Knowledge and Learning In The News - 12/29/2005

Was Drucker Wrong? - Tom Davenport I also had a chat a few days ago with a Wall Street Journal reporter who is researching an article on knowledge worker productivity. He asked me if the subject is important. I said yes, and mouthed the old Peter Drucker chestnut that "making knowledge work productive is the greatest economic challenge of this century." He asked, "Well, was Drucker wrong?" The Internet Is Broken - Technology Review The Net's basic flaws cost firms billions, impede innovation, and threaten national security. It's time for a clean-slate approach. Coming U.S. Workforce Unprepared for Knowledge Economy, Author Warns - Heartland Institute Edward E. Gordon, president of Imperial Consulting Corporation in Chicago and Palm Desert, California, has serious misgivings about the future of America in the world economy, which he documents while offering a possible solution in his new book, The 2010 Meltdown: Solving the Impending Jobs Crisis. Welcome to Web 2.0 2005 (podcast) - IT Conversations In the year since the first Web 2.0 Conference the term "Web 2.0" has definitely become part of the mainstream technological vocabulary. Indeed, it seems that any new Internet offering feels that using the term is an essential part of its product description. Further evidence is given by the ever-increasing number of hits returned by a search on Google for "Web 2.0". Knowledge Management – Creating A Sustainable Yellow Pages System How can I "know who knows"? None of us can personally know more than around 250 people, yet we want our companies to be smart, learning organisations where it's easy to find the right person to talk to. Wikis: Enabling Effective Knowledge Sharing Across the Organization - Intelligent Enterprise "Wiki" is currently one of the most popular new buzz terms in business discussions. Unfortunately it is also one of the most incomprehensible for many people. But what are wikis, are they important, what benefits do they provide and are they being used successfully within large corporations?

Knowledge and Learning In The News - 12/26/2005

Horizontal Knowledge - Tech Central Station Just try this thought experiment: Imagine that it's 1993. The Web is just appearing. And imagine that you - an unusually prescient type - were to explain to people what they could expect in the summer of 2003. Universal access to practically all information. From all over the place - even in bars. And all for free! Tag: Horizontal Knowledge Thinking Outside the Grid - Molly E. Holzschlag Grid-based design can be extraordinarily useful in creating sites that are predictable, easily navigated, and visually appealing. Grids are really good at helping designers to plan where things go, and easy for site visitors to use. On the other hand, compelling visual work can result from breaking out of the rigid system that the Web's design and development environment has, to date, retained. Tags: Grid Web Design Why being busy has become a status symbol - Management Issues A century ago, the idea of paid work was anathema to the leisured Victorian gentleman, whose social status was demonstrated by how much time he could spend on unpaid leisure pursuits. What a contrast with today, when working long hours has become a status symbol for busy professionals and social position seems to be determined by how much we do, not how little. Training is NOT Snakeoil - Learning Circuits Laurie Bassi's research shows that organizations that make large investments in training do much better than others. Tag: Training

Knowledge and Learning In The News - 12/24/2005

An Introduction to Connective Knowledge - Stephen Downes You probably grew up learning that there are two major types of knowledge: qualitative and quantitative. Tag: Connective Knowledge Market, market, on the wall - Economist If prediction markets are so good at making forecasts, why not use them to identify emerging technologies? Tag: Prediction Students can get lectures by podcast - Inside Bay Area Starting this school year, some California college students have been able to carry around course lectures and materials stored in their portable MP3 players. It is a move that is raising concerns about possible empty lecture halls and an impersonal education that is not worth the high price. But busy students find the technology appealing. Tag: Lecture Task-Switching, Emotional Motivation, and Reward - Eide Neurolearning Blog Task-switching is a common cognitive task associated with attention and cognitive control. In this very interesting study, researchers examined what brain areas were associated with good task switching ability. Surprisingly, the most highly correlated area for efficient task switching was the ventromedial prefrontal cortex, a region implicated in emotional and social motivation and reward. Tag: Task Switching Elliot Masie's Learning 2005 - Epic show report At one point Elliot Masie sped into the hotel bar on his Segway and made straight for our table. He looked down on us, we looked up at him, he asked for one of our nachos, ate it, then seeing that we weren’t playing disciple, rotated 180 degrees and sped off. Weird or what?

Knowledge and Learning In The News - 12/18/2005

Learning Objects as Activities - Harold's Blog An example of the power of the Internet, blogs and asynchronous communication in the development of ideas. Wikipedia, Vol. 2: Encyclopedia Smackdown - Fast Company Much like a Wikipedia entry, our discussion of the online encyclopedia is nothing if not dynamic. In fact, it's already time for an update. As FC Now reader Shel Holtz points out, the science journal Nature posted an article yesterday about a study comparing Wikipedia to Encyclopedia Britannica. And the winner is...(drum roll, please)...neither. Tag: Wiki World is Flat - Streaming Video - Harold's Blog I just listened to Thomas Friedman's presentation at MIT which is available online as a streaming video. It's over an hour long and covers the first three chapters of his book, The World is Flat. The World is Flat Self-Organized Learning and Slashdot - HeadsPace Slashdot content is complex and ill-structured (just like life), which requires participants to engage in higher-order thinking and in case–based, problem–based learning that is so essential for transfer of learning to new contexts. PLATO Learning, Inc. Reports Fourth Quarter and Fiscal Year 2005 Results - New Release PLATO Learning, Inc. (NASDAQ:TUTR), a leading provider of K-adult computer-based and e-learning solutions, today announced revenues for its fourth quarter ended October 31, 2005, totaling $33.7 million. This is an $8.7 million or a 21% decrease from the $42.4 million reported for the comparable period of fiscal 2004.

Knowledge and Learning In The News - 12/14/2005

December 14, 2005

Air Force Center Improves Access to Knowledge - Transformation "In today's age of exponentially expanding technology advancements, distributed databases, and the World Wide Web, many think we've got a pretty good handle on our information resources," said U.S. Air Force Capt. Dave Sasser. Tag: Knowledge Management Learning styles and pedagogy in post-16 learning : A systematic and critical review - Learning & Skills Development Area This report critically reviews the literature on learning styles and examines in detail 13 of the most influential models. The report concludes that it matters fundamentally which instrument is chosen. The implications for teaching and learning in post-16 learning are serious and should be of concern to learners, teachers and trainers, managers, researchers and inspectors. Tag: Learning Styles Intentional Learning Orientation Research - Margaret Martinez Basically, there are 4 types of learning orientations (based on conative and affective student perspectives). They range from "transformers" (highly intentional learners), to performers, conformers and finally, resistors. Tag: Learning Orientation What Was the Most Important Lesson You Learned in 2005? - Dave Pollard Number 25 - There is no defence against disruptive innovation. Will Fair Use Survive? Free Expression in the Age of Copyright Control - The Free Expression Policy Project Paints a striking picture of an intellectual property system that is perilously out of balance. Tag: Copyright Control

Knowledge and Learning In The News - 12/5/2005

Porter thinks his way to the top - Times The death of Peter Drucker means that there is a new king of management thinking. Incudes the top 50 business brains. Tag: Michael E. Porter RMBL - what does it mean for KM? - Denham Grey This is an exploration of the RMBL (rip, mix, burn, learn) culture. Not copyright denouncement or P2P music stealing, but the potential to build on the ideas and works of others, the synergy that happens with sharing, the innovation that emerges from making novel connections & rework. Tag: RMBL Discovery disproves simple concept of memory as 'storage space' - EurekAlert Even if you could get more RAM for your brain, the extra storage probably wouldn't make it easier for you to find where you left your car keys. Tag: Memory Growing pains for Wikipedia - c/net For Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, last week was a tough one. And he's going to change the ground rules for the popular anyone-can-contribute encyclopedia because of it. Tag: Wikipedia Thinking About Google and The Turning Point - John Battelle Google is coming close to a "worm turning" moment - a moment when the world realizes that the company is too powerful and its ambitions are too great. Tag: Google