Latest Posts

NASA/FIRST ROBOTICS COMPETITION. NASA, in cooperation with local technology firms and sponsors, has launched a nationwide series of high school robotics competitions. The student competition is called "For Inspiration and Recognition of Science and Technology," or FIRST. For the next several weeks, 44 regional competitions will be held in 30 states and the District of Columbia. The FIRST Championship competitions will take place in Atlanta in April. Find out more.

BUDGET CUTS, GATE, HONORS. In Santa Barbara, California, a proposal to fold the gifted and talented education program into an honors program has stirred debate over semantics, racial equality, and academic rigor. Read more.

GET'EM OUT OF HIGH SCHOOL EARLY. Those pesky gifted students, that is. Idaho is considering a plan to encourage gifted students to enroll early in college -- by awarding scholarships to such kids. The plan would allow students to graduate up to three years early and to receive scholarships at a state university or community college. Read about it.

IT'S SUMMER PROGRAM TIME -- at least, time to start planning. Brainworks, in Carrollton, Texas, offers a summer camp designed for 2e kids. Find out more.

IN THE CURRENT ISSUE OF DEUTCHES ARZTEBLATT INTERNATIONAL, encouraging results about using deep-brain stimulation on OCD and Tourette's. Researchers found improvement rates of between 35% and 70% in treatment-resistant obsessive-compulsive disorder, depression, and Tourette syndrome. Read about it in ScienceDaily, in English, not German.

AN ASPIE CRIME NOVEL. The Boston Globe brings us a review of House Rules, a novel featuring Jacob, an 18-year-old Aspie who can analyze a crime scene with "remarkable accuracy and speed." The reviewer says, "the beauty of [Jodi] Picoult’s book, as in most of her topical bestsellers, is that it brings to vivid life not just Jacob’s condition, but the impact it has on those around him." Find out more.