Ared Den, suggested an interesting analogy for the new Web in his (her) cleverly titled blog, “Clever Title Goes Here.” In Web 2.0 and The Curies, Den writes:
I was sitting on one of my new rocking chairs this afternoon reading a biography of Marie Curie in search of an excerpt to share with my students tomorrow when I was reminded of David Warlick and Web 2.0. Here is what I read,
Marie and Pierre could have become rich by claiming all rights to working with radium. But instead they shared their information, telling how they purified the element, and more. They believed scientific research should benefit everyone. Marie and Pierre may also never have dreamed how valuable radium would become.
Does anyone else see any connections?
I comment on the blog with something like this:
What Marie and Pierre did, in sharing what they were learning with others, certainly exemplifies elements of Web 2.0. In a Web 2 environment, worked by people who have adopted a read/write information attitude, this is how people learn and work — in conversation. They share, build, and grow knowledge and value.
Additionally, what the Curies and other collaborators learned and shared could be mixed and remixed in a variety of ways by virtue of the fact that the information stays out there, in the network, able to be attracted together in many ways, based on many combinations of idea tags. The network of ideas can be reshaped into new conclusions and new knowledge, arranged by talented information artisans.
The important question is, “How do we help students to become information artisans, within an education governance that seems interested only in making students information sponges, who merely recite what they’ve learned, when squeezed?”
Thanks for the “conversation” 😉