Seattle-based Amazon said today that it has created a set of programs specifically for the academic community to use Amazon Web Services in teaching and research. AWS--which includes Amazon EC2, Amazon S3, and the firm's other cloud computing services--will be available for free to educators, academic researchers and students through a new AWS in Education program. Among features of the program, are grants to educators to include using AWS in courses at accredited universities; grants specifically to use the firm's infrastructure for "important" research; and online tutorials and other resources to help students learn about Amazon's cloud computing products.