Mass Collaboration:

All great projects require mass collaboration. The pyramids of Giza, the Great Wall of China, and The Chunnel are examples of engineering marvels that would never been possible without the Mass Collaboration of shared knowledge and physical labor. Blood, sweat, and tears are not necessary when it comes to Mass Collaboration via the web. One only needs an open mind and willingness to share challenge and justify ideas. It is now possible to for thousands or more individuals to collaborate in an efficient manner via the web. Wikipedia is essentially a Mass Collaboration site in which people freely share their knowledge with others. This knowledge is grown and filtered by other users of this mass collaboration tool. In fact a young student from Ireland recently posted bogus material on Wikipedia which was soon caught as inaccurate by other users, but not by the print media. M.C. allows for people of varied backgrounds and skill sets to contribute to almost any project. Challenging and building ideas in a diverse environment can yield unexpected, yet very positive outcomes. As teachers we work to instill the virtue of cooperative groups and the positive aspects of synergy. It is important for us to model M.C. to our students and give them a chance to participate in M.C. projects. This can be as simple as setting up a chat room discussion with other classes based on an academic theme, or organizing a community service project. It is also important that we set up norms for M.C. and think about what are the optimal conditions for certain projects. Although M.C. can be extremely helpful, sometimes it is possible for people to get distracted or bogged down with minute details. It is important that we pick appropriate projects for MC and use protocols that assist with avoiding analysis paralysis.

The Power of the Web:

The web has made the world a much smaller place. Distance communication is now quicker, cheaper, and more efficient. We are living in an information age, and since information is power, users of the web have become empowered. We now do not need to rely travel agents to book airline tickets or hotel rooms. It is now (usually) extremely easy for an internet user to find bargains themselves without having to pay a middle man. The web is also a great source way to get like minded consumers’ opinions about products and services. A sales person is usually biased due to his/her vested interest in selling a certain product. Sites such as Consumer Reports and even chat rooms are great sources for viewing and posting objective views. The power of the web has allowed people to quickly and conveniently stay in touch with family and friends via email, skype, etc. at a minimal cost. It is also changing the very nature of education (or information dissemination), business and social interactions. Since there is an aspect of anonymity, more people feel comfortable with virtually socializing with others. This of course can be viewed as a positive or a negative. However, there is no question that the web is powerful, and some people choose to abuse that power. Unfortunately, hackers, virus program writers, cyber bullies, and internet predators can cause havoc including huge financial losses, mental anguish, and despair. Since web 2.0 is now more interactive than the passive web 1.0 we can hopefully collaborate in a manner that limits the abuse of the web. We need embrace and build upon all of the positive aspects of this amazing tool is continuing to become more powerful at an incredible rate.