735 - My Dad and Jesse Owens - Olympics; Richard Culatta Keynotes
August 3, 2012 Learning TRENDS by Elliott Masie - August 3, 2012.
#735 - Updates on Learning, Business & Technology.
55,779 Readers - www.masie.com - twitter: emasie - The MASIE Center.
Host, Learning 2012 - Oct 21 to 24, Orlando, FL - www.learning2012.com
1. Today in 1936: My Father at Berlin Olympics.
2. Richard Culatta, US Dept. of Education, Keynote on Innovation.
3. Kickstarter - Crowdsourced Investment in Emerging Tech.
1. Today in 1936: My Father at Berlin Olympics. In 1936, my father, Hans Harry Masie, was required to attend the Olympics in Berlin, Germany. As a Jewish professional, my dad had been forced to work as a contractor to the Hitler government, doing the same job (food preservation technology) that he had in the former government, the Weimar Republic. After Hitler took office, his passport was confiscated and he was part of a small group of Jewish professionals asked to continue to work.
One day he got a note that he was required to attend and cheer for Germany at the Summer Olympics. It was August 3, 1936, 76 years ago today. The mandated Jews were put into a section to be filmed waving and cheering for German teams as they won.
Except, on that day, Germany had a surprise. Nazi propaganda promoted concepts of “Aryan racial superiority” and depicted ethnic Africans as inferior. My father watched an American black athlete, James Cleveland Owens, win the Gold Medal in the 100m sprint. My father told me about his excitement at witnessing this historic moment when I was a youngster and the Olympics were on television.
So, on August 3, 2012, as I watch the London Olympics feed, I think about my 33-year-old father in the stands of the Berlin Olympics, watching 23 year old Jesse Owens change history. Details at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jesse_Owens
2. Richard Culatta - US Dept. of Education, Keynote on Innovation: We are pleased to announce another keynoter, Richard Culatta, for Learning 2012 (Oct 21st to 24th). As Deputy Director of the Office of Educational Technology for the US Department of Education, his work focuses on leveraging open data to create personalized learning experiences for all students and promoting increased connectivity to improve access to education. In addition, Richard and Elliott will explore “Learning Shifts: Cool or Hype”. Read details at: http://www.learning2012.com/item/richard-cu.html
3. Kickstarter - Crowdsourced Investment in Emerging Tech: Last night, I made a $500 investment in an emerging technology for virtual headset environments. I did it via Kickstarter, where “crowdsourcing” allows small, private investments, either for early products or to just support a great emerging idea. Here are 2 Kickstarter investments I have made recently:
* Oculus Rift - http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1523379957/oculus-rift-step-into-the-game
* 3D Printer - http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/b9creations/b9creator-a-high-resolution-3d-printer
My investments will bring early/beta editions of these two technologies and support for agile invention.
Yours in learning,
Elliott Masie
email: emasie@masie.com
MASIE Center Seminars, Events and Services:
* Learning 2012 - Oct 21 - 24, 2012 - Orlando, Florida.
* Membership in The Learning CONSORTIUM
Info and Registration: http://www.masie.com - twitter: emasie