Sunday, October 10, 2010

Book Review: Cognitive Surplus




"Media is the connective tissue of society" - Chpt. 2: Means

Stars: 4/5

Cognitive Surplus: the collective intellectual capacity made available due to technological advances that enabled citizens of the world to do something else other than watching TV.

"That doesn't mean we'll stop mindlessly watching TV. It just means that consumption will no longer be the way we use media. And any shift, however minor, in the way we use trillion hours of free time a year is likely to be a big deal." Ch. 1 (Gin, Television, and Cognitive Surplus)

Shirky does a masterful job at citing real-world examples (PickUpPal, Ushahidi, PatientsLikeMe, Responsible Citizens) to make his case that in today's connected society is not only about collective sharing but also motivation and common interest or purpose. Also, the Ultimatum Game research in the discussion concerning group governance, the Soma Cube puzzle research on intrinsic and extrinsic motivation, and Gneesy and Rustichini's "A Fine is a Price" research in the Culture chapter was simply fascinating.


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