Anu Vedantham

New Media: Engaging and Educating the YouTube Generation

Anu Vedantham et al. — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 12:55:34 PST

Today’s undergraduates are clearly comfortable as consumers of technology and new media purchasing ring tones for their cell phones and tunes for their iPods, text-messaging from handheld devices, scanning and tinkering with photos, keeping up with their Facebook friends and watching viral YouTube videos, sometimes all simultaneously. We share examples of classroom assignments integrated with library support services that engage today’s undergraduates with academic materials in a variety of course contexts. We discuss how specific arrangements of library learning spaces and the alignment of space and staffing can help undergraduate students succeed with new media projects for class assignments.

Presentation Handout for Doctoral Defense

Anu Vedantham — Sun, 01 May 2011 20:46:28 PDT

Making Youtube and Facebook Videos: Gender Differences in Online Video Creation Among First-Year Undergraduate Students Attending a Highly Selective Research University

Anu Vedantham — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 20:07:42 PDT

Online video creation for YouTube and Facebook is a newly popular activity for college students. Women have explored social networking technologies at about the same level as men, but have expressed less interest in computer programming and multimedia design. Online video creation includes aspects of both social networking and programming / multimedia design and provides an interesting forum for examining gender-related differences. This mixed methods study uses questionnaire data from 31% of the population of first year students attending a highly selective research university. The study explores how online video creation varies by gender after incorporating theoretical concepts of confidence, self-efficacy, attitudes toward computers, perceived ease of use, perceived usefulness, social influence and demographic variables such as socioeconomic status, ethnicity, immigrant status and high school size. The theories of self-efficacy (Bandura), stereotype threat (Steele) and learned helplessness (Abramson) and the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) inform the conceptual framework. Using descriptive and multivariate regression analyses as well as qualitative inquiry, the study finds significant gender differences in creation of online videos and roles played with video editing. Men report more participation in video creation and editing, as well as more participation in creating videos for required school projects, a notable finding for policy and practice. Attitudes toward computers and TAM explain observed gender differences. The Mac computer platform is associated with greater likelihood of video creation. Study results inform academic support interventions to promote media literacy, computer confidence and consistent perceptions of ease of use of video technologies for all students.

Nobel Peace Prize 2007 Certificate and Letter from IPCC

Mon, 30 Jun 2008 20:32:39 PDT

Aviation and the Global Atmosphere: A Special Report of IPCC Working Groups I and III

Anu Vedantham — Tue, 13 May 2008 19:59:39 PDT

This report assesses the effects of aircraft on climate and atmospheric ozone and is the first IPCC report for a specific industrial subsector. It was prepared by IPCC in collaboration with the Scientific Assessment Panel to the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer, in response to a request by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) because of the potential impact of aviation emissions. These are the predominant anthropogenic emissions deposited directly into the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere.

Aviation has experienced rapid expansion as the world economy has grown. Passenger traffic (expressed as revenue passenger kilometers) has grown since 1960 at nearly 9% per year, 2.4 times the average Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate. Freight traffic, approximately 80% of which is carried by passenger airplanes, has also grown over the same time period. The rate of growth of passenger traffic has slowed to about 5% in 1997 as the industry is maturing. Total aviation emissions have increased, because increased demand for air transport has outpaced the reductions in specific emissions from the continuing improvements in technology and operational procedures. Passenger traffic, assuming unconstrained demand, is projected to grow at rates in excess of GDP for the period assessed in this report.

Inner City Networking: Models and Opportunities

Judith Sparrow et al. — Mon, 05 May 2008 12:07:25 PDT

Information technologies are fast becoming an essential part of most sectors of the American economy. Today, more than half of the nation's work force uses computers on the job. Having begun as internal systems in large corporations and universities, computer networks have been embraced by small businesses, individuals, and the non-profit sector. Community organizations have been able to use the new technologies in innovative ways to meet some of the social challenges present in today's inner cities. In the process of adopting these technologies, community organizations have changed the ways they are used and perceived, integrating them into their work in creative and non-traditional ways.

Telecommunications in Zimbabwe

Anu Vedantham — Mon, 05 May 2008 12:07:21 PDT

Telecommunications in many African countries is several years, perhaps decades, behind the state of the art in developed countries. In 1982, nine out of ten people in the United States owned a telephone line; in Africa, only five out of 100 did. Often, telecommunications investments are put on a lower priority at national planning levels in favor of other technologies such as electrification; advances in telecommunications are not often seen as a crucial factor in economic development. However,as the world becomes increasingly dependent on telecommunications for international economic trade and information transfer, the need for modem telecommunications capability becomes more urgent.

Aircraft Emissions and the Global Atmosphere

Anu Vedantham et al. — Mon, 05 May 2008 12:07:16 PDT

Emissions from airplanes and their potential global effects on the atmosphere have become the subject of intensive study by scientists, and are now drawing the interest of governments. Global fuel consumption has risen much faster for aviation than for other energy-use sectors. Concerns have focused on the contribution of nitrogen oxides (NO_x), carbon dioxide (C0₂), water vapor (H₂0) and other engine effluents to the buildup of the atmosphere's greenhouse effect. Future aircraft emissions also may affect the stratosphere's ozone layer.

This report describes an effort to develop long-term scenarios for emissions from aviation in order to provide a basis for assessing their potential environmental impact throughout the 21st century. Carbon dioxide and nitrogen oxides from the current and projected subsonic aircraft fleets are the main focus of this study. The scenarios in this report were produced by a model that builds on technological and operational assumptions made by industry and government for the period through 2015.

It is important to state from the outset what this report is not about. It is not a detailed examination of the environmental effects of aviation. It is not an assessment of the potential for technological or operational changes that could reduce emissions from expected levels. It does not set forth a comprehensive and detailed policy prescription for limiting emissions from aviation. This report does not analyze the potential emissions of a vastly expanded fleet of supersonic aircraft, such as the proposed High-Speed Civil Transport (HSCT), although its possible environmental impacts are discussed briefly.

Long-term scenarios for aviation: Demand and emissions of CO₂ and NO_x

Anu Vedantham et al. — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 10:09:43 PDT

This study presents a dynamical systems model for long-term scenarios of demand in the aviation sector and resultant emissions of CO₂ and NO_x. We analyze the dynamics of demand growth for aviation, particularly in the emerging markets of developing nations. A model for subsonic aviation emissions is presented that reflects the consequences of industry forecasts for improvement in aviation fuel efficiency and emissions indices as well as projections of global economic and population growth over the next century. (Emissions of commercial supersonic aircraft are not modeled here.) The model incorporates a dynamical system of logistic growth towards a time-dependent capacity level. Using the long-term model, we present a set of projections of demand for aviation services, fossil fuel use, and emissions of carbon dioxide (C0₂) and nitrogen oxides (NO_x through the year 2100; previous forecasts have not extended past 2040. We briefly discuss expectations for the distribution of NO_x emissions over altitude and latitude.

Networking for K-12 Education: The Federal Perspective

Anu Vedantham et al. — Fri, 18 Apr 2008 10:09:40 PDT

This article explains the need for quality educational technology in our schools, and notes the contributions of existing technology in improving education. It describes the potential that telecommunications network technology holds for revitalizing American education. It outlines the major federal programs that provide policy guidance and funding assistance for educational institutions to access and contribute to the evolving National Information Infrastructure (NII), and summarizes federal activities to date. In particular it describes the relevant experiences of the first year of the Telecommunications and Information Infrastructure Assistance Program (TIIAP) which is part of the National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) at the Department of Commerce. Contact information for all federal programs is provided as well.