What is the goal? We could look for potential terrorists (How can 'looking for trouble' be invasive?) or we could rely on a “politically correct” non-random, statistically invalid selection process that wastes time frisking 3 year-olds and wheelchair bound grandmas.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/yourcommunity/2011/08/is-passenger-behaviour-observation-appropriate.html

Is passenger-behaviour observation appropriate?

Canada's Privacy Commissioner is raising concerns about a new plan to bolster airport security.

Responding to the federal government's intention to use passenger-behaviour observation to look for terrorists, Jennifer Stoddart expressed concern that the program is potentially unfair to passengers.

"There is a huge possibility for arbitrary judgments to come into play," she said in an interview with The Canadian Press.

In the program, airport security officers watch for suspicious behaviour like travellers wearing a heavy coat on a hot day, or sweating profusely.

“How to win customers and influence markets” (with apologies to Dale Carnegie)

http://techcrunch.com/2011/09/04/complete-guide-freemium/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Techcrunch+%28TechCrunch%29

The Complete Guide To Freemium Business Models

… Most Internet products or services fall into the definition of an Experience Good: a product that needs a period of use before the customer can determine the value they can derive from it.

… There are plenty of academics who looked into the pricing of Experience Goods. In 1983, the Economist Carl Shapiro wrote a fascinating paper about this subject. His conclusion was that since customers tend to underestimate the value of a product, the optimal pricing for an experience good is a low introductory price which is then increased when the customer realizes the value of the product.

… the introductory price is a signaling mechanism. The conclusion? A low entrance price signals that you are confident that your product will create value for the customer.

Interesting problem. Perhaps Amazon should buy them?

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/09/05/business/in-internet-age-postal-service-struggles-to-stay-solvent-and-relevant.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all

Postal Service Is Nearing Default as Losses Mount

The United States Postal Service has long lived on the financial edge, but it has never been as close to the precipice as it is today: the agency is so low on cash that it will not be able to make a $5.5 billion payment due this month and may have to shut down entirely this winter unless Congress takes emergency action to stabilize its finances.

“Our situation is extremely serious,” the postmaster general, Patrick R. Donahoe, said in an interview. “If Congress doesn’t act, we will default.”

… At the same time, decades of contractual promises made to unionized workers, including no-layoff clauses, are increasing the post office’s costs. Labor represents 80 percent of the agency’s expenses, compared with 53 percent at United Parcel Service and 32 percent at FedEx, its two biggest private competitors. Postal workers also receive more generous health benefits than most other federal employees.

… Still, the agency is considering ideas, like gaining the right to deliver wine and beer, allowing commercial advertisements on postal trucks and in post offices, doing more “last-mile” deliveries for FedEx and U.P.S. and offering special hand-delivery services for correspondence and transactions for which e-mail is not considered secure enough.

Just in time for the Christmas shopping season?

http://www.engadget.com/2011/09/02/amazon-tablet-coming-in-november-for-250/

Amazon tablet coming in November for $250?

(Related)

Lenovo To Offer $200 Budget Tablet

"Amazon's not the only big-name company planning on a budget-level tablet release; Lenovo recently announced their Ideapad A1 tablet as competition. I t includes a 1GHz Cortex A8 CPU, along with other features more commonly seen on higher-priced tablets, such as dual cameras, bluetooth, GPS, wifi, and a MicroSD slot. Is this the start of the Android tablet price avalanche?"

Seems to contradict my experience. I use lots of technology to teach Math, with good results in most cases.

http://www.bespacific.com/mt/archives/028201.html

September 04, 2011

Technology Spending by Schools Yields Few Calculable Advance

In Classroom of Future, Stagnant Scores: "… In a nutshell: schools are spending billions on technology, even as they cut budgets and lay off teachers, with little proof that this approach is improving basic learning. This conundrum calls into question one of the most significant contemporary educational movements. Advocates for giving schools a major technological upgrade — which include powerful educators, Silicon Valley titans and White House appointees — say digital devices let students learn at their own pace, teach skills needed in a modern economy and hold the attention of a generation weaned on gadgets... Critics counter that, absent clear proof, schools are being motivated by a blind faith in technology and an overemphasis on digital skills — like using PowerPoint and multimedia tools — at the expense of math, reading and writing fundamentals. They say the technology advocates have it backward when they press to upgrade first and ask questions later."