Hackerteen Entertains, Educates and Inspires

While "white hat" or ethical hacking has been around for ages, there has been very little effort on the part of its adherents to pass on these values to the next generation. To clarify, there has always been a element of ethical pressure directed at n00bs. "Script kiddies," neophytes too raw to do anything except duplicate others' hacks, are considered to be the lowest of the low, and are accorded nothing but contempt -- well, and scripts. But in terms of positively encouraging ethical hacking on the part of kids too little to actually script, I can't recall anything as cool as Hackerteen Vol 1.: Internet Blackout.

The comic's story involves Yago, a young computer prodigy who is sent to Hackerteen, a school for gifted kids. Run something like a dojo with freshmen taking White Belt classes and the seniormost students called Black Belts, the school provides the perfect environment for Yago. As his skills increase over the years, he finds himself being targeted by criminals seeking to hire him for nefarious ends. When his family runs into some financial misfortune, he accepts the wrong job and ends up getting tangled up in the criminals' schemes.

The story itself probably won't wow the average adult, but it's great for preteens and insidiously -- in a good way -- it sprinkles mature concepts like ODF in the story without explanation, with a footnote supplying a link so kids can learn more. If readers aren't interested they can skim over the unfamiliar terms and still understand the story.

Parents unfamiliar with the concept of ethical hacking may get nervous about exposing their children to a comic book that glorifies hacking. However, there is a strong moral current throughout the story, with predatory adults (the usual scum: suits, politicians) attempting to turn the Hackerteen students' elite skills towards criminal activities, to the utter scorn of the kids. My stepdaughter, who had some -- how shall I put it -- administrative difficulties in 5th grade for creatively accessing school systems, was quickly engrossed by the book, and it encouraged me that a kid who had made mistakes in the past was fascinated by a book that so unequivocally blasts similarly illegal acts.

Interestingly, Hackerteen is a real school that mainly teaches via distance learning. Admitting students between the ages of 14 and 19 and offering a 2-year program, the school teaches about open source software, ethics, psychology and entrepreneurship. Headquartered in Sao Paolo, Brazil, the school is currently seeking franchises around the world.

There is a clear moral message in the real world, just because you can do something, doesn't mean you should do that thing. To educate kids that that applies to computers too, and to do it in an entertaining and respectful manner, as Hackerteen does, is incredibly valuable.

Rise of the EduBot

Robot-loving kids must be on cloud 9. Seems that every day someone's making it easier to learn about and make robots. Start with countless mom & pop kit-sellers (Google "robot kit" if you don't believe me.) How about LEGO MINDSTORMS? Even Zoob's getting in on the action with their Zoob Mover set.

Recently, Heathkit announced they would resume distribution of their HE-Robot, a classic edubot of yore. Actually a remix of the 914 PC-BOT by White Box Robotics, the "extreme edition" 914 runs $7,995. Say what?! Eight large and you don't even get to build the sucker? That makes the MINDSTORMS tab seem merely allowance-busting by comparison. 914 fans would argue that they're apples and oranges. White Box's offering sports what amounts to a fairly formidable desktop computer on board; the kits out there have, at best, programmable microcontrollers that must be configured via a separate PC.

Still, eight grand buys a lot of Vex.

And what, pray tell, is Vex? Imagine building your own robot from Erector-esque metal girders and plates. You get to learn about how the gears work, configure tires (rubber tires or plastic treads, small or large?) and program the microcontroller to obey your commands. Everything about Vex (particularly the Vex Robotics Starter Kit) is optimized for educational users. (Pure hobbyists might prefer the Vexplorer.)

The first robot you work on with the Starter Set is the SquareBot, a simple roller. Basically a square of girders with four wheels, two motors, batteries, the microcontroller and RF receiver. It was easy but satisfying to make. One pleasant surprise was that the bot needed absolutely no tinkering after completion. As long as you attached the connectors to the right ports, the settings of the microcontroller defaulted to this bot so it was ready to roll as soon as the batteries popped in -- very encouraging for kids, I'm sure.

So how is Vex good for students? Let me count the ways. The manual teaches the basics of gears and structural integrity. Plus, its pages are loose-leaf, allowing teams of kids to divvy up the various components and work on them separately, before coming together and assembling the project. Best of all, you can swap out frequency crystals in the controllers so multiple teams can operate in the same classroom without crossing signals. Finally, while challenging, Vex is simple enough for kids to work on without help. Of course there are a bunch of add-ons like tank treads, advanced sensors, and pneumatics to up the ante on students who have already mastered the basic stuff. According to the Web site, WiFi enabled bots are in the works!

Here's some more information if you're interested:

YouTube video of an awesome multi-legged Vex walker

Robot Magazine article on the Vexplorer

Robot Magazine article on the Mythbusters fellas playing around with Vex

The Bakken

The Bakken Library and Museum is an "independent, nonprofit education institution that collects archival materials related to the history of electricity and magnetism in medicine and the life sciences." Founded by Earl E. Bakken, the inventor of the pacemaker, the museum grew out of Bakken's collection of antique medical devices of an electrical nature. Currently it's housed in a 1930s mansion in South Minneapolis.

Understandably, given the interests of the founder and the nature of the original endowment, the Bakken focuses on the medical aspect of electricity. However, they offer numerous science programs of a more general nature. For instance, in their Family Science Saturdays kids can perform electrical experiments and assemble mini wind turbines and electronic kits. Every Saturday is an "inventors table" sponsored by Twin Cities' legendary surplus store chain, Ax-Man. Their current exhibit, called "Electrifying Minnesota" uses archival photos, film and advertisements to show how electricity has shaped everyday life from the 1880s through the 1950s.

If that weren't enough, the Bakken serves as a scholarly institution, holding talks and awarding fellowships and grants. Their archives contain 11,000 written works and 2,500 scientific artifacts regarding electricity in the life sciences. Check them out!