Technology gives circus a mighty roar

Article Abstract:

High technology will play a key role in a Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey Circus' premiere performance on Mar 27, 1998, at Madison Square Garden. Semiconductors, hard drives, digital links and custom electronic engineering power everything from computer-guided lights to speakers' sound profiles. Four Macintosh laptops manage 102 swiveling 'intelligent lights,' or computer-regulated units that produce hundreds of colors. Computer chips use a mathematical method, the fast Fourier transform, to regulate speakers' bass and treble levels. Synthesizers generate more than 100 sound effects to accompany the antics of the show's 18 clowns. Computers require four to five hours of reprogramming when the circus moves to each new city, because of different arena configurations. Kenneth Feld, the company's Pres and producer, said the new show's production exceeded the $8 million that his father paid to acquire the circus in 1967. The bottom line remains the audience's connection with the people and animals, a performer said.

Circuses, Other Performing Arts Companies, Company technology development, Circus, Ringling Brothers and Barnum & Bailey

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Home Web sites thrust students into censorship debates

Article Abstract:

A growing number of censorship incidents involving student Web sites outside school are taking place, legal experts say. No definitive court rulings are available on schools's latitude in disciplining students who design controversial Web sites. One recent case involved a Sean O'Brien, a 17-year-old student from Westlake High School, near Cleveland. O'Brien was suspended for 10 days, after school administrators learned that his home-based Web site had insulted his band teacher in spring 1997. Administrators also ordered O'Brien to remove the Web site and threatened expulsion. O'Brien and his parents sued the school district for $550,000, alleging free speech violations. Both sides reached an out-of-court settlement in Apr 1998, in which the district reinstated O'Brien, apologized and paid the student $30,000 in damages. Schools have no right to interfere with a student's communication outside school, according to the A.C.L.U. of Eastern Missouri.

Cases, Internet, Internet/Web technology application, Technology in education, World Wide Web, Censorship, Censorship issue, O'Brien, Sean

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2 horse-racing syndicates flourish on line

Article Abstract:

Virtual Owners Partnership (http://www.ttinet.com/vop/) and Cyberspace Racing Team (http://www.crt-stable.com) allow Internet users to participate in race horse ownership. Participants can pay $1,000 to acquire 1/150th of a four-horse stable under the Cyberspace Racing system and as little as $400 to invest in Virtual Owners. Majority rule through E-mail finalizes ownership issues and many day-to-day decisions excluding training, according to Cyberspace Racing. The majority of partners are former recreational bettors who have taken advantage of a new opportunity to experience racing. Cyberspace Racing, which has owned 13 horses since its 1995 inception, is expanding from mostly Arizona and California into New York for races. Virtual Owners Partnership, founded in Sep 1994, concentrates on Illinois.

Other Gambling Industries, Off-Track Betting, Marketing, Company Web site/Web page, Horse racing, Horse-racing, Off track betting, Virtual Owners Partnership, Cyberspace Racing Team

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