MANILA, Philippines — The power of the Internet, of social media in particular, to educate and its ability to dumb down people were quite evident last week.

The blogging world, along with a considerable portion of the IT media, was buzzing with videos posted on YouTube showing a purported Dutch mechanical engineer, a certain Jarno Smeets, taking off and flying by flapping a pair of wings he said he invented.

Seemingly doing what Leonardo da Vinci would have done had he had access to an Android phone and Nintendo Wii controllers, Smeets claimed to have developed the wings over a period of eight months, taking inspiration from the albatross.

Fulfilling every other fellow’s fantasy of flying (in a way that doesn’t involve getting onboard a claustrophobia-inducing airplane), Smeets’ “achievement” promptly created as much controversy as the buzz it generated.

Experts with the required credentials, as well as those from the deluded kind, have been having a field day for the past week or so, arguing for or against the videos and Smeets’ so-called feat. Airline pilots, hang gliders, parachutists, even a host of a reality TV show have contributed their two cents to the issue.

When I wrote this piece, the doubters were clearly outnumbering, thought not out-arguing, those who said they believe the videos are showing the real thing. The most vicious of the naysayers, however, included tech blogs wired.com, which showed some serious discrepancies on Smeets’ LinkedIn profile.

Galaxy S III in April?

South Korean online news site MK says that Samsung is pushing for an April launch of its next-generation smartphone, the Galaxy S III.

Although previous leaks indicated plans for the smartphone’s announcement in May, there are signs pointing to an earlier launch.

Reports say that HTC’s plan to launch its One-series smartphones in April has put a lot of pressure on the Korean electronics giant to commit to an earlier launch.

China’s Got More iOS and Androids

In February, there were more new activations of iOS and Android smartphones and tablets than in the United States, according to data from Flurry Inc., a developer of software for monitoring or tracking usage of mobile applications.

Flurry said 23 percent of activations of took place in China, while 22 percent happened in the U.S.

This is not surprising, to say the least. After all, China has more than 1 billion people, and combined with its fast-growing middle class, it was only a matter of time before the country formerly known as the Sleeping Giant becomes the leader in various categories and segments.

After all, it will soon be the world’s largest economy and, perhaps, strongest military power.

That’s all for the meantime, folks. Join me again next time as we keep on watching IT.