Engineering topics
Publications and source records attributed to Leon, Mark.
The following report is broken down into two components. First, a status report covering the period from January 4, 1999 to February 28, 1999. The remainder of the report summarizes all project accomplishments from June 1997 through February, 1999.
Distance learning is not new. Since the time that radio has embellished our culture distance learning has taken on may forms. With the onset of television, video tape and satellite link ups the world of multimedia has taken a presence in our remote learning environment. Now in the information age new models for bring the best education to people through out the world is in its early stages. Recent "Information Age" technological developments have made key advancements to distance learning through the greater bandwidths now available over the Internet and a broader communications infrastructure that extends to classrooms throughout the country and the world. Further, new software compression technology allows audio and video to be communicated over the Internet much more efficiently. Larger amounts of data can be transferred to remote sites at less cost. The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the use of state-of-art technology in the educational community. The focus will be on virtual conferences, virtual instruction and remote education. The techniques herein have been developed by NASA and the University of North Dakota(UND) through the use of existing software and hardware purchased in the United States. NASA has awarded UND a grant for continued research in this area based on their pioneering effort to date. NASA has been conducting "Virtual Conferences" from Ames Research Center in order to make unique educational opportunities available to participants across the country and internationally. Through the use of this technical approach, hundreds of teachers have been able to attend events where physical or financial barriers traditionally prevented their attendance. This technique is currently being adopted by industry due to its scaleable merit.
The purpose of the K-12 workshop is to stimulate a cross pollination of inter-center activity and introduce the regional centers to curing edge K-1 activities. The format of the workshop consists of project presentations, working groups, and working group reports, all contained in a three day period. The agenda is aggressive and demanding. The K-12 Education Project is a multi-center activity managed by the Information Infrastructure Technology and Applications (IITA)/K-12 Project Office at the NASA Ames Research Center (ARC). this workshop is conducted in support of executing the K-12 Education element of the IITA Project The IITA/K-12 Project funds activities that use the National Information Infrastructure (NII) (e.g., the Internet) to foster reform and restructuring in mathematics, science, computing, engineering, and technical education.
An engineering review is given of NASA Science Internet (NSI). An outline of the review is presented along with a list of new connections. A map is illustrated of NSI installations. And a listing is given of upgrade scheduling for 1991, 1992, and 1993.