John Muir Climbs Mt. Whitney

Well, obviously it's been a while since I've had anything to write about regarding technology in education - I've been in transition (like so many teachers!), and am now at the Oakland Museum of California. On August 5th we open a new show called "A Walk in the Wild: Continuing John Muir's Journey". One of the interactives that I'm working on will allow visitors to virtually join Muir during his epic trek during the fall of 1873 to the top of Mount Whitney. It's called "Follow Muir" and it runs on top of Google Earth. The user interface for that presentation is being custom-built by Lawrence Dolton at ViewPoint Geography, but the data is going to be made available for everyone to download and use. The data has been specifically built to run on both the personal computer and the tablet (iPad) versions of Google Earth. It'll work on an iPhone, but it may not be easy to use.

The tour consists of a series of "campsite" placemarks connected by purple (with horses) and yellow (on foot) paths. Most campsites include a pop-up balloon with Muir's journal notes and drawings, along with other additional info. There are also a series of "Fly-bys" which allow you to visually "follow Muir" on one of four peak ascents, as well as a number of "Sketchbook" photo-views which places Muir's sketches into the landscape - use the transparency slide here to help you see what Muir saw.

Here's how you can try it out ...

To download Google Earth for your PC or Mac, click here.

To download the data file for Google Earth on your PC or Mac, click here.

The iPad version does not include the "Fly-bys" or the "Sketchbooks", as these are not supported in the app - but you get everything else, sized for consumption on your tablet.

To add this data set to your iPad, do the following:

1. Get and login to a Google Account
2. Find the map data at this link
3. Click on "Save to my places".
4. Install Google Earth on your iPad
5. Click the "Layers" button in GE on your iPad
6. Login to "My Maps Account"
7. Select "John Muir Climbs Mt. Whitney"

Bentley Core Values Video

A video project which is part tour, and part expository piece on Bentley's Core Values. Bentley has five Core Values, and the students who attempted the fifth one (integrity), well - they couldn't make a video that seemed appropriate. Four out of five ain't bad.

From Augmented Reality to Augmented History

This article in Gizmodo sent me back to my original idea for TimePhiz that I wrote about in 2005 - providing a digital experience in which the backstory is not some mythical fairy tail, but somthing right out of history. I wanted to be able to take a field trip through time. I imagined GoogleEarth with a time slider - and they made that! And when I saw this, well it's like Google StretView with a time slider, too. Unfortunately, you can't download the app in the US - it comes from the Museum of London in the UK.

All I can say is I really hope this catches on. I certainly recognize the value of being able to find a good coffee shop by holding up your iPhone to the street-scape, or even taking yourself on a tour of a new place - but this iPhone app allow you to move the landscape back in time, see people, and get a whole new context.

Of course, this experience is not interactive - those people don't move or talk, but I see no reason why that couldn't happen in another five years.

UPDATE: The app is now available in the US. I've downloaded it, but it's basically just a photo album until you are actually in London (which I'm not).

MLK Assembly Video

Here is the updated MLK Day video for 2010:

Video Production 2009

Video Production Class - First Trimester, 2009

"Halloween Parade":


"Minute Documentaries":


"Opening Shots":

Memories of Bentley

The kids in the Technology Projects Elective are making a series of video essays which document their memories of the Hiller Campus as they prepare to graduate from Middle School. I found the projects amazingly well executed and quite touching.

Quilters of Gee's Bend

The Video Production class (trimester 2) made a video documenting the visit of the Quilters of Gee's Bend, honoring the Martin Luther King holiday.