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  • Teen-run project provides virtual activities, tutoring for kids during the pandemic

    Two teens from Los Angeles created a tutoring program to help supplement education during the pandemic, called the “Covid NineTeen Project.” The project is entirely teen run, from the creators to the mentors. More than 250 tutors provide service to more than 800 elementary schools across 11 countries. “If we were able to achieve this as teenagers in our community, this is something that you can set up on the local level in your community, as well."

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  • Rural school district creates free internet service to keep students connected

    At least 40 percent, or 2,000, students from Lockhart ISD didn’t have access to reliable internet. To address the issue, the school district built seven towers. They also installed antennas on individual homes so they can receive the signals from the towers. As a result, 1,300 students got connected. “This is about equity,” Estrada said. “Every one of our Lockhart Lions needs to have access to the opportunities they deserve to grow and truly thrive.”

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  • No WiFi at home? One Virginia school district has a creative solution for students

    A school district in Virginia has implemented a two-prong solution to provide internet access to rural students during the pandemic. The indoor solution allows students to make appointments to be inside the school to access the internet. The outside solution, equipping three schools in the district with equipment to boost their Wi-Fi signals, allowing students who can’t make indoor appointments a way to access the Wi-Fi. “We just took advantage of something that was already happening in the district."

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  • Can't Pay Your Rent? ‘Lawtech' Is Here to Help.

    Soon after the federal government imposed a second moratorium on evictions, SixFifty, a tech firm, released Hello Landlord, a mobile app for tenants to generate a legally compliant form letter invoking the law with their landlords to block a threatened eviction. In the first nine days after its release, the app was used by more than 200 people. The free service is an example of what's called lawtech: technology giving access to legal information to individuals and small businesses. Hello Landlord asks 19 questions that serve to automate what a tenant's lawyer might do – if only the tenant could afford one.

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  • Pa. Supreme Court halts Philly criminal trials streamed on YouTube over possible harassment

    Philadelphia criminal trials were broadcast live on a public YouTube channel to provide for public access to the courts during the pandemic shutdown, but the practice was halted over a complaint by prosecutors that this means of public access created opportunities for harassment and intimidation of victims, witnesses, and defendants. Responding to an emergency petition by the Philadelphia district attorney, the state Supreme Court halted the YouTube broadcasts. Prosecutors said they will explore alternatives including private Zoom calls and closed-circuit feeds.

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  • How the book industry is weathering the COVID-19 storm

    Despite book sales being up during the coronavirus pandemic, many book stores aren't seeing a viable source of income due to the cancellation of book launches and many digital purchases being made on wholesale sites. Authors and publishers, however, have found a silver lining by using technology to host virtual book readings which allows them to reach audiences they may not have before.

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  • Will the Special Investigative Unit decrease gun violence in Flint? Audio icon

    In the first full month since it was created to take illegal guns off the street, Flint's Special Investigative Unit seized 64 firearms and made dozens of arrests. The unit's predictive policing approach relies on data that tell the police where gun crimes are concentrated. Critics contend that focusing enforcement on historically high-crime areas creates a feedback loop of racially disparate policing, in that more cops in a neighborhood means more arrests, which in turn invites more enforcement. Targeted gun enforcement has a mixed record of crime reductions and racial inequities.

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  • Smartphones saving the rainforest

    Rainforest Connection makes a smartphone app that is part of a system using solar-powered phones in the rainforests of Brazil, Sumatra, Costa Rica, and Peru to stream audio of suspected illegal logging. This system, using recycled phones, enables the capture and shutting down of logging operations. In Brazil, about 100 loggers have been arrested and a large share of the rainforest has been protected, though many loggers there and in other countries still evade detection. This app is one example of innovations in use around the world to extend the lives of smartphones to benefit environmental conservation.

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  • Texas Teacher Takes Her Students On A Road Trip Through U.S. History — Remotely

    Students taking AP U.S. History at Westlake High School in Austin, Texas, may have been limited in their ability to attend in-person classes, but their teacher decided to supplement their lessons by taking on a 15-day virtual road trip across the U.S. to see the places often mentioned in their textbooks. Cathy Cluck traveled as far as the east coast to show students historic sites like Jamestown, Gettysburg, the Lincoln Memorial, and many others.

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  • Women Data Scientists Created GPS-Driven App to Help Kenya Keep Covid-19 Numbers Low

    Women in GIS Kenya created a digital tool that helps the government track the number of Covid-19 cases, recoveries, and confirmed deaths, as well as the number of tests administered. The online database combines a survey that assesses a person's symptoms with cellphone GPS data to create a map of current hot spots and recommend treatment locations. The government credits the tool, which can also predict high-risk areas vulnerable to future outbreaks, with helping to keep Kenya's COVID-19-related deaths relatively low compared to other countries. The tool is popular among younger, tech-savvy populations.

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