Best-of-the-two-weeks
 
As promised, here are the Websites and articles that I found the most interesting in the past two weeks. Have a good weekend, everyone.

Theories

“What’s Behind the 4-Minute Mile, Starbucks, and the Moon Landing? The Power of Impossible Thinking.” Knowledge@Wharton, a publication of the Wharton School, interviews the authors of a new book that answers such questions as, “How do you make sense of the world in an environment of overwhelming data? How do you transform your organization and the thinking of others? How do you harness the power of intuition?” 

 “Collaboration First, Then Knowledge Management.” This article answers the question, “What is the best way to work together to share common knowledge and drive toward common goals?  ECM vendors and knowledge management (KM) specialists often give the same answer: collaboration solutions. Yes, but towards what end?”   

E-Learning
 
“Making Sense of Online Learning Weblinks.” A well organized, comprehensive list of e-learning links from Learning Circuits contributor Patti Shanks. (Thanks, Amy Gahran.) 
 
“The Ecological Approach to the Design of E-Learning Environments: Purpose-based Capture and Use of Information About Learners.” This fascinating article tells “how the ecological approach shows promise not only to allow information about learners’ actual interactions with learning objects to be naturally captured but also to allow it to be used in a multitude of ways to support learners and teachers in achieving their goals.”
 
“Down with Boring E-Learning!” ASTD’s own Ryann Ellis, editor of Learning Circuits, interviews e-learning interactivity guru Michael Allen. The Contentious blog called the interview “superb” and “lively.”
 
“The E-Learning Design Challenge.” This Weblog posts descriptions of tricky training needs and asks people to reply with asynchronous solutions. Read the introduction to understand how it all works. 
 
Other Technology
 
“This Video Projector Will Fit Inside Your Pocket.” Soon you’ll be able to project high-quality images from your cellphone or laptop. The devices will replace lenses and lightbulbs with holograms. Think of the applications for classroom training.  
 
“What Should I Do if the Internet Goes Down.” A humorous piece that might make you laugh out loud.
 
“Weblogs as an Interview Tool.” How to assess an applicant’s knowledge of a subject based on his or her Weblog, as told by the principals of a marketing and technology consulting business in the U.K.