Gizmodo Australia » university

La Trobe Uni Joins iTunes U

Nick Broughall — Wed, 26 Aug 2009 03:00:33 +0000

Melbourne-based La Trobe University today joined a whole heap of other Australian unis by adding their content to iTunes U. I still find it mind blowing that I’m still paying off my 3 years at uni – an education I probably could have gotten for free online if I’d only waited a few years for iTunes U to launch…

There are currently 150 media files available, with the promise of more to be added regularly, including lectures from notable figures Tim Flannery and former Prime Minister of New Zealand Mike Moore. There are podcasts, vodcasts and all manner of other content as well, including short documentaries on life at the Uni.

If you ever want to act like you’re smarter than you actually are, then this is definitely the first place to go…

[iTunes U]

University Tech Gadgets: Then And Now

Danny Allen — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 19:20:00 +0000

From 35mm SLRs in the 50s to electronic-typewriters of the 80s, PC World has a timeline of gadgets that most changed campus life. For me, it was a giant CRT (which doubled as my room heater). What about you?

As school goes back, it’s a fun reminder that the laptop wasn’t always the essential piece of tech gear that you needed to survive uni. And with e-book readers and tablet PCs taking on more and more textbook duties, maybe they’re next in line after all. Time will tell. [PC World]

Learn How to Build iPhone Apps from Stanford University

Andi Wang — Thu, 02 Apr 2009 23:40:00 +0000

If you’ve ever had an idea for an iPhone application but you’ve never known how to begin creating it, Stanford will be offering how-to-build-iphone-apps computer science courses via free video podcasts through iTunes U. Later this week, you’ll be able to get a Stanford-level education without the stress of ~~having to apply to the prestigious school and especially without having to pay tuition~~ being a huge dbag. [Ed. note: Ed went to Cal.] [TechCrunch]

Apple University: Like Hamburger U, But With iPods

John Herrman — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 08:20:51 +0000

With mountains of cash on hand, Apple is broadening its horizons a little bit. The company is planning to start a creatively designated “Apple University,” following in the corporate educational footsteps of the likes of McDonald’s and Pixar. Though this will likely just be a training campus for Apple employees, they’ve already poached the dean of Yale’s management school to serve as VP of the operation. Why would someone like that leave such a prestigious position for a post as a corporate zombifier? Is it Steve Jobs’ revolutionary, all-in-one, totally-not-modular curriculum? Maybe. Ridiculous amounts of money? Definitely. [WSJ]

Australian Universities Hit iTunes U

Nick Broughall — Wed, 04 Jun 2008 01:26:28 +0000

When I was studying at Uni, the Internet was just starting to gain traction. As a result, my favourite lectures were the ones that I didn’t have to attend because all the notes and transcripts were online.

Today, students from a heap of Unis around Australia and NZ get an even sweeter gig, with lectures, guest speeches and videos from The Australian National University, Griffith University, Swinburne University, University of Melbourne, University of NSW, University of WA and Otago University all hitting iTunes U.

So now a whole new breed of students get to enjoy their university bar rather than the boredom of their lectures. Maybe I should think about getting my Masters…

[Apple]

University Logo Tattoo on Human Hair: a Micro-Scale Rebellion?

Gizmodo US Edition — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 15:29:07 +0000

What do you do if you have a focus ion beam microscope normally used to make nano-devices, a scanning electron microscope and some spare time? Well, you etch your university logo onto a human hair, of course! At least, if you’re the Engineering Dept at McMaster University you do. It’s not the smallest logo ever— that’s an IBM one with 35 xenon atoms, I believe. But it’s possibly the ickiest, and it’s certainly high resolution. Impressive. We’ve only got one quibble: the uni logo, guys? I’m sure Giz readers would be more imaginative.

Now, this is done on a plucked hair by steering a beam of gallium ions over the surface to etch the 20-micron logo into the hair cells. But imagine you really could have your hair tattooed. No-one would see it, it would be just like painting the pilot inside a plastic aeroplane model: you’d know it was there. What would you have?

Not imaginative enough for you? Suggestions in the comments, then. [BBGadgets]