[Edu-sig] Rich Data Streams

[Jeff Rush]

kirby urner wrote:
> On 8/23/07, Jeff Rush <jeff at taupro.com> wrote:
> 
>> The world has more than enough great ideas -- but a severe shortage of those
>> who adopt them, refine them and bring them into fruition.  I see this here,
> 
> I did put together cities.xml:
> http://www.4dsolutions.net/ocn/python/cities.xml

And I thank you - I incorporated it into the DataResources page I outline below.


> But just randomly piling large sets of data across all subjects and
> making someone king of that hill doesn't necessarily sound like a
> good idea to me.
> 
> Sounds more like something they'd try in Texas. ;-)

Hey, I'm no "King of the Hill" TV guy ;-)  I picture this more like a barn
raising in Texas - friends and helpful folk get together and pitch in where
they can.  Maybe at first it looks confusing, with lots of donated items
heaped about but then a leader here or there looks it over, begins to see a
pattern, and starts to organize the heap.  Let's not turn away help even if
we're not yet sure where each piece fits.

BTW, thanks everyone for the links posted to this list as data streams.  All
were very good reading, but the data streams I was thinking about was
basically raw data on which instructors can build.  Some of the links were
standalone web-interactive experimentation areas and some were domain-specific
teaching languages other than Python - all valuable in their own right and
I've made a list to get them onto the wiki.

Taking a cue from Laura's suggestion, I've reworked the Edu-SIG wiki page
which actually didn't have much on it (as a group we could enhance this).

  http://www.python.org/community/sigs/current/edu-sig/

I started a catalog of educational data resources underneath it at:

  http://wiki.python.org/moin/EduSig/DataResources

and defined a wiki category for "PythonInEducation".  Seems there was one for
"PythonInBusiness" but not for education (or science - there is now).

There is also a suggestion box at the bottom of the data resources page to
collect more ideas and links to reusable data.


>> nothing happens.  Sometime later the same is raised again and many of the same
>> ideas come in.  And truly good ideas languish because those rare, precious
>> people with a tendency to step forward already have a (over) full slate and
>> cannot take on any more while the rest consider ideas their sole contribution.
>>  It is the birthing and raising not the conception that takes more effort -
>> ask any parent.
> 
> I'm working with other busy gnu math teachers on carving out a
> niche in the ecosystem, so like stashes of polyhedral OFF files,
> X3D stuff, EIG stuff, is our specific rich data.
> 
> But do I try to jumble my stuff with that of every other teacher?
> No.  We gnu math teachers are actually kinda cliquey.
> 
> Any other big American city could do what we do and intercept
> Pentiums headed for the landfill.  Free Geek (freegeek.org)
> doesn't make a secret of how it works.  But *do* they?
> 
> We're maybe just not so lazy in Portland?

I'm not sure you and I are using the same definition of the spirit of FOSS.
;-) Mine is more about sharing with anyone who comes along, less about
cliques, less about my city or state or country against another.  And less
about who gets credit - more about a private joy that something you've created
is helping those who have no idea who you are.  But FOSS I'd guess is broad
enough to encompass many definitions. 8-)

-Jeff