In communist North Korea—tightly sealed off from the Internet and foreign news—a fledgling private university is offering hand-picked students a rare window to the outside world, the Washington Post reports. The Pyongyang University of Science and Technology, backed by evangelical Christians and Western-trained scientists, aspires to give future leaders tools to develop the country’s backward economy and promote peace on the Korean Peninsula. This week, the year-old school hosted its first international conference for “the advancement of science education and international cooperation,” with dozens of foreign speakers, including a Nobel laureate from the United States…
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Open-source advocates: Academia, industry must play nice
Compromise between the Ivory Tower and industry, IT experts say, is the future of open-source technologies in higher education.
Mainstreaming open, collaborative technologies in colleges and universities will require a delicate balance of vendor involvement and experimentation among campus technology decision makers who are willing to stray from the technological old school.
Combining academic ideals with the prowess and resources of industry has become a reality already, as campus IT leaders move freely from one sector to the other—blending the best of academia and business to create software that is open for tinkering and supported with corporate capital.…Read More