distinction in definitions for Researcher vs Research.

If we look at what defines the two is the distinction one more of the approach used?  Is it that a “researcher” follows a “systematic approach”  to gathering new information–a methodology, if you will, while a scholar may not follow such a rigorously defined structure?  It that is the case, I would as that you answer a few questions:  researcher of scholar?

Lots of stories have made the news lately about hackers getting in to Sony, and Nintendo, and NPR and…. the list goes on.   In addition, we have continuing stories about personal computers getting hacked, including the (impenetrable) Mac! ¹

I just want to quickly point out a few things, as I prepare for tomorrow night’s Real Tech for Real People podcast (listen live at 9PM ET).

1.  It’s not just computer security–it’s your personal security.  Sony unfortunately stored way too much information about you on their site and in the clear meaning that the hackers got people’s passwords, and credit card numbers, as well as other personal identifying information.  Talk about “bad juju.” Read the rest of this entry »

The Kindle is a great device, allowing users to not only read with the comfortable eInk display, but also to highlight and take notes.  The drawback (as I had previously noted) is that the plain text file is saved in the order in which you enter the information.  It is truly “miscellaneous” without any clear means to sort.  I have written a macro that runs in Word that will sort the clippings by book and then sort by placement in the book.

So far, many have found it to be quite useful, but it was initially limited to Windows versions of Word because Microsoft removed VBA from the Mac versions  Microsoft has since added VBA back in, making the macro accessible for users of both Mac and Windows.

If you have a Kindle, feel free to try the macro.  If you like it, please consider making a donation–every $1 dollar helps.

By now everyone has heard that Apple has released the latest version of their iPhone operating system, the iOS 4.1. Jobs showed many exciting new features, and promised bug fixes, which he said including the poor performance issues experienced by 3G owners. Well, they certainly fixed the performance issue–but at what price?

I bought the iPhone 3G when it came out in 2008. Yes, I even waited in line for an Apple device.¹ I liked the phone, and unlike many others really felt no need to upgrade to the 3GS the next year, or even the iPhone 4.² I did jailbreak my phone, but I only did that after Apple unceremoniously removed the Google Voice application from the App Store.

I did generally update my phone whenever a new update came out, only waiting first to ensure the jailbreak was also available at the time. This was true with the 4.0 update as well. I wanted folders, and multitasking. Who wouldn’t? It’s what we have all been clamoring for since the first iPhone arrived. And, as promised iOS 4.0 (and later, 4.01) delivered. Sadly, for iPhone 3G owners that meant that we paid a great price–our phones no longer responded to our desires with swift efficiency. Instead our phones responded sluggishly, if at all. Answering phone calls became a race between the phone responding to my command to answer, and the caller’s patience on the other end. More often than not the caller, unaware of the skirmish between me and my phone, would hang up.

So I, like every other 3G owner who had upgraded to 4.0, upgraded when the 4.1 iOS rolled out. And yes, the snap, the responsiveness, is back. Mostly.

But “Surprise!” that is the only significant new feature announced in 4.1 to actually make it into the 3G version of 4.1.³ In fact, they removed multitasking!

I will say, I was never happier with my decision to switch to the Android OS and the Samsung Captivate Phone I made the switch days before the iOS 4.1 update. I thought it was a good chance to try to Android OS, and I have 30 days with AT&T to decide if I want to keep the phone. I will provide a review of the Captivate later, but after 1 week, I am definitely thinking this is a keeper.

For those that have followed the discussions on our “Real Tech for Real People” podcast at http://getthenext.com, you will know that I am not convinced enough about the value of the iPad to drop the $499.95 to get one.

That said, I am willing to go that route, with support from our listeners and my readers.

If you want to support me in getting an iPad, just click here, and make a donation to “Help Steve get an iPad”

Heck if you just like what you read, are pleased that I am here sharing my thoughts, or you enjoyed the video that posted from the swim team (or the other videos here and at http://thefathersonchats.com) then please, feel free to donate.

2 dollars, 4 dollars. 10 dollars.  Anything is gratefully accepted.

Thanks.

There are now two days until CV THON starts. IF the storm stays away…

I am sure you are wondering “how can I donate, and ensure these kids get credit for it?” It’s simple. From their website:

For Members of the Community

Donations of $100 and up will receive a t-shirt.

Donations can be sent to:

CV Four Diamonds Fund
Cumberland Valley High School
6746 Carlisle Pike
Mechanicsburg, PA 17050
Attn: Elizabeth Rimpfel

These kids work hard year round.  They are planning, canning (raising funds at sporting events and retailers), and reaching out to the media.  They certainly know that it is important to work hard FOR THE KIDS.

BUT… they also know how to have fun.  Don’t believe me? Just watch this video.

Cumberland Valley HS’s THON is only three days away. As I mentioned before, this THON is like it’s (much) larger sibling at Penn State, raising money for the Four Diamond Fund and their fight against Pediatric Cancer.

Take the time to learn about the wide range of activities they have planned at the CV THON by visiting their site at http://cvschools.org/thon and then watch the video of last year’s LINE DANCE at CV THON!

FOR THE KIDS!

I finally received my Kodak Zi8 HD Pocket Video Camera (Target had them in stock, and on sale! Go Target!)  I really am enjoying it, and I am even “digging” the Raspberry color.

Matt and I had a chat in the car while waiting for his Mom to join us for lunch.  We were talking about his iPhone which has  lived a good, but HARD life. And we chatted about it… on the zi8.

This post is from my “Archives of Incomplete Thoughts” but I wanted to share them with you all…

I have been pondering for a while the use of the eBooks (and specifically the Kindle) in Academia.  Ever since I considered purchasing my first eReader (the Sony eReader 505) I have found the convenience of having several books at my finger tips, without weighing me down, to be the most obvious benefit.  That said, I believe there are many others, and some which can result in the elusive “win-win” situations for producers and consumers alike.

• Affordability of textbooks
• Desk Reference/Review copies
• Physical size/weight relief
• notetaking and highlighting

Need to rethink old views:

• why see “a page”?
• how do I “flip” through a book?
• what is the focus/purpose of an “illustration”?
• are there other ways to “illustrate”?
• How do we do “citations?”

Challenges:

• How to compare two separated pages (i.e., pages 57, and 106) (side by side?)

Issues I want to see if they have added/changed:

• Highlighting:  does the menu appear next to where I clicked? How is that interface changed?
• can we move/sync highlights/notes between devices?

Have you given much thought to the changes we can see with Digital Textbooks?  What are your thoughts? Please share them in the comments.