Module 4 Disruptive Technology - Second Life

Disruptive 
A force to be reckoned with in a world that is technology driven is Disruptive Technology. It is a force that re-invents the wheel by literally changing our ideology and understanding of how technology works. Again, I like Christensen’s (2002) concept of Disruptive Technology in that even though current technology failed the unexpected technology that emerged changed the way we think about technology. Disruptive Technology is the driving force behind innovation, creativity, and “out of the box” concept. Dr. Thornburg (2009) calls it a “wild card” (podcast) that expectantly changes the way technology is used in meeting social desire and needs.

Philip Rosedale (2011) explained how his invention of Second Life was affected by Disruptive Technology phenomenon in his video Philip Rosedale on Second Life. Interestingly, Second Life had the capability of talking face-to-face with other avatars that Rosedale (2011) thought would catch on with Second Life residents but actually “flopped”. On the contrary, Rosedale (2011) did not expect his Second Life residents to latch on to was the concept of purchasing land and creating one’s own utopia.

In as much as Second Life was disruptive by unexpected forces, Second Life itself is a disruptive technology. Rosedale’s (2011) creation gave Star Trek or science fiction fans a venue to explore, investigate, and discover a new world that “no man have set feet on “ – literally humans have not set feet onto the grounds of Second Life just 3-D animated human like characters call Avatars. In essences, Second Life may have set up its own demise within the next 5 years. Residents will want more capabilities and functionality in the virtual world like replacing traditional classroom labs or demonstrations with virtual crime labs or tutoring services. Besides expanding learning in the virtual world, Second Life allows us to hone in on our abilities and work on social interaction with others around. The technology in Second Life offers virtual field trips to places we would otherwise never go, can’t afford to go, or too sick to attend.

References

Christensen, C. (2002). The innovation economy: How technology is transforming existing industries and creating new ones [Video]. Retrieved from http://mitworld.mit.edu/video/108.

Laureate Education, Inc. (2009). Emerging and future technology: Science Fiction. [Video].Baltimore, MD: Author.

Rosedale, P. (2008). Philip Rosedale on Second Life [Video]. Retrieved from http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/the_inspiration_of_second_life.html.

Rhyme of History

Six Forces That Drive Emerging Technologies

Thornburg (2008a)

Module 3: This week’s Blog focuses on Rhyme of History

·       Rhyme Of History – Current technology is a product of past technology that was once regarded new and innovative. The affect or impact of new development rekindles the old technology. It is how technology is being used that rekindles technology (Thornburg, 2009).  The new technology is a repeat of past technology that still meeting the needs of humans.   With that said, a technology that reminds us of the Blackboard is the innovative Smart Board. The white Smart Board provides to its audience the ability to interact with objects on screen thus enhancing student learning.  However, it is the ability to write on the board that flash back to an era when the Blackboard was regarded innovative simply because teachers were able to share information to a group of student versus one student at a time. Thus the Smart Board is the Rhyme of history of the slated Blackboard. New technology came about by need. New technology came about by chance.  New technology is recognized as an impact to society many years after its inventor created it.

          References

Laureate Education, Inc. (2009). Emerging and future technology. Baltimore, MD: Author.

O’Connor, N. (2010). Bye Bye Blackboard. Shaker Life [Web Article]. Retrieved from

http://www.software-answers.com/News/News%20Documents/ShakerLife%20Magazine-Aug%202010-Bye%20Bye%20Blackboard.pdf

Thornburg, D. (2008a). An amazingly incomplete emerging technologies bibliography. Lake Barrington, IL: Thornburg Center for Space Exploration.

 

Module 3: This week’s Blog focuses on Rhyme of History

·       Rhyme Of History – Current technology is a product of past technology that was once regarded new and innovative. The affect or impact of new development rekindles the old technology. It is how technology is being used that rekindles technology (Thornburg, 2009).  The new technology is a repeat of past technology that still meeting the needs of humans.   With that said, a technology that reminds us of the Blackboard is the innovative Smart Board. The white Smart Board provides to its audience the ability to interact with objects on screen thus enhancing student learning.  However, it is the ability to write on the board that flash back to an era when the Blackboard was regarded innovative simply because teachers were able to share information to a group of student versus one student at a time. Thus the Smart Board is the Rhyme of history of the slated Blackboard. New technology came about by need. New technology came about by chance.  New technology is recognized as an impact to society many years after its inventor created it.

          References

Laureate Education, Inc. (2009). Emerging and future technology. Baltimore, MD: Author.

O’Connor, N. (2010). Bye Bye Blackboard. Shaker Life [Web Article]. Retrieved from

http://www.software-answers.com/News/News%20Documents/ShakerLife%20Magazine-Aug%202010-Bye%20Bye%20Blackboard.pdf

Thornburg, D. (2008a). An amazingly incomplete emerging technologies bibliography. Lake Barrington, IL: Thornburg Center for Space Exploration.

Second Life is a virtual 3-D social network that offers more than socialization. My approach to this emergent technology is to view it as robust educational tool.  This can be view as an extension to our current learning management system that presents educational curriculum in html platform.

Education in Second Life is an experience like to no other.  Second Life is robust with advance technology that simulate classrooms, labs, landscapes, and buildings cast in 3-D imaging gives the effect of a real world environment. The mirror image of the real world in Second Life enables participants or residents to immerse themselves in their surroundings. Kevin Harvey, who is assistant director for The Center for the Advancement of Distance Education at the University of Illinois in Chicago, commented (as cited in Girard, 2007) that Second Life is real to the human mind as evidence by electrical neurons eliciting all of our senses and emotions just like real world experience (para 9).  In essence, residents in Second Life share similar experience as their human counterparts but are able to participate in events, training, and learning without limitation like costs, mileage, and time.  The benefits of the educational learning environment in Second Life are the active engagement and collaboration in both synchronous and asynchronous time.  For example, residents in history class can fly to the great pyramids of Egypt to explore in-depth the inner cavities and visually capture the surrounding landscape of the desert from the top of the pyramid.  Better yet, residents can dive to the depth of the ocean to discover a whole new world of sea life, which would not be obtainable in a regular online class or traditional classroom environment (Linden Lab, 2011).

References

Girard, N. (2007). The E-Learning Adventure. [Web Article]. TechNewsWorld. Retrieved from http://www.technewsworld.com/story/59988.html

Linden Lab. (2011). Second Life Education: The Virtual Learning Advantage. Linden Research Inc. Retrieved from http://lecs-static-secondlife-com.s3.amazonaws.com/work/SL-Edu-Brochure-010411.pdf