New online learning models are bursting from startups and top universities, bridging the educational divide.

We are in the midst of a revolution that will bring high-quality education to hundreds of millions of people who have never had access to this level of learning before.

These tools will reach those in developing cities and countries but also foment a revolution in the U.S. classroom as they change our perception of what learning can be.

Here are the leading new platfoms disupting the education world:

1.Udacity

Sebastian Thurn and his colleagues hit on wild success with their Stanford computer science courses when they opened them up to the online public.The team has left Stanford to start Udacity with venture backing and a new slate of courses. They have hit 150,000+ students in each course, signaling the demand for great online education. Thurn admits that there is no firm business model as yet, but will use the next year to experiment with different approaches.

CNN highlights Udacity's new model.

2. Coursera

Daphne Koller and Andrew Ng founded Coursera to bring high-quality university courses to the masses. They are working with Princeton, Michigan, Penn, Stanford and others to fashion online courses which include video, online testing and peer support. In a recent Forbes article, Koller expressed the hope that "maybe the next Albert Einstein or Steve Jobs is living in a remote village in Africa" Bringing top professors to a global audience can certainly change the game in the education divide.

3. EdX -- MIT and Harvard

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Jack Hidary: The Revolution:Top Ten Disruptors of Education

Online education has come to the fore as an item of discussion at the University of Virginia since last months failed attempt to oust President Teresa A. Sullivan.

It was among the areas of concern identified by Rector Helen E. Dragas as she tried to explain the move, and emails released under Freedom of Information Act requests show that it was a topic many at the top of the university were paying close attention to. In the wake of Sullivans reinstatement, it remains a hot topic among faculty.

Even Gov. Bob McDonnells appointments to the schools Board of Visitors, announced just before the end of last month, could be read to indicate an interest in the subject, with the appointment of the president and CEO of the Northern Virginia Technology Council to the board.

In her remarks, Dragas said higher education could be on the brink of an online learning revolution, now that the elite institutions have legitimized it.

In emails between Dragas and former Vice Rector Mark Kington released recently, the two discuss a New York Times editorial by David Brooks that hails online courses by companies such as UDACITY, often referred to as MOOCs, or massive open online courses, as a tidal wave about to hit higher education.

UVa engineering professor Larry G. Richards said the university has been teaching distance and online courses since 1983, offering courses first through the engineering school and later through the Curry School of Education.

First of all, we have been doing distance learning for a long time. We have only been doing online learning for the last five years, Richards said. We have special classrooms that allow us to teach classes all around the world From our view, we are on the cutting edge.

The classes offered through both schools generate tuition and can be taken for degree credit. MOOCs, by definition, do not. The classes are offered for free, do not award credit, and there is no incentive or obligation to complete them.

Mary Abouzeid, statewide director of the Teaching Educators McGuffey Practica Off-Grounds program through the Curry School, said she had seen Brooks pieces and passed them around, but for different reasons.

We read them with a completely different understanding than [Kington and Dragas] did, she said. We read it as, weve got to be careful and you dont want to go out and put junk on the Internet.

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After Sullivan's failed ouster, a question: Is UVa's future online?

GRAND RAPIDS, MI - The second largest leader in online education, Connections Education, plans to open a charter high school this fall - Nexus Academy of Grand Rapids.

The company, based in Baltimore, is opening physical versions of its virtual high schools, Nexus Academy schools, in four other cities besides Grand Rapids: Lansing, Toledo, Cleveland and Columbus. The tuition-free open enrollment will have a college prep focus.

The Grand Rapids school will be located at 801 Broadway Ave. NW, in the American Seating Park complex. Officials expect to serve 250 to 300 students in grades nine through 12 on the second floor of the office building.

"Grand Rapids has been on the cutting edge of new school models and school choice both in the traditional public school setting and charters," said Mickey Revenaugh, executive vice president of Connections Education, about why Grand Rapids was chosen as a site.

"Certified teachers will interact with students both online and on-site. Every student has a specialized learning plan with the blended learning, which accommodates itself well to wherever a student might be in their performance."

Revenaugh said two math and two science teachers will be on-site and they are close to naming a principal. She said the school will offer visual and performing arts courses, bringing in instructors and have a fitness center on site.

The new blended learning high school plans to offer students access to core academic courses in math, science, social studies and English as well as Advanced Placement courses. Foreign language offerings will include Spanish, French, Chinese, Japanese, German, Latin and Sign Language.

Revenaugh said students will be issued laptops but Connections is exploring the best tablet solution to access its curriculum. She said Central Michigan University officials are scheduled to vote on authorizing the charter next week.

A five-member school board will be named after that expected approval.

This is the third charter school to announce plans to open this fall. Pastor and gospel singer Marvin Sapp is opening a performing arts school, the Grand Rapids Ellington Academy of Arts and Technology (GREAAT), at 600 Burton St.SE. The school will initially serve 225 students in sixth, seventh and eighth-grades but expects to add a grade each year through 12th grade.

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Online giant Connections Education opening charter high school in American Seating Park complex in Grand Rapids

Miley Cyrus' personal trainer thinks people need to ''chill out'' about her figure.

The singer has been sporting a particularly slim and toned body recently and her Pilates instructor, Mari Winsor, says it is because she has been training hard with her for the last four months, rather than dieting.

She told People.com: ''I think people need to chill out. She's healthy and she feels good, that's the main thing. She's smart about her body. She wanted to sculpt her body, that's all.''

Mari added Miley's toned physique is the result of a gluten-free diet and daily Pilates classes.

She added: ''What we focus on with Miley is posture. That was my main concern when she first came to me. I wanted to get her shoulders down and get her to relax her upper body. If you notice, her posture is a lot better.

''She works hard. When this girl comes in, she is on fire. She's focused.''

Miley got engaged to actor Liam Hemsworth on May 31 and is already planning her nuptials, although it is thought they will not be wed until next year.

A source told HollywoodLife.com: ''Nothing has been definite yet. She's just pretty much brainstorming everything about her wedding. I know she wants to have a summer wedding, something on the water maybe.''

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Miley Cyrus - Miley Cyrus' Intense Pilates Sessions

People News

Jul 6, 2012, 19:01 GMT

Miley Cyrus

Miley Cyrus' personal trainer thinks people need to 'chill out' about her figure.

The singer has been sporting a particularly slim and toned body recently and her Pilates instructor, Mari Winsor, says it is because she has been training hard with her for the last four months, rather than dieting.

She told People.com: 'I think people need to chill out. She's healthy and she feels good, that's the main thing. She's smart about her body. She wanted to sculpt her body, that's all.'

Mari added Miley's toned physique is the result of a gluten-free diet and daily Pilates classes.

She added: 'What we focus on with Miley is posture. That was my main concern when she first came to me. I wanted to get her shoulders down and get her to relax her upper body. If you notice, her posture is a lot better.

'She works hard. When this girl comes in, she is on fire. She's focused.'

Miley got engaged to actor Liam Hemsworth on May 31 and is already planning her nuptials, although it is thought they will not be wed until next year.

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Miley Cyrus' intense Pilates sessions

MileyCyrusFeature3Miley has been heavily criticized for her recent dramatic weight loss! Now, her pilates instructor is defending Mileys thinner look and assures that the actress is healthy! Read on for more details!

Miley Cyrus health has been under debate after quickly shedding weight, but her pilates instructor, Mari Winsor, insists that Miley is completely healthy and there is no reason to be concerned!

I think people need to chill out, Mari said in an interview with People. Shes healthy and she feels good, thats the main thing. Shes smart about her body. She wanted to sculpt her body, thats all.

Mari sets the record straight, claiming that Mileys leaner frame is due to a strict gluten-free diet and daily one-hour Circuit pilates sessions not an eating disorder.

What we focus on with Miley is posture. That was my main concern when she first came to me, Mari explained. I wanted to get her shoulders down and get her to relax her upper body. If you notice, her posture is a lot better.

Mari credits Mileyshard work ethic and extreme focus for why shes shed pounds in such a short amount of time!

Whats Mileys favorite part of her new body?She loves her abs, of course! Mari reveals. Shes young and shes got a beautiful body.

And with an upcoming wedding, who wouldnt want to look their best?

HollywoodLifers, do YOU think Miley looks healthy?

Check Us Out On Pinterest!

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Miley Cyrus’ Pilates Instructor Defends Her Thin Frame

M. Spencer Green / AP

Chicago Housing Authority Asset Manager Sondrae Lewis, takes part in a well-being check on Bessie Rogers, 83, at her home in Apartamentos Las Americas on Friday.

By Miguel Llanos, msnbc.com

Chicago on Friday suffered through a third straight day above 100 degreesthe first such string since 1947but that didn't stop seniors from their regular aerobics class at the city's Levy Senior Center. If anything, the heat was an incentive given the air-conditioned refuge.

"They're very happy to get inside," said Joyce Gallagher, executive director for the city agency that oversees 21 senior centers.

But she was also clear that the centers aren't shelters to come in for a nap."It isn't a place where you come and sit to get some cool air," Gallagher emphasized. "It's a place where you come to participate and socialize and coincidentally it's air-conditioned."

It's normally in the mid-80s this time of year in Chicago, but this week has been special: 103 degrees on Friday, and the humidity made it feel like 108. Thursday also saw 103, which is just 2 degrees shy of Chicago's all-time record, set in 1934. Wednesday topped out at 102.

The 95-year-old woman's death on Tuesday might have been heat related, officials said, but an autopsy was inconclusive, NBCChicago.com reported. Heat stress was determined to be a contributing factor in the deaths this week of two men, one 53 and the other 48, both of whom were obese and died of heart disease.

Related:Tips for seniors to avoid heat stress

Tens of thousands of Chicagoans also lost power during the weekend storms that impacted millions across the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic.

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Triple-digit temperatures don't keep Chicago senior citizens from aerobics

Like many in Boulder, Erin Masket found a spiritual message in her regular yoga practice. Yet the inspiration she discovered didn't just connect back to the Buddha, but to the wisdom of the Torah.

Masket, a yoga instructor, hosts a summer Torah Yoga class in the hopes of drawing in Jewish people to the world of yoga while exploring how the Torah and yoga's Eastern principles intersect. The classes take place 5:30 p.m. Wednesdays at Prana, 1147 Pearl St.

"There are so many parallels between Torah teachings and yoga, so many connections," she said.

The event is part of Flatiron Tribe, a networking and socializing group through the Jewish Community Center meant for people ages 21-45.

Michael Rosenzweig, an organizer of the group, said Flatirons Tribe's main focus has generally been to connect young Jewish Boulderites through happy hour events. The group also has hosted an Ignite Chanukah party and a "Persian Shore"-themed Purim party.

"I just want people to be welcome whenever and wherever they feel comfortable. For a lot of people, that's at a bar with a beer," Rosenzweig said.

Yet after meeting Masket and hearing about her ideas for a yoga class, Rosenzweig said Flatiron Tribe saw the potential to expand their social programs outside the bar scene.

"For some, maybe they don't like to drink, maybe they already do yoga or want to start," he said.

With help from a grant from the Rose Community Foundation, Masket will lead the Torah Yoga sessions through July.

Masket began intertwining yoga and Torah studies after graduating college with an architecture degree. Wanting to take some time away from architecture, she got an instructor certification and began teaching classes.

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Megan Quinn: Torah yoga melds multi-faith and body-mind studies

By Reshma Kirpalani

Lydia Michelson-Maverick hangs upside down from a purple hammock, her compact body folding into a traditional yoga pose that has been spun on its head. Her black mass of hair grazes the yoga mat below as she teaches her Austin Aerial Yoga students how to invert the traditional ground yoga pose, Baddha Konasana, and hang loose from their own hammocks. Later, Michelson-Maverick will describe inverted postures as inner-child work in action. "It feels good. I'm decompressing my spine," she says. "It's like being a 5-year-old again, kind of like being on monkey bars."

On a blistering Thursday afternoon in Dane's Body Shop, I cling to my right-side-up view of the world; I'm not quite ready to shake hands with my inner child. Meanwhile, the six students to the left and right of me each get ready to take the plunge and hang from their respective hammocks, which are attached by hardware to the ceiling. Across from me, student Elizabeth Hamilton gazes at the student to my right, Angela Sparks, who I can only imagine looks as flushed as I do after 45 minutes of "monkey-barring" our way through the class. Hamilton leaves us with encouraging words before inverting her Baddha Konasana pose. "If I can do it, you can do it." Then, she flips over, suspending herself from her hammock. Within minutes, Sparks does the same. I decide to cut myself some slack with the inverted Baddha Konasana pose, considering that this is my first aerial yoga class.

Aerial yoga is a version of ground yoga that includes the use of fabric hammocks to help intensify and sometimes invert poses. Practitioners benefit from these postures by relieving tension in their muscles, elongating their spines and increasing their overall flexibility. Michelson-Maverick describes aerial yoga as "more intense" than other forms of yoga. She says, "It forces you even more to be present because you're in the air, doing movements you never experienced before, having fabric press on you in different ways. It really makes you feel and makes your mind aware of what's going on in your body."

Although Austin is a breeding ground for yoga studios, aerial yoga remains relatively new to this fit-minded city. Among the few studios that offer varying styles of aerial yoga is Fit to the Core from the AntiGravity Yoga global franchise, which started offering aerial yoga classes to Austinites in February 2011, but temporarily suspended them while it searches for a new studio space. Austin Aerial Yoga, co-owned by Michelson-Maverick and her husband, John Maverick, started offering classes in October after Michelson-Maverick became certified as a registered yoga teacher by the international Yoga Alliance and received a certification of completion from an aerial yoga teacher training program in Boulder, Colo., by Aircat Aerial Arts.

Michelson-Maverick describes herself as a "new teacher who is still in the process of figuring out what my style is as I continue to do more training, learn more, and grow more." The 30-year-old New York native, who is positively origamilike in her flexibility, rekindled her childhood passion for dance and fused it with the practice of yoga more than five years ago after watching an aerial dance segment in a Cirque du Soleil show in Austin. The stunning performance by acrobatic dancers "just spoke to me," she says. Countless Google searches and aerial dance classes later, a nylon hammock was suspended from the ceiling of Michelson-Maverick's home, where she started her own gentle, aerial yoga practice.

She admits that in the beginning, she was scared. "Over time, I think you learn to breathe there and realize it's not scary and relax into it," Michelson-Maverick says.

Her students agree. After her fourth class, Sparks admits that the first class might feel "weird." "You have to give it more than one try," she says. "The second time, you learn how the fabric works and you can really get into it."

Hamilton, who has been taking Austin Aerial Yoga classes for four months, says, "I feel 10-times stronger now and far more flexible." The evidence lives in the ease of her inversions, at one point, hanging upside down and wrapping the hammock around her, turning into a human cocoon.

In the class I took, fans were blowing loudly in Dane's Body Shop in the un-air-conditioned space. The structure of the class seemed loose, with pauses for instructions about how to use the fabric rather than seamless transitions between poses. Positions were held for a long time while Michelson-Maverick checked on each of her seven students. Michelson-Maverick says small aerial yoga classes are essential to giving individual attention to students and prioritizing safety. "I really want to make sure that each student is feeling the stretches in the right place and is using correct alignment because each body is so different," she says.

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Aerial yoga embraces inner child while hanging upside down

By Melinda Fulmer, Special to the Los Angeles Times

July 7, 2012

Yoga is a great way for athletes of any stripe to build lean muscle and improve their balance. No knowledge of Sanskrit is necessary.

Crescent reps, demonstrated by Tamal Dodge, co-founder of Santa Monica's Yoga Collective and the yogi behind Element's "Hatha & Flow Yoga for Beginners" DVD, are a great way to tone the legs and get the body warmed up for other exercise.

What it does

The movement in this pose gets your heart rate up at the same time you're working your glutes and hamstrings. It also challenges the center of balance, which indirectly works the abdominal muscles.

How to do it

Start in a standing forward bend, with your hands touching the mat in front of you (or as close to the floor as you can get). Step your right leg back 3 to 4 feet so you're in a runner's lunge with your left knee bent and right leg extended on the ball of your right foot. (The taller you are, the wider your stance should be.) Slowly bring your hands to your sides, so your body forms a straight line from your right foot to your head. Inhale and raise your hands and your upper body until they form a straight line to the ceiling. Exhale and slowly lower the arms and upper body until you are back at your starting position. Once you're finished with 10 repetitions, step your right foot back in standing forward bend and switch to the other side.

How much

Start with 10 repetitions on each leg. Work up to two sets of 10.

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Try This! Yoga's crescent tones legs, builds balance