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cartoon by David Sipress from the New Yorker I have noticed a subtle change over the last year or two in what (and how) both mainstream and alternative media are reporting (worse news, more indifferently, more dishonestly and more under-reporting).

For a blog called "How To Save The World", this post seems to end right before the writer gets to the "how to". The points made are accurate, but there's no call to action. I'm not a big fan of conspiracy theories for the reasons discussed in this post, but things like this frustrate me because they don't foster discussion about "what can we do about it?" Making sure people understand that everything is awful and needs to be fixed is good, but that isn't the end of it -- circulating information is only step one.

This open access, academic book has chapters on a whole range of different aspects related to our course topics. It focuses on questions of knowledge systems and knowledge transfer, all throughout human history all over the world. Looks like a real gem!

By: Matthew LeBar Massively Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are often described as the future of education - or at least a significant part of it. But there may be a significant problem with them: a very small proportion of students who start them actually finish. This poses a serious threat to their legitimacy.

This brings up the question of what it means to complete something? And why is it so important to us? And why 'productivity', a thing somebody defined ages ago, is so important to our humanity? .. or is it anymore?

Because I am taking a MOOC course but also on campus at University, I receive credits and grades where this is definitely one of the motivations for me to contribute. Although I agree that completion of the course is not essential to attain knowledge, what about our motivations to learn? And what about our incentives? Not saying MOOCs are not interesting nor helpful, I like MOOCs, but I think people like recognition too. I think to just receive the "statement of accomplishment" is not enough to prove efforts made within the course. However MOOCs are not as well developed at this stage, there definitely will be adjustments in the near future.

This is really a good initiative. One can only wish that African states finally realize that internet access is no longer a privilege but a right because without it such brilliant initiatives do not spread to all corners of the developing world.

I like the "equalization" word, even if it seems to make it too simple, but it is also making it sound possible

"Having explored a "learning theory" that George Siemens (2005; 2006a) and Stephen Downes (2005; 2007) developed for a networked and digital world called connectivism. Fascinating and extensive conversations in the blogosphere and in educational journals debate whether connectivism is a new learning theory or whether it is merely a digital extension of constructivism."

I agree, is a wonderful delineation.

The article is great. I only have one observation, we always assume learning is all about connecting special nodes and sources of information but we forget that the opposite is also learning. When we disconnect our wrong nodes and sources of information in terms of beliefs and wrong information, I believe we are also learning.

All German universities will be free of charge when term starts next week after fees were abandoned in Lower Saxony, the last of seven states to charge. "Tuition fees are socially unjust," said Dorothee Stapelfeldt, senator for science in Hamburg, which scrapped charges in 2012.

Could this also be 'open access'?

...to see the full text you need to subscribe ...ironically I hit pay wall again!

Published on Dec 30, 2012 Short programme, produced in the year 2000, on the emergence of a technology called Napster, the file sharing software application that revolutionised music distribution world-wide.

Traditional Healers Organization For Africa: " Biopiracy and Indigenous Traditional Medicine Knowledge The blatant plunder of indigenous knowledge and genetic resources in South Africa continues unhindered and without State monitoring. Since 1997, We have been monitoring private and public enterprises (or their intermediaries) who are actively collecting, sampling and acquiring traditional knowledge for the development of pharmaceutical products. What concerns us is that international organizations are entering South Africa to carry out this research. Not even the World Health Organization are free of scrutiny in this regard. "Biopiracy" refers to the use of intellectual property laws (patents, plant breeders' rights) to gain exclusive monopoly control over genetic resources that are based on the knowledge and innovation of indigenous peoples. Biopiracy and bioprospecting don't just happen in the field ; biopiracy is even more likely to take place in the laboratories of industry and academia, and in patent offices in the cities not even in South Africa."

Hi, there I think that we must talk about this issue, is very important to know more about it. Russian hackers have pulled off what is possibly the largest cyber security breach in history, stealing 1.2 billion usernames and passwords and more than 500 million email addresses, security experts say. More than 420,000 websites, including large, well-known sites as well as smaller companies, were targeted by a cybercrime ring dubbed Cybervor.

WIPO GREEN is an interactive marketplace that promotes innovation and diffusion of green technologies. Use our database and network to connect with technology and service providers, or advertise your needs.

YouTube, Full Sail University, Published on Mar 12, 2014 "Technology has made it easier than ever to publish your own work. This Full Sail University panel discusses how to successfully self-publish your own work, and how to do it without getting lost in the sea of all of the other content that's out there." A panel of successful self-published authors talk about the flexibility of new technology within the publishing realm to sell books/music: formatting your work, business models, copyright , print on demand options, music aggregators,, marketing, worldwide distribution, etc.

The video length of one+ hour might seem a bit daunting at first, but I ended up watching most of it in one go - this is really an excellent and easy-to-follow overview of all the important aspects of self-publishing. (I was especially pleased that this video listens to well in the background, as opposed to most other videos that I find require more "involvement" and that do not fit well with a busy day schedule.) What is best about this is that it is all based on actual people experiences - successful self-published authors participating in the panel, and sharing their knowledge & tips in real-time. I was especially curious to find out about the marketing side of of self-publishing a book, and was pleased to discover quite a few helpful ideas and tips. As someone who is thinking about self-publishing soon, this has answered a lot of questions and definitely sparked confidence in the process as a whole. Thank you very much for sharing! Hopefully, this will help and encourage many more self-publishers to be.

If we're in the idea business, how to protect those ideas? One way is to misuse trademark law. With the help of search engines, greedy lawyers who charge by the letter are busy sending claim letters to anyone who even comes close to using a word or phrase they believe their client 'owns'.

"Focus on being the best tailor with the sharpest scissors, not the litigant who sues any tailor who deigns to use a pair of scissors." I am 100% behind this ending point. We live in a world where you are now challenged to create great ideas, not just sit on what you have. Keep striving! Woohoo!

The inflation of education costs around the world is a matter of offer and demand, and it has brought much unwanted consequences that affect the quality of the most demanded resource to come: talent

"This paper provides a brief overview of the ideas and principles underlying the connected learning movement, highlighting examples of how libraries are boosting 21st century learning and promoting community development by partnering with a range of organisations and individuals to incorporate connected opportunities into their programmes"

Thanks Kevin for sharing this.

El lado oscuro de las bibliotecas: "¿Quieren leer? Pues a pagar" Es un delirio: cuando tomemos prestado un libro de una biblioteca será preciso pagar un canon http://cultura.elpais.com/cultura/2014/08/27/babelia/1409137321_870906.html

What Role Can MOOCs Play in the Development Agenda? Five Key Questions By: Rajika Bhandari on Tuesday, July 15, 2014 With the Millennium Development Goals nearing their deadline, the development sector has been rife with speculation about what the post-2015 development agenda will look like and what role, if any, higher education should play in this future outlook. Personal note: This highlights the reality of so called 3rd world countries and the real reach of MOOCs