27 DEC 2013 by ideonexus
Anecdote of Badges Encouraging Tutoring
When it comes to biology, Catherine Lacey is a Level 40 Hero. That's her ranking on OpenStudy, where the University of Western Australia student spends up to 30 hours per week answering homework questions posed by students around the world. The level indicates time spent on the site, and Hero is the hardest-to-attain badge. If you think of helping with homework as a game, she's got the high score.
The 20-year-old first stumbled upon the OpenStudy site while surfing the Web. She was hooked af...
1 A student is motivated to tutor on a website that awards badges. Two takeaways from this: (1) award badges for mentoring and (2) award badges for content creation. Also, award points that can be spent in moderating like slashdot.
02 JUN 2011 by ideonexus
Reasoned Debate Online
I find that the biggest barrier to a reasoned debate is time rather than space, restrictive though it may be. Everything goes so fast that there is pressure to react sooner rather than later without allowing time for reflection. People then fall back on popular "truths" that can quickly be thrown out there. You can see this on Slashdot too where people pounce on articles to post the established group-think for a quick ' 5' (as well as the ubiquitous "frist psots".) Those who come relatively l...Is hampered by the need to get opinions out quickly before the discussion goes cold, reducing the propensity for reflection and thoughtful discourse.
03 JAN 2011 by ideonexus
Lurkers Are Not Part of the Community
Clearly, some things do not foster community. You do not need a real identity, but you need some identity. You need to have a voice, a reputation, a presence to be part of a community, because it is (at least) a two-way propositions. Thus "lurkers," people who only read or listen, are not really part of a community. They may fancy themselves to be, but no one would miss them if they left. They are fans, not friends. Lurkers may latch on to a culture, but they do not contribute to it. (That's ...
1 Lurkers are fans, they are not participants; however, they could become participants if the system encourages it, like how Slashdot does with their comment rating system.
02 JAN 2011 by ideonexus
The Importance of Web Topology
Web topology contains more complexity than simple linear chains. In this section, we will discuss attempts to measure the global structure of the Web, and how individual webpages fit into that context. Are there interesting representations that define or suggest important properties? For example, might it be possible to map knowledge on theWeb? Such a map might allow the possibility of understanding online communities, or to engage in 'plume tracing' - following a meme, or idea, or rumour, or... 1 
notes
notesMapping the web allows us to find patterns in it, with potential applications.
