Data Acquisition using NXT

http://thenxtstep.blogspot.com/2007/09/datalogging-with-nxt-g.html

Some great info on how to do data acquisition ( data logging ) using the NXT robot kits!

Easy to use Python editor

http://www.qtrac.eu/sandbox.html

Sandbox provides facilities for learning and experimenting with Python, and for creating and editing Python files. It is designed to be easy to learn and use, and to provide a PyQt-based alternative to IDLE. (

breve: a 3d Simulation Environment for Multi-Agent Simulations and Artificial Life

http://www.spiderland.org/

breve is a free, open-source software package which makes it easy to build 3D simulations of multi-agent systems and artificial life. Users define the behaviors of agents in a 3D world and observe how they interact. Agents behaviors can be written in Python, or using a simple scripting language called “steve”. breve includes physical simulation and collision detection so you can simulate realistic creatures, and an OpenGL display engine so you can visualize your simulated worlds.

breve is available for Mac OS X, Linux and Windows

Physics and 3D in Python

http://showmedo.com/videos/video?name=pythonThompsonVPython1&fromSeriesID=30

Erik Thompson has a very nice video showing how you can use VPython to simulate a ball falling under the effects of gravity. it’s reasonably simple. It could be used to show how computers can simulate the physical world.

NASA’s World Wind

http://worldwind.arc.nasa.gov/

World Wind lets you zoom from satellite altitude into any place on Earth. Leveraging Landsat satellite imagery and Shuttle Radar Topography Mission data, World Wind lets you experience Earth terrain in visually rich 3D, just as if you were really there.

Virtually visit any place in the world. Look across the Andes, into the Grand Canyon, over the Alps, or along the African Sahara.

A really good example of computers and graphics.

Web page creating exercises from Boise State

http://www.boisestate.edu/webcenter/workshops/basics2/exercises.shtml

Some good ideas for exercises to teach HTML and CSS.

Xray

http://www.westciv.com/xray/index.html

Very nice bookmarklet to see the styling of elements.

Hands on CSS Tutorial

http://www.westciv.com/style_master/academy/hands_on_tutorial/index.html

Great tutorial on CSS from Westciv! I like that they have “project” in mind to create a very nice looking Web page.

HTML Exercises from Steve O’Neil

http://www.oneil.com.au/pc/html.html

Some good introductory info on Web design, HTML and CSS. Some of it maybe a bit advanced for the average new student.

The Hard Science of Making Video Games

http://www.popsci.com/popsci/technology/8312f0209dd15110vgnvcm1000004eecbccdrcrd.html

Discusses aspects of video games and how there is some really hard science behind creating them!