A ranking of the nation's "most wired" colleges places UConn third among public universities - and the University is 17th overall in rankings published in the May issue of Yahoo! Internet Life magazine.

The rankings cover a number of criteria, from the number of student-owned computers and the number of computer ports available, to the range of course materials offered on line and the availability of e-mail and other online student services.

The rankings are no surprise to Tom Terry, associate professor of molecular and cell biology and a serious user of Web technology in his courses. In March, Terry was part of a UConn group that made a presentation in Washington, D.C., at a conference of the American Association of Higher Education (AAHE) about UConn's integration of technology and education.

"There were about 100 people who attended the UConn presentation, and based on the feedback we received, it's clear that we are one of the top colleges - at least in some areas," Terry said.

"The director of the faculty center at Harvard came up to me at the conference and said what we are doing is better than what they have at Harvard.

"We have managed to work as a team, between the Virtual Classroom, the courses reserve in the library, the computer center, the Faculty Resource Center and, of course, the faculty. There is a strong feeling of cooperation at UConn," he said.

Number one in the Yahoo! rankings - also no surprise to anyone - is the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Of the top 25 most wired colleges, only five are public colleges and universities.

Other publics in the top 25 with UConn are: Indiana University-Bloomington (8); University of Arizona (14); Iowa State (19); and the University of Texas-Austin (21).

The Yahoo! Internet Life Top 10 public state universities: 1. Indiana University; 2. University of Arizona; 3. University of Connecticut; 4. Iowa State University; 5. University of Texas; 6. University of California-Davis; 7. Rutgers University; 8. University of Wisconsin; 9. Michigan State University; 10. University of Michigan.