28 January 2012

Items to Share (28 January)

The Cognitive Consequences of Having Information at Our Fingertips 

"On the Mechanics of Choice"; good summary article on the psychology of decision-making

A perceptive but sceptical discussion of Apple's further forays into the education market, raising again whether technology and education are on divergent paths.

Is this a game-changer? MIT Mints a Valuable New Form of Academic Currency.

Vindicated! The Power of Introverts: A Manifesto for Quiet Brilliance (review article)

Cambridge Nights: Late Night TV-Style Show Takes Deep Look at Scientific Thinking

It's been a slow week, but this is daftly delightful and even uplifting--even if you are not a Doctor Who fan! (15 mins)

...and forfeiting all intellectual gravitas, watch this on the Canadian space programme. (1:30)

1 comment:

  1. Regarding the power of introverts Susan Cain says:

    "The organizational psychologist Adrian Furnham puts it pretty bluntly: The “evidence from science suggests that business people must be insane to use brainstorming groups. If you have talented and motivated people, they should be encouraged to work alone when creativity or efficiency is the highest priority.”

    Great I thought. But then Farnam Street (thanks for the tipoff by the way) just posted a link today to Scott Page who argues almost the exact opposite:

    "Breakthroughs in science increasingly come from teams of bright, diverse people. That’s why interdisciplinary work is the biggest trend in scientific research."

    and

    “'How can we all be more productive together?' The answer, he suggests, is in messy, creative organizations and environments with individuals from vastly different backgrounds and life experiences."

    The only conclusion that I can draw is that unless we can form part of a diverse group of extroverts then we'd be better off working alone?

    ReplyDelete

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