EdTech Situation Room Episode 86

Welcome to episode 86 of the EdTech Situation Room from February 21, 2018, where technology news meets educational analysis. This week Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) and Wes Fryer (@wfryer) discussed Apple’s HomePod and the generally negative reviews it hass received in the technology press, Chrome news including PWAs (progressive web apps), and social media’s dark side revealed through the Parkland, Florida, school shooting incident. Additional topics included the need for ethics in artificial intelligence (AI), a recent historical look at AI’s ascendency at Google, and Facebook’s role in the Russia probe / election hack over time. Geeks of the week included Reply, by Google and Textra SMS (from Jason) and Twitter Moments (from Wes). Subscribe to @edtechSR on Twitter for updates.

Shownotes:

  1. EdTech Situation Room Listener Survey: wfryer.me/edtechsr
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  6. Jason Neiffer (@techsavvyteach) – blog: blog.ncce.org
  7. Wes Fryer (@wfryer) – blog: speedofcreativity.org
  8. Life on an iPad (The Overspill, 19 February 2018)
  9. Apple files for updated Apple TV trademark potentially hinting at more advanced gaming capabilities (9 to 5 Mac, 21 February 2018)
  10. Opinion: Almost no one should get a HomePod over a Google Home Max (9 to 5 Google, 19 February 2018)
  11. Thumbs Down on Apple HomePod from TwIT Podcast (11 Feb 2018)
  12. The aftermath of the Parkland mass shooting exemplifies the ugly side of social media (Recode, 20 February 2018)
  13. Apple just won regulatory approval for two mystery iPads in Eastern Europe (The Verge, 21 February 2018)
  14. On Russia, Facebook Sends a Message It Wishes It Hadn’t (NYTimes, 19 Feb 2018)
  15. Inside The Two Years That Shook Facebook—And The World (Wired, 12 Feb 2018)
  16. Facebook to use postcards in anti-election meddling effort (CNN, 20 February 2018)
  17. Twitter is trying to crack down on spam bots (CNN, 21 February 2018)
  18. UK PM seeks ‘safe and ethical’ artificial intelligence (BBC News; 24 January 2018)
  19. The Great A.I. Awakening (The New York Times Magazine, 14 Dec 2016)
  20. Google Looks To Be Heavily Investing In PWAs For Chromebooks (Chrome Unboxed, 21 February 2018)
  21. Core M7 ASUS C302 W/16GB RAM Arrives On The Scene (Chrome Unboxed, 21 February 2018)
  22. Hardware: Intel ships update for newest Spectre-affected chips (TechCrunch; 21 February 2018)
  23. Jason’s Geek of the Week: Reply, by Google and Textra SMS
  24. Wes’ Geek of the Week: Twitter Moments (ExampleHowTo)