Industrial Revolution

Check out this site that deals with inventors and inventions related to the Industrial Revoltion, and read some about the travels of Muhammad As-Saffar, a Moroccan who visited France during the Industrial Revolution. Read selections from the book here. Think about ways you might compare the travel writing we've read previously with As-Saffar's journey, focusing on context, point of view, and change over time.

History SMARTs in Room 3103

Here's a picture from Friday's unveiling of the SMART board. SMART technologies is based in Canada, and you can read more about the company here.

What do you think of the SMART board, and how useful is it for history class? Even though we used it for review jeopardy, what ideas of your own can you offer for how we can better use it in history? Pardon the pun, but I bet you can think of many, many ways to utilize SMART board in class. I am sure your comments will be right on the money, and priceless.

Read more about the photographer here.

Liberte, Egalite, Fraternite

Welcome back, and Happy New Year!

Check out the companion site to the French Revolution documentary. A host of interesting links, trailer(s), and even a historical game.

Make sure your volume is up when you upload the site. And no (pardon the puns), it is not available on wii as far as I know.

Beginning of the End: Of Books, Coffee, and Final Exams

As you seek to put all the pieces together here at semester's end, some concluding thoughts.

For helpful last minute study tips, see this humorous post on final exams, or a funny bald guy's podcast (puns included). Most relevant for class, check out a master teacher's thoughts on Peter the Great and a keen comparative look at Descartes and Bacon.

If you fall asleep while studying, hopefully you can avoid this, no doubt a hot topic of discussion for phuture phorums.

[Photo credit here.]

On Staying Enlightened

Topics for Monday's discussion:
1. Chapter 17: pp. 493-98 (18th-century culture, society)
2. Chapter 18 (read about topics below)
a. Enlightened Absolutism in France, Russia, Prussia
b. balance of power
c. 18th century social structures

Chapter resources: Chapter 17, Chapter 18 (select a chapter)

Merry Chri$tma$ with Rev. Billy, the Erstwhile Calvinist

If you've seen Super Size Me, then you will want to go see this documentary. It opens at the River Oaks theatre in Houston on Dec. 7. Check it out. Read some reviews of the film here.

(HT: Brands of Faith)

[Photo credit here.]

Phorum with (soon to be) Dr. Phil 4.0

In addition to bringing in your own articles to discuss, check out these items related to crowdsourcing. Read a wiki definition, and then read the original article on crowdsourcing by journalist Jeff Howe. Of course he has a blog, too. What are your thoughts about crowdsourcing? What would crowdsourcing education look like? Is it even possible?

Also, here's a link to a story about the Republican YouTube debate. How is this kind of technology transforming politics and campaigns?

Finally, let us know what you think about on-line learning from this story. How has on-line learning influenced your education thus far, and what kind of role do you anticipate it playing in your educational future?
Part 1
Part 2