The fuel that is intensifying the "fire" in learning and discovery is the new age of communication and analytical power spawned by the advent of the computer and the connectivity provided by satellites.

The university over the last several years has spent some $26 million to maintain an infrastructure to support the new technologies and is a founding partner for Internet 2. It is interesting to note that more than 90 percent of our faculty use computers, as do 83 percent of our students.

The Ohio Board of Regents and the State of Ohio will spend $5 million over the next two years to improve graduate education in computer science across the state. The University of Cincinnati received $1 million directly from this project and can share in an additional $500,000 set aside for multi-university projects.

You never know how technology will impact learning. For example, the University of Cincinnati German-Americana Collection now contains a rare collection of 35 ornately designed, signed letters to and from Prince Klemens von Metternich. UC acquired the letters after one of Metternichís descendants mentioned their existence on the Internet. The letters will contribute to our understanding of European immigration to America.

NetWellness, a World Wide Web-based medical information service operated by the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, has been recognized as a superior site by two rating services - Point Communications and the National Information Infrastructure Awards Program. The popular source of health information is listed as a "hotlink" by more than 150 other sites, including the Centers for Disease Control and the British Broadcasting Company. It is in the top 5 percent of Web sites.

The Electronic Media Technology Program at UC's Raymond Walters College has received a $20,000 grant from Screenplay Systems to fund the college's use of Dramatica Pro, a script-development software. Students in the program will be able to use the software involved in scripts for 85 percent of Academy Award nominees and 95 percent of all Emmy winners.

New Scientist magazine reported that record crowds were queuing up at Disney's Epcot Center in Florida to tour the famous Caves of Lascaux via a virtual reality system. The "Virtual Lascaux" was created by Benjamin Britton of the University of Cincinnati College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning. Britton is using virtual reality to "reconstruct" other famous archaeological sites, as well as a simulation of the first moon landing.

Most fiction is written linearly: Start at the beginning, go through the middle, and stop at the end. The computer capabilities used on the World Wide Web allow for a sort of "hyperfiction" where the plotline is multi-dimensional. John Bryan, in the University of Cincinnati's McMicken College of Arts & Sciences, is teaching students how to write such "hyperfiction." While it may never replace traditional narrative, Bryan finds that students can stretch their skills and imaginations using this technique.

Another example comes participated in our online course "Technology and the Transformation of Education," led by Dan Wheeler of the College of Education. When Stefansdottir linked up from her hometown of Reykjavik, Wheeler was able to involve her fully in the class, even arranging academic credit for her from the University College of Education in Iceland.

"I have to say your university is definitely doing something pioneer in delivering courses through the World Wide Web," Stefansdottir said. "It creates possibilities beyond what we had before."

It is obvious that the Internet and the connectivity among millions of people worldwide will change much of how we learn, conduct commerce, and ultimately how we view the world. We have people now attending classes electronically from Finland, Mexico, Jamaica, and other countries interacting with us on a daily basis. So the "fire" of education is now spreading electronically worldwide.