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24 avril 2017

How a Browser Extension Could Shake Up Academic Publishing

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. How a Browser Extension Could Shake Up Academic Publishing
Lindsay McKenzie, Chronicle of Higher Education, 2017/04/10
I've started using Unpaywall, a browser extension that finds open access versions of closed access publications. For example, is a search takes me to a closed Elsevier article, Unpaywall might find the Arxiv version. More...

24 avril 2017

There Are No New Social Networks

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. There Are No New Social Networks
Molly McHugh, The Ringer, 2017/04/17
The answer to the question in the title is succinctly given by Niv Dror: “Once an app becomes significant enough to pose a threat to the big players, they either get acquired or significantly handicapped by a competitive feature or restricted access.” This we might call 'normal ecosystem' (styled after Kuhn's 'normal science'). More...

24 avril 2017

The Cuomo College Fiasco

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. The Cuomo College Fiasco
David Brooks, New York Times, 2017/04/17
David Brooks hauls out all the old chestnuts in this criticism of New York's free tuition plans. Let's review:

  • It doesn't do enough for poor people (they already get free tuition, it doesn't cover part time students, etc)
  • It harms for-profit colleges
  • it demotivates students, because people value only what they pay for. More...
24 avril 2017

Can There Be a Microscope of the Mind?

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. Can There Be a Microscope of the Mind?
Michael Feldstein, e-Literate, 2017/04/17
This is a valuable post because it brings together and explains a number of elements of what we might call a cognitivist theory of mind. From where I sit, though, it brings together a lot of nonsense, and the overall theory of mind proposed here is seriously flawed. More...

24 avril 2017

Follett and Lumen Learning to Expand Adoption of OER Courseware

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. Follett and Lumen Learning to Expand Adoption of OER Courseware
Lumen Learning, 2017/04/17
I received email from David Wiley today announcing this partnership with Follett, a company that manages college bookstores. More...

24 avril 2017

The Rise of Educational Technology as a Sociocultural and Ideological Phenomenon

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. The Rise of Educational Technology as a Sociocultural and Ideological Phenomenon
D'Arcy Norman, D'Arch Norman Dot Net, 2017/04/17
D'Arcy Norman summarizes and reviews The Rise of Educational Technology as a Sociocultural and Ideological Phenomeno by George Veletsianos and Rolin Moe in EDUCAUSE, an article worth reading in its own right. The EDUCAUSE article makes three major assertions:

  • The edtech phenomenon is a response to the increasing price of higher education (aka 'market-driven')
  • The edtech phenomenon reflects a shift in political thought from government to free-market oversight of education (aka 'privatized')
  • The edtech phenomenon is symptomatic of a view of education as a product to be packaged, automated, and delivered (aka 'commodified'). More...
24 avril 2017

Open Word—The Podcasting Story

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. Open Word—The Podcasting Story
Doc Searls, Doc Searls Weblog, 2017/04/17
Doc Searls offers a slightly revisionist history of podcasting, giving us the background but omitting any mention of Adam Curry. A podcast, properly so-called, is an MP3 file the URL of which is distributed through an RSS feed. More...

24 avril 2017

What you’re revealing to your ISP, why a VPN isn’t enough, and ways to avoid leaking it

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. What you’re revealing to your ISP, why a VPN isn’t enough, and ways to avoid leaking it
Benjamin Hutchins, HackerNoon, 2017/04/05
This is a long, detailed and technical post about what information your internet service provider (ISP, called 'BIAS' in this article) can gather about your internet use and sell to the government or other customers. It's written clearly, though, and it should be easy enough for most readers to follow. More...

24 avril 2017

It’s Not Their Pop Idol, but a Bot. Fans Cheer Anyway.

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. It’s Not Their Pop Idol, but a Bot. Fans Cheer Anyway.
Ben Sisario, New York Times, 2017/04/05
I suppose the new form of fame and immortality will be to have someone create a bot based on your personality. The 'Downes' bot will visit websites randomly and give them negative reviews. More...

24 avril 2017

Can pre-school children learn to do science?

By Stephen Downes - Stephen's Web. Can pre-school children learn to do science?
Jenny Rohn, The Guardian, 2017/04/05
Of course the answer to the question in the headline is 'yes'. If you've ever tested the water with a toe before diving in, you've done science. But what, exactly, is science? This article is a bit weaker on this front. More...

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