Google Translate!

I've been playing with Google translate--instantly translating DIP's Dispatches from the Imagination Age into 51 languages!

In Arabic

Traditional Chinese

My bio in Belarusian

And Hindi

The Musical: Carl Sagan & Stephen Hawking in "A Glorious Dawn"

A wonderful example of the Imagination Age ... A Remix of old episodes of Carl Sagan's "Cosmos" and Stephen Hawking's "Universe" into a synthetic and endearing musical treatise.

[Discovered on The Big Picture.]

Brazil's "LAN House Revolution"

Dozens of bikes propped up outside a Brazilian LAN house in Minas Gerais. Image credit Bruno Fernandes

Global Voices' Paula Góes has a fascinating report about the growth of LAN houses in Brazil's poor communities (a LAN, or a Local Area Network, is a small cluster of computers networked to share an Internet connection). Previously the domain of the wealthy, the increase of LAN houses in the favelas has shot up drastically.

There are over 90 thousand lan houses nowadays in Brazil, which account for 50% of the Internet access in the country. Research published in 2008 by the Brazilian Internet Steering Committee (CGI.br) shows that in Brazil 48% of all users access the Internet from commercial premises like lan houses. When it comes to people from the poorest classes D and E, this number jumps to 79% - a 60% increase from the 48.08% in 2006.

This is also a new wave of "digital inclusion" (a counterpoint to the digital divide). Ronaldo Lemos has a report LAN Houses: A new wave of digital inclusion in Brazil.

Instead of creating isolated teens, these new centers have become social hubs for teens to interact in the physical world. Kids gather to play games together, which researchers are acknowledging is good for social skills. Still other Brazilian researchers hope that LAN Houses will turn Brazil into a "country of readers."

We've reported on the transformative and innovative approaches to the social and educational power of games in the United States in our writings about 3D Squared. See "Digital Workforce Initiative Transforms Gulf Coast Job Prospects," by Rita J. King.

[Global Voices: Brazil: Socio-digital Inclusion through the Lan House Revolution.]

Twitter Diplomacy: One-Way Broadcast or Dialogue?

US Ambassador to Kenya is broadcasting tweets, but is he listening back?

About two weeks ago the new U.S. Ambassador to Kenya Michael E. Ranneberger, a career foreign service officer with deep experience on the African continent, started a Twitter feed. The seven tweets so far have been lauded as another example of "Twitter Diplomacy." As Shashank Bengali who blogs for McClatchey put it, the Ambassador has "come out swinging" with highly charged comments about Kenyan presidential appointees and support of opposition votes.

It's excellent that the Ambassador is using this new tool for outreach. But is he using it in context? In conversations over the past few months with US Foreign Service officers, for forthcoming articles I am writing about the role of social media in foreign policy and public diplomacy, a theme has appeared: In the rush to use social media and appear technologically au courant, diplomats have expressed frustration that they are simply being told to use the technology without any context.

In the case of Ambassador Ranneberger, his follower list is approaching 200, but he is following no one. I find that Twitter's potential is maximized when it is treated as a conversation. Indeed, diplomacy and especially public diplomacy, is often most successful when the audience feels like they are being listened to. In 1992 when I was at the Voice of America, the mantra in the halls was "from monologue to dialogue," which was an effort to demonstrate that VOA was not just about broadcasting a message, but engaging listeners in a conversation.

In Twitter the best way to demonstrate "dialogue" is by following the people with whom you are trying to create discourse. Sure the Ambassador (or his staff if he is indeed writing the tweets) can follow replies in the Twitter stream. But savvy audiences know better. If you're not following someone it means their information is not a central or important piece of information to you. For people in the diplomatic corps who are ostensibly specialists in cultural nuance, the message one sends by not following someone can be as significant, and culturally insensitive, as showing the soles of your shoe to a diplomat in the Middle East.

The challenge with digital diplomacy is not just incorporating digital tools into your repertoire, but knowing how and when to use them.

Art, Reality and Cultural Diplomacy

Rita J. King at the Museu Picasso in Barcelona.

Barcelona, Spain. September 20, 2009

“In art, intentions are of little importance.” Pablo Picasso

The Aspen Institute held a forum in the ancient city of Avilés, Spain last week to discuss Culture & Security from a cultural diplomacy perspective. My collaborator Joshua S. Fouts and I spoke about our project, “Understanding Islam through Virtual Worlds,” which took place across four continents in the physical world and in the virtual world of Second Life.

Second Life allows participants from all over the world an unprecedented opportunity to collaboratively imagine and build environments and identities in which cultural exchanges take place, free from the fetters of fear (whether generated by timidity, the possibility of violence, language barriers or simple lack of contact or motivation to initiate such discussions) that too often accompany sensitive cultural conversations in the physical world.

The same way a building can be designed and constructed virtually before the cornerstone is laid on actual grass, so can a new technique for cultural exchange be developed that promotes transparency and accountability and at the same time removes physical vulnerability. Nevertheless, this concept is disturbing to many people, largely because the media hasn’t done Second Life any favors by consistently misrepresenting the importance of the platform and also because the entire concept is so new that people simply can’t imagine the value of such interactions, much less the fact that avatars are representations of real people in the physical world and not cartoons capable of destroying the fabric of society. That narrative is beginning to change now.

Many people at the forum were utterly fascinated, hearing about Second Life for the first time, and several have already booked us to discuss plans for proceeding with extremely exciting projects. A couple of people referenced our work (despite the fact that it took place primarily in the physical world and we’d flown thousands of miles to discuss it in person) as an example of digital interactions undermining the richness of personal contact in the physical world, as if every personal interaction is saturated with meaning that results in cultural illumination and progress.

While it isn’t easy for newbies to jump in-world and instantly discover the best of what the local culture has to offer, it's worth the search. Second Life is filled with collaborative and individual creativity of such a sophisticated and remarkable nature that cultural advances are taking place on a daily basis. Never in the history of humanity have individuals from around the world been able to gather in real time to explore sensitive issues that require sustained philosophical focus without leaving their own physical communities. Never before have people been able to escape the circumstances of birth to form ties based on the essence of self above the telltale signs of class and privilege hierarchy.

As far as the practice of cultural diplomacy goes, we finally have a platform that equalizes all participants by making creativity and innovation the highest aim, and that’s a good thing. That isn’t to say that some people don’t use Second Life for less than progressive purposes, but so do people in the physical world and that doesn’t stop diplomats from practicing. Race, age, gender, ethnicity and extreme physical beauty or disability all cease to matter. Second Life is whatever users make of it.

Major institutions globally have turned the platform into a thriving, environmentally conscious business hub. Visionary educators have created three-dimensional, immersive learning environments. In the third grade, we made dioramas out of shoeboxes to depict the Gobi Desert from brown paper. It was great fun and there is no reason why anyone has to stop doing it just because now, thousands of learning institutions have created information rich mixed-media environments embedded with experiential knowledge for learners of all ages. Thanks to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s work in Second Life, for example, I’ve swum through the ocean from the poles to the equator to see the life it contains and the hazards of global climate change.

One of the major obstacles to right thinking regarding mixed-media, mixed reality environments is the notion that somehow participation in a virtual world isn’t “real.” Today, at the Museu Picasso in Barcelona, I had an epiphany about how to explain why the debate is misguided. Because the Culture & Security forum focused largely on art, including a number of conversations about how digital art (which is no lesser than any other art form), it is appropriate to use this example to explore the meaning of reality in any form of creative expression.

Between August and December 1957, Pablo Picasso created 58 interpretive works based on Velasquez’s painting Las Meninas. At the Museu Picasso, an ingeniously curated exhibit of two monitors on either side of a pane of reflective glass depicts Picasso’s work projected onto various segments of Las Meninas. I watched through projects of all 58 works, or however many were depicted, before stepping into the gallery where the pieces were hung.

Despite the fact that the projections are glorious, they are nowhere near as spectacular as the original pieces, with their brushstrokes that outlasted the hand of the artist. Much like the virtual hajj to Mecca in Second Life, which can’t possibly ever replace the physical experience of millions of hot, hungry physical bodies moving through a space all experiencing the manifestation of their sacred beliefs, the projections of the Velasquez and Picasso works aren’t meant to replace the originals, but simply to yield new perspective.

Beyond that, though, even the original canvases by Picasso aren’t “real.” After all, Picasso was merely interpreting a work by Velasquez. Come to think of it, even Las Meninas isn’t “real,” except in the broadest definition of the term (having a verifiable existence) which also applies to works in Second Life. The argument that no facsimile can ever be as rich as the original undermines the sheer force of creative power that fuels human progress in the form of artistic expression.

Nobody alive today can turn back the clock to be in that room with Velasquez. Our only glimpse comes from the weight of his work, much like the only glimpse I’ve ever had of ancient Mesopotamia (present day Iraq) where writing was invented comes from the work of the Federation of American Scientists who embarked on a collaborative global project in Second Life to rebuild the city based on real archeological data, right down to charred hearths, temples, markets and agricultural zones. Only through documentation can we experience a moment lost to the riptide of history. Arguably, the very act of people posing for the portrait, frozen in place for hours if not weeks on end wearing costumes to begin with is not real. So what? I’m glad they did it anyway, and that instead of debating the merit of interpreting that singular effort, Velasquez and Picasso picked up their brushes and got to work.

Art is an interpretation of the rhythm of human life on a fleetingly colonized planet in a vast, mysterious cosmos of infinite mystery. The relationship between art and the development of culture is such a mysterious one that language is often painfully insufficient in the attempt to describe it. Human bondage does not require physical bars for captivity. Art is the means by which symbolic bars are bent to create opportunities for people to pass through. The central question of cultural diplomacy in many ways is: If humanity is to earnestly attempt to outpace our current path of collective destruction with acts of trailblazing creativity, how can this sacred act, which undermines the underlying conditions that lead to violence, best be accomplished?

“Others talk,” Picasso once said. “I work.”

Rita J. King's Gov 2.0 Speech on Digital Diplomacy

O'Reilly Media has uploaded the video of Rita J. King's recent award-winning presentation at the O'Reilly Gov2.0 Summit and Expo. The video only shows the powerpoint images. For an idea of how the speech was delivered from the audience's perspective, see image below.



UPDATE: Here's a video of the awards ceremony as well.

KZero Projects Massive Growth in Virtual World Revenue

Kzero has released some dramatic projections about the the expected worldwide revenue growth of virtual worlds. In a time of economic turbulence and continued jobs losses, this comes as fascinating news.

From 2009 to 2011 we predict a yearly increase of $1bn, driven more by marketing dollars as more brands spend money with VW operators, plus a growing uplift in microtransactions (spent on virtual goods - which we’ll split out in a future post).

Easier payment mechanics such as premium SMS and pre-paid cards (as opposed to credit cards) will lower the barrier for conversion for virtual worlds. This plus an increase in perceived value of virtual worlds (from parents) will assist in the revenue growth.

We forecast 2012 revenues to reach $6bn and 2013 to hit $9bn.

[Growth forecasts for the Virtual Worlds sector]

New Religions Watch: First Church of Rosedale

Since we've spent most of the past two years exploring how physical world religions are manifesting in virtual spaces, I was keenly interested to read this reference in Wagner Au's New World Notes about an event this Sunday around a religion borne of a virtual world:

[A]t 2PM there will be a St. Torley Day service at The First Church of Rosedale (Immersionist), which is devoted to the worship of Philip Linden, founder of Linden Lab. Services are held on occasional Sundays and those of all colors, sizes, furs, and historical eras are welcome. (The Church is located on Zindra, so you'll need to be adult-verified or have payment information on file to attend.) In Rhianna. [SLurl teleport at this link]

I Twittered to Wagner that I thought he buried the lede on this one. The real story was: An actual religion built around Philip Rosedale the founder of Second Life. Wagner replied in Twitter that shrines had been built to Philip since 2003 but he wasn't sure when Philip got a full-fledged theology.

The actual lede of the story is that the religion has its first saint -- prolific Second Life community guru Torley Linden, who churns out very helpful instructional videos at an astonishing paces. (Torley seems eminently worthy of sainthood for his tireless efforts to help the Second Life community better understand how to use the software.)

Since we'll be unable to attend the festivities on Sunday, and because our curiosity was piqued beyond resistance, we paid a visit to the First Church of Rosedale. Images follow.

At the entrance to the Church of Rosedale
Inside the sanctuary.


Eureka Dejavu (DIP's Rita J. King) and I sit for a moment next to the new stained glass window for Saint Torley.

UPDATE: Reader Dale Innis refers us to Samantha Poindexter, the founder of the Church of Rosedale. Apparently it was founded in 2007. From the site:

The First Church of Rosedale (Immersionist) is devoted to the worship of Philip Linden, known in First Life as Philip Rosedale, founder of Linden Lab. It is believed to be the first church devoted to a Second-Life-centric religion. It was founded in Caledon Penzance in late 2007, and held its first services January 6, 2008. It moved to Phasma in early 2009 before getting transported to Rhianna in the Rapture. Services are held on occasional Sundays, and those of all colors, sizes, furs, and historical eras are welcome.

Congratulations to Rita J. King, Gov 2.0 Award Winner

Congratulations to Rita J. King for receiving the first "Government as Peacekeeper" Gov 2.0 Award for her presentation, "Digital Diplomacy: Understanding Islam through Virtual Worlds."


Gov 2.0 Award Winner Rita J. King with Tim O'Reilly, Gov 2.0 summit co-chair. We'll post a link to the video when it's available.

[UPDATE: O'Reilly Media has posted the video of the speech.]

[Gov 2.0 Award Winners Announced.]

I'm Too Busy to Date Your Avatar

Congratulations to Pooky Amsterdam for creating what is sure to be the Next Meme of September. Pooky is host of The 1st Question, on which Rita J. King (Second Life's Eureka Dejavu) was a contestant. Pooky's latest video, "I'm Too Busy to Date Your Avatar" is an uproariously hilarious take on Felicia Day's "Do You Wanna Date my Avatar."

Archive of Manpower's Evolution of the Virtual Workforce

Treet.TV has just posted the archive of Tuesday's "Evolution of the Virtual Workforce" event. You can view the archive video stream here. A shorter, YouTube-friendly version of the report will be released in coming weeks.

Over 250 people participated in the live discussion via the Chatbridge software, which allows viewers on the web to chat with people inside Second Life without the web viewers having to install the Second Life client. Following are some screenshots of the event. A complete transcript of the discussion is pasted below.

The event featured digital work expert Don Tapscott, best-selling author of “Grown-Up Digital” and “Wikinomics.” Tapscott was joined by Manpower Inc. Chairman and CEO Jeff Joerres; Linden Lab Executive Director of Enterprise Marketing, Amanda Van Nuys; Manpower Senior Vice President for Global Workforce Strategy, Tammy Johns; Manager of e-learning Strategy and Education Solutions for IBM’s Center for Advanced Learning; Chuck Hamilton; and President of Louisiana Digital Workforce non-profit 3D Squared, Spencer Zuzolo. The event was moderated by CEO and Creative Director of Dancing Ink Productions, Rita J. King.

Thanks to all who participated in the event!














VWestland: http://dancinginkproductions.com/live-events/watch-now/
joshuafouts: Hi Zazen, the location is right here. Video starting shortly.
VWestland: That's the web link for where the event is being streamed.
Chimera Cosmos: hi Valient :-)
B Harrington:
VWestland: Good day Chimera!
joshuafouts: Hello Chimera!
zazen: good grief, it is on my continent
Chimera Cosmos: hey Josh
B Harrington: Good day all
VWestland: Thanks again for the invite to yesterday's photo exhibition Chimera!
Chimera Cosmos: np - hope you enjoyed
PookyMedia: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Spindrift/73/225/701 In the studiodome if we want another location
meredith evans: how do you access this via internet?
VWestland: http://dancinginkproductions.com/live-events/watch-now/
B Harrington: Good day all
joshuafouts: Here goes!
Chimera Cosmos: are you doing an in-world viewing Pooky?
PookyMedia: I dont have the stream, unfortunately just the seating
VWestland: Hi Pooky!
PookyMedia: Good Luck to all!
Chimera Cosmos: went to manpower late last night to be ready but didn't know the sim would be closed, dang it ;-)
daver123: Can someone please bring me in to the slurl?
meredith evans: can someone help me? I just see a blue screen
dandarrow: I dont see anything ;)
EricaDriver: Meredith I just see blue screen also, says "The Evolution of the Virtual Workforce." I think that's all we're supposed to see so far.
VWestland: There we go!
joshuafouts: The live screen just appeared
zazen: pooky is working on the stream here
mikep: I'm getting a Quicktime screen that's just, "Switching transports". Hopefully I'll see something soon.
meredith evans: not yet for me
nazzlane: playing for me
Chimera Cosmos: *waves* to Eureka :-)
joshuafouts: Hello all!
VWestland: Props to Erica!
Bev Plante: Sound is cutting in and out
B Harrington:
EricaDriver: My Twitter name: EricaDriver
Chimera Cosmos: sound fine here--probably local bandwidth issue
B Harrington: I am unable to see the screen.
joshuafouts: http://www.grownupdigital.com/
Chimera Cosmos: twitter: ldinstl_ chimera
meredith evans: i can see now as well
VWestland: Twitter = vwestland
joshuafouts: B Harrington, have you tried refreshing?
daver123: My Twitter dh_robbins
joshuafouts: Reload the screen first. Then let me know
nazzlane: twitter: nazzlane
PookyMedia: twitter: @pookymedia
zazen: this event is ill prepared...
Chimera Cosmos: working fine here
zazen: working where?
joshuafouts: If the video is not viewable, please refresh your browser
Bev Plante: Still unable to hear of view in Richmond Hill, Ontario
B Harrington: I refreshed and am still unable to see or hear anything.
Chimera Cosmos: online zazen
meredith evans: go out totally and start again, thats what i had to do
B Harrington: I am unable to see the screen.
joshuafouts: B Harrington, do you have Quicktime on your machine?
Pathfinder: is there an inworld location where folks are meeting?
zazen: yes, pookiy has set one up
meredith evans: twitter account Mevans02
joshuafouts: Hi Path. We're streaming to the web here. Pooky is streaming to an SL location.
Pathfinder: cool
Pathfinder: slurl?
joshuafouts: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Spindrift/73/225/701
Pathfinder: groovy. thanks
B Harrington: I refreshed and am still unable to see or hear anything.
trudytakacs: B - maybe it is your computer I've had no trouble
jflieg: than you need to install the program which i forget what they are using
PookyMedia: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Spindrift/73/225/701
dandarrow: quicktime
PookyMedia: media stream working we are all watching here
dandarrow: without that you cant see it..
Chimera Cosmos: this is a problem at my university too--trying to help change mindset but not easy
Chimera Cosmos: heading to Pooky's party in-world then!
nazzlane: digital immigrant?
B Harrington: I will try to find my IT guy.
Chimera Cosmos: Prensky, Nazz
dandarrow: B - sounds like you need quicktime to me..
EricaDriver: Is there a Twitter hashtag for this event?
Chimera Cosmos: I saw Callie working late last night in the store! Fab!
nazzlane: #DIP
dandarrow: it looks great, no?
B Harrington: I will try to find my IT guy.
joshuafouts: B Harrington, there is a separate stream here for non Quick Time users: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/private-event
VWestland: Nazzlane, is that the Hashtag we should be using for Twitter?
Chimera Cosmos: Hi Callie!
dandarrow: awesome, josh :)
VWestland: Or as a question: What Hashtag should we use for this event?
joshuafouts: #MPVW
nazzlane: what i saw in press release
EricaDriver: thx josh
nazzlane: thx joshua
joshuafouts: Thank you Nazz and Erica!
Chimera Cosmos: thinking I'll send my kids to Manpower to look for jobs :-)
VWestland: URLs for this information would be great!
mikep: non-QT link worked right away for me. Thanks.
zazen: Spindrift - SpinSpace astronomic, Spindrift (61, 216, 701)
zazen: live stream here
joshuafouts: Glad it worked for you mikep!
PookyMedia: Sl is the ultimate water cooler
jflieg: pooky is streaming it to her studio if anybody qwants to come
Longg Weeks: I'm not feeling so buff
mikep: i'm a little disappointed to see this collaborative meeting--emulated in SL in such a 'corporate' linear setting. really. big table? suit and ties?
dandarrow: why disappointed, mikep?
nazzlane: would you feel better if they were wearing dragon avi's
mikep: all the other people at a Big table sitting around waiting for one person at a time to talk? How is everyone else capturing what he's saying?
Chimera Cosmos: /me is lucky to have 2 kids in their 20s
Eureka Dejavu: mikep, this information is being captured in mixed media
dandarrow: Im cool with the format - seems civilized to me ;)
daver123: is anyone elses audio breaking up a little?
PookyMedia: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Spindrift/73/225/701
Chimera Cosmos: audio fine here
dandarrow: all good here
nazzlane: ditto
joshuafouts: mikep, seems like you're pretty much at the table, Rita just responded to your comment on the air. :)
daver123: Okay TKX
mikep: i am. comes and goes a little. like my laptop and bandwidth combo has to periodically catch up.
EricaDriver: I hear audio breaking up a little
bev plante: still not streaming properly (both audio and video)
speedemon: What matters is what companies do, whether they actually collaborate
jflieg: seems very well organized the way i conduct meetings in my business. I wouldnt listen to them if they were just standing around in jeans and a t-shirt
mikep: There's a term I was waiting for--"...the Model of Collaboration". This kind of get-together would be great for trying to devlop thatt.
joshuafouts: can you see and hear bev? Have you refreshed your browser? If you still have problems, let me know.
elijah: my audio also breaking up
speedemon: "Collaboration" is becoming meaningless because it's not really being done and people see that
bev plante: yes I have refreshed twice and the video is all broken up
mikep: i certainly am looking for online collaboration to take me (and my teammates) way beyond what we've done before--namely this kind of BOGSAT type meeting.
Chimera Cosmos: exactly - how to get vice chancellor types to talk to folks below their pay grade and see the value in that
trudytakacs: But it's preaching to the choir - so many won't let go of the old methods
joshuafouts: bev, it may be a quicktime issue. There is a second stream here for non quicktime users: http://www.ustream.tv/channel/private-event
PookyMedia: live stream is working great here
zazen: yes it iss
joshuafouts: Thanks Pooky!
dandarrow: bogsat?
PookyMedia: S;-D
daver123: Companies need to offer immersive in-world, transparent training
joshuafouts: bev, Pooky is streaming into SL here: http://slurl.com/secondlife/Spindrift/73/225/701
mikep: Immersive is a Good collaborative word.
trudytakacs: hope so!
imohax: Missed the start, who is sponsoring this? Manpower?
daver123:
speedemon: Manpower, yes
EricaDriver: Hi Mo!
daver123: I think so..
meredith evans: yes, manpower is sponsor
imohax: hahaha, heya erica, great tweet
joshuafouts: http://eurekadejavu.blogspot.com/2009/08/press-release-manpower-inc-convenes.html
daver123: That explains the suits
mikep: here here
imohax: who made that great 'fun = contribution' comment?
dandarrow: think only one person is in a suit ;)
EricaDriver: Mo that was Don Tapscott, I believe.
mikep: all of the 'females' are in business attire
joshuafouts: http://work.secondlife.com
imohax: nah, it was someone else
daver123: Im olld fashioned
Chimera Cosmos: you rock at multitasking Eureka :-)
elijah: Is this being recorded- Have a Board I would love to show this to
imohax: How do you see the netbook v.s. 3d immersive internet dilemma?
trudytakacs: great book
mikep: recommend?
Eureka Dejavu: thanks chimera!
joshuafouts: elijah: It is being recorded. We'll have an archive up and a shorter report in a few weeks.
trudytakacs: yes, some nice stats, perspective
Chimera Cosmos: I have some folks in mind to show it to also LOL
elijah: ty josh
trudytakacs: lol
Pathfinder: Question for panel: we often hear about how digital natives are heavy multitaskers by nature. how does this fact fit in with Stanford's recent research that shows seriously negative effects from heavy multitasking article: http://bit.ly/1liAa7
trudytakacs: instant message
mikep: immersive takes away the need for 'purposed' feedback level of effort
trudytakacs: oh, don't know mikep
Chimera Cosmos: yes, just like the discussion we are having in edu - the need for ongoing feedback for students - "formative assessment"
trudytakacs: you still have to give feedback in world
imohax: Pathfinder did you hear the recent study reported on NPR that found those who thought themselves the best multitaskers were actually the worst performers? Fascinating stuff.
VWestland: QUESTION: (For Amanda L) Will we ever see Linden Lab launch a channel marketing and VAR strategy that targets the SMB market? If yes, when can we expect that to happen?
mikep: immersive collaboration would help alleviate the need to have separate feedback work and sessions.
trudytakacs: well, I have to say - depends upon what task
daver123: The User has become the evaluator
Pathfinder: imohax, i didn't hear that NPR show, but it sounds like they read that Stanford study
EricaDriver: QUESTION for Don Tapscott: What do you see as the main barriers to adoption of immersive technologies, like virtual worlds, in the workplace?
trudytakacs: yes, true, mikep
dandarrow: good question..
Chimera Cosmos: there are other research studies that show the opposite - depends on your assumptions
trudytakacs: see - instand feedback:)
imohax: Yes, it was the Stanford study, now that you remind me.
Pathfinder: i like asking complicated questions :)
trudytakacs: deep thinker, Path
trudytakacs: traffic cops need to be good at mulit-tasking
trudytakacs: heart surgeons?
daver123: Is multitasking more of a "generational" thing?
Amanda Linden: vestland: we're looking at smb next yr
trudytakacs: I keep 3 medias on at most times
nazzlane: project mgrs need to be good at multi tasking
Chimera Cosmos: we all have to multi-task, but some folks are making it into a moral issue, unfortunately
VWestland: Thank you Amanda!
PookyMedia: parents are very good multi-taskers
nazzlane: agree with chimera
mikep: multi-tracking is possible; mult--tasking is something else.
Jelfster: Hi Dan - have Quicktime installed but still no dice...it says it is connecting but after 20 secs it disconnects.
imohax: "If you have middle in your title change jobs" -- Don Tapscott, Portland Oregon, 1995 :)
Enelya: I agree. Some folks are just able to focus on one thing and others on multiple things. Streaming this presentation through headphones while at work (and working ) is a perfect example.
nazzlane: agree with pooky
PookyMedia: media like Treet also shows Second Life without having to be in Second Life- this allows more people to see the world and in the best light too
VWestland: QUESTION: (For All) I agree with Erica Driver that "Real Identities" are important for building trust in a collaborative environment. What do you believe the role of idenity should/will play in the future of virtual world collaboration?
fmargret: I'm sorry--I joined late--did we already discuss Marc Prensky's article on the brain research of digital natives?
joshuafouts: Jelfster there's a separate stream running here for non-quick time http://www.ustream.tv/channel/private-event
nazzlane: multi tasking isn't a recent invention
PookyMedia: Your character is more important than your "skin"
fmargret: I had several students, after they read the article, really identified with what he said
daver123: Thank you Pooky
fmargret: and multi-tasking was one of the things they identified with
imohax: Wow, Chuck's there.
dandarrow: chuck is ace
mikep:
trudytakacs: We're watching this while back chatting - if we saw a young person doing this on the job or in the classroom - we'd frown
imohax: my team of 12 is spread over then entire globe, here at IBM
mikep: 'he' is more like it--if he's really an IBMer. He 'looks' like he might get it wrt immersive collaborative team work.
Pathfinder: fmargret, which article was that exactly? do you have a link?
elijah: Anybody have a perspective on using SL as a training venue, i.e. construction workers, welders traditional "blue collar" trades
fmargret: http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20-%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part2.pdf
fmargret: that is the second part
joshuafouts: http://eurekadejavu.blogspot.com/2009/04/new-venture-beat-column.html
fmargret: http://www.marcprensky.com/writing/Prensky%20-%20Digital%20Natives,%20Digital%20Immigrants%20-%20Part1.pdf
fmargret: this is the first article
imohax: elijah, there is great stuff from British Petroleum about that, searchable
fmargret: the second article discusses the neuroscience behind it
PookyMedia: There is a leveling of the playing field on Secodn Life- i was very moved rading about how Curious george (real life Physics professor at CalTech) was helped to learn soem inworld activity by a young woman who didnt have a phd in astrophysics-we are helping eachother all the time across age & educational experience
elijah: imohax- any links on ur site
Pathfinder: fmargret, thanks. ah, I've read that article on neuroplasticity. good one. I'm going to re-read it. :)
Chimera Cosmos: I think Pooky is talking about Harper. She's the one who introduced Curious George to me shortly after he came to SL. I was at a party at Extropia and she brought him there. LOL
fmargret: pathfinder, that's exciting--the kids are really excited by it
imohax: hummm, need to add, all in my conf presentation at the moment.... http://work.secondlife.com/successstories/ is a good starting point
fmargret: I hope this is archived so I can show it to my students
fmargret: :) this is wonderful!
PookyMedia: We can contribute easily to eachothers knowledge base and skill set across all demographics here
joshuafouts: Hi FMargret! It will be archived.
elijah:
fmargret: hi joshuafouts! Sorry for the tardiness.
joshuafouts: Great to have you here, FMargret. :)
fmargret: Spencer is exactly right about the paradigm shift
imohax: resolving excitedness and self-starting motivation to performance measuring tools (tests) is a BIG question educators as all the time
fmargret: I've seen it in the classroom. And that is why I was so excited about Prensky's work
dandarrow: right on Spencer
fmargret: speaking of virtual worlds, with my sponsorship of Youth Leg, one student who participated in Spencer's digital intensive wanted to start a metaplace world for Youth LEg
VWestland: QUESTION: (All) How is the shift to "What you know" being more important than "Where you learn it" going to impact traditional educational institutions in the coming years?
mikep: i like that idea. in world you really could have (and be comfortable with) the real experts being the teachers and mentors--not like in real life with its bulilt-in bias of appearance, age, etc.
fmargret: Thanks RJK!
EricaDriver: X-generational presentations and demos are wonderful. We held a ThinkBalm Innovation Community "un-lecture" event during which a group of high schoolers from Cincinatti showing business people the science lab they built in Second Life.
imohax: Answer: Insufficient hardware.
zazen: managemet does not embrace
zazen: ..yet
zazen: this is out of the comfort zone...
elijah: hardware is a major one
fmargret: zazen, management...education infrastructure...it's a problem across all professions
PookyMedia: "shock of the new"
zazen: yep
imohax: 80% of onboarding time I spend with people is getting the hardware to work, or setting it up, or working around it
mikep: immersive in-world type collaboration will in fact help maintain comfort levels--even though'behind the scenes' the world has changed.
imohax: everyone is on the 'netbook' curve and don't have the power
daver123: Try to lock them into a mindset! Oh No!
Chimera Cosmos: Yes -- "students will have to change when they get jobs" -- nope--they will soon be in charge LOL
trudytakacs: Saw a great article: jobs of the future - young people coaching seniors about the new technology
VWestland: I think this is one reason I press so hard for the SMB market... the limitatins of "scale" are not a factor in smaller organizations. They are inherently team-based, have short decision making cycles and are typically not bound by multiple levels of management and a "grey" ceiling.
elijah: I have found non early adopters just point to lag and other tech challenges as reason not to adopt-- of course being brain dead also applies occasionally
joshuafouts: It's almost 1am on Wednesday for the Treet.TV people!
PookyMedia: QUESTION: Any study or example of a business that ALLOWED all social is doing relative to competition?
fmargret: thanks Treet.TV people!
Longg Weeks: what was the feedback channel that Don talked about -Ripple?
jflieg: Question: At what time does Virtual Worlds become too much for the companies? As it would be just one more thing for us to do? An excuse that the company will use to get employees to go to meetings and other kinds of company work when they are not at the office? The main question is When does the virtual world overpower RL meetings?
joshuafouts: Correction. Almost 2AM!
fmargret: it is so wonderful to have such support
EricaDriver: I've found that interest in and adoption of immersive techs isn't really generationally oriented. It's more about personality type and organizational culture.
imohax: i've experimented with a 24-hour sleep schedule, worth attempting if you have ability
zazen: indeed, Erica
EricaDriver: It tends to be people who are creative, comfortable with technology, explorers / experimenters.
VWestland: I've made significant amounts of money helping companies filter out "offending" Internet content from access inside business environments...
Pathfinder: very good points right now, IMHO. right tool for the right job.
elijah: I like virtual cubicles occasionally
PookyMedia: And adoption is generally a top down effect- in other words if the Top management likes social media then that company will adopt it
VWestland: Pathfinder, I totally agree with the "right tool for the right job" comment.
VWestland: You don't want to pound virtual nails with virtual screwdrivers!
mikep: could hapen from bottom up, too. example is Cooler really taking hold in a company that heretofore depended on live meetings, email, etc.
imohax: ROWE which Daniel Pink describes in http://ecologyofeducation.net/wsite/?p=1171
EricaDriver: QUESTION: How do you define "engagement" of the workforce?
Pathfinder: also important to not try and use the same tool for everything. another fun metaphor: when all you have is a hammer, everything looks like a nail.
imohax: Results Oriented Work Environment
fmargret: vwestland, the problem only is aggrevated when children, who are not prepared for the future, are given physical screwdrrivers instead of those virtual screwdrivers
imohax: imho, i hate 'Second LIfe' as a name
PookyMedia: We don't ask to be born into our first life, but do ask for this- This is a Selected Life
EricaDriver: For many people, SL is not about escaping your "first life" in the least!
dandarrow: well put Pooky
mikep: myLife
PookyMedia: I rather say also "Inworld or Outworld"
fmargret: Erica, engagement is reflected in motivation?
zazen: second life escalated my first life
imohax: we love taking beginning educators there, virtual ability island
fmargret: engagement is driven by interest?
EricaDriver: fmargaret: is engagement measurable?
elijah: SL has tremendous potential for workforce training
joshuafouts: Report from last year's Manpower event http://dancinginkproductions.com/uploads/pdfs/DIP_Manpower_July2008.pdf
imohax: sounds like elijah might like ThinkBalm island :)
PookyMedia: tremdous for training- PookyMediafilms has done some awesome training films
fmargret: in my profession (educator), it may not always be quantifiable, but I certainly can observe engagement in the students
VWestland: Just lost audio...
speedemon: engagement is "measurable" with some different ways to do it
Pathfinder: SL is about augmenting
Enelya: SL is not about escaping for many of the people I know. It is more a easy place for synchronous meetings for individuals who cannot relocate for a meeting. Also a terrific location for a virtual hands on training sessions.
elijah: I t is on my list >:)
Longg Weeks: There are affordances of virtual worlds and people need to understand application of these affordances
mikep: multi-user virtual environment (MUVE) training will still have to resemble real-life to work well. MUVE education on the other hand will be much bettter able to adopt MUVE capabilities.
daver123: AMEN!!!!
Pathfinder: and augmenting life is a very broad spectrum. includes escaping (fun), work, play, business, basically...everything you do in your life.
Chimera Cosmos: WoW is the new golf heheh
joshuafouts: http://3dsquared.ning.com
daver123: Testing should be transparent
PookyMedia: Depends on the jobs, 50 - 80 years ago American industry needed American workers and the school system turned out kids who could read write & do math-
joshuafouts: That link has some background on Spencer's work
fmargret: you learn what you are tested on
VWestland: VWestland: QUESTION: (All) How is the shift to "What you know" being more important than "Where you learn it" going to impact traditional educational institutions in the coming years?
trudytakacs: unbelievable the lack of access in this country
daver123: Not govenerned by No Child Left Behaind Standard tests
fmargret: well, not necessarily in my classroom
fmargret: but still
Longg Weeks: See book by Stewart brown PLay- How it shapes the brain
zazen: I want to bring K-12 to the dault grid
zazen: adult
EricaDriver: Pooky we *still* need graduates who can read, write, and do math.
PookyMedia: learning is a lifelong process- one thing i thnk is awesome about SL is that people who are out of school and over 30 are using their remarkable intelligence in Second life
VWestland: By the way... the V is for Valiant LOL
elijah: SL Teen adult issue must be resolved soon- critical to workforce training spectrum
fmargret: erica, but with the focus on basic knowledge, which is often what is tested, there is no sense of the creative process, nor is there a sense of self-motivated
imohax: they don't teach cursive writing anymore, considered an art form now
fmargret: self-motivation
PookyMedia: yes agreed Erica- but look at the industrila base and manufacturing in the US- I used to teach middle school math and know that our economy and workforce is not supporting many kids certainly in urban areas
dandarrow: gasp - dont teach cursive?
EricaDriver: fmargaret: my complaint is that even the basics aren't getting learned adequately in our schools.
fmargret: Erica, I know
roadnick: Amen to that, Erica.
fmargret: but we are stagnant at that basic knowledge
roadnick: But the question is, do they really NEED cursive, now that they're more likely to type than write?
nazzlane: amen! erica
imohax: seniors graduating never having learning a bit of cursive, all print
dandarrow: need - prob no
imohax: award-winning schools, stopped teaching it
trudytakacs: Ran across an urban youth who couldn't hold a mouse.
dandarrow: should teach iPhone typing classes then.. ;)
trudytakacs: digital divide in urban areas is the social divide unimaginable
imohax: they just did a 1:1 deployment to all kids from 9yrs and up, amazing to watch
VWestland: Follow-up QUESTION: Will learning organizations start to be judged more on outcomes and less on past status?
fmargret: reading, writing, and understanding number sense is essential
imohax: all got macs instead (and plus) textbooks
VWestland: How do you measure the capcity to think?
fmargret: but without integrating technology, the creative process, etc, into those cornerstones, there is a disconnect between education and career
imohax: didn't aristotle teach that? learn logos, rhetoric and something else and then learn from the world and interacting with it
trudytakacs: my work takes constant learning
elijah: totally agree
VWestland: A 150 IQ and $2.00 might buy you your favorite beverage at Starbucks...
fmargret: Joyce VanTassel-Baska, a prominent researcher in gifted education, says that if you can write you can think, and if you can think, you can write
daver123: Reading and writing and math are absolutley crucial
trudytakacs: yes but will knowing Dante get you a job outside the university?
mikep: work also includes 'reporting'. still not getting that part of my work done by not being able to have real-time access to all the types of media being used in this meeting.
PookyMedia: QUESTION: Where do economics & politics influence the learning component? Any correlation between Political climate in US & the lack of improvements on education?
elijah: Kudos to Manpower- one of the best discussions in awhile
elijah:
elijah:
elijah:
elijah:
EricaDriver: What a terrific way to spend an hour. Thank you to all the panelists.
PookyMedia: Thinking augments your entire life
fmargret: so if we can integrate the essentials with the necessities, that will produce a ready citiizen in future careers
imohax: thanks manpower and Eureka
Pathfinder: great event. thanks to everyone to helped make this happen!
VWestland: If you can get an "A" without participating in the educational structure of the institutuion, doesn't that invalidate the "A" and the value of that institutions endorsement?
fmargret: thank you everyone!
elijah: Need to continue this discussion
joshuafouts: Thanks to Chase Marellan (aka roadnick) for building this amazing Chatbridge technology.
fmargret: thank you dancing ink!
fmargret: thank you panelists!
trudytakacs: Thanks, hope this will be recorded so I can share with the decision makers!
fmargret: thank you second life!
roadnick: Thank you all for making use of the ChatBridge!
fmargret: thankyou chat bridge!
joshuafouts: trudy: It will be archived in full and will be part of a shorter machinima report.
trudytakacs: great, thanks
fmargret: perfect joshuafouts!
daver123: Will this chat be archived?
joshuafouts: We'll post information at DancingInkProductions.com
trudytakacs: well put
joshuafouts: daver123, we'll also be posting the chat transcript in full.
daver123: Thanks
mikep: do a Ctrl A, Ctrl C, and Ctrl V in text/word to capture the whole chat now.
Chimera Cosmos: totally - trying to help my university with that too
PookyMedia: Bravo to all- remarkable event
imohax: i LOVE this format, the future of interactive media, no more talk shows
trudytakacs: typos and all
speedemon: you can save the chat yourself - control A and control C
Longg Weeks: Hey!
PookyMedia: live online virtual entertainment - viewer log in - Indeed agreed
joshuafouts: That works too, speed demon!
trudytakacs: thanks, enjoy following a lot fo you on twitter
speedemon: habit
trudytakacs: a lot of good info via twitter, Erica
meredith evans: thx all, very informative
dandarrow: thank you everyone :)
Pathfinder: i also enjoy following many of you on Twitter. in fact, that's how i found out about this event. :)
imohax: so i guess this means Manpower is still in SL and staying, cool. ;)
Chimera Cosmos: thanks for doing this event!
dandarrow: speedemon, you on psn?
daver123: Thanks ALL participants!!!
joshuafouts: Thanks for being here and participating everyone!
Longg Weeks: Hey!
imohax: SUGGESTION: needed a twitter tag
trudytakacs: Looking forward to reading more about the Lousiana project
Eureka Dejavu: thanks everybody!
fmargret: bye!
Pathfinder: /me is "Pathfinder" on twitter
fmargret: have a great day!
VWestland: Thank you for the invite Pooky! Great to participate! Applause!
Amanda Linden: thanks everyone!
daver123: Do this regualrly
fmargret: back to the kids!
joshuafouts: @josholalia
Pathfinder: /me waves
nazzlane: great conv!
trudytakacs: trudytakacs
zazen: bye bye all
PookyMedia: bye!
Yxes Delacroix: don't forget to unmute your sounds if you are going to "play" in SL now. :)
lindaleea: bye
Jeffe Decosta: seemed to go pretty well
roadnick: bye, all
Jeffe Decosta: couple of audio hiccups
mikep: bye everyone. really enjoyed it.

Natasha Tsakos at TED

Natasha Tsakos' TED talk is spectacular.

"There is a revolution, a human and technology revolution....being human is an art form...we are not here to question the possible we are here to challenge the impossible...in the science of today we become artists...in the art of today, we become scientists..."

(thanks @evanoneil!)

NATO Seeks to Expand into Virtual Worlds

Tateru Nino reports that NATO, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization is seeking vendors to assist it with developing a virtual world presence, "to augment or replace existing technologies for education and training of NATO staff." This dovetails nicely with our "Digital Diplomacy" policy recommendations, which encouraged the use of virtual worlds to augment the work being done by foreign policy practitioners by engaging cultures and communities in virtual worlds.

NATO has been doing a number of creative public diplomacy outreach efforts to help make its identity more accessible to a contemporary audience and redefine the narrative around NATO. We blogged in March about NATO's poster campaign in Washington, DC. They also produced a number of highly produced videos for NATO's 60th anniversary to demonstrate the relevance of NATO's work today.