Innovative Minds, Internet, Information, & Bored

Innovative Minds Don't Think Alike - New York Times
Look for people with renaissance-thinker tendencies, who've done work in a related area but not in your specific field. Make it possible for someone who doesn't report directly to that area to come in and say the emperor has no clothes.

The Disappearance of IT By Nicholas G. Carr - CIO Insight
The network -- the Internet, that is -- has become, literally, our computer. The different components that used to be isolated in the closed box of the PC -- the hard drive for storing information, the microchip for processing information, the applications for manipulating information -- can now be dispersed throughout the world, integrated through the Internet and shared by everyone. The World Wide Web has truly turned into the World Wide Computer.

Info Overload Costs Economy - Wired
After years of naming a product or person of the year, Basex Inc. decided to name "information overload" as problem of the year for 2007.

Bored? - Scientific American
Most people blame boredom on the circumstances, but psychologists say this emotion is highly subjective and rooted in aspects of consciousness -- and that levels of boredom vary among people.

Mirror Neurons, Brain, Performance, Schools, eLearning, & Gladwell

Mirror Neurons -- Rock Stars or Backup Singers? - Scientific American
The reversal of the mirror effect was found: watching index-finger movement resulted in more electrical activity in the pinky, and watching pinky movement produced more activity in the index finger. The brain learned new sensory-motor associations, and it is these associations that underlie the mirror neuron-like effect.

Top 10 ways to un-bake your brain - jonathanfields - awake @ the wheel
Stress is GOOD. . . when there's a reason for it. But, when that stress becomes chronic, the exact opposite happens.

My Unfashionable Legacy - strategy+business
You have to build the authority to insist on accountability and performance -- including in sisting on getting it from your superiors -- but you also have to give up authority to anyone who is capable of wielding it effectively. And you have to accomplish all this in corporations that set up incentives (such as stock options) that punish long-term investment and favor short-term measures: cutting head counts, selling off underperforming businesses, and cashing in on quick gains.

6 Things That Are Right with Schools - Parent Resources

1. inspiring teachers
2. inspired students
3. a commitment to educate everyone
4. fine facilities and equipment
5. caring, sensitive administrators
6. plenty of choices

Corporate eLearning's Dirty little Secret - WE DON'T USE eLEARNING! At least not very much - corporate elearning strategies and development
Actually the part that seems crazy to me is that training departments are creating internal training to train themselves on the tools of their trade.

A child's view of the $100 laptop
What will a child in the UK make of a laptop designed to help children in the developing world? Rory Cellan-Jones brought an XO home to find out.

The Contrast Triangle (Rare Optical Phenomenon)
A psychological effect. The dark "triangle" between the moon and the surface of the ocean. Place your hand over the bright, reflected moonlight in the ocean, and the dark area disappears!!

NONE OF THE ABOVE: What I.Q. doesn't tell you about race - The New Yorker
Malcolm Gladwell discusses the Flynn effect

Learning Financials
Learning Tree Swings to 4Q Profit

Plato Learning 4Q loss wider than expected, revenue falls short

Performance, Crowdsourcing, Learning, Design, & iPods

I'm Not Really Running, I'm Not Really Running... - New York Times
All maximum performances are actually pseudo-maximum performances. You are always capable of doing more than you are doing.

Should your company 'crowdsource' its next project? - Computerworld
Whether it's to increase loyalty among customers speed up development time or cast outward for innovative ideas, companies are trying on many styles of 'crowdsourcing'

Humans Appear Hardwired To Learn By 'Over-Imitation' - Science Daily
Children's ability to imitate can actually lead to confusion when they see an adult doing something in a disorganized or inefficient way. Watching an adult doing something wrong can make it much harder for kids to do it right.

Is good design just a formula? - Ravi Vora
The function of design is to make the product more usable and improve the usability of the product's function. Yet, as we all know, great design is innovative and different. The simpler and better the design can be, the more enjoyable and easier it makes our lives.

What Did the Professor Say? Check Your iPod - New York Times Students already have an iPod and they already use them all the time. You don't need to train them. They are very expert at clicking back and forward to the exact spot they want. They don't listen from start to finish.

eLearning, Hybrid Learning, Web Design, Leadership, & Blogs

US eLearning Market Reaches $13.6 Billion in 2007 - PR Web
The current industry is growing at 22% with new buyers demanding new types of products. Free Executive Overview.

HYBRID LEARNING MODEL - CETL
The Hybrid Learning Model describe learning activities as a series of understandable and universal set of learning events where the teachers and students experience and roles are clearly defined at each stage.

Understanding Web Design - JEFFREY ZELDMAN
Web design is the creation of digital environments that facilitate and encourage human activity; reflect or adapt to individual voices and content; and change gracefully over time while always retaining their identity.

The New Psychology of Leadership - Scientific American
Strong leadership arises out of a symbiotic relationship between leaders and followers within a given social group—and hence requires an intimate understanding of group psychology. When a shared social identity exists, individuals who can best represent that identity will have the most influence over the group's members and be the most effective leaders.

PDI Pulse on Leaders Study Shows 27 Percent of Boss-Rated High Potentials Also Have a High Risk of Derailment - CLO
High-performing individuals are used to success but often don't take the time to consider how it is achieved or how their actions impact others.

Republic.com 2.0 - Larry Prusak
The Daily Me: the great number of blogs, etc. on the web and the fact that most of us only read a tiny bit of this and then just what we know will confirm us in our beliefs. This can lead to "excessive confidence, extremism, contempt for others, and sometimes even violence."