TLDR 119

Too Long; Didn't Read Issue 119

Published: 2017-10-14 • 📧 Newsletter

Welcome all. Issue 119 is all about rethinking the bare necessities, the simple bare necessities.

Feel free to share with someone that you believe would benefit. If you haven't already, please subscribe to make sure this comes to your inbox each week. You can review archives of the newsletter or on Medium.

This week I posted the following:

Using constraints to build creative confidence & divergent thinking - This post unpacks some of the ways to inject constraints, or limitations into the learning process to support creativity and design thinking.
Video: Creating student constructed quizzes using Google Forms
Stop motion animation, creativity, & divergent thinking - This week I presented at the South Carolina Association of Teacher Educators on the research we conducted this past summer. You can view the slides from the research presentation here, and the stop motion animation presentation here.

Feel free to keep in touch by sending me a note at hello@wiobyrne.com or on the socials at wiobyrne.

🔖 Key Takeaways

Why Don't We Speak Up: I think there is an opportunity to show this video in a secondary or higher ed classroom and spark some discussion about why we don't speak up for individuals online when we would normally say something in real life.
Real Question Should Be: I'm starting to think the real question should be about how these devices are monopolizing our attention.
What Expectations Should We Have: As we engage in these digital and social spaces online, we're leaving behind a trail of breadcrumbs that are being scooped up and feed into algorithms. What expectations should we have as users? What should we be doing in our classrooms to address this?
I Believe These Actions: Facebook and Twitter decided to delete posts, tweets, ads, and comments on their social networks that were related to possible Russian interference and the investigations. I believe these actions are reprehensible. The Internet is the dominant text of our generation. This content exists in public spaces...even though it's digital. This is content that should be in the public domain.
This Is Why Children: This is why children need to learn logic, philosophy, algorithmic thinking, and coding. Automation is increasingly disrupting society. These vehicles are on the way, and they're turning philosophical debates and mind experiments into real world scenarios.
Recognized Same Patterns: I've recognized some of the same patterns of behavior in my son and started to think about how to embed these practices in his daily interactions...as well as the potential for it in classrooms.

📺 Watch

In Real Life #BeStrong

The recently launched In Real Life YouTube channel is labeled as an "offline experiment." The videos take bullying and trolling online comments and situate them IRL (in real life) by enacting them in coffee houses, restaurants, and parks. The effect is akin to the tv shows in which they have someone act badly in public, and then videotape the audience to see what would you do?

The video series provides links to organizations that spread news about bullying prevention. I haven't spent more time digging into the organization that is producing this content. It's hard to get to the root of who is creating these materials.

I think there is an opportunity to show this video in a secondary or higher ed classroom and spark some discussion about why we don't speak up for individuals online when we would normally say something in real life.

📚 Read

How smartphones hijack our minds

One of the questions that pops up frequently in regards to the effects of technology on society is the "is Google making us dumber" debate. This basically posits that we aren't thinking as deeply as we previously would because we can instantly find the answer to queries. I'm starting to think the real question should be about how these devices are monopolizing our attention.

This piece by Nicholas Carr pulls in research and does a good job of unpacking this potential area of focus. Definitely take some time to read this and let's keep an eye on this discussion.

The digital guru who helped Donald Trump to the presidency

I know it's hard, but I ask you to suspend some initial knee-jerk reactions when politics comes up in this story. I ask that you not think about candidates, policies, or any other factors. Let's just look at the use of these digital tools and spaces to spread a message.

As we engage in these digital and social spaces online, we're leaving behind a trail of breadcrumbs that are being scooped up and feed into algorithms. Big business can use this to target the perfect people to send ads about their specific product. This vast power to persuade was first built for advertisers, combining data about our internet use and psychological insights into how we think. It was used (and increasingly will be used) by political parties to spread messages and propaganda.

What expectations should we have as users? What should we be doing in our classrooms to address this?

You can read an alternative version of this story here.

As the investigation into the effects of social media into the 2016 U.S. elections continues, we're increasingly learning more about the use of these "dark ads" or targeted posts on most social networks and ad platforms.

Initially, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg came out and said that nothing inappropriate happened and his company wasn't used in swaying public opinion. This soon changed as Facebook (and Twitter, and Google) turned over materials to U.S. investigators. This week Facebook and Twitter decided to delete posts, tweets, ads, and comments on their social networks that were related to possible Russian interference and the investigations.

I believe these actions are reprehensible. The Internet is the dominant text of our generation. This content exists in public spaces...even though it's digital. This is content that should be in the public domain.

In this post, Pierre Omidyar indicates the six key areas in which these social networks are a threat to democratic ideals:

Echo chambers, polarization and hyper-partisanship
Spread of false or misleading information
Conflation of popularity with legitimacy
Political manipulation
Manipulation, micro-targeting and behavior change
Intolerance, exclusion and hate speech

Autonomous Mercedes will spare occupants over pedestrians

This is why children need to learn logic, philosophy, algorithmic thinking, and coding. Automation is increasingly disrupting society. These vehicles are on the way, and they're turning philosophical debates and mind experiments into real world scenarios.

This is also possibly a reason to buy a Mercedes...or make sure you don't live next to someone who does.

Also wondering if/when this (coding and algorithms) becomes a selling point of one vehicle over another.

Use "breathing buddies" to teach your kid self-control

I've written a lot about mindfulness and meditation and the impact it's had on my life. I've also recognized some of the same patterns of behavior in my son and started to think about how to embed these practices in his daily interactions...as well as the potential for it in classrooms.

This post from Lifehacker shares insight from Blissful Kids to get kids started in these habits. It's basically a series of deep breaths focusing on air entering the nose and filling the belly. The "buddy," or stuffed animal is a scaffold to get them focused on the breathing and calming the mind.

🔨 Do

Kitchen basics from Cooking with Babish

I've shared a lot of videos from the Binging with Babish channel on YouTube. This week he announced his new website/portal titled Basics With Babish. I think this is all paired with his new book that recently launched.

The first "episode" is all about essential kitchen tools. He lists all of the tools on this page.

I'm sharing this for several reasons. First, I think we should all learn how to cook. Having the right tools, is the first step. Second, I'm really intrigued by how Babish connected the YouTube channel to his book to his new website. Also interested in the series of "classes" it appears he is about to start rolling out. Stay tuned...and follow his lead as you create your own digital spaces.

🤔 Consider

"The key to success is action, and the essential in action is perseverance." — Sun Yat-Sen

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🌱 Connected Concepts:

Bystander Effect Online — "In Real Life" offline experiment enacts bullying and trolling comments in coffee houses and parks to reveal stark contrast: people speak up in person but stay silent online, providing opportunity to spark classroom discussion about why digital spaces disable our normal intervention instincts when witnessing harm.
Attention Monopolization — Nicholas Carr shifts debate from "is Google making us dumber" to more urgent question: how are smartphones monopolizing our attention, pulling in research showing devices don't just enable information access but fundamentally reshape cognitive patterns and capacity for sustained focus.
Political Micro-Targeting — Digital breadcrumbs left in online spaces feed algorithms creating vast power to persuade, first built for advertisers combining internet usage data with psychological insights, now weaponized by political parties to spread targeted messages and propaganda, requiring new expectations for users and classroom conversations about data trails.
Democracy Under Threat — Facebook and Twitter deleted posts/ads related to Russian interference investigations, which is reprehensible as Internet is dominant text requiring public domain access, with Pierre Omidyar identifying six threat areas: echo chambers, false information spread, popularity-legitimacy conflation, political manipulation, micro-targeting, and hate speech.
Algorithmic Ethics — Autonomous Mercedes decision to spare occupants over pedestrians turns philosophical trolley problem into real-world scenario, demonstrating why children need to learn logic, philosophy, algorithmic thinking, and coding as automation disrupts society and ethical decisions become embedded in vehicle code.

Part of the 📧 Newsletter archive documenting digital literacy and technology.