OLDaily

Wikipedia graph mining: dynamic structure of collective memory
Volodymyr Miz, 2017/10/03

A lot of AI analysis consists in taking individual entities and then making graphs out of them through training or some sort of algorithm like Nearest Neighbours (kNN). What I am interested in, though, is understanding the graph that is already created by the interactions of people online (and in society generally). A good example of this is shown in this paper. The author examines the Wikipedia graph through time and across various events. We see society working the way a mind works. "We see that the core events trigger relevant memories." 

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Analysis of the Top 200 Tools for Learning 2017
Jane Hart, 2017/10/03

Jane Hart offers a brief analysis of the list of the top 200 tools for lerarning posted here yesterday. Mostly what we find is that pretty much everyone on the list is an educator or developer of some sort (ie., not a student). So these aren't tools for learning per se but tools for people who work in the education industry. She also points to top 3 risers: Unsplash (up 71 places), Grammarly (up 70 places) and Snapchat (up 64 places). I didn't list any of these because none of them are very high on the list. She notes, correctly I think, that "messaging apps and team tools are particularly on the rise." This to me points to a trend toward work (and maybe learning) taking place more frequently outside formal learning environments rather than inside them.

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Every Noise at Once 
2017/10/03

This has nothing to do with online learning, really, but it's too good to pass up: As Kottke says, " Every Noise at Once is a one-page map of playable audio samples for more than 1500 musical genres, from deep tech house to Finnish metal to smooth jazz to geek folk to klezmer to deep opera." Enjoy.

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Take a SPLOT Test Drive or… Instant SPLOT?
Alan Levine, CogDogBlog, 2017/10/03

It's not really possible to determine what SPLOT stands for - but going back to this site (and this) I'm thinking it's 'Smallest Possible Learning Online Technology', though other variations are suggested. Anyhow, the idea here is to promote the splot.ca website, which offers a small set of WordPress Plug-Ins that create SPOLTs you can test for yourself. But it still requires WordPress, which takes some time to set up. So, as Alan Levine writes, "Now in the workshop, second year this has been offered, we have cut out all these steps, by using the StateU demo site offered by Reclaim Hosting. This site is insanely useful for introducing people to domains or making a case for it to your colleagues." So there you go.

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OLC Launches Research Center for Digital Learning and Leadership
Press Release, Online Learning Consortium, 2017/10/03

The Online Learning Consortium (OLC) has launched a new research centre for digital learning and leadership. According to the press release, "The OLC Research Center will offer original, curated, commissioned, and sponsored research opportunities, and consulting and presentation services in areas related to digital learning and digital leadership research. It also features research publications, like OLC’s own peer-reviewed journal, Online Learning, podcasts, and infographics, offering researchers and practitioners resources they need to support their work in the field."

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Eton for all: will robot teachers mean everyone gets an elite education?
Lizzie Palmer, New Statesman, 2017/10/03

"There are a few certainties in this world," writes Lizzie palmer. "death, taxes, and that our jobs will eventually be taken by robots." But does this mean that everybosy will get high quality robot services? Maybe. The article describes "Pepper and Nao, two humanoid robots made by Japanese company SoftBank Robotics, (that) were trialled in two Singapore pre-schools last year." It also mentions 'Jill Watson', the robot tutor that managed to fool students at the University of georgia last year. According to Anthony Seldon (author of a recent book, natch), the AI-based tutors will liberate STEM education, but the nuances in the humanities and social sciences will take decades longer for AIs to master. Rose Luckin, also quoted in the article, points to AI's use in identifying illnesses like depression. “We could be building systems to help people understand themselves better," she says.

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