New York Times Technology Columnist and NOVA Science Now Host David Pogue Visits UNA for Distance-Learning Conference

Mar. 22, 2013

By Terry Pace, UNA Communications and Marketing

FLORENCE, Ala. – Technology expert and New York Times weekly columnist David Pogue – host of the PBS television series NOVA Science Now – will be the keynote speaker for the 2013 Distance Learning Technology Conference at the University of North Alabama.

The conference, which is free and open to the public, begins at 8:30 a.m. and concludes at noon Thursday, April 4, in the Performance Center of UNA’s Guillot University Center.

“The subject of his address, ‘The Digital Generation Comes of Age,’ will be thought-provoking and should spark a great deal of serious discussion,” said Debbie Chaffin, UNA’s Director of Educational Technology Services. “However, David Pogue is also brilliantly funny and a highly entertaining public speaker.”

In addition to writing regular columns for The New York Times and Scientific American, Pogue is the author several books, including seven installments in the popular  … for Dummies series, including Macs, Opera, Magic and Classical Music. He also spent 10 years arranging and conducting Broadway musicals. Pogue’s NOVA Science Now series addresses questions ranging from “What Are Animals Thinking?” and “How Smart Can We Be?” to “What Will the Future Be Like?” and “What Makes Us Human?”

Pogue’s UNA address explores “how the tidal wave will hit as the digital generation enters prime time.” He will examine gains and losses as well as revolutionary shifts in beliefs and approaches.

“For the last 20 years,” Pogue says, “computers and technology have been part of the everyday curriculum for a generation or two of digitally privileged kids – and, as they become the majority, it's show time. As computer-literate children become America's new leaders, visionaries, and designers, how will their digital upbringing affect society and culture?”

UNA’s Distance Learning Conference is sponsored by the Distance Learning Advisory Committee and Educational Technology Services. After Pogue’s address, sessions for the remainder of the morning will include “Student Expectations in Online Education” and “Universal Design: An Approach to Quality Assurance.”

“This is a unique opportunity for professional development,” Chaffin noted. “The conference is not just for online instructors. It is for anyone who is interested in using technology in the classroom, whether the class is online, blended or face-to-face.”

The conference also includes a luncheon (limited to UNA faculty and staff) as well as door prizes, including gift cards to 360 Grille, Dale’s, George’s, Ricatoni’s, City Hardware, Rosie’s, Legends, Texas Road House, Logan's and Cracker Barrel, a night’s stay at the Marriott, several gift baskets from local florists and a golf package from the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail.

For details, or to register for the conference, contact B.J. Wilson at 256-765-4208 or bhwilson@una.edu.