Update on injured, orphaned animals near Lake Tahoe

NEVADA COUNTY, Calif. (KGO) -- We want to bring you up to date on several injured and orphaned animals that we've been telling you about over the last few months and it is all good news.

These bear cubs were confiscated last June from a suspected poacher. They ended up at Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care where they spent the summer eating and growing, then went into hibernation.

In January, ABC7 News went along as a state fish and wildlife crew placed the cubs in a den in a remote spot called the Sagehen Forest. The team put up motion activated cameras so they could find out what happened when the bears woke up.

Now almost three months later, photos show the cubs are healthy wild bears. They hibernated through February and you can even see them playing when they visited the den last month.

We also introduced you to an injured bald eagle in rehab at the wildlife center since December. Volunteers took video of him on a practice flight as he learned to use his wings again. Then last week they photographed his spectacular release at Carson Pass.

And one more animal you may remember -- "Chips" the bobcat was rescued after a forest fire in Plumas County last August. Chips got intensive medical treatment at Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care. Then she was transferred to Sierra Wildlife Rescue to learn to be a wild cat. A photo of her was taken last week, just before she was successfully released with another rescued bobcat in Humboldt County.

All these rescues take thousands of volunteer hours and thousands of dollars.

Links to organizations that helped with the rescue and care of wild animals in the successful releases featured in our story:
#1 Lake Tahoe Wildlife Care Phone: (530) 577-2273

#2 Bear League Phone: (530) 525-PAWS (7297)

#3 Sierra Wildlife Rescue Phone: (530) 647-1089

#4 Sagehen Experimental Forest

Update: Sierra Wildlife Rescue has corrected their original report to indicate "Chips" the bobcat and her companion were released in the Lassen-Plumas Wilderness Area, not Humboldt County.

Written and produced by Jennifer Olney

(Copyright ©2013 KGO-TV/DT.

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Chromebooks in K12 – An Update

With the recent launch last year of Chromebooks, and the delivery of new models designed primarily for the K12 market, there’s been a lot of attention and discussion on this topic. There is also new news about Chromebooks in K12, and as we move into another school year in August/September, it’s worth reviewing the new information that has become available.

Many districts are looking at Chromebooks as an alternative to laptops or the expensive tablets offered by some vendors. Given that the majority of work is now done via the internet, the Chromebooks are definitely exploiting a need.

Recently, IDC wrote a research paper on the economic value of Chromebooks in K-12. There are some very interesting findings in this research. One of the most intriguing facts in this study is the 82% reduction in administration time for Chromebooks as compared with traditional laptops. Some of this is undoubtedly due to the fact they don’t have the same level of functionality, but it’s intriguing nonetheless. Additionally, IDC forecasts a $590 reduced cost of ownership for Chromebooks over a three year period. This makes a strong case.

This may be one of the most frequently asked and in some cases confusing part of the Chromebook decision for many districts. Given the budget realities, the most common approach is to evaluate which of these other two devices may be replaced by Chromebooks. I’m not so sure that this is the best way to look at the issue. Traditional laptops are clearly better suited where running courseware locally is necessary, and tablets are a touch only/small screen environment. To me, the Chromebook represents a new class of device that may be better in some use cases than either of the other two such as libraries, shared informal usage scenarios, and auditoriums. In fact, Lenovo recently created an infographic that compares the ThinkPad X131e Chromebook to the Apple iPad.

A final point that has become important in the Chromebook discussion is the ease of sharing a Chromebook that basically is a “fresh” system each time a new student logs on. Without the traditional operating system approach, of either tablets or laptops, there are fewer problems with issues from prior users. This will also help you consider use cases for Chromebooks.

Like any new tool, the Chromebook brings new capabilities to EdTech. Some of these may be very useful in broadening the availability of computing to students, or providing lower cost options to existing usage scenarios. Regardless, it’s important to stay up to date on what the Chromebook can do for your district.

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