Collective Action and Decision-making - Revision history

BerkmanSysop: UTurn to 1336694399

2013-01-17T21:50:57Z

UTurn to 1336694399

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Just Johnny: /* Class Discussion */

2012-05-14T05:24:27Z

Class Discussion

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Harvard212: /* Class Discussion */

2012-05-08T19:23:31Z

Class Discussion

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:23, 8 May 2012
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	When I think of a very intelligent individual or genius, I think of my lab principal investigator, who has the ability to lead his lab members and make important decisions. However, he would have not made an informed decision without hearing the lab members deliberate. [[User:Qdang\|Qdang]] 15:52, 19 March 2012 (UTC)		When I think of a very intelligent individual or genius, I think of my lab principal investigator, who has the ability to lead his lab members and make important decisions. However, he would have not made an informed decision without hearing the lab members deliberate. [[User:Qdang\|Qdang]] 15:52, 19 March 2012 (UTC)

			Qdang raised an interesting idea of group intelligence. At the same time, group think can be counter-productive. The question to ask is how to move forward with collective speed and vigor, yet not work the group into isolated silos that are irrelevant to surrounds or reality. [[User: Harvard212\|Harvard212]] 15:18, 8 May 2012 EST

	I like the connection between the reality of crowd intelligence in "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" or marble-jar guessing and the concept of blog aggregates and online communities. It seems like this is a good argument against the dangers of cocooning at some levels. While a given blog/website community is likely there because they all subscribe to a certain set of interests or views, at least you know that if you're going to a big one you're probably getting the very best and most cohesive expression of those concepts. It may not make them right, but it adds value to them as a tool for educating yourself. Aggregates also will provide a balance to the problem that 1 or 2 of every group of 50 people will actually be more accurate than the group at guessing the number of marbles... but only in that one specific trial. If you follow one blogger religiously you are susceptible to their blind spots and moments where they were simply wrong. If you follow a collection of sites and blogs you will be exposed to the correct answers to most questions; whether you realize which is the correct answer is up to you haha. [[User:AlexLE\|AlexLE]] 14:04, 19 March 2012 (UTC)		I like the connection between the reality of crowd intelligence in "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" or marble-jar guessing and the concept of blog aggregates and online communities. It seems like this is a good argument against the dangers of cocooning at some levels. While a given blog/website community is likely there because they all subscribe to a certain set of interests or views, at least you know that if you're going to a big one you're probably getting the very best and most cohesive expression of those concepts. It may not make them right, but it adds value to them as a tool for educating yourself. Aggregates also will provide a balance to the problem that 1 or 2 of every group of 50 people will actually be more accurate than the group at guessing the number of marbles... but only in that one specific trial. If you follow one blogger religiously you are susceptible to their blind spots and moments where they were simply wrong. If you follow a collection of sites and blogs you will be exposed to the correct answers to most questions; whether you realize which is the correct answer is up to you haha. [[User:AlexLE\|AlexLE]] 14:04, 19 March 2012 (UTC)

			The level of expertise and information distributed through these channels of information is a consideration. In addition, cultural norms may also stand against the validity and movement towards adopting thoughts. For instance, a group of trained skeptics may be much more wary of early information that has not be substantiated. Whereas another group that relates to each other on a more communicative or trust-base dynamics may adopt 'truths' on the simple notion that one or two group members have accepted these 'facts' as 'truths'. I almost feel like to be ethically solid, blogs should have disclaimers and opinion makers should remind their audience, they are voicing their opinion -- just to maintain neutrality and fairness of information filtering. Might get cumbersome though. [[User: Harvard212\|Harvard212]] 15:23, 8 May 2012 EST

	The articles that we had to read for this week were very interesting to me. I really enjoyed how the first article focused on statistics regarding various experiments and “Who wants to be a millionaire”, a program which I personally loved watching. Even though I respect and find very interesting the point made regarding the percentages being higher and closer to the correct answer for groups and less accurate for individuals, I don’t agree. Math and Statistics aren’t my field and I must admit that I’m not very good at any of them but I feel off the top of my head that it is quite obvious that a group would obtain a higher and more accurate score than an individual because the general population or “average Joe” is likely to get fairly close to the right answer which can be higher or lower but of course adding all the higher scores to the lower ones, I find it to be mathematically obvious that we shall obtain an approximately correct average score. Therefore this being said I find the “Condorcet Jury Theorem”, mentioned in the third article to pretty much respect my personal opinion on the subject. In conclusion I very much enjoyed these articles and I find that in some way these theories emphasizing on group work and force are exactly what Democracy is about. [[User:Emanuele\|Emanuele]] 18:12, 19 March 2012 (UTC)		The articles that we had to read for this week were very interesting to me. I really enjoyed how the first article focused on statistics regarding various experiments and “Who wants to be a millionaire”, a program which I personally loved watching. Even though I respect and find very interesting the point made regarding the percentages being higher and closer to the correct answer for groups and less accurate for individuals, I don’t agree. Math and Statistics aren’t my field and I must admit that I’m not very good at any of them but I feel off the top of my head that it is quite obvious that a group would obtain a higher and more accurate score than an individual because the general population or “average Joe” is likely to get fairly close to the right answer which can be higher or lower but of course adding all the higher scores to the lower ones, I find it to be mathematically obvious that we shall obtain an approximately correct average score. Therefore this being said I find the “Condorcet Jury Theorem”, mentioned in the third article to pretty much respect my personal opinion on the subject. In conclusion I very much enjoyed these articles and I find that in some way these theories emphasizing on group work and force are exactly what Democracy is about. [[User:Emanuele\|Emanuele]] 18:12, 19 March 2012 (UTC)

Cfleming27: /* Class Discussion */

2012-03-28T15:34:39Z

Class Discussion

← Older revision		Revision as of 15:34, 28 March 2012
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	Finding knowledge through the collective crowd is an interesting question to pose given that there will usually be polarizing figures in any collective argument who will sway the "middle" (a group which should constitute the heavy majority of the crowd and which does not automatically invoke polarizing arguments) and which leads to mixed results much of the time (since they do not constitute anything more than a sophistication of passionate arguments). I agree with Sunstein that public debates and this polarization often leads to a distortion of the "middle" consensus (which is quite evident in the political sphere). The direction of constructive collective knowledge must come through a middle-of-the-road movement in which the polarized voices are either dampened in respect to their numbers, or received with a certain level of skepticism that comes with some challenge from the opposing side of the argument during its reception. Collective knowledge must only come from those who can separate a charismatic or loud argument from the polarized voices which can dictate the debate through techniques common to winning all types of debates...--[[User:Jimmyh\|Jimmyh]] 00:20, 21 March 2012 (UTC)		Finding knowledge through the collective crowd is an interesting question to pose given that there will usually be polarizing figures in any collective argument who will sway the "middle" (a group which should constitute the heavy majority of the crowd and which does not automatically invoke polarizing arguments) and which leads to mixed results much of the time (since they do not constitute anything more than a sophistication of passionate arguments). I agree with Sunstein that public debates and this polarization often leads to a distortion of the "middle" consensus (which is quite evident in the political sphere). The direction of constructive collective knowledge must come through a middle-of-the-road movement in which the polarized voices are either dampened in respect to their numbers, or received with a certain level of skepticism that comes with some challenge from the opposing side of the argument during its reception. Collective knowledge must only come from those who can separate a charismatic or loud argument from the polarized voices which can dictate the debate through techniques common to winning all types of debates...--[[User:Jimmyh\|Jimmyh]] 00:20, 21 March 2012 (UTC)

			The article, "The Wisdom of Crowds': Problem Solving Is a Team Sport", painted an excellent picture of the contrast between certain views that crowds may have "mob mentality" or may be sources of true wisdom. Crowdsourcing is clearly and excellent resource for gaining data, extracting innovative ideas and for engaging the public at large for collaborative projects. All of which may yield greater results than certain activities or projects performed in isolation. Others question, however, the limits of crowdsourcing regarding certain projects or sectors. Foreign policy and politics have become recent areas for debate as to whether crowd sourcing would be effective and reliable. In certain instances, some argue that crowd sourcing would add great value in that the population, and not a select few, would influence policy and action. In other instances, like those which require in depth knwoledge of highly sensitive data, others have argued that crowdsourcing may be unreliable because crowds may not have the level of understanding of complex issues. Time will tell as to how our generation best harnesses the power of crowdsourcing so that it may be best utilized to provide reliable, effective input for policy. [[User:Cfleming27\|Cfleming27]] 11:33, 28 March 2012 (UTC)

	== Links ==		== Links ==

Just Johnny: /* Class Discussion */

2012-03-27T17:58:16Z

Class Discussion

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:58, 27 March 2012
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	I don't know if I completely agree with Sunstein or Surowiecki's suggestions entirely, though. I think that in certain situations leaders develop and then it simply becomes a game of following the leader for the group. And that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think that, collectively society is becoming a much richer place to engage in and is not just exposing someone to something they might not otherwise know about. And I witness this shift primarily across generations with knowledge differences. For example, something I may assume is common within pop culture knowledge is unheard of by my mother and her generation.		I don't know if I completely agree with Sunstein or Surowiecki's suggestions entirely, though. I think that in certain situations leaders develop and then it simply becomes a game of following the leader for the group. And that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think that, collectively society is becoming a much richer place to engage in and is not just exposing someone to something they might not otherwise know about. And I witness this shift primarily across generations with knowledge differences. For example, something I may assume is common within pop culture knowledge is unheard of by my mother and her generation.

	I do think that Habermas adds an interesting idea in that it is the quality of the idea which is more important than the individual. To a certain degree, this is mostly how I conduct myself when people ask me my opinion about a certain topic. I will contend for an idea. I’m not interested in what I believe in, more so than the idea. Primarily, as a student I am concerned with exploring ideas, and then there is the style placed on top of that – which is what I think many people have a hard time discerning. Sometimes I will play the devil’s advocate on a subject of debate, because I understand that an idea is not about me – I am just a transporter of that knowledge, which has nothing to do with me personally. For example, most of my work here at Harvard has been based around ideas, not my personal beliefs. I could care less what I actually believe about a subject. What I am concerned about is ideas. Personally, I have no personal beliefs about what it is I'm working on. I work on a project, using the idea as the base and then overlay a style. Aesthetics are really a lot of fun to play around with. Although, I do think that ideas do not always become common knowledge amongst the collective. This is because crowds can be influenced by the leader. In the case of mass media, MTV will dictate the idea, and then teenagers will simply follow it. Then individuals fit into simple categorical groupings.		I do think that Habermas adds an interesting idea in that it is the quality of the idea which is more important than the individual. To a certain degree, this is mostly how I conduct myself when people ask me my opinion about a certain topic. I will contend for an idea. I’m not interested in what I believe in, more so than the idea. Primarily, as a student I am concerned with exploring ideas, and then there is the style placed on top of that – which is what I think many people have a hard time discerning. Sometimes I will play the devil’s advocate on a subject of debate, because I understand that an idea is not about me – I am just a transporter of that knowledge, which has nothing to do with me personally. For example, most of my work here at Harvard has been based around ideas, not my personal beliefs. I could care less what I actually believe about a subject. What I am concerned about is ideas. Personally, I have no personal beliefs about what it is I'm working on. I work on a project, using the idea as the base and then overlay a style. Aesthetics are really a lot of fun to play around with. That is not to say that I am not interested in generating my own original ideas. However, as a student my role is primarily to learn the material. Although, I do think that ideas do not always become common knowledge amongst the collective. This is because crowds can be influenced by the leader. In the case of mass media, MTV will dictate the idea, and then teenagers will simply follow it. Then individuals fit into simple categorical groupings.

	Zuckerman's comments on Republic.com seem to suggest that collective decision making, through mass consumerism, is a good thing in that it makes people feel more connected.		Zuckerman's comments on Republic.com seem to suggest that collective decision making, through mass consumerism, is a good thing in that it makes people feel more connected.

Just Johnny: /* Class Discussion */

2012-03-27T17:38:25Z

Class Discussion

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:38, 27 March 2012
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	I don't know if I completely agree with Sunstein or Surowiecki's suggestions entirely, though. I think that in certain situations leaders develop and then it simply becomes a game of following the leader for the group. And that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think that, collectively society is becoming a much richer place to engage in and is not just exposing someone to something they might not otherwise know about. And I witness this shift primarily across generations with knowledge differences. For example, something I may assume is common within pop culture knowledge is unheard of by my mother and her generation.		I don't know if I completely agree with Sunstein or Surowiecki's suggestions entirely, though. I think that in certain situations leaders develop and then it simply becomes a game of following the leader for the group. And that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think that, collectively society is becoming a much richer place to engage in and is not just exposing someone to something they might not otherwise know about. And I witness this shift primarily across generations with knowledge differences. For example, something I may assume is common within pop culture knowledge is unheard of by my mother and her generation.

	I do think that Habermas adds an interesting idea in that it is the quality of the idea which is more important than the individual. To a certain degree, this is mostly how I conduct myself when people ask me my opinion about a certain topic. I will contend for an idea. I’m not interested in what I believe in, more so than the idea. Primarily, as a student I am concerned with exploring ideas, and then there is the style placed on top of that – which is what I think many people have a hard time discerning. Sometimes I will play the devil’s advocate on a subject of debate, because I understand that an idea is not about me – I am just a transporter of that knowledge, which has nothing to do with me personally. For example, most of my work here at Harvard has been based around ideas, not my personal beliefs. Personally, I have no personal beliefs about what it is I'm working on. I work on a project, using the idea as the base and then overlay a style. Aesthetics are really a lot of fun to play around with. Although, I do think that ideas do not always become common knowledge amongst the collective. This is because crowds can be influenced by the leader. In the case of mass media, MTV will dictate the idea, and then teenagers will simply follow it. Then individuals fit into simple categorical groupings.		I do think that Habermas adds an interesting idea in that it is the quality of the idea which is more important than the individual. To a certain degree, this is mostly how I conduct myself when people ask me my opinion about a certain topic. I will contend for an idea. I’m not interested in what I believe in, more so than the idea. Primarily, as a student I am concerned with exploring ideas, and then there is the style placed on top of that – which is what I think many people have a hard time discerning. Sometimes I will play the devil’s advocate on a subject of debate, because I understand that an idea is not about me – I am just a transporter of that knowledge, which has nothing to do with me personally. For example, most of my work here at Harvard has been based around ideas, not my personal beliefs. I could care less what I actually believe about a subject. What I am concerned about is ideas. Personally, I have no personal beliefs about what it is I'm working on. I work on a project, using the idea as the base and then overlay a style. Aesthetics are really a lot of fun to play around with. Although, I do think that ideas do not always become common knowledge amongst the collective. This is because crowds can be influenced by the leader. In the case of mass media, MTV will dictate the idea, and then teenagers will simply follow it. Then individuals fit into simple categorical groupings.

	Zuckerman's comments on Republic.com seem to suggest that collective decision making, through mass consumerism, is a good thing in that it makes people feel more connected.		Zuckerman's comments on Republic.com seem to suggest that collective decision making, through mass consumerism, is a good thing in that it makes people feel more connected.

Just Johnny: /* Class Discussion */

2012-03-27T17:36:40Z

Class Discussion

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:36, 27 March 2012
Line 35:		Line 35:
	I don't know if I completely agree with Sunstein or Surowiecki's suggestions entirely, though. I think that in certain situations leaders develop and then it simply becomes a game of following the leader for the group. And that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think that, collectively society is becoming a much richer place to engage in and is not just exposing someone to something they might not otherwise know about. And I witness this shift primarily across generations with knowledge differences. For example, something I may assume is common within pop culture knowledge is unheard of by my mother and her generation.		I don't know if I completely agree with Sunstein or Surowiecki's suggestions entirely, though. I think that in certain situations leaders develop and then it simply becomes a game of following the leader for the group. And that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think that, collectively society is becoming a much richer place to engage in and is not just exposing someone to something they might not otherwise know about. And I witness this shift primarily across generations with knowledge differences. For example, something I may assume is common within pop culture knowledge is unheard of by my mother and her generation.

	I do think that Habermas adds an interesting idea in that it is the quality of the idea which is more important than the individual. To a certain degree, this is mostly how I conduct myself when people ask me my opinion about a certain topic. I will contend for an idea. I’m not interested in what I believe in, more so than the idea. Primarily, as a student I am concerned with exploring ideas, and then there is the style placed on top of that – which is what I think many people have a hard time discerning. Sometimes I will play the devil’s advocate on a subject of debate, because I understand that an idea is not about me – I am just a transporter of that knowledge, which has nothing to do with me personally. For example, most of my work here at Harvard has been based around ideas, not my personal beliefs. I work on a project, using the idea as the base and then overlay a style. Aesthetics are really a lot of fun to play around with. Although, I do think that ideas do not always become common knowledge amongst the collective. This is because crowds can be influenced by the leader. In the case of mass media, MTV will dictate the idea, and then teenagers will simply follow it. Then individuals fit into simple categorical groupings.		I do think that Habermas adds an interesting idea in that it is the quality of the idea which is more important than the individual. To a certain degree, this is mostly how I conduct myself when people ask me my opinion about a certain topic. I will contend for an idea. I’m not interested in what I believe in, more so than the idea. Primarily, as a student I am concerned with exploring ideas, and then there is the style placed on top of that – which is what I think many people have a hard time discerning. Sometimes I will play the devil’s advocate on a subject of debate, because I understand that an idea is not about me – I am just a transporter of that knowledge, which has nothing to do with me personally. For example, most of my work here at Harvard has been based around ideas, not my personal beliefs. Personally, I have no personal beliefs about what it is I'm working on. I work on a project, using the idea as the base and then overlay a style. Aesthetics are really a lot of fun to play around with. Although, I do think that ideas do not always become common knowledge amongst the collective. This is because crowds can be influenced by the leader. In the case of mass media, MTV will dictate the idea, and then teenagers will simply follow it. Then individuals fit into simple categorical groupings.

	Zuckerman's comments on Republic.com seem to suggest that collective decision making, through mass consumerism, is a good thing in that it makes people feel more connected.		Zuckerman's comments on Republic.com seem to suggest that collective decision making, through mass consumerism, is a good thing in that it makes people feel more connected.

Just Johnny: /* Class Discussion */

2012-03-27T17:34:07Z

Class Discussion

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:34, 27 March 2012
Line 35:		Line 35:
	I don't know if I completely agree with Sunstein or Surowiecki's suggestions entirely, though. I think that in certain situations leaders develop and then it simply becomes a game of following the leader for the group. And that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think that, collectively society is becoming a much richer place to engage in and is not just exposing someone to something they might not otherwise know about. And I witness this shift primarily across generations with knowledge differences. For example, something I may assume is common within pop culture knowledge is unheard of by my mother and her generation.		I don't know if I completely agree with Sunstein or Surowiecki's suggestions entirely, though. I think that in certain situations leaders develop and then it simply becomes a game of following the leader for the group. And that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think that, collectively society is becoming a much richer place to engage in and is not just exposing someone to something they might not otherwise know about. And I witness this shift primarily across generations with knowledge differences. For example, something I may assume is common within pop culture knowledge is unheard of by my mother and her generation.

	I do think that Habermas adds an interesting idea in that it is the quality of the idea which is more important than the individual. To a certain degree, this is mostly how I conduct myself when people ask me my opinion about a certain topic. I will contend for an idea. I’m not interested in what I believe in, more so than the idea. Primarily, as a student I am concerned with exploring ideas, and then there is the style placed on top of that – which is what I think many people have a hard time discerning. Sometimes I will play the devil’s advocate on a subject of debate, because I understand that an idea is not about me – I am just a transporter of that knowledge, which has nothing to do with me personally. For example, most of my work here at Harvard has been based around ideas, not my personal beliefs. I work on a project, using the idea s the base and then overlay a style. Aesthetics are really a lot of fun to play around with. Although, I do think that ideas do not always become common knowledge amongst the collective. This is because crowds can be influenced by the leader. In the case of mass media, MTV will dictate the idea, and then teenagers will simply follow it. Then individuals fit into simple categorical groupings.		I do think that Habermas adds an interesting idea in that it is the quality of the idea which is more important than the individual. To a certain degree, this is mostly how I conduct myself when people ask me my opinion about a certain topic. I will contend for an idea. I’m not interested in what I believe in, more so than the idea. Primarily, as a student I am concerned with exploring ideas, and then there is the style placed on top of that – which is what I think many people have a hard time discerning. Sometimes I will play the devil’s advocate on a subject of debate, because I understand that an idea is not about me – I am just a transporter of that knowledge, which has nothing to do with me personally. For example, most of my work here at Harvard has been based around ideas, not my personal beliefs. I work on a project, using the idea as the base and then overlay a style. Aesthetics are really a lot of fun to play around with. Although, I do think that ideas do not always become common knowledge amongst the collective. This is because crowds can be influenced by the leader. In the case of mass media, MTV will dictate the idea, and then teenagers will simply follow it. Then individuals fit into simple categorical groupings.

	Zuckerman's comments on Republic.com seem to suggest that collective decision making, through mass consumerism, is a good thing in that it makes people feel more connected.		Zuckerman's comments on Republic.com seem to suggest that collective decision making, through mass consumerism, is a good thing in that it makes people feel more connected.

Just Johnny: /* Class Discussion */

2012-03-27T17:33:22Z

Class Discussion

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:33, 27 March 2012
Line 35:		Line 35:
	I don't know if I completely agree with Sunstein or Surowiecki's suggestions entirely, though. I think that in certain situations leaders develop and then it simply becomes a game of following the leader for the group. And that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think that, collectively society is becoming a much richer place to engage in and is not just exposing someone to something they might not otherwise know about. And I witness this shift primarily across generations with knowledge differences. For example, something I may assume is common within pop culture knowledge is unheard of by my mother and her generation.		I don't know if I completely agree with Sunstein or Surowiecki's suggestions entirely, though. I think that in certain situations leaders develop and then it simply becomes a game of following the leader for the group. And that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think that, collectively society is becoming a much richer place to engage in and is not just exposing someone to something they might not otherwise know about. And I witness this shift primarily across generations with knowledge differences. For example, something I may assume is common within pop culture knowledge is unheard of by my mother and her generation.

	I do think that Habermas adds an interesting idea in that it is the quality of the idea which is more important than the individual. To a certain degree, this is mostly how I conduct myself when people ask me my opinion about a certain topic. I will contend for an idea. I’m not interested in what I believe in, more so than the idea. Primarily, as a student I am concerned with exploring ideas, and then there is the style placed on top of that – which is what I think many people have a hard time discerning. Sometimes I will play the devil’s advocate on a subject of debate, because I understand that an idea is not about me – I am just a transporter of that knowledge, which has nothing to do with me personally. Although, I do think that ideas do not always become common knowledge amongst the collective. This is because crowds can be influenced by the leader. In the case of mass media, MTV will dictate the idea, and then teenagers will simply follow it. Then individuals fit into simple categorical groupings.		I do think that Habermas adds an interesting idea in that it is the quality of the idea which is more important than the individual. To a certain degree, this is mostly how I conduct myself when people ask me my opinion about a certain topic. I will contend for an idea. I’m not interested in what I believe in, more so than the idea. Primarily, as a student I am concerned with exploring ideas, and then there is the style placed on top of that – which is what I think many people have a hard time discerning. Sometimes I will play the devil’s advocate on a subject of debate, because I understand that an idea is not about me – I am just a transporter of that knowledge, which has nothing to do with me personally. For example, most of my work here at Harvard has been based around ideas, not my personal beliefs. I work on a project, using the idea s the base and then overlay a style. Aesthetics are really a lot of fun to play around with. Although, I do think that ideas do not always become common knowledge amongst the collective. This is because crowds can be influenced by the leader. In the case of mass media, MTV will dictate the idea, and then teenagers will simply follow it. Then individuals fit into simple categorical groupings.

	Zuckerman's comments on Republic.com seem to suggest that collective decision making, through mass consumerism, is a good thing in that it makes people feel more connected.		Zuckerman's comments on Republic.com seem to suggest that collective decision making, through mass consumerism, is a good thing in that it makes people feel more connected.

Just Johnny: /* Class Discussion */

2012-03-27T17:30:27Z

Class Discussion

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:30, 27 March 2012
Line 35:		Line 35:
	I don't know if I completely agree with Sunstein or Surowiecki's suggestions entirely, though. I think that in certain situations leaders develop and then it simply becomes a game of following the leader for the group. And that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think that, collectively society is becoming a much richer place to engage in and is not just exposing someone to something they might not otherwise know about. And I witness this shift primarily across generations with knowledge differences. For example, something I may assume is common within pop culture knowledge is unheard of by my mother and her generation.		I don't know if I completely agree with Sunstein or Surowiecki's suggestions entirely, though. I think that in certain situations leaders develop and then it simply becomes a game of following the leader for the group. And that isn't necessarily a bad thing. I think that, collectively society is becoming a much richer place to engage in and is not just exposing someone to something they might not otherwise know about. And I witness this shift primarily across generations with knowledge differences. For example, something I may assume is common within pop culture knowledge is unheard of by my mother and her generation.

	I do think that Habermas adds an interesting idea in that it is the quality of the idea which is more important than the individual. To a certain degree, this is mostly how I conduct myself when people ask me my opinion about a certain topic. I will contend for an idea. Although, I do think that ideas do not always become common knowledge amongst the collective. This is because crowds can be influenced by the leader. In the case of mass media, MTV will dictate the idea, and then teenagers will simply follow it.		I do think that Habermas adds an interesting idea in that it is the quality of the idea which is more important than the individual. To a certain degree, this is mostly how I conduct myself when people ask me my opinion about a certain topic. I will contend for an idea. I’m not interested in what I believe in, more so than the idea. Primarily, as a student I am concerned with exploring ideas, and then there is the style placed on top of that – which is what I think many people have a hard time discerning. Sometimes I will play the devil’s advocate on a subject of debate, because I understand that an idea is not about me – I am just a transporter of that knowledge, which has nothing to do with me personally. Although, I do think that ideas do not always become common knowledge amongst the collective. This is because crowds can be influenced by the leader. In the case of mass media, MTV will dictate the idea, and then teenagers will simply follow it. Then individuals fit into simple categorical groupings.

	Zuckerman's comments on Republic.com seem to suggest that collective decision making, through mass consumerism, is a good thing in that it makes people feel more connected.		Zuckerman's comments on Republic.com seem to suggest that collective decision making, through mass consumerism, is a good thing in that it makes people feel more connected.

← Older revision		Revision as of 19:23, 8 May 2012
Line 59:		Line 59:
	When I think of a very intelligent individual or genius, I think of my lab principal investigator, who has the ability to lead his lab members and make important decisions. However, he would have not made an informed decision without hearing the lab members deliberate. [[User:Qdang\|Qdang]] 15:52, 19 March 2012 (UTC)		When I think of a very intelligent individual or genius, I think of my lab principal investigator, who has the ability to lead his lab members and make important decisions. However, he would have not made an informed decision without hearing the lab members deliberate. [[User:Qdang\|Qdang]] 15:52, 19 March 2012 (UTC)

			Qdang raised an interesting idea of group intelligence. At the same time, group think can be counter-productive. The question to ask is how to move forward with collective speed and vigor, yet not work the group into isolated silos that are irrelevant to surrounds or reality. [[User: Harvard212\|Harvard212]] 15:18, 8 May 2012 EST

	I like the connection between the reality of crowd intelligence in "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" or marble-jar guessing and the concept of blog aggregates and online communities. It seems like this is a good argument against the dangers of cocooning at some levels. While a given blog/website community is likely there because they all subscribe to a certain set of interests or views, at least you know that if you're going to a big one you're probably getting the very best and most cohesive expression of those concepts. It may not make them right, but it adds value to them as a tool for educating yourself. Aggregates also will provide a balance to the problem that 1 or 2 of every group of 50 people will actually be more accurate than the group at guessing the number of marbles... but only in that one specific trial. If you follow one blogger religiously you are susceptible to their blind spots and moments where they were simply wrong. If you follow a collection of sites and blogs you will be exposed to the correct answers to most questions; whether you realize which is the correct answer is up to you haha. [[User:AlexLE\|AlexLE]] 14:04, 19 March 2012 (UTC)		I like the connection between the reality of crowd intelligence in "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" or marble-jar guessing and the concept of blog aggregates and online communities. It seems like this is a good argument against the dangers of cocooning at some levels. While a given blog/website community is likely there because they all subscribe to a certain set of interests or views, at least you know that if you're going to a big one you're probably getting the very best and most cohesive expression of those concepts. It may not make them right, but it adds value to them as a tool for educating yourself. Aggregates also will provide a balance to the problem that 1 or 2 of every group of 50 people will actually be more accurate than the group at guessing the number of marbles... but only in that one specific trial. If you follow one blogger religiously you are susceptible to their blind spots and moments where they were simply wrong. If you follow a collection of sites and blogs you will be exposed to the correct answers to most questions; whether you realize which is the correct answer is up to you haha. [[User:AlexLE\|AlexLE]] 14:04, 19 March 2012 (UTC)

			The level of expertise and information distributed through these channels of information is a consideration. In addition, cultural norms may also stand against the validity and movement towards adopting thoughts. For instance, a group of trained skeptics may be much more wary of early information that has not be substantiated. Whereas another group that relates to each other on a more communicative or trust-base dynamics may adopt 'truths' on the simple notion that one or two group members have accepted these 'facts' as 'truths'. I almost feel like to be ethically solid, blogs should have disclaimers and opinion makers should remind their audience, they are voicing their opinion -- just to maintain neutrality and fairness of information filtering. Might get cumbersome though. [[User: Harvard212\|Harvard212]] 15:23, 8 May 2012 EST

	The articles that we had to read for this week were very interesting to me. I really enjoyed how the first article focused on statistics regarding various experiments and “Who wants to be a millionaire”, a program which I personally loved watching. Even though I respect and find very interesting the point made regarding the percentages being higher and closer to the correct answer for groups and less accurate for individuals, I don’t agree. Math and Statistics aren’t my field and I must admit that I’m not very good at any of them but I feel off the top of my head that it is quite obvious that a group would obtain a higher and more accurate score than an individual because the general population or “average Joe” is likely to get fairly close to the right answer which can be higher or lower but of course adding all the higher scores to the lower ones, I find it to be mathematically obvious that we shall obtain an approximately correct average score. Therefore this being said I find the “Condorcet Jury Theorem”, mentioned in the third article to pretty much respect my personal opinion on the subject. In conclusion I very much enjoyed these articles and I find that in some way these theories emphasizing on group work and force are exactly what Democracy is about. [[User:Emanuele\|Emanuele]] 18:12, 19 March 2012 (UTC)		The articles that we had to read for this week were very interesting to me. I really enjoyed how the first article focused on statistics regarding various experiments and “Who wants to be a millionaire”, a program which I personally loved watching. Even though I respect and find very interesting the point made regarding the percentages being higher and closer to the correct answer for groups and less accurate for individuals, I don’t agree. Math and Statistics aren’t my field and I must admit that I’m not very good at any of them but I feel off the top of my head that it is quite obvious that a group would obtain a higher and more accurate score than an individual because the general population or “average Joe” is likely to get fairly close to the right answer which can be higher or lower but of course adding all the higher scores to the lower ones, I find it to be mathematically obvious that we shall obtain an approximately correct average score. Therefore this being said I find the “Condorcet Jury Theorem”, mentioned in the third article to pretty much respect my personal opinion on the subject. In conclusion I very much enjoyed these articles and I find that in some way these theories emphasizing on group work and force are exactly what Democracy is about. [[User:Emanuele\|Emanuele]] 18:12, 19 March 2012 (UTC)