Ought and Is by Stephen Downes. A nice reminder to be sensitive of inferences involving is and ought. "If wishes were horses," goes the old saying, "then beggars could ride." There’s wisdom in that. Certainly we may believe things ought to be one way or another. But this belief doesn’t mean that anything actually is one way or another. This would be nothing more than wishful thinking. "The fun, ridiculous website Spurious correlations reminds us to have some god damn fun. Spurious correlation is "a term coined by Karl Pearson to describe the correlation between ratios of absolute measurements that arises as a consequence of using ratios, rather than because of any actual correlations between the measurements." Tyler Vigen notes that his charts "aren’t meant to imply causation nor are they meant to create a distrust for research or even correlative data." So, have fun!!! HT my colleagues Andrea Derler via Ben Carroll. Via David Mallon, The Deloitte Millennial Survey 2016. Deloitte surveyed nearly 7,700 Millennials from 29 countries during September and October 2015 to learn more about Millennials’ values and ambitions, drivers of job satisfaction, and their increasing representation in senior management teams. …emphasis on personal values continues into the boardroom; the rank order of priorities does not change for senior Millennials. As such, we can expect Millennial leaders to base their decisions as much on personal values as on the achievement of specific targets or goals. Via David Mallon, Deloitte Center for the Edge,Passion at work: Cultivating worker passion as a cornerstone of talent development. Terrific stuff.

I met my husband in the early 80s. He had a 1970-something Chevy Nova SS. I’m not that great with car model years. It was drab green but I went out with him anyway. I had a Chevy Malibu that apparently had a combination of 1973 and 1975 parts so it was alway a bit of a conundrum at first for folks. Was it a’73 or a’75? I don’t recall where we landed but I do recall it was bright blue and ticked like a bomb. I bought it for $350 and sold it for $400 after I graduated from college a few years later. I told the guy who bought it that it had ticked like a bomb since I bought it. He thought nothing of it either. After that, I went through a VW and Saab phase followed by a seven-fucking-mini-van-phase. And then back to VWs. I like driving a stick shift. It’s why the minivans were the bane of my existence. My husband, Andy, has been a Toyota guy for a number of years. He doesn’t care for stick shift. Don’t hold either of those things against him. That’s the first part of the story of our cars. The second part is about driving. Let’s just say that over the past three decades, I’ve learned to just go along with Andy’s desire to take the road less traveled. "I’ve always wanted to try this road," he’ll say. "Let’s see where this goes. You’re not in a hurry right?" This used to drive me insane. We’ve ended up almost stuck on tiny seasonal access roads during the wrong season. Hungry. Nearly out of gas. In total darkness. Lost for just longer than we wanted. But I’ve also been lucky enough to have witnessed beauty not found on main roads - both in nature and in the human form. Quirky restaurants. Oddities. Knowing Andy makes me richer. Had I went for someone with my driving habits, I’d go from point A to B in the shortest amount of time. To anyone but the driver, it’s as boring as sitting in a self-driving car. And that’s the third part, not driving. I read the article The Self-Driving Car Is Not What You Think It Is by Brett Berk. It ends… "If you let the robot drive, it may take the most rational route. But more times than not, rationality is the opposite of humanity." And that right there is what I find the most disturbing about self-driving cars. Berk notes, "the self-driving car is also predicated on finding solutions to a multiplicity of dilemmas—societal, social, anthropological, infrastructural, moral, regulatory, human, machine—that we have barely defined, let alone figured out." Killjoy. So yeah, I need to get over myself but still…as much as I know I would love to sit in the driverless car and read or work or just gaze out the window, who’s going to accidently drive me through a dangerously muddy meadow so I can witness a bunch of snow geese? Will there be a setting for human mode? For Andy? I don’t they’ll be enough room enough for all the computers, servers, and sensors the car would need.

What a relief. "The ‘digital native’ is a ridiculous metaphor." I feel vindicated! In four provocations, anthropologist Donna Lanclos argues that the notion of the "digital native" is bogus and disempowering, that pandering to student expectations can backfire, universities should be open by default, and our attitude to educational technology needs a rethink. The death of the digital native: four provocations from Digifest speaker, Donna Lanclos, 23 February 2016 What a downer. Roughly one in three respondents (33 percent) do not feel comfortable taking personal time off/vacation days. This is according to Deloitte’s 2015 Human Capital Trends Report. Boston business journal: The wonders of work-life balance and well-being. Time to take responsibility. What a great way to think about content! I was speaking with some folks in Ottawa and mentioned that they should Google "David Bowie + Obituary + Curation. " If you do, you’ll find a post (among other things) on different types of Curation which I thought was a good starting place for a discussion on how such types of curation could be used for enabling learning. Now Connie Malamed has posted a process for creating curated courses. Thanks! Building Courses from Curated Content, Connie Malamed, 24 February 2

This standing up while working rocks. Seriously. You must try it. I wrote about the sit-to-stand desk I bought in December. I read that it was healthier than sitting and as a bonus, Deloitte has a cost-sharing wellness subsidy that would cover half the cost. Deloitte also rocks. So what have the past three months of work have been like standing up at work? I’m pretty sure I sound more engaged on calls when I’m standing. I know feel more engaged and focused. I seem to able to stay focused on one thing for a longer period of time. I’m keeping weight off despite a decrease in activity that often coincides with winter in upstate NY (for me anyway). More reading on sit-stand desks: The impact of sit-stand office workstations on worker discomfort and productivity: A review. This is a small meta-analysis that concluded sit-stand workstations are (1) likely effective in reducing perceived discomfort (vs. prolonged seated work) and (2) do not cause a decrease in productivity. Too Much Sitting: The Population-Health Science of Sedentary Behavior. Basically, sitting time, TV time, and time sitting in automobiles may increase premature mortality risk (although further research is needed). Health benefits of standing desks: separating hype from reality. There are a lot of great links within this article including correct posture.

I was recently asked a question by a colleague about machine learning and I couldn’t answer it. So of course, I went looking…first, the definition: "Machine learning: The ability of computer systems to improve their performance by exposure to data without the need to follow explicitly programmed instructions." A recent paper, "Cognitive technologies in the technology sector: From science fiction vision to real-world value" published by Deloitte University Press reports there have been 100 mergers and acquisitions (M&A) within the technology sector involving cognitive technology companies, products, and services since 2012. Yowsa. Other interesting articles on this topic: This AI Algorithm Learns Simple Tasks as Fast as We Do

Yesterday marked ten years of Twitter. In 2006 Jack Dorsey, an undergrad at NYU, published the first message. It was twttr then: Last week, Jane Hart posted a list of 50+ people who tweet about workplace learning. I’ve mashed that list up with the first tweets of the top 20 of them (in order of number of followers as of 3/12/16). What was your first tweet? Add it to the comments.  Josh BERSIN @Josh_Bersin, HR and Learning Analyst (US) Steve WHEELER @timbuckteeth, Associate Professor at Plymouth University (UK) Jane HART @C4LPT, Founder, Centre for Learning & Performance Technologies (UK) Jeanne MEISTER @jcmeister, Author of The 2020 Workplace (US) Gautam GHOSH @gautamghosh, Interested in how social technology impacts work (India) Marcia CONNER @marciamarcia, Contributor to FastCompany (US) Jane BOZARTH @JaneBozarth. Author of Show Your Work and more (US) Roger FRANCIS @RogerFrancis1, Director at Creative Learning Partners (UK) Harold JARCHE @hjarche, Champion of Personal Knowledge Mastery (Canada) Abhijit BHADURI @AbhijitBhaduri, Chief Learning Officer of Wipro (India) Clark QUINN @Quinnovator, Helping organizations use learning technology strategically (US) Luis SUAREZ @elsua, Wirearchist and Chief Emergineer (Spain) Brent SCHLENKER @bschlenker, Chief Learning Officer of Litmos (US) Euan SEMPLE @euan, Author of Organizations Don’t Tweet People Do UK) Cathy MOORE @CatMoore, Creator of the action mapping process for designing training (US) Janet CLAREY @jclarey, Manager in L&D Research @Bersin by Deloitte (US) Cammy BEAN @cammybean, VP of Learning Design at Kineo (US) Connie MALAMED @elearningcoach, Professional Explainer (US) Donald H TAYLOR @DonaldHTaylor, Chairs LPI, LSG and Learning Technologies (UK) Charles JENNINGS @charlesjennings, Author of 70:20:10 Towards 100% Performance (UK)

Wow, I thought I knew what I was doing. But, I don’t know what I don’t know and if I am to sustain any sort of relevance over the next 10 years, I need to reverse that trend and start to know what I don’t know. We’ve been reading for years how the workplace will [...]

I’m trying to keep up, really I am.  But even setting up this blog is not that easy.  And, as many middle-aged adults would attest to, I had to solicit the help of my 23-year-old daughter. Yes, the blog is free and, yes, there are lots of directions and resources, but I figured that the [...]

As I listen to so many people speak about how important training is, I wonder if they are really seeing the entire picture. Sure, many discuss the need for a holistic approach, but do they all own the solution which, of course, is owned by all of us? Part of my inspiration for this blog [...]

Some may refer to the title of this entry as "trying to keep up," but I would argue that keeping up is not the same as staying relevant. Keeping up means you are following, not leading. Staying relevant means you are not only engaged, but looking for ways to contribute. Considering the level of technology [...]

A new movie is coming out in the fall. Take a moment and view the trailer. This is out of scope, a bit, for this blog but it is worth it. My brother said it best on Facebook: "This film will do for education what ‘An Inconvenient Truth’ did for climate change." Filed under: Education [...]

ABC World News reports that the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico is now about the size of Kansas.  Yes, one drop is too much, yet 4,700 average size swimming pools could be filled by the amount of oil that has spilled, according to ABC News.  But what was our focus yesterday?  More than [...]

Technology, there sure is a lot of it…and the pace just keeps getting faster.  I thought I would share what I do with some of it. iPad - Many have commented on it, but the one consistent question I get is, "What do you do with it?" Read books - I do this more than [...]

Today I posted two articles on Facebook and Twitter (aren’t I getting fancy!!!). The first as about the "Let’s Move" initiative that is working to prevent childhood obesity. The other post was in reference to kids using iPads. Maybe, just maybe, our kids spend so much time using new technology that they are missing using [...]

I’ve been at this initiative of mine for a month now…trying to understand the needs of today’s workforce so as to prepare for tomorrow’s workforce.  Here are some observations: Today’s 8th graders are expecting, although they don’t know it themselves, to be able to use the tools in the future that they use today.  And, [...]

If I can forget about the technology for one minute, here are some other tidbits that I have picked up: Social Media can be shortened to "SoMe" When faced with a choice, most people will open up Facebook before their email YouTube is now the No. 2 search engine, surpassed only by Google If Facebook [...]

If you’ve been following me on Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn, you will have noticed that I am trying to minimize the novelty and increase the effectiveness of my posts.  Now, all I have to do is figure out the best way for me to make use of it all. I’m learning that so many options [...]

I’ve discovered some innovative (at least to me) ways to consolidate a lot of information, make it relevant and share it.  Stick with me on this one… I can push information to you via the link at the top called "The Learning 4 Tomorrow Weekly."  All you have to do is follow me on Twitter.  Every [...]

For those that are following me on Twitter, Facebook, or on this site, I hope you are seeing a trend.  Use of technology in social media settings: How does it impact formal learning?  Informal learning? You may also see some posts regarding wireless technology.  I’m thinking that will be a big part of this whole [...]

Join ISPI Atlanta for the November Dinner Meeting! Speaker: UGA Learning, Design, and Technology Studio Graduate Students Topic: Exploring Free Web Technologies for Instructional Development Date: November 17, 2010 Time: 5:45 PM - 6:30 PM (Networking & Dinner) 6:30 PM - 8:30 PM (Meeting) Visit ispi-atlanta.org for details. Filed under: Education Tagged: ISPI Atlanta

Now that iPad has launched in many retail stores, it seems appropriate to share how I use mine since so many people have asked me "what do you do with it?" Well, here are some of the ones I use every day. Taking notes in meetings — I haven’t taken a paper note since I [...]

This is a great article to help with perspective. Recognition that informal learning is a key part of workplace learning There are deficiencies in the formal learning model Social media is having a big impact in the workplace Increasing consumerization of IT Merging of personal, working, and learning tools Individuals are doing their own thing [...]

Join ISPI Atlanta for the November Dinner Meeting! University of Georgia Learning, Design, and Technology Studio graduate students will be speaking on the topic of Exploring Free Web Technologies for Instructional Development on Nov. 17. Join us from 5:45 to 6:30 p.m. for networking and dinner, followed by the meeting from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. [...]

Join ISPI Atlanta for the Jan. 9, 2011, Dinner Meeting. The meeting will feature a panel discussion on Implementing Instructional Technologies in Your Organization. Panelists include: Alexis Balkum, Executive Director, Employee Learning & Development, Turner Broadcasting Rick Darby, Director, Learning Technology, Rollins/Orkin Erick Allen, CEO, Level4 Performance Join us from 5:45 to 6:30 p.m. for [...]