Gender Equality II: European girls drawing competition for ICT

http://www.asszisztencia.hu

As I wrote on Gender Equality I, I began publishing some thematic posts about Gender Equality until March 7, 2011.

Today, my post is about the "European drawing competion to reward girls' creativity about the future technologies." announced by the National Innovation Office (Hungary), the European Commission’s Directorate General for Information Society and Media (DG INFSO) and the European Centre for Women and Technology (ECWT) under the Hungarian EU Presidency 2011.

http://www.asszisztencia.hu

The aim of the competition was to encourage creativity in the field of new technologies and highlight the importance of developing innovative skills at an early age. 

Girls aged 6-16 from all schools in the 27 EU member states could participate in the  competition. There was two age categories: one for 6-12 and another for 13-16 years old girls.

Diana R, Romania (13 years old)

http://www.asszisztencia.hu

Entries could focus on two issues:  

• What would be interesting or fun to do on your computer / Internet that you cannot do right now? 

• What type of new ICT (information and communication technology) tool would you like to see to help you and your family’s life? 

The deadline of submission was 20th February 2011. And the winners and runners up of the competition have been informed by the organizers the 25th February. Read more here

Marina T., Slovenia (10 years old)

http://www.asszisztencia.hu

The winning contributions are already published on the competition's website "Women im Science, Innovation and Technologie in the Digital Age" conference, March 6-8, 2011 in Budapest, Hungary.

The organization received 672 drawings from Romania, Slovakia, Italy, Greece, Spain, Portugal, Finland, Ireland, The Netherlands, Slovenia, Bulgaria, Malta and Hungary. 

Anastasia V., Greece (13 years old)

http://www.asszisztencia.hu

The drawing competition award ceremony with Commissioner Neelie Kroes will take place on Monday the 7th of March 2011 in Budapest at the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. 

Natalia A., Slovakia (11 years old)

http://www.asszisztencia.hu

The winners drawing will be exhibited on 7-8 March 2011 in the building of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, the  venue of the high-level conference hosting the Prize-Award Ceremony.

The winners and the runners-up will be invited together with one adult (to accompany them to Budapest) to participate in the Prize-Award Ceremony.

G-Souto

28.02.2011

Copyright © 2011G-Souto'sBlog, gsouto-digitalteacher.blogspot.com®

Gender Equality II: European girls drawing competition for ICT by G-Souto is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

References:

Women in Science, Innovation and Technologie in the Digital Age Conference

http://www.asszisztencia.hu

Portugal...what else ?

Portugal what else?! Of course! It's my country!

Spring is back! Here am I taking a walk near the Atlantic Ocean, or walking at the park of Fundação de Serralves - may be sit down a bit on the lovely terrace on the 1st floor to take a coffee and read a book. 

If time was not cold, I would like to take the bike and follow the Douro river riding on a bike from Foz do Douro (Atlantic Ocean) to Ribeira (Douro river). 

Oh, yes, the sky is splendid,
So blue as it now,
The air and light are blended,
Oh yes, hot, anyhow,(...)

Fernando Pessoa, The Happy Sun is Shining,

90 last Poems, 22.11.1935

G-Souto

27.02.2011

Copyright © 2011G-Souto'sBlog, gsouto-digitalteacher.blogspot.com®

Portugal... what else? by G-Souto is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Languages matter ! Mother Language Day

credits: UNESCO

http://www.unesco.org/

The International Mother Language Day was celebrated on last 21 February, 21, 2011.  Languages are the most powerful instruments of preserving and developing our tangible and intangible heritage. So, I think it always important to spread this message.

"The theme of the 2011 International Mother Language Day concerned the use of information and communication technologies for safeguarding and promoting languages and linguistic diversity.

Languages provide the software for information and communication technologies. These technologies are also a new frontier for promoting linguistic diversity. UNESCO is committed to promoting multilingualism on the Internet. These goals guide UNESCO in its work with the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers."(...)

Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO

If languages do not exist, the culture will disappear. 

http://www.unesco.org/

"If we look at the statically curve measuring amounts of diverse languages on one side and the number of internet users on the other, in see that in Europe for example we have low diversity but a high umber of Internet users."

Daniel Prado, Unión Latina

Watch the video below:

"Information and communication technologies cabn be especially useful in promoting mother languages. We must harness the power of progress to protect diverse visions of the world and to promote all sources of hnowledge and forms of expression. These are the threads that weave the tapestry of humanity's story."

Irina Bokova, Director-General of UNESCO

"Less than a quart of all languages in the world are used in education and in cyber space."

"With today's technology every corner of the world is linked together. The  new generations are globalized."

Casa Fernando Pessoa, Lisboa, Portugal

http://casafernandopessoa.cm-lisboa.pt

If you want to know more about Portuguese Language and Literature visit the website Casa Fernando Pessoa, one of the world's best writers. Pessoa was a great defensor of the Portuguese language and culture.

Fernando Pessoa Portrait (1954)

José de Almada Negreiros

http://casafernandopessoa.cm-lisboa.pt

You can access "Fernando Pessoa digital library" here. It is online since October 2011. You can access to "Poetry database" here and Fernando Pessoa Library here

"Sê plural como o universo"

Fernando Pessoa, Portuguese writer (1988-1935)

Education:

• Portuguese as second language in primary and elementary schools;
• Portuguese as foreign language in secondary school;
• Portuguese Literature studies in foreign Universities

G-Souto

24.02.2011

Copyright © 2011G-Souto'sBlog, gsouto-digitalteacher.blogspot.com®

Languages matter! by G-Souto is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Information about the video:

The video was produced by the UNESCO Liaison Office in New York in 2010, on the occasion of the 'International Mother Language Day', to raise awareness on the importance on languages today.

Useful links for educators:

International Mother Language Day 2011

http://www.un.org/en/events/motherlanguageday/

UNESCO Director-General's message

http://www.un.org

Casa Fernando Pessoa

http://casafernandopessoa.cm-lisboa.pt

Biblioteca Digital de Fernando Pessoa

http://casafernandopessoa.cm-lisboa.pt

Languages matter! Mother Language Day by G-Souto is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Young blind can finish Abe´s Exoddus game

Video game Abe's Exodus/ Screen Shot

http://cdn.medialib.computerandvideogames.com

The studio Oddworld Inhabitants that created Oddworld franchise, presented Terry Garrett, an american young man, blind, 23 years old, engineering student, who managed to finish 'Abe's Exoddus' being guided only by the game's sound effects.

Terry Garrett

http://www.wired.com/

Garrett lost his sight in 1997 at age 10. That same year, his older brother brought home Oddworld: Abe's Oddysee. Entranced by the game's charming narrator, Abe - a Mudokon slave with his lips sewn shut - Garrett set out to make his way through Oddworld‘s danger-filled settings.

Video game Abe's Exodus/ Screen Shot

http://cdn.medialib.computerandvideogames.com

In an interview posted on the video, Terry Garrett explains how he manages to overcome the many difficulties presented in the adventure, taking full advantage of clues created by the sound effects of Oddworld's  department of soundscape .

“Through Abe’s sounds, I was able to figure out how to navigate the world,” 

Garrett, Wired

So, watch and listen the video below. Something amazing!

Education:

A good tool for motivating students with disabilities in the classroom. They can understand how important is to face the difficulties by  using their creativity.

Producers: 

Planning video games for students with disabilities

G-Souto

23.02.2011

Copyright © 2011G-Souto'sBlog, gsouto-digitalteacher.blogspot.com®

Young blind can finish Abe's Exoddus game by G-Souto is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Gender Equality I

http://www.wikigender.org

"Cyberella is fluent in the uses of technology, comfortable using and designing computer technology, and working in virtual spaces. 

Cinderella works in the basement of the knowledge society with little opportunity to reap its benefits. 

These are the definitions taken from Nancy Hafkin and Sophia Huyer’s book Cinderella or Cyberella: Empowering Women in the Knowledge Society, a collection of essays underlining the potential relationship between information technology and women’s opportunities, rights and welfare."

Today, I begin some thematic posts about 'Gender Equality and IT until March 7, the 'International Women's Day 2011'.

We are in the XXI Century! It's time to moving ahead for gender equality on IT. The European Commission decided to do something about the lack of women in IT careers since .

This first post is about the book Cinderella or Cyberella? by Nancy Hafkin & Sophia Huyer. It has been used by Viviane Reding, EU's Commissioner for Information Society and Media, to promote  Cyberellas are IT  the EU campaign aimed to increase the number of women in ICT celebrating 'International Women's Day 2009'.

http://www.wikigender.org

The European Union’s Commissioner for Information Society and Media, Viviane Reding, has used the “cyberella” concept to promote a new EU campaign called “Cyberellas are IT!”. The campaign aims to increase the number of women in the ICT sector in the EU. Encouraging women to develop their ICT skills and become “cyberellas” will help deal with Europe’s shortage in this sector as well as its ageing workforce, falling birth rates and skills shortages in general.

The Conference "Cyberellas are IT!" took place on the 3rd March 2009 to celebrate International Women's Day.

Here is an extract from Viviane Reding's speech:

“Unlike her great-grandmother, Cinderella – a woman with meagre prospects, whose story had a fairy-tale ending only thanks to a magic wand – Cyberella is a woman with a science or engineering degree, on her way to a decision making position in industry or in government and well-placed not only to benefit fully from the advantages of the Information Society, but also to take part in the design and production of technology. Also unlike Cinderella, who was unique, we can hope to see many Cyberellas – indeed the more the better. Cyberellas exist today, but how to ensure that we have more in the future? Some of you present today may recognise yourselves in this description! But there are not enough of you. We simply need more Cyberellas to have a happy end to Europe's problems of an ageing workforce, falling birth rates and skills shortages. A Cyberella will be able to contribute to the design and production of tomorrow's technologies and communication networks. She will thereby be able to have a strong impact on shaping Europe's economic and societal future." 

G-Souto

21.02.2011

Copyright © 2011G-Souto'sBlog, gsouto-digitalteacher.blogspot.com®

Gender Equality I by G-Souto is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Credits: WikiGender

http://www.wikigender.org

Other references:

Stylus/Kumarian Press
http://www.styluspub.com

Reding, Viviane, Cyberellas are IT

http://ec.europa.eu

Music for a Sunday: The Grammy Awards

Arcade Fire

Photo: Matt Sayles/AP

http://s2.lemde.fr

Some of the best Grammy Awards of this year were for musicians I love! Oh! Ya, I just can't live without music.

So, let's see! Arcade Fire won 'Best Album of the Year' for Suburs. Herbie Hancock  for his Imagine won 'Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals' and 'Best Improvised Jazz Solo', Esperanza Spalding won 'Best New Artist'. 

I wrote about Spalding last sunday, afternoon. She is absolutely incredible! 

Jeff Beck 

credits: Jeff Beck Facebook

https://www.facebook.com/jeffbeck

And today, my musical hit goes to Jeff Beck the legendary rock guitarist. He won three awards.

Jeff Beck, rock guitarist extraordinaire, captured three Grammy® awards at the star-studded ceremony held February 23 2011 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles. 

Jeff Beck

Emotion & Commotion

http://www.jeffbeck.com/

His latest studio album, Emotion&Commotion, was nominated for five Grammy awards, making him the most nominated artist rock artist this year. 

Beck won 'Best Rock Instrumental Performance' for 'Hammerhead' and 'Best Pop Instrumental' performance for 'Nessun Dorma', both from Emotion&Commotion. 

Jeff Beck

credits: Jim Belmont

http://www.jeffbeck.com/gallery/

This marks only the second time an artist has won Grammys in both of these categories in the same year. The first time was in 2006 by guitar legend and Beck mentor Les Paul. 

Beck also won for 'Best Pop Collaboration With Vocals' for 'Imagine', his collaboration with Herbie Hancock, Pink, India Arie, Seal, Konono No. 1& Oumou Sangare. Beck has previously won five Grammy awards.

Jeff Beck and his performance for 'Nessum Dorma' is absolutely crashing! Among the differents perfomances on YouTube, I really prefer this one.

Note: Jeff Beck
Air Canada Centre
Toronto
February 21, 2010

Education:

Fantastics musicians to include into your Music curriculum, different genres.

G-Souto

20.02.2011

Copyright © 2011G-Souto'sBlog, gsouto-digitalteacher.blogspot.com®

Music for a Sunday: Grammy Awards by G-Souto is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.