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Social Web Evolution:
Integrating Semantic Applications
and Web 2.0 Technologies
Miltiadis D. Lytras
Athens University of Economics & Business, Greece
Copyright © 2009 by IGI Global. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or distributed in any form or by
any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, without written permission from the publisher.
Product or company names used in this set are for identi.cation purposes only. Inclusion of the names of the products or companies does
not indicate a claim of ownership by IGI Global of the trademark or registered trademark.
Social web evolution : integrating semantic applications and Web 2.0 technologies / Miltiadis D. Lytras and Patricia Ordonez de Pablos,
editors.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-1-60566-272-5 (hardcover) -- ISBN 978-1-60566-273-2 (ebook) 1. Organizational learning. 2. Knowledge management. 3. Online
social networks. 4. Semantic Web. 5. Web 2.0. I. Lytras, Miltiadis D., 1973- II. Pablos, Patricia Ordonez de.
HD58.82.S66 2009
025.042’7--dc22
2008047729
All work contributed to this book is new, previously-unpublished material. The views expressed in this book are those of the authors, but not
necessarily of the publisher.
Social Web Evolution: Integrating Semantic Applications and Web 2.0 Technologies is part of the IGI Global series named Advances in
Semantic Web and Information Systems (ASWIS) Series, ISBN: 1935-3626
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the library's complimentary electronic access to this publication.
Advances in Semantic Web and Information Systems (ASWIS) Series
Editor-in-Chief: Miltiadis Lytras, Athens University of Economics and Business, Greece
ISBN: 1935-3626
Social Web Evolution: Integrating Semantic Applications and Web 2.0 Technologies
Edited By: Miltiadis D. Lytras, University of Patras, Greece; Patricia Ordonez de Pablos,
Universidad de Oviedo, Spain
~ CyberTech Publishing
~ ISBN: 1-59904-426-9
~ Copyright 2007
~ Hard Cover
~ Pages: 317
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Semantic Web Information Systems: State-of-the-Art Applications covers new semantic Web-enabled tools for
the citizen, learner, organization, and business. Real-world applications toward the development of the knowledge
society and semantic Web issues, challenges and implications in each of the IS research streams are included as vi-
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To the smiling longskater
- Patricia
Editorial Advisory Board
Chapter I
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace...................... 1
Anthony “Skip” Basiel, Middlesex University – IWBL, UK
Paul Coyne, Emerald Group Publishing Ltd, UK
Chapter II
Knowledge Producing Megamachines: The Biggest Web 2.0 Communities of the Future ................. 17
Laszlo Z. Karvalics, University of Szeged, Hungary
Chapter III
Web 2.0 Driven Sustainability Reporting.............................................................................................. 31
Daniel Süpke, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Germany
Jorge Marx Gómez, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Germany
Ralf Isenmann, Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research Karlsruhe, Germany
Chapter IV
Mailing Lists and Social Semantic Web................................................................................................ 42
Sergio Fernández, Fundación CTIC, Spain
Diego Berrueta, Fundación CTIC, Spain
Lian Shi, Fundación CTIC, Spain
Jose E. Labra, University of Oviedo, Spain
Patricia Ordóñez de Pablos, University of Oviedo, Spain
Chapter V
Web 2.0 Social Networking Sites.......................................................................................................... 57
D. Sandy Staples, Queens University, Canada
Chapter VI
Teachers’ Personal Knowledge Management in China Based Web 2.0 Technologies.......................... 76
Jingyuan Zhao, Harbin Institute of Technology, China
Chapter VII
CUSENT: Social Sentiment Analysis Using Semantics for Customer Feedback ................................ 89
Ángel García-Crespo, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain
Ricardo Colomo-Palacios, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain
Myriam Mencke, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain
Juan M. Gómez-Berbís, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain
Chapter VIII
Can Knowledge Management Assist Firms to Move from Traditional to E-Commerce:
The Case of Greek Firms..................................................................................................................... 102
Irene Samanta, Technological Education Institute of Piraeus, Greece
Chapter IX
Knowledge Management and Lifelong Learning in Archival Heritage: Digital Collections
on a Semantic Scope for Educational Potential .................................................................................. 116
Trianta.llia Kourtoumi, General State Archives of Greece, Greece
Chapter X
Application of Web 2.0 Technology for Clinical Training ................................................................. 132
Adela Lau, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, China
Eric Tsui, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, China
Chapter XI
Pattern Matching Techniques to Identify Syntactic Variations of Tags in Folksonomies . ................. 138
F. Echarte, Universidad Pública de Navarra, Spain
J. J. Astrain, Universidad Pública de Navarra, Spain
A. Córdoba, Universidad Pública de Navarra, Spain
J. Villadangos, Universidad Pública de Navarra, Spain
Chapter XII
Insights into the Impact of Social Networks on Evolutionary Games................................................. 150
Katia Sycara, Carnegie Mellon University, USA
Paul Scerri, Carnegie Mellon University, USA
Anton Chechetka, Carnegie Mellon University, USA
Chapter XIII
Application of Semantic Web Based on the Domain-Specific Ontology for Global KM................... 160
Jaehun Joo, Dongguk University, Korea
Sang M. Lee, University of Nebraska – Lincoln, USA
Yongil Jeong, Saltlux, Inc., Korea
Chapter XIV
Designing Online Learning Communities to Encourage Cooperation................................................ 177
Miranda Mowbray, HP Laboratories Bristol, UK
Chapter XV
Building Virtual Learning Communities............................................................................................. 192
Naomi Augar, Deakin University, Australia
Ruth Raitman, Deakin University, Australia
Elicia Lanham, Deakin University, Australia
Wanlei Zhou, Deakin University, Australia
Chapter XVI
Support Networks for Rural and Regional Communities.................................................................... 216
Tom Denison, Monash University, Australia
Chapter XVII
Building Virtual Communities through a De-Marginalized View of Knowledge Networking........... 233
Kam Hou Vat, University of Macau, Macau
Chapter XVIII
A Basis for the Semantic Web and E-Business: Efficient Organization of Ontology Languages
and Ontologies..................................................................................................................................... 249
Changqing Li, National University of Singapore, Singapore
Tok Wang Ling, National University of Singapore, Singapore
Chapter XIX
User-Centered Design Principles for Online Learning Communities: A Sociotechnical
Approach for the Design of a Distributed Community of Practice..................................................... 267
Ben K. Daniel, University of Saskatchewan, Canada
David O’Brien, University of Saskatchewan, Canada
Asit Sarkar, University of Saskatchewan, Canada
Index.................................................................................................................................................... 318
Detailed Table of Contents
Chapter I
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace...................... 1
Anthony “Skip” Basiel, Middlesex University – IWBL, UK
Paul Coyne, Emerald Group Publishing Ltd, UK
The authors of this chapter explore how professionals can network, collaborate and capture informal
learning in an online work-based environment. It addresses the pedagogical approaches that underpin
emerging Web 2.0 technological trends and provide recommendations for future use of such online
environments.
Chapter II
Knowledge Producing Megamachines: The Biggest Web 2.0 Communities of the Future ................. 17
Laszlo Z. Karvalics, University of Szeged, Hungary
This chapter addresses the control crisis of science whose resolution requires radical social innovation.
The only possible way for achieving this is the partial fusion of certain portions of scientific activity
with the system of public education, by means of organizing scientists, teachers, as well as middle and
highschool students into hybrid, knowledge producing mega-machines. The authors of the chapter sub-
sequently argue that doing so will at the same time bring about a pragmatic shift in public education, for
which professionals in the field of pedagogy have long been ready in principle and in theory.
Chapter III
Web 2.0 Driven Sustainability Reporting.............................................................................................. 31
Daniel Süpke, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Germany
Jorge Marx Gómez, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Germany
Ralf Isenmann, Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research Karlsruhe, Germany
Web 2.0 driven sustainability reporting describes an emerging digital approach powered through Web 2.0
technologies for companies communicating sustainability issues. Such a computer-based application of
semantics overcomes the limitations of orthodox methods and provides an array of specific capabilities
to improve sustainability communication both, for companies (reporters), and their various stakeholders
(report readers), that is, along interactivity, customisation ,and reporting à la carte, stakeholder dialogue,
and participation. This chapter gives an outline on this up-and-coming sustainability reporting approach
along three categories: (i) Media-specific trends in sustainability reporting are observed. (ii) New op-
portunities Web 2.0 technologies are offering for corporate sustainability reporting are identified. (iii)
The concept and implementation of a software tool for sustainability reporting à la carte is presented
making clear the movement away from early reporting stages towards the advanced one of a Web 2.0
driven approach.
Chapter IV
Mailing Lists and Social Semantic Web................................................................................................ 42
Sergio Fernández, Fundación CTIC, Spain
Diego Berrueta, Fundación CTIC, Spain
Lian Shi, Fundación CTIC, Spain
Jose E. Labra, University of Oviedo, Spain
Patricia Ordóñez de Pablos, University of Oviedo, Spain
Electronic Mailing lists are a key part of the Internet. They have enabled the development of social
communities who share and exchange knowledge in specialized and general domains. In this chapter
the authors describe methods to capture some of that knowledge which will enable the development of
new datasets using Semantic Web technologies. In particular, the authors present the SWAML project,
which collects data from mailing lists. The authors also describe smushing techniques that normalize
RDF datasets capturing different resources that identify the same one. They have applied those techniques
to identify persons through the mailing lists of open source communities. These techniques have been
tested using a dataset automatically extracted from several online open source communities.
Chapter V
Web 2.0 Social Networking Sites.......................................................................................................... 57
D. Sandy Staples, Queens University, Canada
This chapter describes one of the Web 2.0 technologies, Social Networking Sites (SNS). A definition of
SNS is offered, as is a short history of these sites. The existing research is reviewed and organized to
summarize what we know about SNS usage (from the perspectives of student use, general population
use and organizational use), and what people know about the antecedents and outcomes of SNS use.
The chapter concludes with discussion of new developments, challenges and opportunities. There are
many opportunities for future research and organizational applications of SNS as SNS adoption grows
at incredible rates.
Chapter VI
Teachers’ Personal Knowledge Management in China Based Web 2.0 Technologies.......................... 76
Jingyuan Zhao, Harbin Institute of Technology, China
Knowledge is taken as core competitive power in the current society. The teacher as an educational
operator often touch much knowledge, if they could manage knowledge efficiently, the work efficiency
will be increased greatly. To mine knowledge and make tacit knowledge explicit, teachers should manage
personal knowledge. By the survey of teachers’ personal knowledge management in China, the study finds
some problems in terms of Chinese teachers’ personal knowledge management, especially many Chinese
teachers are not good at making use of Web technologies to assist them on managing knowledge and
communicating with other teachers. One studying focus of Web 2.0 technologies is personal knowledge
management, and Web 2.0 provides a series of effective tools and platforms for personal knowledge
management. The chapter discusses on the concept of teachers’ personal knowledge management, and
presents the strategies of teachers’ personal knowledge management based Web 2.0 technologies, using
for reference for teachers’ personal knowledge management practice.
Chapter VII
CUSENT: Social Sentiment Analysis Using Semantics for Customer Feedback ................................ 89
Ángel García-Crespo, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain
Ricardo Colomo-Palacios, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain
Myriam Mencke, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain
Juan M. Gómez-Berbís, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid, Spain
The current chapter introduces CUSENT, a tool for semantics-enhanced sentiment analysis of customer
opinions expressed in corporate blogs. The research work presents the examination of emotions and
sentiments from the perspective of information systems, and, in particular, provides a review of the
principal efforts for the conceptualization of emotions and sentiments in texts. Subsequently, a descrip-
tion of the proposed architecture of the platform is outlined. The authors aim to contribute a solution
which automates the analysis of customer opinions in company blogs that relies on existing techniques,
but further exploits these methods to store and reuse customer feedback. The novel combination of
opinion mining with an ontology of emotions can thus be used in organizational creation and innova-
tion processes, which characterize the new forms of communication derived from the institutional and
commercial use of Web 2.0.
Chapter VIII
Can Knowledge Management Assist Firms to Move from Traditional to E-Commerce:
The Case of Greek Firms..................................................................................................................... 102
Irene Samanta, Technological Education Institute of Piraeus, Greece
This chapter is to define the firm’s innovative core and create frameworks to integrate innovation
throughout the management of knowledge by generating implementing ideas, strategies and plans ap-
plied that cultivate a thinking organization aims to associate innovation with business targets. It argues
that companies which manage and transform the knowledge effectively reap the rewards of scientific
and technological achievement in order to adopt innovation concept in their operation. Furthermore, the
author hope that firms understanding the information received from the current global business world and
transmit it to reap the rewards of scientific achievement will increase their competitiveness competition
not only for sales, but also for technical know – how and skills. At the company level depends on the
speed with which new products can be brought to the market place and on the importance of achieving
new cost – saving improvements.
Chapter IX
Knowledge Management and Lifelong Learning in Archival Heritage: Digital Collections
on a Semantic Scope for Educational Potential .................................................................................. 116
Triantafillia Kourtoumi, General State Archives of Greece, Greece
Archives have a key role to play in underpinning learning in its broadest sense, both as a formal activity
within an institution and informally within the community. This is becoming especially important in an
increasingly KM-based environment. This chapter provides an overview of technologies that can be ap-
plied to archival knowledge management. Furthermore, it assesses their actual or potential contribution to
the basic processes of knowledge sharing within archival organizations, with a focus on lifelong learning.
The scope of the first section (the screens) is to identify new developments that seem to be significant
and to relate them to technology research in the archival field. The second section (the frames) discusses
the concepts supporting digital collections by integrating collections of digitized archival resources to
create new services and infrastructures. The third section (the agendas) analyses-from the educational
perspective of lifelong learning-important social benefits, both quantitatively and qualitatively, of de-
veloping new infrastructures for accessing and using archival resources.
Chapter X
Application of Web 2.0 Technology for Clinical Training ................................................................. 132
Adela Lau, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, China
Eric Tsui, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, China
In clinical training, students plan, implement and evaluate their learning activities by themselves. They
apply theories and concepts in a real clinical environment and learn through social interaction and reflec-
tive thinking to experience, conceptualize, apply and create new knowledge to solve clinical problems.
Since students are sent to different clinical locations for training and are mentored on a one-to-one basis,
it is difficult for students to share their knowledge, make enquiries or interact with their peers and mentors
for social and reflective learning. Web 2.0 provides a collaborative and social interactive platform that
allows learners to exchange, share, acquire, codify, distribute, and disseminate knowledge. Its functions
and features are able to construct a virtual and distributed environment for learners to gather, filter and
update the knowledge over different internet sources. This paper thus aims to discuss the functions and
features of Web 2.0 technology and its applications to clinical training.
Chapter XI
Pattern Matching Techniques to Identify Syntactic Variations of Tags in Folksonomies . ................. 138
F. Echarte, Universidad Pública de Navarra, Spain
J. J. Astrain, Universidad Pública de Navarra, Spain
A. Córdoba, Universidad Pública de Navarra, Spain
J. Villadangos, Universidad Pública de Navarra, Spain
Folksonomies offer an easy method to organize information in the current Web. This fact and their col-
laborative features have derived in an extensive involvement in many Social Web projects. However
they present important drawbacks regarding their limited exploring and searching capabilities, in contrast
with other methods as taxonomies, thesauruses and ontologies. One of these drawbacks is an effect of
its flexibility for tagging, producing frequently multiple syntactic variations of a same tag. In this chap-
ter we study the application of two classical pattern matching techniques, Levenshtein distance for the
imperfect string matching and Hamming distance for the perfect string matching, to identify syntactic
variations of tags.
Chapter XII
Insights into the Impact of Social Networks on Evolutionary Games................................................. 150
Katia Sycara, Carnegie Mellon University, USA
Paul Scerri, Carnegie Mellon University, USA
Anton Chechetka, Carnegie Mellon University, USA
The chapter explores the use of evolutionary game theory (EGT) to model the dynamics of adaptive
opponent strategies for a large population of players. In particular, it explores effects of information
propagation through social networks in evolutionary games. The key underlying phenomenon that the
information diffusion aims to capture is that reasoning about the experiences of acquaintances can dra-
matically impact the dynamics of a society. The chapter presents experimental results from agent-based
simulations that show the impact of diffusion through social networks on the player strategies of an
evolutionary game and the sensitivity of the dynamics to features of the social network.
Chapter XIII
Application of Semantic Web Based on the Domain-Specific Ontology for Global KM................... 160
Jaehun Joo, Dongguk University, Korea
Sang M. Lee, University of Nebraska – Lincoln, USA
Yongil Jeong, Saltlux, Inc., Korea
This chapter introduces an application of the Semantic Web based on ontology to the tourism business.
Tourism business is one promising area for Semantic Web applications. To realize the potential of the
Semantic Web, we need to find a killer application of the Semantic Web in the knowledge management
(KM) area. The ontology as a key enabler is deigned and implemented under a framework of the Se-
mantic-Web-driven KM system in a tourism domain. Finally, we discussed the relationship between the
Semantic Web and KM processes.
Chapter XIV
Designing Online Learning Communities to Encourage Cooperation................................................ 177
Miranda Mowbray, HP Laboratories Bristol, UK
This chapter is concerned with how to design an online learning community in such a way as to encour-
age cooperation, and to discourage uncooperative or antisocial behavior. Rather than restricting design
to visual and interface issues, the author takes a wide view, touching on aspects of the governance,
social structure, moderation practices, and technical architecture of online learning communities. The
first half of the chapter discusses why people behave antisocially in online learning communities, and
ways to discourage this through design. The second half discusses why on the other hand people behave
cooperatively in online learning communities, and ways to encourage this through user-centered design,
applying some results of experiments in social psychology. The chapter is intended to be of practical
use to designers of online learning communities.
Chapter XV
Building Virtual Learning Communities............................................................................................. 192
Naomi Augar, Deakin University, Australia
Ruth Raitman, Deakin University, Australia
Elicia Lanham, Deakin University, Australia
Wanlei Zhou, Deakin University, Australia
This chapter introduces the concept of virtual learning communities and discusses and further enhances
the theory and definitions presented in related literature. A model comprising four criteria essential to
virtual learning communities is presented and discussed in detail. Theory and case studies relating to the
impact of virtual learning communities on distance education and students from diverse cultural groups
are also examined. In addition, this chapter investigates the enabling technologies and facilitation that
is required to build virtual learning communities. Other case studies are used to illustrate the process
of building virtual learning communities. Emerging technologies such as Wikis and video lectures are
also analysed to determine the effects they have on building and sustaining effective virtual learning
communities.
Chapter XVI
Support Networks for Rural and Regional Communities.................................................................... 216
Tom Denison, Monash University, Australia
Using a case study approach, this chapter examines the role of organizational networks in the success
and failure of information and communications technology projects. Within a framework informed by
the literature of information systems failure, the diffusion of innovation and social network analysis;
it argues that information systems projects must take into account the social context in which they are
implemented. To be successful such networks require a mix of extended and locally based support net-
works, because they provide access to much needed resources, including innovations, strategic advice,
training, and support at the appropriate level. It further argues that the people who are working in a
regional setting felt themselves to be in an extremely disadvantageous situation because they typically
lacked support from similar networks. The author hopes that highlighting the importance of such sup-
port networks will lead to a better understanding of systems failure and success, and will contribute to
improved policy formulation and practice.
Chapter XVII
Building Virtual Communities through a De-Marginalized View of Knowledge Networking........... 233
Kam Hou Vat, University of Macau, Macau
The chapter investigates an actionable context of knowledge networking, from the perspective of sus-
tainable development which should accommodate the building of communities in cyberspace so much
exemplified in today’s Internet and World Wide Web. The premise of this exploration is that members,
or participants, in any community are engaged in learning that is critical to the survival and reproduction
of that community. Through community participation, learners find and acquire models and have the
opportunity themselves to become models and apprentices of others. This investigation provides a basis
for thinking about the possibilities of a virtual community and the dynamics of its construction across a
variety of computer-based contexts. The design and refinement of technology as the conduit for extend-
ing and enhancing the possibilities of virtual community building is an essential issue, but the role of
the individuals as participants in such a community is as important. The idea of sustainable knowledge
networking is to bring about continual learning and change for the community in need. The emergent
challenge of such a mission is to demarginalize many of the non-technical issues of building virtual
communities for knowledge transfer and learning. The chapter concludes by reiterating the challenge
of expositing what it means to create an appropriate context of knowledge networking through which
purposeful actions can be supported with the elaboration of suitable information technologies.
Chapter XVIII
A Basis for the Semantic Web and E-Business: Efficient Organization of Ontology Languages
and Ontologies..................................................................................................................................... 249
Changqing Li, National University of Singapore, Singapore
Tok Wang Ling, National University of Singapore, Singapore
This chapter introduces how to effectively organize ontology languages and ontologies and how to
efficiently process semantic information based on ontologies. In this chapter the authors propose the
hierarchies to organize ontology languages and ontologies. Based on the hierarchy of ontology lan-
guages, the ontology designers need not bear in mind which ontology language the primitives exactly
come from, also we can automatically and seamlessly use the ontologies defined with different ontology
languages in an integrated environment. Based on the hierarchy of ontologies, the conflicts in different
ontologies are resolved, thus the semantics in different ontologies are clear without ambiguities. Also,
these semantic-clear ontologies can be used to efficiently process the semantic information in Semantic
Web and E-Business.
Chapter XIX
User-Centered Design Principles for Online Learning Communities: A Sociotechnical
Approach for the Design of a Distributed Community of Practice..................................................... 267
Ben K. Daniel, University of Saskatchewan, Canada
David O’Brien, University of Saskatchewan, Canada
Asit Sarkar, University of Saskatchewan, Canada
This chapter aims to introduce user-centered design and its basic concepts associated with online learning
communities. Another aim is to search for guidelines to ensure quality in online learning. Human-com-
puter interaction for education provides the missing holistic approach for online learning. Functioning
in a sociotechnical framework, online learning communities combine information and knowledge stores
situated in shared social spaces using social learning software. In recent years, educational technologists
linked theory and systems design in education. However, several disciplines combine in online learning.
User-centered design provides the cross-disciplinary approach that appears to be essential for quality in
online learning design and engineering. Thus, seven guidelines for experts’ evaluation are proposed as
signposts: intention, information, interactivity, real-time evaluation, visibility, control, and support.
Index.................................................................................................................................................... 318
xvii
Preface
As semantic technologies prove their value with targeted applications, there are increasing opportunities
to consider their application in social contexts for knowledge, learning, and human development.
Semantic Web and Knowledge Management has been accepted as a critical enabler aiming to in-
crease knowledge-related performance by better use of intellectual assets, in addition to which many
governments are forced to increasingly deal with knowledge services that form larger parts of the global
economy and society.
Thus there are recent examples of applications of semantics for empowering knowledge management
or better supporting knowledge services for social networks. In this edited book we explore the poten-
tial of Web 2.0 and its synergies with Semantic Web, and we provide the state of the art in theoretical
foundations and technological applications. In the context of Social Web Evolution, social and human
issues are of equal if not higher importance than the technical issues that have tended to receive the bulk
of attention in the past. Consequently, chapters that touch these aspects, or those that extend technical
and domain knowledge to social and human issues are especially sought. This is intended to initiate a
dialog between the social, psychological, and technical views of the field.
Web 2.0 is one of the hottest topics in Information Systems. Currently, the main discussion is empha-
sized on technologies while there is a great demand for editions that will analyze the business models
and business perspectives of the new generation Web. This book is one of the first attempts to discuss
in an integrated way the business implications of Web 2.0 and its linkage to business value.
Web 2.0, refers to a perceived or proposed second generation of Internet-based services—such as
social networking sites, Wikis, communication tools, mashups and folksonomies—that emphasize on
online collaboration and sharing among users.
Additionally we also include further readings of a complimentary nature to the contents of the rest of
our publication. As an added value to our readers, the further readings are to provide additional related
data in support of the book’s comprehensive concepts, principles and results, as well as studies that build
upon the appeal of this publication as a one-stop reference source.
We do not want to miss this opportunity to say thanks to IGI Global, and in particular to Jan Travers
and Kristin M. Klinger for giving us the opportunity to develop this book. Also thanks to all authors of
chapters, for their interest in collaborating in this book.
Miltiadis D. Lytras
Athens, Greece, October 2008
Chapter I
Exploring a Professional
Social Network System to
Support Learning in the
Workplace
Anthony “Skip” Basiel
Middlesex University – IWBL, UK
Paul Coyne
Emerald Group Publishing Ltd, UK
ABSTRACT
This chapter sets out to explore how professionals can network, collaborate and capture informal learning
in an online work-based environment. It addresses the pedagogical approaches that underpin emerging
Web 2.0 technological trends and provide recommendations for future use of such online environments.
Existing Virtual Learning Environments (VLEs) are primarily content driven with little provision for
social engagement and stakeholder-generated material. Similarly, many organisations have little or no
structure for facilitating online interaction in a work based learning context. Since 2006 Emerald Group
Publishing and the Middlesex Centre for Excellence in Work Based Learning have been partnering to
develop, test and implement an online platform that will support collaborative, interactive learning. This
link between Industry and Higher Education is critically reviewed. The InTouch (2008) platform was
incorporated into the syllabus for MCEWBL’s work-based Professional Practice BA Honours programme
in 2007 to support newly trained professionals as they worked through a professional development work
based learning programme. The pedagogical underpinning of the course was reflective, self-directed
Copyright © 2009, IGI Global, distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace
learning and the blog, Wiki and profiling tools provided had the potential to either contribute to this aim
or become a major part of how students construct their understanding of themselves in their professional
practice. Emerald and MCEWBL have been monitoring the adoption, use and challenges associated
with using Web 2.0 technology to support work based learning in order make recommendations about
future pedagogical frameworks and approaches. This platform and related online pedagogic principles
fills the gap between informal, free tools that provide little security or structure and heavyweight VLEs
that offer tutor-made content, but do not naturally support social interaction for learning. The chapter
provides some ideas and strategic options about implementing similar tools in other organisational
settings and provides frameworks to evaluate these options in line with existing resources and capabili-
ties. It concludes with an in-progress web-based learning design or ePedagogy that unifies the threads
of the online learning experience.
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace
the PSN, where possible, offers users the ability An intelligent and adaptive support system
to search across currently popular network sites provides end-users with the resources to engage
using a web services approach – e.g. OpenSocial, confidently with the network members and main-
OpenID, FaceBook, and Explode.us. tain motivation within the online community.
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace
explicitly in XML and RDF. Probably the best sons (authors, editors, and the like) with a string
known of these is the Friend of a Friend (FOAF) rather than with a reference to a resource. And
specification (Dumbill, 2002). Explicitly RDF, such strings are ambiguous; such strings do not
a FOAF description will include data elements uniquely identify a person (after all, how many
for personal information, such as one’s name, people named John Smith are there?) and they do
e-mail address, web site, and even one’s nearest not identify a location where more information
airport. FOAF also allows a person to list in the may be found (with the result that many speci-
same document a set of “friends” to whom the fications require that additional information be
individual feels connected. A similar initiative is contained in the resource description, resulting
the XHTML Friends Network (XFN) (GPMG, in, for example, the embedding of VCard infor-
2003). XFM involves the use of “rel” attributes mation in LOM files).
within links contained in a blogroll (a “blogroll”
is a list of web sites the owner of a Blog will post The Learning Organisation and
to indicate readership). Networks
Currently there is little in the way of personal
description in the semantic web. The vast majority A recent benchmark study from Nemertes Re-
of XML and RDF specifications identify per- search (2007) showed that 83 percent of organi-
Figure 1. Current mechanisms for social network interactions and interactive media for organisational
learning. ©2008 Basiel & Coyne. Used with permission.
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace
sations now consider themselves to be “virtual” It is also clear however from the following
with workgroups spread across multiple locations research, and from Nemertes, that the competi-
and geographies. The workforce is increasingly tive advantages that can be created through the
mobile. According to Nemertes, fully 91% of com- networked relationships formed in the pursuit of
pany employees do at least some work outside of learning and training is uneven.
traditional headquarter locations, and 96 percent However, co-operation between organisations
use some form of real-time collaboration tools (e.g. within markets has long been identified as a fac-
IM, Web or audio/video conferencing). tor in economic success and networking between
But Nemertes also found that only 43% of organisations can contribute to stability and re-
global organisations had a mobility strategy (with duce uncertainty (Porter, 1990). These networks
another 26% currently developing one). Among can evolve over time as ‘natural’ clustering’s of
US and EU based companies, only 35% had a enterprises, or can be ‘induced’ artificially as a
strategy, with another 16% having one in develop- result of interventions like the development of
ment; thus, almost half of US and EU enterprises business or science parks.
have no organisation-wide strategy for supporting
the needs of the mobile workforce. Even more Mobile and MultiModal/MultiLingual
noteworthy, only 15% of all organisations inter- Scial Networks for Organisational
viewed had a specific mobility budget. Learning
Although collaboration is an increasingly
vital feature of business life, companies often A key design requirement of a Professional So-
promote collaboration indiscriminately. Directive cial Network is that is should be able to support
mandates to “just collaborate” create confusion multiple languages and modalities.
and bottlenecks, diminishing organisational ef- A brief survey of Social Professional net-
fectiveness (Cross et al., 2004). Creating a busi- working sites that exhibit mobile characteristics
ness case for exploring and creating cooperative produced list shown in Table 1.
workplaces seems to be more fitting. The word Many of these sites and services offer a simpli-
cooperative is defined as the engagement in joint fied location-based service for connecting with
economic activity. It also suggests an enterprise friends and groups to coordinate activities and
may be operated jointly by those who use its stay in touch and have little impact or relevance to
facilities or services. issues of work based or organisational learning.
However new developments centred on the
convergence of location based services, social
networking and semantic web are underway.
Table 1. Mobile social networks Artilium (2008), a US based provider of enhanced
mobile communications is leading the way on next
Dodgeball Veeker
generation context-aware services, presence and
ZingKu Zemble
personalisation in the mobile networking arena
Groovr Socialight
and their expertise in this area is acknowledge.
Friendstribe Hobnobster
The PSN team however believe that many of
JuiceCaster Flagr
the characteristics of the Artilium offer can be
Rabble Twitter
provided through the applied combination and
Moblabber Jambo
improved interoperability of the component parts
Wadja Nakama
the PSN team bring to the system.
Treemo
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace
Additional searches through the patent reg- Open API (often referred to as OpenAPI) is
isters of the EU, Europe and the US highlighted a word used to describe sets of technologies that
some basic work in this area from the private enable websites to interact with each other by us-
sector. ing SOAP, JavaScript any other web technology.
While its possibilities aren’t limited to web-based
Standards and Interoperability applications, it’s becoming an increasing trend in
so-called Web 2.0 applications including social
The Social Networking phenomenon, as de- and professional networks. The term API stands
scribed in the previous section began to appear for Application programming interface. With the
in 2002. Sites such as Friendster, Tribe, Flickr advent of the Facebook Platform, launched June
the Facebook and LinkedIn were early examples. 1st 2007, Facebook incorporated an OpenAPI
Recently there has emerged a move towards the into its business model.
standardisation of Social Network Profiles in an OpenSocial is currently being developed by
attempt to manage Access and Identity Manage- Google in conjunction with MySpace and other
ment (AIM) and provide more opportunities to social networks including Bebo.com Engage.
connect across networks from LinkedIn, Google, com, Friendster, hi5, Hyves, imeem, LinkedIn,
FaceBook and so on. Such a development is often MySpace, Ning, Oracle, orkut, Plaxo, Salesforce.
referred to as OpenAPI. com, Six Apart, Tianji, Viadeo, and XING. The
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace
ultimate goal is for any social website to be able As matters currently stand, if I conducted a
to implement the APIs and host 3rd party social search for “social networking” then probability
applications. Explode.US is the OpenAPI of the dictates that I would most likely land on the pages
Emerald InTouch platform. of Tony Karrer, since he is cited in most places
I am likely to find through a random search. But
Beyond State of the Art? Karrer’s organisational affiliation and location
may be very different from mine; it may also be
The previous section reviewed developments and preferable to find a resource authored by someone
current capabilities in: who shares my own perspective more closely or
is, geographically more convenient. Therefore, it
• Social & professional networks is reasonable to suppose that if I were to search
• Semantic web for a resource based on both the properties of the
• Organisational learning resource and the properties of the author, I would
• Mobile and Multimodal Interfaces to social be more likely to find a resource than were I to
networks search for a random author.
• Standards and interoperability Such a search, however, is impossible unless
the properties of the author are available in some
We identified the key technologies, trends and form (something like a FOAF RDF file), and also
theories that one should be aware of in any discus- importantly, that the properties of the author are
sion of professional networks, interoperability and connected in an unambiguous way to the resources
organisational learning as seen in Table 3. being sought.
The explicit conjunction of personal informa-
Development of a Semantic Web tion and resource information within the context
Capability within a Mainstreamed and of a single distributed search system will facilitate
Practical Platform for Organisational much more fine-grained searches and levels of
Learning rich interactivity than either system considered
separately.
The links found in the web pages of social net- A convergence of these disparate technolo-
works are instances of what are known as “weak gies brought together in a unified and applied
ties”. Weak ties are acquaintances that are not format represents a true step beyond the current
part of your closest social circle, and as such have state of the art in Professional Social Networks
the power to act as a bridge between your social for learning.
cluster and someone else’s (Cervini, 2005). Figure 2 presents a simplified schematic of the
PSN. With reference to Figure 1, it is now possible
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace
Figure 2. The PSN Architecture. ©2008 Basiel & Coyne. Used with permission.
to perceive the step forward in interoperability quest to the agent facilitating a natural, although
and the concomitant benefits for personal and remote, interaction with the PSN to discover
organisational learning that the PSN offers. network human resources and content.
The agent and the PSN platform interact with
Mobile and MultiModal Interfaces to each other as a direct benefit from the newly de-
Social Networks: The PSN Agent veloped semantic profiling work provided through
the FOAF module and the inclusion of a SKOS
The PSN agent provides a natural language style conformant ontology. Such interactions allow for
interface to the people and resources of the site. complex queries to be made in a natural and lan-
By employing ‘Call-Centre-like technology’ any guage neutral fashion. We believe this represents
user will be able to call the PSN and submit a re- a step forward in multilingual and Multimodal
access to professional social networks.
10
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace
11
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace
12
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace
communication / collaboration tools. They ‘pull’ social software such as Facebook and were more
their learning from the system. Others prefer to comfortable about uploading information about
have prompts sent to them. This may take the themselves rather than starting off with some sort
form of an email alert or a text SMS message to of course-related or professional blog.
their phone. This preference may differ for the An instantiation of the success behind the
various functionalities of the VLE. For example, pedagogic design of the system to develop an
the learner may want to have a text message sent online community was demonstrated by one of
when a new meeting is posted in the online diary, the distant (off-campus) German students invit-
but not get an alert every time someone enters a ing a UK colleague to visit over the Christmas
message on the text discussion board. holiday. This comradery was fostered through the
This ‘media literacy spectrum’, as coined InTouch online social system design.
by Basiel et. al. (2008) can be observed when
developing the learners’ profile. Some attributes
are summarised in Table 4. SUMMARY DISCUSSION
A functionality of the platform was the profil-
ing tool which connected students through shared This chapter has addressed some interesting issues
interests, research areas, courses or via a simple about the evolution of learning from an individual
keyword search. According to Durrant, “(this) face-to-face context to one of an online profes-
tool was extremely helpful because students sional social network model. We have stressed
would be coming onto the programme largely, if the importance of examining the underpinning
not completely working at a distance. Keyword pedagogic designs of the learning systems to guide
linking made instant connections between people the appropriate choice of online support tools.
with the same interests, a great icebreaker.” In summary now we provide a critical dis-
Campus based induction focused on the profiling course in the current ‘gap in state of the art’. The
tool to allow students to become familiar with the main issues concerning social networks that are
system. Many of the students were already using flourishing on the web now focus on the Web 2.0
13
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace
semantic web design. Present tagging conven- and analysis of data from PSN stakehold-
tions are not adequate to progress the value of ers the natural evolution of the system can
the systems forward. Accessibility to multimodal continue.
interfaces is improving with mobile systems, but
there is a need to adapt and apply pedagogic design The closing thoughts for our chapter on profes-
principles from this chapter to improve mobile sional social networks offer some recommenda-
performance. Standards and interoperability is tions to those readers that may want to venture
in its early stages with web 1.0 content. More into this area of organisational eLearning:
work is needed to synthesise these guidelines to
professional social network system. • Establish learner’s profiles: Profiles of
The case study offered in this chapter provided the PSN members should be done at several
us with a grounded experience of using a profes- levels. First, a feasibility study will show the
sional social network. Both barriers and lessons needs identified by the stakeholders. Next,
learnt are now highlighted. personal Web 2.0 profiles identify learning
Barriers to professional social networks: styles and preferences.
• Define the type of VLE (online pedagogy):
• Adoption: How can we get full-time work- Will the eLearning model be content driven
ing professionals to use a PSN? No evidence with a strong set of digital resources? Or, will
has emerged in this chapter to suggest that a the focus be on the communication and sup-
‘silent member’ of the PSN is not learning. port needed to network and collaborate?
Further studies are needed to challenge this • Define the tools to use (eg: blogs, Wikis,
possible misconception. etc.) and the deployment strategy (eg:
• Induction design: To address the concern how many and at what stage): Appropriate
about active participation through to the eLearning toolsets should be mapped over
completion of the eLearning event the from the PSN member profiles.
value of new media design was emphasised. • Design induction pedagogy and new me-
Traditional instructional design training dia presentation: Get good initial motiva-
strategies should be challenged in this new tion to promote a culture of change to adopt
PSN context. regular use of the PSN. By getting its use to
be part of the daily routine you can address
Lessons learnt from the case study: drop out prevention.
• Explore organisational learning for your
• Protocols: Communication and collabora- context: Can you progress individual learn-
tion guidelines are needed to be made explicit ing to a networked context? What system
in a PSN system. A mix of top-down (man- changes will be needed to adjust for this
agers) and bottom-up (learners) approaches scalability?
should be taken to get feedback from PSN • Plan a shift to a professional network con-
stakeholders. These protocols are negotiable text: How can you adapt existing eLearning
over time and will continue to adapt with protocols and systems to a PSN context?
the flexibility of the system. Or, will it be easier to start over fresh with
• Evaluation: The PSN must have in place an a new system?
evaluation strategy and associated technical • Decide on the appropriate online support
system. Through the constant collection model for your PSN: The range of support
14
Exploring a Professional Social Network System to Support Learning in the Workplace
may range from a static FAQ to mobile web Basiel A., Commins R., & Howarth M. (2008). Re-
bot agent model. From your feasibility study trieved June 27, 2008 from http://www.elearning.
data pick an appropriate set of tools to pro- mdx.ac.uk/research/index.htm.#digital_literacy
vide academic, technical and administrative
Berners-Lee et al. (2001). The Semantic Web.
help in the media and mobile platform that
Scientific American. Retrieved from http://www-
the learner’s need.
personal.si.umich.edu/~rfrost/courses/SI110/
• Formative feedback: In the annual review
readings/In_Out_and_Beyond/Semantic_Web.
strategy be sure to have systems in place to
pdf
act on the changes needed to keep the PSN
current to the learner’s needs. BOS (2007). Retrieved June 27, 2008 from http://
oasisplus.mdx.ac.uk/webct/urw/lc4831306002.
If you are a member of a professional organi- tp4831347002/CourseContentDispatch.dowebct
sation then this chapter has critically discussed ?tab=view&displayinfo=47723305021
some issues to take you forward into the 21st
Cervini (2005). Semantic networks and social
century learning society. The Web 2.0 pedagogic
networks. The Learning Organization, 12(5).
models, tool sets and protocols have been offered
to provide a framework by which you will be able Cross et al. (2004). An informal history of eLearn-
to open and establish the communication needed ing. Retrieved from http://www.emeraldinsight.
to help your organisation progress. com/Insight/viewContentItem.do?contentType=
Article&hdAction=lnkpdf&contentId=839895
Downs S. (2006). E-Learning 2.0. National
Refeen
Research Council of Canada. Retrieved from,
www.elearningmag.org/subpage.cmf?section=a
7th European Conference on e-Learning (2008).
rticles&article=29-1
Retrieved June 27, 2008 from http://academic-
conferences.org/ecel/ecel2008/ecel08-abstracts. Dumbill, E. (2002). Finding Friends with XML
htm and RDF, XMLWatch. Retrieved June 27, 2008
from http://www-106.ibm.com/developerworks/
Armsby, P., Costley, C., Garnett, J. (2006). The
xml/library/x-foaf.html
legitimisation of knowledge: a work-based learn-
ing perspective of APEL. Lifelong Learning and Emerald InTouch (2008). Retrieved June 27, 2008
Education, 25(4), 369-83. Retrieved June 27, 2008, from http://info.emeraldinsight.com/products/in-
from www.emeraldinsight.com/.../published/em- touch/index.htm
eraldfulltextarticle/pdf/0860190301_ref.html
Facebook (2008). Retrieved June 27, 2008 from
Artilium (2008). Educational technology—a http://www.facebook.com/
long look back. BJET, 39(4), 234-236. Published
FP7 (2008). Retrieved June 27, 2008 from
online.
http://www.elearning.mdx.ac.uk/research/index.
Basiel (1999). Retrieved June 27, 2008. Paper: htm.#4_April_
http://www.elearning.mdx.ac.uk/research/push-
FP7 European Commission (2008). Retrieved
pull/pushpull/Push&Pull.htm. Toolkit: http://
June 27, 2008 from http://cordis.europa.eu/fp7/
www.elearning.mdx.ac.uk/research/pushpull/
pushpull/PROFILE.HTM
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GPMG (2003) XHTML Friends Network (XFN). OASIS (2005). Customer Information Quality
Retrieved from, http://gmpg.org/xfn/ and http:// TC, available at: www.oasis-open.org/commit-
www.downes.ca/cgi-bin/page.cgi?post=31624 and tees/ciq/charter.php
http://www.emeraldinsight.com/Insight/ViewCo
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from http://www.oed.com/
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aldFullTextArticle/Pdf/1190120502_ref.html Porter (1990). Retrieved June 27, 2008 from
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16
17
Chapter II
Knowledge Producing
Megamachines:
The Biggest Web 2.0 Communities
of the Future
Laszlo Z. Karvalics
University of Szeged, Hungary
ABSTRACT
In the present study, the authors point of departure is the control crisis of science whose resolution re-
quires radical social innovation. The author then shows that the only possible way for achieving this is
the partial fusion of certain portions of scientific activity with the system of public education, by means
of organizing scientists, teachers, as well as middle and high-school students into hybrid, knowledge
producing mega-machines. The author shall subsequently argue that doing so will at the same time bring
about a pragmatic shift in public education, for which professionals in the field of pedagogy have long
been ready in principle and in theory. As a final result we shall see the emergence of science and public
instruction tailored to the global system level, within the framework of the information society.
Copyright © 2009, IGI Global, distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.
Knowledge Producing Megamachines
18
Knowledge Producing Megamachines
telematics supports the broad establishment of capability. (For a summary of this point of view,
new and effective control structures. Yet in so see (Nentwich, 2005). And yet, at the same time
far as the very processes whereby information is Beniger’s general model is more relevant than
interpreted and evaluated for control purposes, ever. The current control crisis of science cannot
are not successfully subjected to regulation over be found along the obstacles of accessibility to
and over again by use of adequate methods, the results; it has shifted to the scenes of new knowl-
feedback weakens and the system runs into new edge creation. By to-day the lack of feedback can
forms of control crisis. already be attributed primarily and principally to
When Beniger applies this to science, as a sys- system-level constraints on the interpretation of
tem constructed par excellence from the streaming knowledge and of raw information and data.
of information flows, he perceives almost every-
where the indications of a growing control crisis. Revolution in Sign Production,
He finds the primary threat in the large-scale Sortage in Brains
startup of new systems of telematics which disturb,
or with their excessive radicalism—because they Modern sciences, with their up-to-date infor-
abandon a paper-based world—even disorganize, mation technology parks, are producing output
the accustomed flow patterns of already pro- data in quantities already so staggering as to
duced knowledge. Thereby they further weaken make these incapable of being overviewed in a
the functioning of the most important feedback properly interpretive manner by the scientific
mechanism, the citation system. community—which, to make things worse, is
It is strange how completely Beniger (1988:26) continually perfecting its capacity of producing
is mistaken when he has fears for scientific reports, and storing even more new information and data.
the publishing of specialized journals, or the pub- “New data – whole new types of data – are accu-
lication of conference proceedings in their capac- mulating faster than researchers can make sense
ity as feedback mechanisms, on account of their of them. The result is something like an optical
exposure to information challenges. “Telematics illusion” (Hugh Kieffer, cited by Norton, 2004).
threatens global science … [with] … a crisis of Those sciences which have high levels of demand
control. Many involved with the computerization for raw data and their interpretation—genetics,
of information systems have predicted—some oceanography, meteorology/climatology, environ-
gleefully—a decline in the formal scientific paper, mental sciences, atomic physics, pharmacology
a blurring of the distinction between research and above all astronomy—are currently undergo-
notes and papers and between papers and the ing the cyber-infrastructure revolution with their
response to them by others, an increase in mul- GRIDs, their enormous capacities for calculation,
tiple authorship by scores or even hundreds who simulation and visualization, their more and more
participate in a telematic discussion, and the intelligent agents and work-flow devices.
decline of formal journals, editors, and the gate- Yet the scientists are aware of the control cri-
keeping function more generally.” (Commenting sis. They all have the bitter experience that their
on Beniger’s work, Gerhard Fröhlich shares this efforts of building new models and coming up
anxiety (Fröchlich, 1996) with pioneering connections and hypotheses are
Surely, the last two short decades have brought constrained by the small capacity of the analytic
a control revolution precisely from this point of personnel available for handling lower-level, sup-
view, with the creation of the new environment of portive transformational tasks. These tasks in-
digitalization, web-browsing, or full-text search clude surveys of measurement data, of elementary
19
Knowledge Producing Megamachines
20
Knowledge Producing Megamachines
ways of intensification arises from the ever smaller or problems. On www.academici.com those in-
part of the aggregate knowledge in a given area terested can search according to several criteria,
of science that has come to be represented as the such as research field or scientific interest. In this
personal knowledge of any one individual. As for- way educational or scientific institutions located at
mulated close to forty years ago by an outstanding the greatest world distances from each other can
Hungarian economist, Ferenc Jánossy, “Precisely mutually get in touch in a matter of minutes.
this is why we have to beware of tugging by sheer The DILIGENT project of the European
force at the net of individual knowledge, trying to Union develops safe, coordinated, dynamic and
cover all of the increased area, until the meshes cost effective test beds for virtual scientific com-
are torn and only large holes remain instead of munities, to facilitate the sharing of knowledge and
the dense coverage of the net.” (Jánossy, 1975). cooperation. Involving the website (http://www.
This recognition opens the way to the search for diligentproject.org/), experiments are proceeding
more decentralized and democratic knowledge in two real-time application fields, an environmen-
production models. tal sustainability project and a cultural-heritage
Concentration is embodied in ever larger preservation topic, by combining the Grid and
cooperating communities of researchers. The the DL (digital library) technologies.It is readily
pioneering Human Genome Project has been fol- apparent that from the point of view of control
lowed by several similar research undertakings structures, the size constraint is given by the
whose common element is the allocation of human maximal number of the scientists who can be
resources required by such extensive research meaningfully interconnected. Meanwhile, the
tasks, on the basis of novel principles. cooperative forms, workflow solutions, software
systems, and online cooperative cultures created
Precursors for several tens of thousands of participants are
already paving the way for making possible the
At the end of 2006 more than 100 thousand sci- operations and organization of research com-
entists from more than 175 countries have taken munities of several-million-members which are
part in the Innocentive initiative. The website expected to emerge in the course of the control
(http://www.innocentive.com) organizes the co- revolution.
operation of world-level researchers as problem
solvers, and companies wishing to solve their The Advent of Participatory Citizen
development questions focusing on science, as Sience
seekers. It is effective primarily in the search for
innovative answers given to complex challenges, Extensive growth comes from drawing into
mainly in the fields of pharmacology, biotech- science some social groups that had earlier, to
nology, chemistry, food industry and plastics some extent consciously, been excluded. The
industry, with financial awards often exceeding orientations of citizen science and participatory
$ 100,000. research (Irwin, 1995, Park et al., 1993) do not
The Academici website offers a search frame- fight for the renaissance of amateur science but
work constructed for facilitating any emerging for the integration of knowledge created outside
scientific cooperative initiatives and has thereby the scientific establishment, into the scientific
made it possible for scientists and researchers problem solving processes. Typical examples,
anywhere in the world to share their experiences often with the spirit of movements, come into
at any time without limits and restrictions or to being and evolve in order to support the scientific
discuss any questions, proposals, suggestions, emancipation of indigenous knowledge, that is,
21
Knowledge Producing Megamachines
22
Knowledge Producing Megamachines
at command. The secret of mechanical control students in the 12-18 age cohort, supervised in
was to have a single mind with a well-defined aim an orderly and structured manner by some 40
at the head of the organization, and a method of million teachers. Public education is a human
passing messages... (to) the smallest unit.”. mega-machine that is already at hand, striving,
We can even consider the information society to boot, toward a fully online existence at aston-
itself, in its most comprehensive sense, as a mega- ishing speed. It appears to be perfectly suitable,
machine (May, 2000). Yet we find the expression while radically renewing its current functioning,
especially useful when we are looking for a name to become at the same time also a mega-machine
to designate the kind of knowledge-producing for research, thereby solving the control crisis of
communities that will be able to exceed the largest science. Or put in a different way, other than the
present scales of scientific cooperation perhaps a hundreds of millions who are now articulated into
hundredfold. And since we have seen the short- the national systems of public education, we can
comings of current efforts aimed at increasing find no social group on earth or in heaven that
the number of brains participating in scientific would so completely satisfy our prior expectations
research tasks, the conditions outlining the criteria concerning size, availability and organization.
that future scientific mega-machines will have to Why is it then that this statement, when we first
fulfill have become quite clear: come upon it, should nevertheless feel so startling,
bizarre, and utopian? Indeed, once we realize that
• Guarantee of staffs of sufficient size. it is necessary, we only have to convince ourselves
• Guarantee of staff availability. that it is possible. If we accept the goal — to plan
• Professional-methodological quality assur- and put in motion the new mega-machines built
ance of activities. on public education — then we can take our time
• Accountability, dedicated areas of respon- pondering the details of the path that will lead us
sibility, deadlines met and capable of being there. So the challenge does not lie in listing all
met, clear project scenarios, and professional the steps that are indispensable for implement-
management. ing the initiative but rather, in figuring out how
• Organized transfer of or instruction in the to make the vision itself realistic. Can it possibly
knowledge minimally necessary to join a be sustained as a hypothesis? Is a mega-machine
project. conceptualized in this way at all imaginable? Is
• Facilitation of tasks, continuous mediation it outlandish in relation to the institutional and
among individual participants of the sys- functional order of public education or to the
tem. contrary, is it wonderfully adaptable to that order?
• Flexible, many-sided online system man- But above all, why do we find it so hard to throw
agement service, oriented to facilitating ourselves enthusiastically into listing the fantastic
horizontal as well as vertical interactions. functional consequences that we hope will flow
from the birth of the new mega-machine?
But where could the many tens of millions of Perhaps it sounds strange at first but it is
brains be found for this? How could communities impossible to find a single serious and objective
of this size be made manageable and operable in counter-argument. Yet acceptance of the vision is
line with the above expectations? all the more impeded by hardened views, mistakes,
According to a rough but conservative ex- preconceptions, misunderstandings and optical
trapolation based on UNESCO data for the year illusions, which must be brought into the open,
2004 (http://gmr.uis.unesco.org/ViewTable.aspx), exhibited, and demolished before we can once
by 2007 there were approximately 800 million again take a searching look at the vision itself.
23
Knowledge Producing Megamachines
As it usually happens, when seeking to define the course the alarm bells are immediately rung as
outlines of the Future, we run into the attitudinal soon as the process begins to falter somewhere,
roadblocks of the Past. with particular disciplines attracting insufficient
interest on the part of the relevant age groups.)
But let us now replace the out-of-date objective
EduN: THE SPpiof THE function with that of the information era. From
induial e o the point of view of up-to-date knowledge asset
delayed CEen of THE CHILD management, is the school getting a suitable return
from the brains committed to its care? Does it
Ellen Karolina Sofia Key wrote her emblematic deal with the knowledge carried by the students
book entitled The Century of the Child in 1900 on the basis of an appropriate valuation, does it
(Key, 1900), a polemic discourse in which she at- regard such knowledge as a capital asset, does it
tempted a showdown with the shadows of the 19th make an effort to integrate that knowledge in a
Century. Ellen Key envisaged a radically new 20th truly transformative fashion as much as possible
Century built on a positive child image, in which with the total mass of knowledge?
the schools would no longer deliberately freeze If we measure the school’s quality of func-
but rather set free the intellectual and spiritual tioning by how well it creates a foundation for
energies hiding in the child. Sadly, the Swedish the holistic image of the human essence as one
author was mistaken. Despite all the emancipa- of life-long learning, then it is immediately ap-
tory, promising initiatives of that century, the real parent that we are in deep trouble. The crucial
turnaround is still waiting in the wings. The school question therefore becomes whether a totally and
as an institution has shown an appalling lack of essentially industrial-era mega-machine might
change ever since the end of the 19th Century. Its be capable of renewing itself by assimilation to
objective function pursues social and labor market the demands of the information age, or whether
integration, its image of the child is paternalistic, the imperative of change must necessarily aim
and its pattern of knowledge flow is determinedly at dismembering the mega-machine itself. Ivan
one-way. The school decants the necessary abili- Illich’s answer was clear, definite and scandal-
ties, skills and knowledge into the child’s head izing: the school as an institution was itself the
with the help of the teachers and the material of chief obstacle to renewal.
instruction, while keeping the child’s time budget,
comportment, and knowledge organization under The current search for new educational funnels
strict control, standardizing the required minimal must be reversed into the search for their institu-
levels of knowledge. The reason why the tired tional inverse: educational webs which heighten
commonplaces of the so-called world crisis of the opportunity for each one to transform each
education never mature into an interpretation as moment of his living into one of learning, sharing,
a control crisis, is simply that the school is actu- and caring. (Illich, 1970)
ally experiencing no crisis at all, it is fulfilling its
task, the feedbacks are working — just so long In my personal opinion, a process of creative
as the fundamental assumptions and criteria of destruction leads to far more difficulties than
success continue to be those of the industrial era. the re-planning and re-engineering of the mega-
Likewise, the science of the industrial era is not machine of public education. The school has
in crisis, either, because the processes of selection changed much, to its advantage. For a long time,
for the replacement of its cadre of scientists are pedagogical theory has also been knocking on
continuing smoothly without any hitch. (And of the door with a set of claims that it delineates
24
Knowledge Producing Megamachines
normatively in connection with the school, the of the 12-18 age group for active and creative
teaching/learning processes, and the children of participation in scientific group work.
the information age. Specifically:
Mini-Einsteins Versus Intellectual
• Education should move away from au- Immigrants
thoritarian orthodoxy toward a world of
horizontal communications and of coop- It may seem gratifying to collect a colorful posy
erating, problem solving teen-age student of the latest acts of student geniuses. How a Hun-
communities. garian high-school student living in Calgary, with
• Let us teach each child from an early age to two weeks’ work, succeeded in proving Albrecht
think critically, thereby supporting the de- Dürer’s five-hundred-year old geometric conjec-
velopment of a facility that allows pondering ture which had earlier resisted the mathematical
problems from different perspectives and, community’s best efforts? How a fifteen-year-old
even independently, with a thoroughness boy, jointly with his world famous co-author,
maturing toward the scientific level. published an excitingly original astrophysical
• The teacher should be an animator, not hypothesis? How teen-age girls were involved in
a device for the recitation of instruction choosing the optimal landing point for the Mars
material. The teacher should smartly direct terrain exploration robot?
the independent knowledge operations of Yet, what needs proof is not that talented
the students that also make use of library teen-age students are at times capable of produc-
and Internet resources, intervening only at ing results comparable to those of grey-haired
critical points. professors. We lose our way if we try to look for
• Wherever possible, the principle of learning economy-size scientists among 12-18 year old
by doing and getting the children to make children; the mega-machine demands something
their own discoveries should replace mind- entirely different. The students, with the help of
less cramming. their teachers, must be capable of and suitable for
• Education should build on children as self- appropriately undertaking massive partial tasks,
confident and smart users of the world of in- typically of a low level of abstraction, yet still
formation-technology devices and systems calling for natural intelligence. Let us replace one
who are already on the brink of absorbing single research assistant with a hundred children
this experience and knowledge at the same and four teachers, and we will begin approaching
time as their mother tongue. realistic proportions. And ten thousand children
with four hundred teachers may well provide us
If we want to build a pragmatic pedagogical with as much problem-solving power for a scien-
program on the above theoretical expectations, we tific program as a research staff of one hundred.
could nowhere find a better option than to involve Of course, what we should expect from a student
teen-age students and their teachers by the mil- is, accordingly, one hundredth of what we may
lions into the suitably prepared and well-organized expect from an adult scientific researcher.
problem-solving processes, involving network All this is well known by all those who had
communications and cooperative work, that are tried their hand at on-site scientific work jointly
emerging in a number of scientific areas. with massive groups of students. Where research
The spirit of the out-of-date industrial era is left programs, because of their very nature or a lack
with just one position it can take to save it from of support, have to make do without sufficient hu-
retreat. That is to call into question the suitability man resources, they increasingly turn to teenagers
25
Knowledge Producing Megamachines
under the whip of necessity. Our space limitations Still, many think that scientific activities are
preclude displaying the variety of color and the not for teenagers, that it is better to keep science
richness of form of currently running efforts at the level of illustrations meant just to awaken
of this kind. Tens of thousands of students are their interest, in order to make them disposed
becoming articulated into research programs of to learn. Their situation is therefore powerfully
great vitality, in the course of which they undertake illuminated by the results of comparative educa-
full-valued ornithological observations, ecologi- tional surveys which show that if we integrate
cal surveys and measurements, or data collection a broad collection of scientific problem solving
efforts pertaining to local history. The exacting methods, approaches, and philosophies into
database of Estonian trees has been compiled educational practice from an early age, we find
by the student participants of the Tiger Leap an abrupt increase in children’s disposition to
program of the Estonian Schoolnet. The SG@ learn as well as in their learning performance.
Schools project in Singapore is being planned Pedagogical action research has also shown that
with reliance, in part, on the efforts of students in just as the acquisition of computer skills creates
gene sequencing, animation tasks, and complex no particular problems, in the same way neither
financial calculations. are there cultural, linguistic, religious or social
The screenagers, representatives of today’s obstacles to the acquisition of skills in undertaking
generation that had grown up on television and activities of a scientific type. By transforming the
the computer, are adapting to the new cognitive public education system in a way that integrates
environment —according to Douglas Rushkoff’s information and science literacy into education
apt remark (Rushkoff, 1996),— as naturally and from a very early age, we can promote an equal-
flexibly as the children of immigrants learn the ity of opportunities more effectively than in any
language of the recipient country, faster and more other way.
effectively than their parents. And it is hard to The children stand ready to become parts
imagine that the digital kids, who effortlessly cope of the knowledge producing mega-machines. It
with directing the traffic of the Chicago airport is only the scientists, education-policy leaders,
on a simulation game, who are daily managing parents, and teachers who will have to come to
extended online contact networks, and who can believe this.
smartly transform information from one complex
format into another, were not to be destined to ac- The Architecture of the
complish even more. Would they not be suitable for Mega-Machine and its Impacts
administering questions in sociological surveys
— perhaps concerning precisely their own age In the coming years or decades, a series of re-
group? Or to read original sources and abstract search projects and experimental programs will
their contents? Or to translate professional texts put together and give precise shape to the basic
with their teachers’ help? Or to answer questions, structure and to the thousands of small details of
even by the thousand, put to them by scientists the operation of knowledge producing mega-ma-
about what they find digging deep into their in- chines. In the discussion below I wish to survey,
dividually assigned little fields of inquiry? Or to without any pretense to completeness, some of
try aggregating their partial bits of knowledge the fundamental aspects and characteristics that
within flexible ad hoc communities? Of course will almost certainly be relevant to the future
they would. It would take no more than looking at system:
them and seeing them in this particular way.
26
Knowledge Producing Megamachines
27
Knowledge Producing Megamachines
• Other than maintaining the national lan- In any case, it is worth paying increased
guage in scientific work, the force field attention to software developments based
guiding the operation of the mega-machine on pioneering principles that promise solu-
is basically a global one. The clusters are tions of entirely new levels of effectiveness.
kept in motion by horizontal contacts among (We consider the Croquet project, www.
students of diverse nationalities, languages, opencroquet.org, as one of these.)
cultures and religions, and through such an • Finally, it is important to emphasize that
interconnectivity a new, global conscious- being a part of the scientific mega-machine
ness emerges in a meaningful way. will only be one side or one function of
• This is closely connected with global prob- school life; there will be no total change
lems that have so far called for consciousness of the guard compared to earlier solutions
raising in part as a challenge to education. of instruction and subject matter, only an
The school of the future—in James Martin’s internal reorganization of proportions.
words—will also be a civilization school,
since it demands that the basic knowledge
necessary for the survival of civilization be Poli impliion
introduced into the curricula urgently and
in their full range. “Education for surviv- James Beniger notes correctly that in the case
ability—the most important subject we can of large-scale social innovations it is always
teach.” (Martin, 2006). A work of similar politics that has the decisive word: “ … the in-
outlook and message but with richer develop- formation society does not spring spontaneously
ment of the topic is (Adams and Carfagna, from advanced industrialization. Technological
2006). possibilities for control present societal choices,
• Yet all this will be perceived as more organic which are themselves subject to political control”
and credible once everyone gets a share in (Beniger, 1988:22). And if innovation is global, as
laying a scientific foundation for the solu- is the case with the future hybrid mega-machine of
tion. science and public education, then as an inevitable
• For several reasons, the necessary lingua complication, two political system levels get in
franca of the mega machine can only be each other’s way. Beside national education and
English. (It is not impossible, though, that science policies, the international organizations
over the long run the torch will be taken representing the global level are also very much
over by an artificial language developed concerned, since the mega-machine can only be
especially for this purpose.) coordinated in a transnational space. And although
• Even though the research activities of the UNESCO’s profile (science, education, infocom-
students are tied to practical reality by the munication) would predestine the organization to
objects of study individually assigned to lead such an important innovation program, look-
them, the online work management systems ing at its current planning and operational system
nevertheless are taking on a key role in the it is hard to imagine that it would be able to fulfill
process. It is an important question whether the task. It is more probable that the professional
the open platform of the Internet is suitable world organization of one of the scientific disci-
for handling interactive efforts by several plines might come to a consensus about building a
million participants, requiring work man- smaller pilot prototype of the mega-machine. And
agement systems of never seen dimensions. similarly, within the strategic-political decision
28
Knowledge Producing Megamachines
space of the nation state it is hard to expect that a Estonia, and Singapore would without further
vision, no matter how realistic it may be, will gain ado be suitable and mature enough to experiment
priority, let alone support, solely on the basis of with sciences, themes, clusters—mobilizing in
its projection of a future that is highly attractive their entirety their teenage student cadres of
in many ways. It is much more probable that the hundreds of thousands. And what stands in the
growing control crisis — whose spectacularly way of the possibility of these countries starting
visible aspect is the increasing lack of financial to build a mega-machine in cooperation with an
and human resources compared with what would ambitious country like Chile, with one of the
really be needed—will sooner or later inherently Chinese or Indian provinces, or with one of the
enforce the search for solutions. When national smaller American federal states?
science policies see no other way, they will out of Even the longest journey begins with the
sheer necessity reach for the possibilities offered first step. Are we standing ready to initiate a
by the mega-machines. discourse?
It is especially difficult to realize and accept
that in a global social innovation of such scope
the expected benefits will not accrue in the form ACKNOWLEDGMmen
of traditional competitive advantages.
Why should the United States wish to turn For the help I have received in preparing the
in this direction, given that its leading position final verson of this chapter, I wish to express my
attained in science is sure to be safe for a long sincere thanks eminently to Thomas Vietorisz
time to come, even without the upheaval of the (Cornell University) and to Adam Tolnay (Stanford
mega-machines? When does the moment of University), Nicholas Vonortas (George Wash-
epiphany arrive, insisting that the value of new ington University), Gabor Agoston (Georgetown
knowledge produced by the mega-machine is University).
becoming clearly measurable even under conven-
tional budgetary criteria? How will the truth get
to the point where it can be grasped—once again Refeen
from a budgetary or national security perspec-
tive—that common actions organized in favor of Adams, J. M., & Carfagna, A. (2006). Coming of
common scientific aims reduce to insignificance Age in a Globalized World: The Next Generation
or overwrite the traditional forms of international Kumarian Press (See especially the section titled:
conflict? Let us not forget, it is part of the vi- Global Education: Schooling World Citizen).
sion that the educational systems of the world’s
Beniger, J. R. (1986). The Control Revolution.
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Technological and Economic Origins of the In-
mega-machine. In the 21st century which offers
formation Society. Harvard University Press
little chance for religious, cultural or political
convergence, could precisely science not become Beniger, J. R. (1988). Information Society and
one kind of common language? Global Science. In Telescience: Scientific Com-
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31
Chapter III
Web 2.0 Driven Sustainability
Reporting
Daniel Süpke
Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg, Germany
Ralf Isenmann
Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation Research Karlsruhe, Germany
ABSTRACT
Web 2.0 driven sustainability reporting describes an emerging digital approach powered through Web 2.0
technologies for companies communicating sustainability issues. Such a computer-based application of
semantics overcomes the limitations of orthodox methods and provides an array of specific capabilities
to improve sustainability communication both, for companies (reporters), and their various stakeholders
(report readers), that is along interactivity, customisation, and reporting à la carte, stakeholder dia-
logue, and participation. This chapter gives an outline on this up-and-coming sustainability reporting
approach along three categories: (i) Media-specific trends in sustainability reporting are observed. (ii)
New opportunities Web 2.0 technologies are offering for corporate sustainability reporting are identi-
fied. (iii) The concept and implementation of a software tool for sustainability reporting à la carte is
presented making clear the movement away from early reporting stages towards the advanced one of a
Web 2.0 driven approach.
Copyright © 2009, IGI Global, distributing in print or electronic forms without written permission of IGI Global is prohibited.
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