“Study: More kids can use a smart phone than tie their shoes - Seattle Post Intelligencer” plus 1 more |
| Study: More kids can use a smart phone than tie their shoes - Seattle Post Intelligencer Posted: 24 Jan 2011 11:15 AM PST Monday, January 24, 2011 Which is easier to use -- an iPhone or a shoelace? If you were 2 to 5 years old, you might actually say the iPhone. A new study shows that many kids pick up high-tech skills quicker than "standard" life skills, such as tying their shoes or riding a bike. "Technology has changed what it means to be a parent raising children today -- these children are growing up in an environment that would be unrecognizable to their parents," J.R. Smith, chief executive of AVG, the Internet security firm that commissioned the study, said in a news release. "The smart phone and the computer are increasingly taking the place of the TV as an education and entertainment tool for children." In the U.S., according to the study, 30 percent of 2- to 5-year-olds knew how to operate a smart phone or tablet computer, like the Apple iPad. And 61 percent could play a basic computer game. (Add in Canada and Europe, and those percentages were 19 percent and 58 percent, respectively.) On the contrary, while 52 percent of kids knew how to ride a bike, just 20 percent could swim and a mere 11 percent could tie their own shoes. Below are some charts from the study, which polled 2,200 mothers in the U.S., Canada, U.K., France, Germany, Italy and Spain. A summary of the study findings is available as a PDF. This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
| Music Monday: Macklemore and Ryan Lewis, Jacks Green and Geo, Kid Presentable - Seattle Times Posted: 24 Jan 2011 11:15 AM PST "Wings" by Macklemore and Ryan Lewis (download here)
"Wings" became available for free download a few days ago, a song about athletic shoes commonly fetishized in hiphop culture, specifically those with air bubbles. Macklemore speaks on the subject as a recovering addict. Growing up, he lusted after Nikes to improve his social status, jump higher, etc. Now that he's older and wiser, though still quite the (thrift store) clotheshorse, he just doesn't need perfect, spotless, mint condition sneakers like he used to. It's not that re-released old-school Jordans aren't beautiful, but Macklemore's seen the fetish spiral out of control, and been close to people who literally died for their footwear. Ryan Lewis uses "Wings" to further his style of blending hiphop with indie rock instrumentation, with a piano-based backdrop where tambourines simulate the hi-hat triplets of a drum machine. "Wings" is an ensemble effort, and a full cast of supporting musicians is listed on Mack's blog, Bengal Yucky. Note the Denny International Middle School choir sings the hook, a move that pushes Macklemore close to Kanye West-style grandiosity. ___________________________ "Take Me Home" by Jacks Green feat. Geo
We're dealing with Geo 2.0 here, which means his flow is more musical than ever. He sounds casually confident over Jacks Green's earnest pianos and thick drums, a fully-grown Pacific Northwest rap king. "I've been here for a minute / they've been here for a second," he says, taking the bad with the good, sniping about our region's stereotypical passive aggressiveness and raving about the purity of our air. ___________________________ "Good Old Desk" by Kid Presentable (download here)
UW student and upright bass scholar Adrian Swan, aka electronic music enthusiast Kid Presentable, has recorded an electronic version of Harry Nilsson's "Good Old Desk" (1968). The result is a little like a throat cancer survivor singing Nilsson through a voice box. Kid Presentable tweaks his vocals to demonic depths at one point, but mainly stays the course and turns in a faithful cover. The robotic treatment works with the song's dark existential comedy ("Good Old Desk" = "G.O.D."), the machines lending detachment and silliness to an otherwise dainty-sounding eighth-note plinking-piano pop song. BTW: If you've not seen the documentary "Who is Harry Nilsson (And Why is Everybody Talkin' About Him?)," do so immediately. His life was thrilling, then depressing, then less depressing. Nilsson was a tremendous songwriter with a singing voice that, at its prime, might never be matched in pop music for smoothness, range, and power. The movie testifies to all that. Photos by me This entry passed through the Full-Text RSS service — if this is your content and you're reading it on someone else's site, please read our FAQ page at fivefilters.org/content-only/faq.php |
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