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In the past, every mobile generation wave was defining all the elements, from radio, to RAN, backhaul and core of the network. The technology cycles where longer and dictated by the industry.

Nowadays, we find mobile operators in certain countries still awarding their 3G licenses, while in some other countries they are deploying LTE, in some other testing LTE-A and in some places discussing 5G. If you are the guy in charge of defining the Mobile Backhaul (MBH) strategy, you better look at requirements for the next few technologies to not fall short. The different MBH requirements aren't just about capacity, but also about more accurate timing and synchronization, lower latency, more flexibility in defining routes, security...

In the attached video-presentation, I explain at high level what is our vision for Mobile Backhaul and some recommendations on how to evolve it. Designing a seamless network from the begin, will simplify it's evolution towards service abstraction and service enrichment.

Technologies such as seamless-MPLS, SDN and NFV will be key!

                                                                                              Link to presentation

                                       

View the original article here

 
Dr. Aranya Chakrabortty (L) with one of his students

NC State University has received a $200K research grant from the US Department of Energy to advance its ongoing research and education in wide-area monitoring and control of power systems using Synchronized Phasor Measurements (or "Synchrophasors"). Synchrophasors are high-resolution measurements of the currents and voltages of large power systems that capture detailed oscillations of the power flows in different parts of the grid -- particularly useful to analyze critical disturbances such as a blackout. The devices that measure Synchrophasors are called Phasor Measurement Units (PMU). In this project, NC State researchers will use Synchrophasor data -- provided by our local utility company Duke Energy as well as a long-standing collaborator, Southern California Edison -- to create reliable power system models by which critical disturbances such as blackouts can be predicted and controlled.

The two-year project is headed by Dr. Aranya Chakrabortty, Assistant Professor in Electrical & Computer Engineering, together with co-investigators Dr. Mesut Baran, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Dr. Pam Carpenter, MS-EPSE Education Program Manager.

Over the past one year, Chakrabortty and his research group have developed a hardware-in-loop laboratory infrastructure using multiple PMUs integrated with a Real-time Digital Simulator (RTDS), housed at the FREEDM Systems Center. The RTDS is a supercomputer that can simulate large and complicated power system models in almost real-time. This facility will now be extended to create a multi-port, multi-user, and multi-vendor network of PMUs spread across the three campuses of NC State, Duke University and UNC Chapel Hill through an existing metro-scale fiber optic communication network called the Breakable Experimental Network (BEN), hosted by the Renaissance Computing Institute (RENCI). This PMU network will allow multiple users at various points of the network to process and communicate PMU data between each other, and collaboratively use them for critical applications such as power oscillation monitoring, distributed state estimation and, most importantly, distributed control. For example, local users in this PMU network may access artificial PMU data generated by RTDS simulations in real-time, run their individual local algorithms using these data, and then communicate the results to neighboring users until the control-loop reaches a global consensus over time. The project will also study the sensitivity of these distributed control algorithms on network latencies, data loss, and malicious attacks by hackers. Chakrabortty and his team will collaborate with local utility company Duke Energy as well as with longstanding collaborator Southern California Edison, ABB, and RENCI to realize this network testbed.

 
Diagram

The Renaissance Computing Institute at North Carolina State University opened in early 2007 and supports the use of visualization technology and analytical methods to explore engineering, scientific, design and educational challenges. The site focuses primarily on serving the NCSU community, its partners and collaborators.

The Future Renewable Electric Energy Delivery and Management (FREEDM) Systems Center, headquartered on NC State University's Centennial Campus, is one of the latest Gen-III Engineering Research Center (ERC) established by National Science Foundation in 2008. The FREEDM Systems Center will partner with universities, industry and national laboratories in 28 states and nine countries to develop technology to revolutionize the nation's power grid and speed renewable electric-energy technologies into every home and business.

View the original article here

Ozier Muhammad/The New York Times In Ortley Beach, NJ, many homes still await repairs, including those owned by half the guests at Kathie and Jim Watson’s party on Sunday. Go to related article »

We mark the last Poetry Pairing of the school year with “The Gulf, 1987? by Deborah Paredez and the article “New Summer for Shore Residents, but Not as Before” by Peter Applebome.

After reading the poem and article, tell us what you think — or suggest other Times content that could be matched with the poem instead.

Deborah Paredez, a performer, theater scholar and award-winning poet, is the co-founder of CantoMundo, a national organization for Latino poets. She is also an associate professor of English at the University of Texas at Austin. In addition to writing poetry, Ms. Paredez has written about the singer Selena, the film “Real Women Have Curves” and the show “Ugly Betty.”

The Gulf, 1987

By Deborah Paredez

The day upturned, flooded with sunlight, not
a single cloud. I squint into the glare,
cautious even then of bright emptiness.
We sit under shade, Tía Lucia
showing me how white folks dine, the high life.
I am about to try my first oyster,
Tía spending her winnings from the slots
on a whole dozen, the glistening valves
wet and private as a cheek’s other side,
broken open before us. Don’t be shy.
Take it all in at once. Flesh and sea grit,
sweet meat and brine, a taste I must acquire.
In every split shell, the coast’s silhouette:
bodies floating in what was once their home.

In “New Summer for Shore Residents, but Not as Before,” Peter Applebome writes about the Jersey Shore at the start of its first post-Hurricane Sandy summer season:

ORTLEY BEACH, N.J. — In any other year, Uncle Mike said, it is the Kickoff Classic, the first weekend of the summer when seasonal and year-round residents roam Fourth Avenue like amiable vagrants who have just emerged from hibernation, stopping in to say hi, hanging out on one another’s porches, strolling the Boardwalk, checking out the beach.

The adults make their pilgrimage to Joey Harrison’s Surf Club for liquid refreshment and sightseeing. Children head for the arcade games and miniature golf at Barnacle Bill’s.

But on this first Memorial Day Weekend since Hurricane Sandy, the kickoff began more like the squibbed variety, the weather gloomy and crowds thin. The pilgrimage had to be to one of the bars in Seaside Heights because the Surf Club is still a beachfront ruin, hoping to return next summer. The giant fiberglass Barnacle Bill lies on its back awaiting resurrection when the golf course is repaired, perhaps by July 4. The Ortley Boardwalk is not back yet. There is not much beach.

Still, seven months after Hurricane Sandy tore Fourth Avenue and much of the Jersey Shore to shreds, Ortley and the rest of the shore are caught somewhere between awe at what has been accomplished and frustration at what has not, contemplating a recovery that probably has years to go.

… On one lot there is nothing but a beached fishing boat. Next to it is a mountain of rubble where a house once stood. Some houses tilt at unnatural angles awaiting demolition; others sit forlorn and deserted like Walker Evans Depression-era portraits.

About 20 houses stood before the storm. Now only three are habitable — three and a half if you count half of the two-family beach house Uncle Mike, a contractor and the bard of Fourth Avenue, is rebuilding with his cousin Pete Rizzuto.

“You look out our back door, and there’s devastation all around. It still looks like a bomb hit it,” said Mr. Rizzuto, speaking by telephone from his office in Cedar Knolls, N.J. “The house isn’t done, so I don’t have a reason to go right now. I don’t really want to see it.”

Still, he and Uncle Mike, whose real name is Mike Pedano, hope to be back by July 4. And Mr. Pedano figures things could be a lot worse. “We’re blessed,” he said. “I’m not frustrated at all. I always said that this was going to take three to five years, and I’m still sticking to that.”

“The Gulf, 1987? appeared in the September 2012 issue of Poetry.

Visit this page to find out more about our collaboration with the Poetry Foundation, and to read ideas for using any week’s pairing for teaching and learning.

View the original article here

Joshua Lott for The New York Times Graffiti on a cactus last week in Saguaro National Park in Arizona. Many of the giant cactuses are 150 years old. Go to related article »Read the article to answer basic news questions.

In the article “As Vandals Deface U.S. Parks, Some Point to Online Show-Offs,” Felicity Barringer writes about the recent spike in graffiti in national parks.

WHO is Steve Bolyard?

WHERE is Saguaro National Park?

WHAT did Mr. Bolyard find on saguaros there?
WHAT are some other national parks that are dealing with more vandalism?

WHY do officials think social media is playing a role in the increase in vandalism in United States parks?

HOW was one offender, Trenton Ganey, caught by the authorities?
HOW did park officials catch the vandals who chopped up cactuses when Saguaro was hit again last month?

WHEN have you visited a national park?

Related: Our Student Opinion question “How Much Time Do You Spend in Nature?” and our 6 Q’s “At National Parks, Tech + Tourists = Trouble“

View the original article here

: a biologist who studies the relation between organisms and their environment

The word ecologist has appeared in 141 New York Times articles in the past year, including on May 28 in “Mapping the Great Indoors” by Peter Andrey Smith:

Here’s an undeniable fact: We are an indoor species. We spend close to 90 percent of our lives in drywalled caves. Yet traditionally, ecologists ventured outdoors to observe nature’s biodiversity, in the Amazon jungles, the hot springs of Yellowstone or the subglacial lakes of Antarctica. (“When you train as an ecologist, you imagine yourself tromping around in the forest,” Dr. Fierer said. “You don’t imagine yourself swabbing a toilet seat.”)

But as humdrum as a home might first appear, it is a veritable wonderland. Ecology does not stop at the front door; a home to you is also home to an incredible array of wildlife.

The Word of the Day and its definitions have been provided by Vocabulary.com and the Visual Thesaurus.

Learn more about the word “ecologist” and see usage examples across a range of subjects on the Vocabulary dictionary.

Click on the word below to map it and hear it pronounced:

View the original article here

The Learning Network provides teaching and learning materials and ideas based on New York Times content.

Teachers can use or adapt our lessons across subject areas and levels. Students can respond to our Opinion questions, take our News Quizzes, learn the Word of the Day, try our Test Yourself questions, complete a Fill-In or read our Poetry Pairings.

Join the conversation by commenting on any post. We'd love to hear what you think!

View the original article here

The Learning Network provides teaching and learning materials and ideas based on New York Times content.

Teachers can use or adapt our lessons across subject areas and levels. Students can respond to our Opinion questions, take our News Quizzes, learn the Word of the Day, try our Test Yourself questions, complete a Fill-In or read our Poetry Pairings.

Join the conversation by commenting on any post. We'd love to hear what you think!

View the original article here

Chad Batka for The New York Times Thomas Bangalter, left, and Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo, the French duo known as Daft Punk. Go to related article » Questions about issues in the news for students 13 and older.

If Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky” is already starting to seem like the “song of summer” to you, you’re not alone. The group’s new album is also No. 1 on the Billboard charts, while the rap duo Macklemore & Ryan Lewis extends its run with the top single.

What are you listening to these days? Why?

In “Daft Punk Holds On at No. 1,” the ArtsBeat blog reports:

Daft Punk’s “Random Access Memories” (Daft Life/Columbia), featuring the hit single “Get Lucky,” had 93,000 sales in its second week out, according to Nielsen SoundScan. That is a 73 percent drop from its opening week, but it was enough keep the album on top, beating out a handful of new releases.

Alice in Chains’ new release, “The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here” (Capitol) — the grunge-era group’s second album since reuniting with a new singer, William DuVall — opened at No. 2 with 61,000 sales. John Fogerty’s “Wrote a Song for Everyone” (Vanguard), featuring Creedence Clearwater Revival and other of his songs recorded with stars like Kid Rock, Keith Urban and Jennifer Hudson, sold 51,000 copies to open at No. 3. Also this week, the British group Little Mix bows at No. 4 with 50,000 sales of “DNA” (Syco/Columbia).

On the singles chart, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis’s “Can’t Hold Us” stays at No. 1 for a fifth week, with 184,000 downloads and five million streams in the United States on services like Spotify and YouTube. Earlier this year, the group’s “Thrift Shop” spent six weeks as the top single.

Students: Tell us …

What are you listening to right now? Do you find your playlist changes with the seasons?If so, what do you think of the concept of a “song of summer“? What songs do you associate with previous summers? What do you think will be this summer’s song?How much do you tend to follow pop music? Are your favorite songs ones everyone knows, or more obscure music?If you want to find new music, you might try the new “Press Play” music blog. What songs there do you like? Why?

Students 13 and older are invited to comment below. Please use only your first name. For privacy policy reasons, we will not publish student comments that include a last name.

Teachers: We have a related lesson plan, “Puttin’ On the Hits”

View the original article here

Cliff Owen/Associated Press Arvind V. Mahankali, of Queens, is New York City’s first national spelling champion since 1997. Go to related article »

Spelling Bee champs, tech wizards, guerrilla filmmakers and Broadway stars: welcome to another edition of our monthly round-up of the latest articles and multimedia features published on NYTimes.com about young people.

You can use the collection for teaching and learning or, this summer, as a handy spot to find interesting articles for our summer reading contest.

Look for the next installment in the series on July 5.

World | U.S. | Health | Sports | Technology | Arts | Education

17 Days in Darkness, a Cry of ‘Save Me,’ and Joy and Bangladesh Survivor Leaves Hospital With Job

Reshma Begum, who survived for 17 days in the rubble of a collapsed garment factory, fielded many job offers before accepting work at the Westin Hotel in Dhaka.

Where Is Home for a Third-Culture Kid?

These children of expatriates call many places home, pausing a little too long on the fundamental question: “Where are you from?”

A Youthful Corps Whose Esprit Comes From Hustle

Since he was 6, Mujeeb has sold cheap wares in Kabul, Afghanistan, to Westerners who have grown so accustomed to seeing him over the past 12 years that they often leave him gifts and goods for free. At 18, he is the dean of the hawker corps.

A Lost Generation: Young Syrian Refugees Struggle to Survive

More than half the 500,000 Syrian refugees in Jordan are under 18. “They can’t see beyond, frankly, the next day,” an aid worker said.

Out of Egypt’s Chaos, Musical Rebellion

Young musicians have created a new genre of youth-driven, socially conscious music and forced it on the Egyptian soundscape.

Boy Scouts End Longtime Ban on Openly Gay Youths

The Boy Scouts of America on May 23 ended its longstanding policy of forbidding openly gay youths to participate in its activities, a step its chief executive called “compassionate, caring and kind.”

Queens Boy, 13, Wins Scripps Spelling Bee With ‘Knaidel’ and Some Say the Spelling of a Winning Word Just Wasn’t Kosher

The fourth trip to the Scripps National Spelling Bee was the charm for Arvind V. Mahankali, 13, from Bayside, Queens. Arvind, an eighth grader at Nathaniel Hawthorne Middle School, won the nationally televised contest by spelling “knaidel,” a Yiddish term of German origin meaning “dumpling.”

Naval Academy Is Shaken by Student’s Report of Rape by Athletes

As midshipmen were graduating from the Naval Academy, Navy investigators were conducting an investigation into reports that several football players had serially raped a female midshipman at an off-campus party last year.

Another Chance for Mone’t

The end of the road is a yellow brick house in East New York, Brooklyn, that was once a rectory. Mone’t arrived there on Dec. 28 with a bad attitude and four years of baggage.

Young Americans Lead Trend to Less Driving

Younger people are less likely to drive — or even to have driver’s licenses — than past generations for whom driving was a birthright and the open road a symbol of freedom.

Oregon Youth Is Accused of Plotting School Attack

Law enforcement officials in Oregon say they have disrupted a plot by a student to set off explosives at his high school in what one official described as a “video-game style of killing people” reminiscent of the Columbine High School massacre.

Kicked Off Their Flight, Students Turn to Internet

After a group of Brooklyn students refused to sit down and shut off their cellphones, the AirTran crew ordered them and their chaperones off the plane, prompting the teenagers to turn to social media in vigorous dissent.

A New Way to Care for Young Brains

In the last three years, dozens of youth concussion clinics have opened in nearly 35 states.

Hidden Threats to Young Athletes

The No. 1 killer of young athletes is sudden cardiac arrest, typically brought on by a pre-existing, detectable condition that could have been treated.

Technology

Before Tumblr, Founder Made Mom Proud. He Quit School.

David Karp never finished high school or enrolled in college. Instead, he played a significant role in several technology start-ups before founding Tumblr.

The Apprentices of a Digital Age

Jasmine Gao, who is 19, just wasn’t the classroom type. So instead of languishing in college, she dropped out after her freshman year. A year later, Ms. Gao holds the title of data strategist at Bitly, the URL-shortening service based in New York.

Cyberparenting and the Risk of T.M.I.

It may be a timeless curse of parenthood to know simultaneously too much about one’s teenager and yet never access the information one actually wants. But the unruly morass of today’s social media and cellphone-infested landscape seems to have made both aspects of the curse worse.

Following in His Parents’ Very Fast Footsteps

The Burrells are the first family of sprinting in the United States and possess rare versatility as sprinters and jumpers. Cameron, 18, a senior at Ridge Point High School southwest of Houston, has run the nation’s top scholastic time this season in the 100, a wind-aided 10.07 seconds at the Texas Relays.

A Whistle, a Punch, and a Soccer Referee Is Dead

A little more than a week after a 17-year-old soccer player punched a recreation-league referee in the head in suburban Salt Lake City, the referee is dead, the player faces charges, and youth sports are left with questions about the seeming rise in severity of assaults on officials.

En Garde, All the Time

For Adrienne Jarocki, 17, an international fencing champion from Middle Village, Queens, Sundays are only partly a day of rest.

Autistic Twins Are Hoping for Calm Races After the Trauma of Boston

Alex and Jamie Schneider run seemingly on instinct, saying nothing and drifting into a cone of concentration. They are autistic 22-year-old identical twins from Long Island whose passion is to run for miles at a time.

Griner Says She Is Part of Mission to Help All Live in Truth

“I never felt the need to publicly announce I was “out,” writes the W.N.B.A. player Brittney Griner.

Changing Sex, and Changing Teams

Not so long ago, Toni Bias dreamed of playing in the W.N.B.A. But after starring on the girls’ junior varsity basketball team as a high school freshman, Toni came out as transgender last summer, began going by the name Tony and started transitioning to male.

Sport Gains Hoofhold on a Scholastic Level

The United States Polo Association has developed strategies to make polo more accessible to high school and college students without their having to make a major investment.

It’s Just Another Hurdle for Blind Athletes

Holding a fiberglass pole, Aria Ottmueller bent and touched the runway to locate her starting mark. A coach helped position her front foot. The foam vaulting pit at her high school appeared only as a blue smudge. The crossbar was invisible to her.

In the Name of a Legacy

Tim Corbin coaches Carl Yastrzemski’s grandson Mike, a senior right fielder for Vanderbilt.

Former Ski Racer Developed Swing That Sounds as Good as It Looks

The Austrian teenager Marina Stuetz’s path to the L.P.G.A. Tour did not go through an American college program, Golf Channel’s “Big Break” or the Ladies European Tour. She arrived like a snowstorm in spring, catching everyone by surprise.

Top 16-Year-Old Runner Has a Long To-Do List

A sophomore at Charlotte’s Ardrey Kell High School, Alana Hadley is 5 feet 5 inches and 110 pounds, with a resting heart rate of 50 beats a minute and a preference for pink and purple T-shirts.

Broadway Babies

With nine shows featuring child actors, Broadway stages are teeming with little ones right now, and the business of tending to them is booming.

The Hollywood Fast Life of Stalker Sarah

One afternoon this winter, Sarah M., better known as “Stalker Sarah,” was sitting in the back of an In-N-Out Burger fidgeting with her iPhone and plotting how to get her picture taken with Harry Styles, the rakishly handsome frontman of the English boy band One Direction, or one of his bandmates.

A New Jackson in Front of the Lens

Michael Jackson’s oldest son, Prince, has become a teenager about town.

Such a Doll

Mostly in their teens and early 20s, a group of girls are pioneers in a movement that gained traction in Eastern Europe last year in which they try to achieve perfection as “the most-realistic-ever human Barbie doll.”

Clips from “Yuck” – Battle of the Salads from Maxwell Project on Vimeo.

The Michael Moore of the Grade-School Lunchroom

Guerrilla filmmakers often face crackdowns by the powers that be, and Zachary Maxwell is no exception.

His hidden-camera documentary was almost derailed last year when he was caught filming without permission by a fearsome enforcer – the lunchroom monitor in his school cafeteria.

With Students as Backdrop, Obama Warns of Doubling of Loan Rates

College students, freshly relieved of pressure from term papers and final exams, served as a backdrop for President Obama as he warned of another impending fiscal deadline: student loan interest rates are set to double in 30 days under current law.

Reports of Cheating at Barnard College Cause a Stir

Revelations about shared quiz answers, unearned grades and even bribes in a Barnard course.

On a College Waiting List? Sending Cookies Isn’t Going to Help

For most applicants to selective colleges, the letters that arrived by April 1 brought an end to months of anxious wondering. But for some small fraction of those students, the tension is only now reaching its apex.

In Thailand’s Schools, Vestiges of Military Rule

At a public school in an industrial Bangkok suburb, teachers wield bamboo canes and reprimand students for long hair, ordering it sheared on the spot.

College Essays That Stand Out From the Crowd

What these four writers have in common is an appetite for risk.

A Team Approach to Get Students College Ready

Blue Engine recruits and places recent college graduates as full-time teaching assistants in high schools.

Go to full series »

Learn about teaching with “Teenagers in The Times” »

View the original article here

Seth Kugel An Adriatic view on the Albanian coast is just one experience found by getting off the planned path. Go to related article »

This poem, one of 12 winners of our fourth annual Found Poem Student Contest, was written by Brian, 16, from Hauppauge, N.Y. The poem comes from the article “Going Off the Itinerary and Finding Lifelong Memories”.

Check back every day through June 12 to read the work of another winner.

Things to See

A picturesque beach town — white sand.
Mountain roads, dirt roads, rocky roads.

An approaching stranger, a low-end rental car,
Around a curve, came into view not far.
I hesitated.

Unknown, unplanned, off script.
Should I wait? Should I give up?
I often chicken out.

No.
Travel. Wander.
I drummed up the courage.

I had things to see.

Want to read all the winning poems since this contest began in 2010? Visit our Found Poem Favorite collection.

And don’t forget our Summer Reading Contest, which begins June 14.

View the original article here

The Learning Network provides teaching and learning materials and ideas based on New York Times content.

Teachers can use or adapt our lessons across subject areas and levels. Students can respond to our Opinion questions, take our News Quizzes, learn the Word of the Day, try our Test Yourself questions, complete a Fill-In or read our Poetry Pairings.

Join the conversation by commenting on any post. We'd love to hear what you think!

View the original article here

1. conformity with some aesthetic standard of correctness or propriety
2. a subtle difference in meaning or opinion or attitude

The word nicety has appeared in two New York Times articles in the past year, including on Sunday in the Book Review “Don’t Be Disgusting” by Judith Martin:

In Renaissance Europe, Italy was Etiquette Central, attracting all the fascination and ridicule that go with that honor.

English readers in the early 17th century assumed Tom Coryate, a professional jester turned travel writer, was joking when he reported that Italians did not attack their food with hands and hunting knives as did normal people, even normal royalty. Those finicky Italians wielded forks, a nicety that did not become common in the rest of Europe for another two centuries.

The Word of the Day and its definitions have been provided by Vocabulary.com and the Visual Thesaurus.

Learn more about the word “nicety” and see usage examples across a range of subjects on the Vocabulary dictionary.

Click on the word below to map it and hear it pronounced:

View the original article here

Michael Appleton for The New York Times A parent of a student at the Earth School in Manhattan wore a button protesting standardized testing based on the new Common Core standards.  Go to related article »

The work of this blog is to suggest ideas for teaching and learning with The New York Times. We don’t do original reporting, and we don’t offer opinions on education issues. Instead, like teachers everywhere, we strive to facilitate discussion on issues of the day rather than imparting our own points of view.

But as we have experimented with the new Common Core Standards over the last two years, we have also been aware of how politically charged their implementation has become.

For some, it’s not so much the standards as the inevitable related standardized testing that is the issue. Many, from Randi Weingarten of the American Federation of Teachers to the National Council of Teachers of English to the New York Times editorial page, have recently called for caution on testing until teachers and students have a chance to adjust to the new requirements.

For others, the standards themselves are the problem.

The Republican National Committee rejects them on federalist grounds. Others dislike them because of the way they have been adopted and implemented. Still others say that we need less standardization, not more, or that national standards are beside the point when bigger issues of inequality are the real issue. Many simply see them as part of a troubling wave of change around the direction of education policy in the United States in general.

Common Core defenders, however, say the standards are powerful and much-needed — as a way to help students compete in a global economy, and as a way “replace the mediocre patchwork of learning standards” that predates them.

We thought we’d both explain how this blog is approaching the Common Core and ask you about your own experiences and opinions as we plan for the next school year. Please join the conversation below.

What We’ve Done on the Blog So Far, and Why

One of the first things teachers noticed about the Common Core Standards was the fact that they require significantly more nonfiction, or “informational text,” across the curriculum.

Since the C.C.S.S. definition of “informational text” includes pretty much everything The Times publishes, we saw this as an opportunity to help teachers use Times articles, essays, infographics, videos and photographs alongside literature and other classroom materials to make connections between academic content, students’ lives and the world at large.

Of course, making those connections has been the chief focus of The Learning Network for our entire 14-year history, so this wasn’t a departure for us.

Standards or no standards, our work is to make the newspaper accessible for learners. It’s why the liveliest part of the blog has always been the daily Student Opinion question, and why we run features like our new photojournalism activity and our summer reading contest.

But to help teachers understand how what we do works for the Common Core, we also aligned our lesson plans this year both to the McREL Standards we’ve always used and to the new C.C.S.S.– a task that wasn’t hard given that we’ve occasionally been accused of overstuffing our lessons with so many complex activities and questions that some of them could serve as graduate seminars. Next year we may well add the new science standards to the mix.

But because the shift to more nonfiction is the subject of much controversy, this fall we also published a lesson plan inviting students to examine the standards themselves, and discuss the question “What should children read?”

Perhaps the most obviously C.C.S.S.-aligned experiment we did this year was our Friday “Common Core Practice” series, in which we collaborated with two teachers and their freshman humanities classes to post three standards-based writing prompts drawn from each week’s Times.

Their students have just created a video that sums up better than we ever could the benefits of reading the newspaper regularly.

For these teachers and students and for us, however, the focus on the Common Core was just a lens through which to see the work we would have done anyway. Yes, the prompts addressed the argumentative, informative and narrative writing the standards highlight, but the exercise was much more about the serendipity of discovery a reader can have paging through The Times, and about creating a culture of lifelong learning.

As the two teachers — Jonathan Olsen and Sarah Gross — say: “We’ve used newspapers in the classroom before the Common Core, and we’ll continue to use them if the Common Core disappears. Reading and writing with The Times works no matter what standards you’re following.”

We suspect that’s how many of you feel about what and how you teach, too. Several teachers have told us they will tweak the good work they’ve always done in order to address the standards more directly, but, like Mr. Olsen and Mrs. Gross, they already have a solid sense of what works with their own students.

This summer we’ll be thinking about where we should go with the standards for 2013-14 ourselves, and your thoughts will help. We hope you’ll weigh in.

Questions for You

We know that the answers to these questions are not simple, but please post briefly below in response to as many as you like:

What have been your experiences so far with the Common Core?How prepared do you think you, your students and your school are to begin addressing them during the next school year? What do you think of the standards themselves?What are your thoughts on how they have been implemented so far?How do you feel about what this blog has been doing around the C.C.S.S. so far? What else could we be doing? How can we help you?

Thank you, and happy summer.

View the original article here

Read the article to answer basic news questions.

7:25 a.m. | Updated

In the article “U.S. Confirms That It Gathers Online Data Overseas,” Charlie Savage, Edward Wyatt and Peter Baker write about the disclosure that the federal government appears to have been secretly obtaining data from the largest Internet companies for nearly six years.

WHO has been compiling a huge database of calling logs of Americans’ domestic communications, as well as information on foreigners overseas from the nation’s largest Internet companies, for at least six years?

WHY has this agency been compiling these records?
WHY have some responded to news of the programs with alarm?

WHEN did this government surveillance program begin?

WHAT is the Prism program?
WHAT information do these programs seem to collect, warehouse and analyze?

WHERE was this news first reported?

HOW, according to James Clapper, the director of national intelligence, can the Prism information not be used?
HOW did the Obama administration and some members of Congress defend the program?
HOW do you feel about this news?
HOW does this raise new questions about the tradeoffs between security and civil liberties?

Related: Our Resources for Teaching the Constitution and a 2001 lesson plan, “For the Sake of Security.”

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Ozier Muhammad/The New York Times MoMA expects to have the building demolished by the end of this year. Go to related article »

This poem, one of 12 winners of our fourth annual Found Poem Student Contest, was written by Alison, 23, from Boston. The poem comes from the article “12-Year-Old Building at MoMA Is Doomed”.

Check back every day through June 12 to read the work of another winner.

Architects

As children, we borrowed feelings of loss
as we envisioned that new, vacant parcel
of Manhattan skyline, towers demolished.
We built stories of that place, the lives,
ambitious in the heights of our preservation.

12 years later, school completed, we start out.
We finance our hopes with thoughtful work
and solid looking facades. We are a generation
keeping with history. We are a temporary time
and a temporary space, but we are still being.

Want to read all the winning poems since this contest began in 2010? Visit our Found Poem Favorite collection.

And don’t forget our Summer Reading Contest, which begins June 14.

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Questions about issues in the news for students 13 and older.

New York City is in the second week of its bike share program, joining other major cities like Boston, London and Mexico City.

Would you want a bike share program for your community?

In the article “Out for a First Spin: City’s Bike Share Program Begins,” Matt Flegenheimer writes about last week’s kickoff for bike sharing in New York.

By midafternoon, the passing flickers of blue were already ubiquitous — negotiating light taxi traffic in the West Village, hurtling through the protected lanes of Midtown, drifting toward the Brooklyn waterfront.

For the first time, under cooperatively clear skies, New Yorkers sat astride the city’s first new wide-scale public transportation in more than 75 years: a fleet of 6,000 bicycles, part of a system known as Citi Bike, scattered across more than 300 stations in Manhattan below 59th Street and parts of Brooklyn.

There were kinks in the system’s early hours. A bike was swiped on Sunday as crews worked at the last minute to fill the stations. A mail delivery snag left as many as 200 members without access to the system. Some tourists dipped credit cards in vain for minutes, unaware that the program was initially open only to annual subscribers.

But Monday’s riders were, by definition, an eager and forgiving cross section: founding members who registered for a yearly pass for $95, allowing them to ride between stations for as long as 45 minutes with no added charge.

Students: Tell us …

Would you want a bike share program for your community? Why?How safe is biking in your neighborhood?Do you think more people would bike to work or the store if bikes were somehow shared?Can you imagine sharing more things with strangers besides bikes, like college textbooks, a prom dress or even a car?

Students 13 and older are invited to comment below. Please use only your first name. For privacy policy reasons, we will not publish student comments that include a last name.

View the original article here

Canon® - ImageCLASS MF7470 Multifunction Laser Printer, Network Ready, w/Scan, Copy, Fax from SHOP.COM Direct at SHOP.COMPrinters & Copier/Fax/Multifunction Machines>Copier/Fax/Multifunction Machines"/> Help & Support

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CART:0 item $0.00Search Suggestions: Clothes Beauty Home Electronics Health & Nutrition Shop all Stores Travel Auctions All Departments Deals Your Shop Consultant is SHOP.COM Earn up to 50% Cashback on eligible purchases. Learn More   SHOP.COM > Electronics >  Office Machine > Fax / printerMore Product Images
Canon® - ImageCLASS MF7470 Multifunction Laser Printer, Network Ready, w/Scan, Copy, FaxItem  4809248Price  $2,851.58Price $2,851.58$142.58CashbackIncorporates full network connectivity for all MFP functions for an ideal solution for multiple personnel offices. Built-in Ethernet port increases productivity. Full duplexing functionality for copy, print and fax provides exceptional versatility. 25...See details (Out of Stock), (Back ordered),It will be available again on ^1.,Your price:{"tn":["ImageCLASS MF7470 Multifunction Laser Printer; Network Ready; w/Scan; Copy; Fax"],"s2":false,"s1":false,"rn":["ImageCLASS MF7470 Multifunction Laser Printer; Network Ready; w/Scan; Copy; Fax"],"ts":0,"rid":0,"cn":["ImageCLASS MF7470 Multifunction Laser Printer; Network Ready; w/Scan; Copy; Fax"],"rs":1,"tid":0,"cid":0,"s3":false,"cs":1}[[[{"pr":"$2,851.58"}]]]ImageCLASS MF7470 Multifunction Laser Printer; Network Ready; w/Scan; Copy; FaxEnter Quantity  Calculate Shippingby zip codeor bystate or country

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It's a unique and fun way to send a gift that shows you care.function fbs_click() {u='http://www.shop.com/808992073-p+260.xhtml?vid=249491&credituser=C9165543USA';t=document.title;window.open('http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u='+encodeURIComponent(u)+'&t='+encodeURIComponent(t),'sharer','toolbar=0,status=0,width=626,height=436');return false;}Pin It $('.twitter.popup').click(function(event) { var width = 575, height = 400, left = ($(window).width() - width) / 2, top = ($(window).height() - height) / 2, url = this.href, opts = 'status=1' + ',width=' + width + ',height=' + height + ',top=' + top + ',left=' + left; window.open(url, 'twitter', opts); return false; });Similar Items You May LikeSee moreCanon imageCLASS MF7480 Laser Printer - Duplex Co...$2,267.97Sale $2,267.97 - $3,592.25up to $179.61Cashback7 Stores{"prodID":0,"linkUrl":"http://www.shop.com/Canon+imageCLASS+MF7480+Laser+Printer+Duplex+Copier+Color+Network+Scanner+Super+G3+Fax+-212027957-o+.xhtml","catalogID":89805,"isMAStore":false,"offerQty":7,"errOOS":"","pcID":0,"egiftok":true,"imgname":"prodHero0","linkoff":false,"autoship":true,"portalAutoShipDiscount":5,"catalogLocaleID":1,"customProd":"NOT_CUSTOM","btntype":"COMPARE","rreviews":"0 reviews","showAutoShipDiscount":false,"minPrice":2267.97}Canon imageCLASS MF7480 Laser Printer - Duplex Copier - Color Network Scanner - Super G3 FaxProvide 'big office' workflow capabilities at a 'small office' price tag.The imageCLASS MF7480 model includes all of the functionality of the MF7470, but also provides Canon's Universal Send capabilities, which allows users to distribute scanned data...Canon imageCLASS MF7480 Laser Printer - Duplex Copier - Color Network Scanner - Super G3 Fax0 reviews
$2,267.97Sale $2,267.97 - $3,592.25up to $179.61CashbackProvide 'big office' workflow capabilities at a 'small office' price tag.The imageCLASS MF7480 model includes all of the functionality of the MF7470, but also provides Canon's Universal Send capabilities, which allows users to distribute scanned data...7 StoresCanon® - imageCLASS MF5960dn Multifunction L...$593.20Your price:$593.20$29.66CashbackSHOP.COM Direct{"prodID":827028351,"linkUrl":"http://www.shop.com/Canon+174+imageCLASS+MF5960dn+Multifunction+Laser+Printer+Copy+Fax+Print+Scan-808992252-p+.xhtml","catalogID":102193,"isMAStore":false,"offerQty":1,"errOOS":"","pcID":808992252,"egiftok":true,"imgname":"prodHero808992252","linkoff":false,"autoship":true,"portalAutoShipDiscount":5,"catalogLocaleID":1,"customProd":"NOT_CUSTOM","btntype":"BUY","rreviews":"0 reviews","showAutoShipDiscount":false,"minPrice":593.2}Canon® - imageCLASS MF5960dn Multifunction Laser Printer, Copy/Fax/Print/ScanSpecifically designed for small to medium sized offices, this network-ready multifunction laser printer combines professional-quality capabilities with features that help businesses save time and money. Spend less time waiting for your documents with...Product Info|See More Like This|More Similar Items You Might Like|Product Reviews|Store InfoStore informationclose xStore InfoStore InfoStore InfoShipping InfoShipping InfoShipping InfoReturn PolicyReturn PolicyReturn PolicyStore RatingStore RatingStore Rating Store InfoStore contact informationSHOP.COM is your advocate and stands behind every purchase you make through our universal shopping cart, so you can shop in complete confidence.SHOP.COM Direct is one of our valued partner stores and you can contact them by:Customer service:(866)420-1709Toll free (U.S. Only)(866)420-1709Customer Service Emailcustomerservice@shop.comPostal Address

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Back to topReturn PolicySHOP.COM Direct Return Policy

This return policy applies to products sold through SHOP.COM Marketplace, Inc's SHOP.COM Direct service only.

All Returns

All returns must be 100% intact, in the original carton/tote or packaging with the UPC or barcode clearly visible. Any components, manuals, registration card(s), software, cables and/or accessories must also be included. Unfortunately, if merchandise returned to our warehouse is in a non-restockable condition, we will be unable to issue a full credit. Please be advised that if your order is over $25 and requires us to reship from an original damaged, defective, shorted, or mis-shipped order, you will be temporarily charged for that item(s) and you will be credited when the original item(s) or claim is closed.

To have a return processed for your order, email returns@shop.com or call our toll free number at (866) 420-1709 - Monday - Friday 9am - 6pm EST.

Please see below for Restocking Fee information and Special Conditions which may apply to your purchase.

The following information is required to process your return:Original order numberItem being returned and quantityReason for returnYour name and daytime phone numberYour e-mail addressPlease also advise us as to whether or not you would like your merchandise reshipped or credit posted to your account

Guidelines for Return of Resalable Merchandise

The ItemThe item must not be assembledThe item must be clean and free of dents, scratches, holes, tears, cracks, stickers, labels, price tags, etc.The item must be unusedAll parts, hardware, instructions, warranty cards, power cords, manuals, etc., must be includedThe item must be in its original packaging. This includes the box or carton in which it came in, wrap, protection, or sleeve provided by the manufacturer.

The Carton and PackagingDo not write Return Merchandise Authorization (RMA) numbers, personal information, customer information or other information on the manufacturer's boxes as this will make the item non-returnable. The carton must be free of all writing.The carton must be free of holes, cuts, tears, etcThe carton must be free of excessive tape or odd tapes (i.e. duct tape, Christmas tape, etc.)Furniture cartons must be opened properly. Preferably by opening the carton flaps. Never cut the furniture cartons around the bottom or down the sides if you think you may need to return the item.All internal packaging must be in place (i.e. bubble wrap, cardboard corners, tops & side strips)

Return Authorization Required
All returns require that a Return Merchandise Authorization number be issued by our Customer Service Department to you. Return numbers must be written clearly on the outside of all returned packages (not on manufacturer packaging). All packages returned without return numbers will be refused and returned to sender and the sender will be liable for all freight. Please allow 15 business days for return processing and credit postage to your account.

SHOP.COM Marketplace will apply full refund of the original purchase price of the item if received back in the condition the order was delivered. Shipping and handling charges will be deducted for returns due to customer error. Some items that are deemed customer error will be the customers' responsibility to return after receiving the RMA number and provided return address.

Restocking Charges
All returns must be requested within 30 days of ship date to prevent a restocking charge, and returned to within 15 days of the issuance of a Return Merchandise Authorization number. Restocking charges will be assessed as follows:

1-30 days 0%
31-60 days 15%

If you would like to know if your product is covered by the general Refund/Return policy, contact our Customer Service Department at customerservice@shop.com or call our toll free number at (866) 420-1709 - Monday - Friday 9am - 6pm EST.

SPECIAL CONDITIONS

Damaged merchandise
Damaged merchandise must be reported within 5 business days. Please be sure to report the damage immediately with the shipping carrier when the package is delivered so that we can process your claim.

Defective items
Defective items must be reported within 10 business days, and must have the original box. If your product is defective in any way, please contact our Customer Service Department so that we can provide you with a Return Merchandise Authorization Number. Defective software will be replaced upon receipt of the defective product if customer wishes to receive replacement item.

Shortages/Warehouse mis-picks
If you received fewer items than you were supposed to or the wrong item, it must be reported within 5 business days after delivery.

Special Order, Custom or Dated Products
Special order items and / or custom products are not returnable with SHOP.COM Marketplace.

Dated Products are any items that contain annual date information such as calendars, appointment books and organizers, business journals and diaries, desk and desk pad calendars, and wall calendars and planners. All sales of Dated Products are FINAL and SHOP.COM Marketplace will NOT accept the return and/or exchange of any such Dated Products for credit or other consideration.

Commercial coffee urns and Non-Stock or Close-Out Merchandise
Commercial coffee urns and Non-Stock or Close-Out Merchandise are non-returnable.

Consumables and Services
Food, beverages, pharmaceuticals, medical supplies or furniture setup orders are not returnable unless it is deemed the wrong product or item was shipped or billed to you in error.

Hardware
Please remember to back up all of your data before installing any new software, or peripherals. SHOP.COM Marketplace is not responsible for any lost data. Opened laser, inkjet printers and / or fax machines may be exchanged within 30 days of your product's shipping date for the same item only. No refunds are available for these items if opened. Hardware and software returns must be returned to SHOP.COM Marketplace at customer's expense to our tech warehouse. Special order items and / or custom products are not returnable with SHOP.COM Marketplace. Due to certain manufacturer return policies some electronic items will not be accepted for return due to customer cancel. This information will be provided to customer once return request has been made. Open hardware or software is non-returnable.

Refurbished Products
Refurbished products are products that have been previously sold and returned, then reconditioned and repackaged for selling purposes. Refurbished products come with a 30-day defective-only guarantee and are sold "AS IS." We do not guarantee replacement, nor do we cover return shipping charges. If you return a defective product, you will be credited through the same payment method used to place the order.

Ready to Assemble Furniture
Ready to assemble furniture is not returnable if the manufacturer's carton has been opened and the merchandise has been assembled.

Electronics
Electronics items are covered by manufacturer warranty only.

OTHER CONSIDERATIONS

How do I return Items Shipped to APO / FPO addresses?
SHOP.COM Marketplace will honor return requests for orders shipped to APO / FPO addresses. A Return Merchandise Authorization number must be issued for the order. Unfortunately, SHOP.COM Marketplace is unable to have a call tag issued for orders shipped to APO / FPO addresses. Therefore, merchandise must be returned to the returns address provided to you by Customer Service Team at the customer's expense.Store Rating"CASHBACK is very HIGH and they have EVERYTHING for the office!!!" Date: 5/16/13"Found a great deal on thermal credit card machine paper and other supplies I use for my business! Very happy about that!" Date: 5/2/13"I found that the HP ink was more expensive. Went back to Staples. Pricing with shipping should be address more to create a better option." Date: 4/24/13"I love this store! I placed my first order and got it in TWO days! Awesome!" Date: 3/26/13"Amazing prices and I earn cashback!" Date: 3/19/13See all reviews Product InfoCanon® - ImageCLASS MF7470 Multifunction Laser Printer, Network Ready, w/Scan, Copy, FaxIncorporates full network connectivity for all MFP functions for an ideal solution for multiple personnel offices. Built-in Ethernet port increases productivity. Full duplexing functionality for copy, print and fax provides exceptional versatility. 25 ppm print and copy speed ensures maximum efficiency. 50-page Automatic Document Feeder for optimum convenience and ease-of-use. Single Cartridge System requires only one consumable to be stocked and is user replaceable, reducing downtime. Print Technology: Laser; Maximum Print Speed (Black): 25 ppm. Cartridge 105, Setup Instructions, Manuals, RJ-11 Fax Cord, Power Cord, Registration Card, Warranty Card, Canon Drivers, NetSPOT Console, NetSPOT Device Installer.See More Like ThisSHOP.COM Direct,Electronics, Office Machine, Canon, Fax / printer, Laser, canon multifunction wireless printer, canon imageclass 8380 printers, laser printer, laser toy, laser presenter, laser pointer remoteMore Similar Items You Might Like Product ReviewsBe the first to rate this product.  Previous SearchProduct information and prices are provided by merchants and/or third party sources. At SHOP.COM we do everything we can to ensure the accuracy of the product information or prices displayed, but occasionally, errors occur. Please notify SHOP.COM of any information or pricing inaccuracies so that we may immediately notify the merchants to correct the problem. We apologize for any inconvenience this may cause. Link to this page and tell all of your friends! Get Email Deals & Earn Cashback: Sign Up View our Privacy Policy About About Us Contact Us Our Brands Jobs Site Map Privacy Policy Terms of Use Mobile Download SHOP Mobile Coupons & Deals ShopBuddy Hot Deals Get email deals Daily Deals Contests Merchants Merchant Login Advertise on SHOP.COM Sell on SHOP.COM Feedback Tell Us What You Think Help See all Help Contact Us My Account FAQs International Shopping United States Canada Mexico United Kingdom Australia

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