Informal Learning 2.0 is for foxes, not hedgehogs?
The philosopher Isaiah Berlin famously divided thinkers into two categories: hedgehogs (like Plato, Pascal, Hegel, Dostoyevsky, Nietzsche, Ibsen and Proust), who know one big thing and tend to view the world through the lens of a single organizing principle, and foxes (like Herodotus, Shakespeare, Montaigne, Goethe, Balzac and Joyce), who know many things and who pursue various unrelated, even contradictory ends.
According to Joshua Cooper Ramo’s provocative new book, “The Age of the Unthinkable,” one study – in which hundreds of experts in subjects like economics, foreign policy and politics were asked to make predictions about
the short-term future and whose predictions were evaluated five years later – showed that foxes, with their wide-ranging curiosity and willingness to embrace change, tended to be far more accurate in their forecasts than
hedgehogs, eager for closure and keen on applying a few big ideas to an array of situations.
THE AGE OF THE UNTHINKABLE
Why the New World Disorder Constantly Surprises Us
and What We Can Do About It
By Joshua Cooper Ramo
Today’s world, he suggests, requires resilient pragmatists who, like the most talented Silicon Valley venture capitalists on the one hand or the survival-minded leadership of Hezbollah on the other, possess both an intuitive ability to see problems in a larger context and a willingness to rejigger their organizations continually to grapple with ever-shifting challenges and circumstances.
Hedgehogs
I’m not so sure.
After all, we are in the midst of a total re-set of capitalism, business models, and democratization. When I look at Informal Learning Flow, an aggregator that works over the sites I visit to keep informed, it’s a totally hedgehogian experience. These are all pieces of the puzzle. The issue becomes “what’s the puzzle?”
Freeman Dyson and the irresistible urge to be contrary about climate change
Eminent physicist Freeman Dyson raised eyebrows a month ago when he told the New York Times Magazine that a little extra carbon dioxide–and global warming–might turn out to be good for the planet. So when we saw his name on an event around the corner from Scientific American’s offices we figured we’d go hear his criticisms, dubbed “Climate Disasters, Safe Nukes and Other Myths,” firsthand.
Scientific American
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
Would you pay $68,000 to unlock the secrets of your genetic code?
Last week, bidding kicked off at $68,000 on a 10-day eBay auction whose prize includes personal genome sequencing, analysis, and interpretation services provided by Cambridge, Mass.-based genetics firm Knome, Inc. The auction’s winner also participates in a roundtable discussion with Knome’s geneticists, clinicians and bioinformaticians to review the winner’s sequence data, not to mention a private dinner with George Church, co-Founder and Knome’s chief scientific advisor. [More]
Scientific American
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
New research pinpoints origins of humans in Africa
A massive new genetic study proposes that humans originated near the border of modern-day South Africa and Namibia, a far more specific understanding than the vaguer picture of African origin that previously reigned.
…Tags: Archaeology & Paleontology,Biology,Health.
Scientific American
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
New research is rewriting the story of the 1930s.
Forbes.com: News
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
NASCAR On A Dime
How TRG Motorsports competes with a small budget.
The Recovery Is Now
Buy Boeing, Honeywell, Rockwell-Collins and more. It’s time to invest in the recovery.
Forbes.com: News
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
Motown Shutdown
Idle factories will likely cripple the auto industry in North America. Ford and Toyota beware.
Forbes.com: News
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
SmartSynch Future-Proofs the Smart Grid
One of the biggest issues facing utilities that switch to a smart grid is how to deploy these technologies on a large scale while still leaving room for upgrades.
SmartSynch’s Universal Communications Model (UCM) makes that struggle a little easier by putting all the elements of smart grid communications–wireless networks, fiber optic cables, and power line carriers–in a box. When the devices become outdated, vendors can switch them out without having to completely tear apart home smart meters.
Fast Company
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
Smart Electric Vehicle Recharger Defends the Grid While Saving You Money
Electric vehicles are about to explode in popularity, with car companies as diverse as Ford, Tesla, Fisker, and Toyota working on bringing new models to market in the next few years. But with the growth of these vehicles comes a problem: how can everyone in, say, New York City plug in their cars at night for recharging without overloading the electrical grid? The Smart Charger Controller may provide a solution.
The controller, developed by the U.S.
Fast Company
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
Remains of the Day: How Windows 7 Is Snappier than Vista Edition [For What It's Worth]
Gmail Labs adds tons of emoticons, how Windows 7 is snappier than Vista, ABC shows come to Hulu, and Google’s fun new YouTube advert. New in Labs: Extra emoticons The simplistic smileys that come by default in Gmail not enough to express your wide and nuanced range of emotions. A new labs feature adds oodles more. [Official Gmail Blog] Windows 7 Release Candidate Is Available From Microsoft If you happen to be a subscriber with MSDN or TechNet, Microsoft has your Windows 7 RC downloads ready.
Lifehacker
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
Xobni Coming To The Blackberry (Leaked Pic)
It’s been just one month since email startup Xobni got an investment from the Blackberry Partners Fund , which brought its total B round up to $10 million, and already it has a working prototype for an upcoming Blackberry app. Xobni executives were showing off the app at a Mobile Meetup in San Francisco last night, and the screenshot above found its way into my inbox (which is “xobni” spelled backwards, you know).
The app was working, and could be released sometime this summer, according to my source.
TechCrunch
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
Do you try to be a hero or are you a leader?
Superman is know for his strength and superpowers. He does all the work. He can save people all by himself without the help of anyone else. Why shouldn’t he do all that? After all he’s, “faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.” Some people may die when Superman does his work, but he is a superhero and will save the world from bad things.
Leaders on the other hand empower others.
Adaptive Path
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
WhitePages Bringing Their Mobile App To BlackBerry Devices
Good news, BlackBerry users! Never again will you need to kludge around in your browser just to dig up a number or determine who’s behind the number that just called. Following the success of their iPhone and Android applications, WhitePages will soon be announcing the upcoming availability of a native BlackBerry application.
It’ll still be a few days before the app makes its way to the BlackBerry App World, but we’ve been tinkering with a pre-release copy for a few days now.
TechCrunch
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
pic of the day – scaffolding
There’s nothing quite like the frantic rush to do some or other last minute thing for school tomorrow, is there? Our younger son went to see a show with a school group as part of his drama curriculum. When we picked him up, we learned that his art teacher told him today that he has to produce pictures of scaffolding by tomorrow or get a yellow card. Fortunately we had to pass several scaffolding installations on our way home, and fortunately I take my camera with me everywhere, so we manage to procure a few pics.
Karyn’s Erratic Journey
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
Extreme altitude climbs and the Sherpa brain
It’s know well known that high altitude mountain climbing damages the brain and causes a marked reduction in mental functioning.
I naively assumed this was true for everyone but I just found an intriguing 1996 study that compared brain function of lowland mountain climbers and Nepalese Sherpas after ascent to high altitude, which found that the Sherpas suffer few of these neurological problems.
Are Himalayan Sherpas better protected against brain damage associated with extreme altitude climbs?
Garrido E, Segura R, Capdevila A, Pujol J, Javierre C, Ventura JL.
Mind Hacks
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
Laser-Cut Earbud Owl Keeps Your Cords Tangle-Free [DIY]
We’re already big fans of anything that corrals our cord clutter, but we can’t help but appreciate the craftsmanship that went into this very clever DIY earbud owl. The earbud owl works under the same principle as a few of our previously posted earbud de-tangling tips , but this smart little DIY melds form and function like none other. The design template is available as a download from Thingiverse ; once you’ve got it, all you need is a laser cutter (you’ve got a few of those lying around in your junk drawer, right?) and something to cut.
Lifehacker
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
What Exactly Is a “Passive House” and Why Should I Care?
The handsome home you see above represents the bleeding edge in green design: It’s a “Passive House,” designed by Toronto’s Paul Raff Studio . With “automated shades, passive ventilation and mature deciduous trees” it’s meant to stay cool in summer and warm in winter. Say what? How does all that work together?
If you’re fuzzy on exactly what a passive home is, The New York Times just published an excellent infographic highlighting the major design features:
“Passive” housing isn’t a designation you can slap on like LEED certification.
Fast Company
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
Twitter Brings Search On Site To All
For the past several weeks, plenty of my friends have had the new Twitter interface featuring both Search and Trending Topics on the main page, but I had yet to see it. Today, I log in to see that I’m finally special enough to get it as well — only to learn that it’s now officially been rolled out to everyone .
Say hello to the new Twitter.com, it’s a lot like the old one, but with the two important features. Search works great because it’s all done on the page without any reloads.
TechCrunch
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
Renewable Resources Can Power U.S., Even Southeast
The Southeast has enough renewable resources to meet the 25 percent renewable-power mandate proposed by draft House energy and climate legislation, according to a new assessment [pdf] by environmental groups. [More]
…Tags: Environment,Society & Policy,Energy.
Scientific American
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
Mercury’s monster crater
Scientific American
- Thursday, April 30, 2009
You’re tracking all that, right? The article stream continues for another 2,000 pages.
Uta and I have an extensive collection of stuffed hedgehogs. Our collecting pre-dates this fox/hedgehog stuff. The hedgehog is a symbol of good luck in Germany. And they are cute as can be.
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