Comments on: discovery and creation and… lies! http://info-fetishist.org/2009/01/03/discovery-and-creation-and-lies/ yeah, it's long -- I didn't have time to make it shorter Wed, 21 Jul 2010 16:44:58 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.com/ By: ellie http://info-fetishist.org/2009/01/03/discovery-and-creation-and-lies/#comment-391 ellie Thu, 15 Jan 2009 23:53:49 +0000 http://info-fetishist.org/?p=257#comment-391 Thanks for sharing. I've been thinking about hoax sites as an evaluation tool myself lately and you said it all wonderfully! Thanks for sharing. I’ve been thinking about hoax sites as an evaluation tool myself lately and you said it all wonderfully!

]]> By: edwired » Blog Archive » You Were Warned (cont’d) http://info-fetishist.org/2009/01/03/discovery-and-creation-and-lies/#comment-387 edwired » Blog Archive » You Were Warned (cont’d) Mon, 12 Jan 2009 15:44:17 +0000 http://info-fetishist.org/?p=257#comment-387 [...] on the course have been decidedly mixed. Some people liked it, some didn’t like it, some thought it was an interesting idea but wondered why students had to be taught to falsify [...] [...] on the course have been decidedly mixed. Some people liked it, some didn’t like it, some thought it was an interesting idea but wondered why students had to be taught to falsify [...]

]]> By: Baron: “From Pencils to Pixels” (1999) | A Collage of Citations http://info-fetishist.org/2009/01/03/discovery-and-creation-and-lies/#comment-380 Baron: “From Pencils to Pixels” (1999) | A Collage of Citations Sun, 11 Jan 2009 20:15:04 +0000 http://info-fetishist.org/?p=257#comment-380 [...] I found the parts of the essay on authenticating most interesting, as this seems to be one of the biggest anxieties around the Internet currently: what is true? what is safe? what is legitimate? what is a “real” human being online? Baron notes that as students research online, that “verifying the reliability and authenticity of that information becomes increasingly important” (31). (Anne-Marie has a great blog post on these issues.) [...] [...] I found the parts of the essay on authenticating most interesting, as this seems to be one of the biggest anxieties around the Internet currently: what is true? what is safe? what is legitimate? what is a “real” human being online? Baron notes that as students research online, that “verifying the reliability and authenticity of that information becomes increasingly important” (31). (Anne-Marie has a great blog post on these issues.) [...]

]]> By: netizen http://info-fetishist.org/2009/01/03/discovery-and-creation-and-lies/#comment-372 netizen Thu, 08 Jan 2009 22:18:06 +0000 http://info-fetishist.org/?p=257#comment-372 Amidst all the controversies over Wikipedia, one fact deserves to stand out: Wikipedia is the creative effort of many volunteers. People may argue that Wikipedia is doomed to fail. But that sometimes obscures a larger point. The volunteers who dedicate countless hours to the project have a fundamental right to try. Professor T. Mills Kelly required his class to vandalize Wikipedia. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Vandalism http://lastamericanpirate.net/wp/?p=78 According to the revision history for the hoax entry, some of that vandalism was performed from IP addresses belonging to George Mason University. http://ws.arin.net/whois/?queryinput=N%20!%20NET-129-174-0-0-1 GMU has a "Responsible Use of Computing Policy". http://www.gmu.edu/facstaff/policy/newpolicy/1301gen.html GMU's policy "appl[ies] to all Mason faculty, staff, students, visitors, and contractors." It appears that two rules may have been broken: * RULE 2: Do not use computer accounts for illegitimate purposes. * RULE 5: Do not use Mason’s computing resources to violate other policies or laws. A formal complaint to abuse@gmu.edu may not be fully warranted at this time. Yet, I have been alerted that Professor Kelly intends to offer this class again. If Professor Kelly does intend to teach his students to violate the policies of both other internet services and his own institution, then a formal complaint seems at least partially warranted. The numerous Wikipedia volunteers have a basic right to keep their project free from vandalism. Others should respect that. Amidst all the controversies over Wikipedia, one fact deserves to stand out: Wikipedia is the creative effort of many volunteers.

People may argue that Wikipedia is doomed to fail. But that sometimes obscures a larger point. The volunteers who dedicate countless hours to the project have a fundamental right to try.

Professor T. Mills Kelly required his class to vandalize Wikipedia.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wikipedia:Vandalism
http://lastamericanpirate.net/wp/?p=78

According to the revision history for the hoax entry, some of that vandalism was performed from IP addresses belonging to George Mason University.

http://ws.arin.net/whois/?queryinput=N%20!%20NET-129-174-0-0-1

GMU has a “Responsible Use of Computing Policy”.

http://www.gmu.edu/facstaff/policy/newpolicy/1301gen.html

GMU’s policy “appl[ies] to all Mason faculty, staff, students, visitors, and contractors.”

It appears that two rules may have been broken:

* RULE 2: Do not use computer accounts for illegitimate purposes.
* RULE 5: Do not use Mason’s computing resources to violate other policies or laws.

A formal complaint to abuse@gmu.edu may not be fully warranted at
this time. Yet, I have been alerted that Professor Kelly intends to offer this class again. If Professor Kelly does intend to teach his students to violate the policies of both other internet services and his own institution, then a formal complaint seems at least partially warranted.

The numerous Wikipedia volunteers have a basic right to keep their project free from vandalism. Others should respect that.

]]> By: Anne-Marie http://info-fetishist.org/2009/01/03/discovery-and-creation-and-lies/#comment-368 Anne-Marie Mon, 05 Jan 2009 01:30:01 +0000 http://info-fetishist.org/?p=257#comment-368 Busted! You're right, I didn't lengthen this already epic post to list out all of the ways that hoaxes can manifest. Which is probably unclear - but what I'm talking about here isn't so much what does or does not exist out there, but what is the best way to teach about it. And when we teach we don't list out all of the possible manifestations of the things we're teaching about either - we provide guidelines and strategies and rely on our students' critical thinking skills to translate those concepts in new situations. Even acknowledging the truth about both your points, I still don't think that a focus on hoaxes is the way to teach people how to evaluate information in ways that will *really* protect them out there. I'm still more worried about the things I talked about before - the false, kinda-false or partially-false things that are put out there for a reason beyond the laugh. Thanks! Busted! You’re right, I didn’t lengthen this already epic post to list out all of the ways that hoaxes can manifest. Which is probably unclear – but what I’m talking about here isn’t so much what does or does not exist out there, but what is the best way to teach about it. And when we teach we don’t list out all of the possible manifestations of the things we’re teaching about either – we provide guidelines and strategies and rely on our students’ critical thinking skills to translate those concepts in new situations.

Even acknowledging the truth about both your points, I still don’t think that a focus on hoaxes is the way to teach people how to evaluate information in ways that will *really* protect them out there. I’m still more worried about the things I talked about before – the false, kinda-false or partially-false things that are put out there for a reason beyond the laugh.

Thanks!

]]> By: Halloween Jack http://info-fetishist.org/2009/01/03/discovery-and-creation-and-lies/#comment-367 Halloween Jack Mon, 05 Jan 2009 00:26:43 +0000 http://info-fetishist.org/?p=257#comment-367 <i>The punker or the pranker will either be really good at it, in which case all of the abstract stuff we might teach them about how to identify bad information won’t help them because the good pranker isn’t going to do any of that stuff. Or, and this is more likely, the prank won’t be all that good. And our students - I really think they’re very able to identify the obvious crap that exists online.</i> I think that you're about as wrong as wrong can be in asserting that there's no middle ground between flawless hoaxes and obvious pranks. And I get forwarded email urban legends from otherwise smart and well-educated people. The punker or the pranker will either be really good at it, in which case all of the abstract stuff we might teach them about how to identify bad information won’t help them because the good pranker isn’t going to do any of that stuff. Or, and this is more likely, the prank won’t be all that good. And our students – I really think they’re very able to identify the obvious crap that exists online.

I think that you’re about as wrong as wrong can be in asserting that there’s no middle ground between flawless hoaxes and obvious pranks. And I get forwarded email urban legends from otherwise smart and well-educated people.

]]> By: Four Point Report » I Lied for a History Class http://info-fetishist.org/2009/01/03/discovery-and-creation-and-lies/#comment-366 Four Point Report » I Lied for a History Class Sun, 04 Jan 2009 21:01:08 +0000 http://info-fetishist.org/?p=257#comment-366 [...] http://blog.ucsd.edu/ioc/2008/12/19/teaching-by-lying/ http://info-fetishist.org/2009/01/03/discovery-and-creation-and-lies/ [...] [...] http://blog.ucsd.edu/ioc/2008/12/19/teaching-by-lying/ http://info-fetishist.org/2009/01/03/discovery-and-creation-and-lies/ [...]

]]> By: Lies, Damned Lies and Pedagogy http://info-fetishist.org/2009/01/03/discovery-and-creation-and-lies/#comment-364 Lies, Damned Lies and Pedagogy Sat, 03 Jan 2009 19:32:35 +0000 http://info-fetishist.org/?p=257#comment-364 [...] Deitering has a great post over at Infofetishist about the historical-hoax-as-pedagogy story that popped up in December. A [...] [...] Deitering has a great post over at Infofetishist about the historical-hoax-as-pedagogy story that popped up in December. A [...]

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