Several campaigns are underway in the U.S. and other countries to raise awareness about internet safety, particularly among teenagers for whom parental rules are hard to follow in the age of social media. But while rules are still needed, one advocate argues it is time for parents to change the conversation about internet safety. Online […]
How to Reconnect With Teens on Internet Safety
US Teens Addicted to Smartphones; 50 Life-changing Gadgets
Today’s Tech Sightings: Half of US Teens Think They’re Addicted to Smartphones Fifty percent of U.S. teens aged 12-18 feel they are addicted to their smartphones, according to a new poll conducted for Common Sense media, a non-profit organization that helps negotiate media and technology. Up to 59 percent of parents said their teens were […]
LEGO Launches Robot-based Learning Kit; ‘That Dragon, Cancer’
Today’s Tech Sightings: LEGO Education Launches New Robot-based Learning System Forget the old way of learning. Kids today have more fun learning their sciences, and LEGO Education just jumped into the ring with a new kit it hopes will be added to school curricula. The kit includes a LEGO brick set, software and servos that will […]
Mobile Consumes Teen Generation; Emoji Makes 2015 Word of the Year
Today’s Tech Sightings: I’m 15 and I Can’t Look Up From My Phone Mobile devices and their various apps are sucking in a whole generation of teenagers. Writer Ruby Karp notes how young people easily grab their smartphones in the middle of a social gathering or a conversation because they don’t know how to be […]
Harassment Scrubs SXSW Panels; the Texting Generation
Today’s Tech Sightings: SXSW Cancels Panels on Gaming Harassment, Citing Threats After receiving threats of violence, the South By Southwest Festival Monday canceled two panel discussions focusing on video games and harassment in the gaming community. The festival, scheduled for March 2016, was set to feature panelists who have been publicly vocal about the #Gamergate controversy, […]
Snapchat & Teens; Your AI Muse; Apple; Online Reviews
Today’s Tech Sightings: I’m 15 and Snapchat Makes Me Feel Awful About Myself Writer Ruby Karp argues that Snapchat’s latest update encourages FOMO or fear of missing out among teenagers. She says teens are obsessed with the Snapchat stories feature, which lets them “boast” about who they are with, what they’re doing — and “what […]
Nong Kalaland; Nepal’s Drones; Internet Use & Teen Health; Microsoft
Today’s Tech Sightings: Thailand’s Gamers Fight to Save Open Internet Thailand’s idea of controlling Internet traffic through one gateway is not sitting well with a lot of the country’s citizens. Several groups that include privacy activists – even gamers – have united to take down government websites with coordinated Distributed Denial of Service attacks. The […]