A very happy Wednesday to you all. Here's hoping the sunny weather keeps going this week. If not, try huddling around this morning's story roundup.
Blackboard acquires predictive analytics tech
Blackboard has bought X-Ray Analytics, a platform for organizing and analyzing learning needs of students. It's the latest in a long run of acquisitions this year for Blackboard. X-Ray creates visual guides to behavior and learning of students to help teachers adapt and improve their teaching, even helping warn them of potential risks before things go wrong. The tech is going into Blackboard's Moodlerooms and Enterprise Moodle learning management systems, but will eventually become part of the broader Blackboard offerings.
Gunshots reported at Washington Navy Yard
The Navy Yard—where a former Navy reservist killed 12 people in 2013—is now on lockdown, with workers told to stay where they are or stay at home if they haven't come in yet, according to reports. Nearby buildings have also been evacuated and roads have been closed. The gunfire was reported before 8 a.m.
Update: The Navy Yard is "all clear" and so far there hasn't been any determination about what happened, ABC News reported.
#BREAKING: #USNavy confirms no sign of shooting @NavalDistWash #NavyYard. All personnel ok. Follow-on NCIS investigation ongoing.
— U.S. Navy (@USNavy) July 2, 2015
— Kyle Alspach
ChicagoNext Exec Leaves To Head Chicago NextGen Angels Branch
The Chicago Tribune reports that Phil Nevels, the executive director of ChicagoNext otherwise known as World Business Chicago’s tech council, is leaving his position to lead a Chicago franchise of Washington, D.C.-based NextGen Angels. NextGen is a structured angel investor group, made up of prominent local entrepreneurs, who have invested in a number of local deals. The move will likely also mean an expansion of investments into Chicago's rising startup scene by the group. NextGen Angels founder and CEO Dan Mindus told the Chicago Tribune that NextGen would be expanding into Chicago to focus on, “a renaissance of entrepreneurial activity." — Chris Bing
DC is a transportation startup hub
If you're having issues with your commute this morning, check out some of the startups that make the D.C. area one of the more innovative places transportation-wise. You can take solace in the fact that there are plenty of people working on ways of making getting around the city as easy and cheap as possible. Read our whole story here.
Sony crowdfunds a smartwatch
Sony launched a new crowdfunding platform called First Flight, and it will allow users not only to back projects, but also follow the development process of new devices and buy/pre-order new merchandise. Right now, backers are able to pre-order two products, Sony’s MESH Smart DIY kit and the FES e-ink watch, a wearable that can change between a number of designs at the push of a button. Another product, the HUIS Remote Controller, an all in one remote, is still in the crowdfunding stage. You can read more about it in our story here.
Small business employment is on the rise
Intuit put out its latest Small Business Index and found that small business employment is going up, rising 0.13 percent in June. Revenue and pay was down slightly, but that might be because employees worked less in June too. You can read the whole report here.
Judges rule Apple was part of an ebook conspiracy
A federal appeals court upheld a judgmerynt that Apple was behind a conspiracy with publishers to bump up ebook prices. The ultimate goal was apparently to mess with Amazon's dominance of the ebook industry, but the judges agreed with the lower court that it violated antitrust rules and that Apple owed the government $450 million for violating the laws. Apple said it is is still deciding what steps to take. Check out the whole crazy story here.
