To those who follow such matters, i have uploaded my dissertation proposal (click here), which i hope to defend in the upcoming weeks...

Feel free to critique my work, rate this blog (based on my work), etc.  

Enjoy. 

This is just a preliminary blog entry to post the code for two new plug-ins for Elgg. Of course, i am aware that Elgg goes live with version 1.0 in a matter of weeks, but for those interested in using the plug-in with older versions of Elgg, here is the code. In the upcoming weeks, i plan to release the code on the Elgg open source community.

rate_my_blog plug-in (click for src code)

1. Rate Blogs on a 5-star scale
Provides Elgg users with the capability to rate other blog posts
    * Users must be logged into the site
    * Users cannot rate their own images

2. View Ratings
Provides Elgg users with the capability to view how others have rated blogs across the site
    * Users do not need to be logged into the site to view blog ratings

recommender plug-in (click for src code)

1. Requires rate_my_blog plug-in

2. Provides recommendations with the recommendation plug-in

3. Uses Pearson's constrained correlation coefficient to determine strength of recommendation

I have the feeling this will be a long entry… I mean, every time I type Csikszentmihalyi's name, it seems to take up half the line…
 
All kidding aside, I particularly enjoyed Csikszentmihalyi's reference to the Yogiism, “you can observe a lot by just watching.” Csikszentmihalyi mentioned the phrase not once, but a few times. This phrase is one of Yogi Berra’s many redundancies. Yogi Berra was a baseball player for the New York Yankees and often took potshots for some of his redundant, ironic and seemingly contradictory phrases. But many people today do not realize that Yogi Berra was actually a fairly intelligent person and not just some dumb baseball ballplayer. Too often, people hear Yogiisms including, “it ain’t over till it’s over,” or “I didn’t really say everything I said,” and they assume he was somewhat dim. Wouldn’t you if this was all you heard? However, as a catcher in baseball, and maybe more importantly a catcher for the New York Yankees, Yogi was responsible for controlling pitchers as well as directing and leading the seven other ball players on the field (you don’t believe it? Check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catcher). And Yogi was one of the best catchers in the game, calling two no-hitters, one of which was Don Larsen’s perfect game in the 1956 World Series against the Brooklyn Dodgers. But Yogi was not just a great catcher; Yogi also managed in the majors, leading the Yankees to the World Series in 1964 (only to lose to St. Louis). 

Nevertheless, to return to his so called Yogiisms, there are boatloads of phrases we mention in reality that are somewhat paradoxical (or redundant, or contradictory), but are truly insightful if we sit back and ponder them. Just the other day, during an SL2 lab meeting I mentioned Apple’s success was due to their ability to produce a shortage. It was a spur of the moment saying and a more appropriate way to put it would be Apple’s ability to produce a demand, but the idea of producing a shortage has its own unique effect, which I thought was funny and even remarked that I just said a Yogiism. Anyway, you can find out more about Yogi’s Yogiisms, check out the following link from Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yogiisms
 
To leave this tangent on a tangent, let me focus intently on the Yogiism, “you can observe a lot by just watching.” Csikszentmihalyi used this phrase as a starting point for induction, which then leads to generalizations, which lead to theory building, resulting in hypotheses. Hypotheses are then tested through observations, thus completing the never-ending cycle of knowledge (another Yogiism). The cycle of knowledge is similar to a feedback loop whereupon return to the start brings about a new perspective, new observations, new generalizations, new theories and new hypotheses. (Maybe they should put new in front of each of the terms.) For me, this notion once again returns to the emergent properties of systems and that a system is more than just a sum of its parts (check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systems_theory).

To elaborate on the power of observation, Csikszentmihalyi used the example of his seven year-old son, who conducted a simple experiment because he observed that his father wasn’t listening to his stories. His son begins with a basic observation and builds on it to make the generalization that all adults don’t listen (based likely on other observations). Although his son bypassed the notion of theory (after-all he was only 7) he began to conduct his experiment to further support his generalization. I’m not really sure what happens after this point, since I stopped listening, but what is important is the role observation and induction plays in knowledge. In my experience, I have found that great scientists often begin with simple inquiries about the real world. My favorite is still Einstein’s fascination on what it would look like if he were to ride a beam of light, which would eventually lead to his Special Theory of Relativity and E=mc².

a blog entry by Brian Thoms

Here are a couple of links to book reviews for Soul of a New Machine by Tracy Kidder...

Review accessed through Blogger.com: http://www.tleaves.com/weblog/archives/000629.html

Full list of blogger reviews: http://search.blogger.com/?q=soul+of+a+new+machine&hl=en&ie=UTF-8&ui=blg

Other reviews...

Review @ demigod.org: http://www.demigod.org/~zak/documents/high-school/review-soul-of-a-new-machine/html

Amazon reivew: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/customer-reviews/0316491977/ref=cm_cr_dp_pt/103-8545265-6197420?ie=UTF8&n=283155&s=books

a blog entry by Brian Thoms

The book is titled, “Soul of a New Machine” largely because it is the blood, sweat and tears of a number of individuals that goes into the building of the new 32-bit microcomputer, Eagle. Each of these individuals is unique and, to borrow a line from Gudiel, leaves an imprint of who they are on the new machine (or at least the process of building the new machine).

The definition of a soul, in modern philosophy, is an interesting notion in its own right. It conjures up images of some ethereal substance or spirits. One of my favorite episodes of The Simpsons (and there are many) is when Bart Simpson sells his soul to Milhouse for the meager price of five dollars. In the end Bart is left running around town (almost lifeless) because he feels he no longer has a soul. In “Soul of a New Machine” none of the engineers sold out and in the end, they felt satisfaction in their creation.
 
Additionally, I wonder if our fellow music mates are thinking how this book relates to soul music. Soul music is a type of rhythm and blues. This can be just one more way to describe West’s team of engineers. They are a bunch of individuals singing the same sad song (a.k.a. the blues), but they love it. They do not feel that they are getting paid enough, but they don’t care. They embrace the pain that Eagle causes them and come to depend and identify themselves through the project. Rhythm is an inescapable term when working on large collaborative projects. If an engineer comes in early one morning to find that the work he did was reversed (without rhyme or reason) there is no rhythm and the project wouldn’t move along as quickly as it did. From this idea, I pull my favorite concept from the book. Many of the engineers felt they worked best alone, but it was together that they felt they accomplished more.

Kidder’s style of Writing
Tracy Kidder’s style of writing conjures up a recurring theme in systems theory, that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. This theory considers emergent properties that exist in a system once it is completed. Kidder’s writing style reverses this theory to show that a machine is not just made up of parts, but individual ingenuity (as discussed in the prior section). And throughout the book, the emergent properties of the engineers are recurring themes.

Kidder’s writing style is quite unique, and I can see why he won a Pulitzer for this work. Kidder is able to recreate the individuals to make them unique. I worked in information technology for a number of years and although I was no engineer the notion that all techies are alike is echoed through the hallways. Here is a writer who shows that race, creed and sex aside, all individuals are unique. Each has a unique story to tell about their specific role in the world. Kidder gets at the heart of what it means to be part of a team, individuality.

Favorite Character
As a systems developer (but by no way an engineer) I find it hard to look at the individuals in this book as mere characters. To me this was satisfying because no longer are these engineers a bunch of geeks but real people. Some are outdoorsman and family men. They are each real-life individuals and Kidder’s style of writing brings this out. He gives short bio and work styles of each and brings to life the essence of the individual. As a systems developer for a number of years on Wall Street, Kidder’s style is depiction of the effects circa 1980 is reminiscent of the software team I was once a member of. And as a result I was hoping there would be a character a lot like myself, but I couldn’t find him (or her). Instead, I found a lot of dedicated individuals who put the thrill of the fight above all else. They dedicated their lives for Eagle, something I felt I couldn’t do for Citigroup (but that’s a whole other blog entry).

Now, if I had to choose a character that stood out most, it wouldn’t be Carl Alsing. Or would it? Although he tried to fly under the radar in his career, he plays an important role in “Soul of a New Machine”. Carl was a humble individual who didn’t get the credit he probably should have deserved, largely because he’d rather lay in the shadows of Tom West. His intelligence is evident, but his motivation is sometimes questionable. It is clearly identified during his early work on the Eclipse where his procastination didn’t go over well with the rest of the team. In the end, his work was intelligent but messy. Maybe more important than his intellect, was his sincere interest in his team of microcoders (which by that point were doing most of the coding). He worried that they were spending too much time focusing on the task at hand that they would burn out. To take them away from this, he forced them to play games. The games seemed to me like training exercises aimed at sharpening their minds while they broke from their daily chores. If, one day, I return to the tech business, I hope that as a manager I am able to motivate team members in this fashion.

a blog entry by Brian Thoms

Although I’m just about half way through Blink, I wasn’t sure when the assignment was due, therefore I felt I better get something up before the deadline. Then the notion of a deadline conjured up images of another T-course being offered this fall, Death and Dying. Out of curiosity, I looked up the etymology, which I found to be rather boring. The notion of a deadline comes from journalism. And it doesn’t have to do with journalists dropping dead if they missed a ‘deadline’. The term deadline is just a made up term with no real origin. I was hoping it would be more exotic like the medical term flatline, which is based on the electrocardiogram that measures electrical pulses in the human body. A flat line on this instrument means that person is dead. Maybe a more appropriate term for deadline would have been pressline.

Anyway, after these initial thoughts of death and dying, I began to concentrate fully on Blink, which largely deals with split-second or subconscious decision making. Initially, I felt that most of the examples in Blink were simple ‘parlor tricks’ but instead of being executed by street performers and magicians it was academics holding our suspense. It reminds me of my own personal experience with such trickery. While working in downtown Manhattan I stopped by the local watering hole, as I often did after work. A few hours passed and an urban dweller ventured through the door. With one hand he held an unlit cigarette and the other asked for some spare change. Seeing the disinterested looks of the crowd, he offered a magic trick. The pseudo-magician held up his hand (the one bearing the cigarette) and in the blink of an eye it disappeared only reemerging when his hand lowered. After a few pints of fine German beer the trick captivated me. As he repeated the trick (again and again), it began to frustrate me and I couldn’t figure out the simple slight of hand. Where was the cigarette going? Was it going up his sleeve? I asked him to roll up his sleeves, which he did without contest. Was it being hurled behind me? This couldn’t be, cigarettes cost close to ten bucks a pack (and he was after all asking for spare change). As my thirst began to build, defeat loomed and I surrendered to his wit. But after all, I still held the upper hand, therefore I held out offering recompense until he told me his secret, which he gladly did. Once he told me, I said, “Aha!” And so, to this day it remains a trade secret.

Now, as I continue to read Blink I am noticing that the idea behind Blink is less, I know something you don’t know, and more practice makes perfect. Some may be familiar with the movie Groundhog Day. One of my favorite segments is where Phil Connors (legendary actor Bill Murray) discusses his thoughts on God, stating,

“Maybe the real God uses tricks. Maybe He's not omnipotent. He's just been around so long, He knows everything.”

The more we focus our efforts, whether on a particular discipline or whether we are forced to relive the same day over and over, we begin to operate unconsciously based on our own experiences. We build intelligent tools and operate on rapid cognition in the areas of our own individual expertise. As academics we subconsciously pose questions and hypotheses based on empirical observation. For me, without these initial queries there would be no real reason to pursue a research area.

As for the most interesting example (thus far) in Blink, I would have to go with the study where people left the research facility slower because of the subliminal keywords referencing old age. Although the reference to this study was short, it conjured up another personal experience. In this experience I was, again, in NYC and, again, at a bar. This time it was a friend of a friend’s sister’s boyfriend who was mesmerizing a crowd through simple parlor tricks. For this specific trick the magician would try and raise a participant’s heart rate through ‘magic’. To do this the magician would hold a participant’s wrist and repeat key phrases such as:

“Your heart rate is starting to increase,”

“Your heart rate is increasing,”

“Your heart rate is beating faster,”

I caught onto the secret, unlike my last magic experience, right away. It was not in the key phrases but in the tone and manner the magician would say them. The faster he spoke, the faster my heart would race and the slower he spoke, the slower my heart would beat. Everyone around me was mesmerized. And although the trick was not surprising, I still complimented him. After all, entertainers are supposed to entertain and he did a good job at that. There was no reason to spoil his and everyone else’s fun.

As for what CGU scholar is mentioned, I’m assuming that she or he was not mentioned in the first half of the book, so I will update my blog when I finish reading the book. If he or she was mentioned in the first half, then I plum missed it.

a blog entry by Brian Thoms

The goal of our research lab SL Squared is primarily to focus on online social learning technologies.

Just yesterday, my father, a 72 year old man, signed up for Microsoft's live space and invited me as a friend. Although i try and shy away from anything microsoft, i figured i would keep this as a close knit family community now that the familia de thoms is scattered across the united states.

For those of you unfamiliar with live space, it is one of the most popular social communities on the web, trumping myspace in number of users. The site offers the ability to share photos, create blogs, profiles and so forth.

However, i am becoming more and more flustered with the site as it doesn't offer many of the basic functions offered by most online community software. For example, although i can post a comment on a particular photo (or album) i cannot post a general comment to the user to read at a later time.

Talk about frustration.

To me, it seems as if Microsoft rushed to market live spaces in 2005 in order to compete with the growing market of online social networks such as Orkut, MySpace, Friendster, etc. Maybe a few more iterations and they will finally get it right.

(This blog was initially designated for members of SL Squared, but in the future it may be made open to the public)

Thursday's meeting with Wendy Martin went quite well. In it, SL Squared members Terry, Nathan, Mariana and myself presented Wendy with the objectives of this fall's installation of Elgg in the T-Course. Quite surprising (at least to me) was her genuine interest in the tool. Maybe more importantly then her belief that the tool will offer what we (SL Squared) feel it will offer was her commitment to the project. As an action research project, the main objectives of the research considers Wendy's main objectives for the course and only together can the desired outcomes bear fruit. 

At the end of the presentation, Terry, Nathan, Mariana and myself left quite pleased with out progress, but still concerned over the time remaining (only 30 days give or take) to establish an online agenda for Elgg and the T-Course. There is still quite a bit of work to do...

a blog entry by Brian Thoms

Hello, and thanks for checking out my blog...

As a member of SL Squared (Social Learning Software Lab), i am very excited about this fall's installation of Elgg for CGU's Transdisciplinary courses. Although the impact Elgg @ CGU is yet to be discovered, i believe the software will offer a new dimension to the T-course. Although i personally feel no software can replicate the experience of a classroom, i do believe a tool such as Elgg can augment the experience (if implemented properly) through added collaboration outside the classroom.

For now, i bid thee welcome to the expansion of the Claremont Conversation and this semester's installment of Elgg.