Location : Cleveland, OH
Blogging, Twitter, Facebook, MySpace, and
other social networks are the results of Web 2.0. But what do they mean?
To many people they are the new noise on the internet. But there is something
going on, under the current, that can change the corporations that recognize
that they can leverage these networks. It may not even be apparent to those
that are heavy users of these social networks. What you have, at a high
level, are crowds of very diverse people coming together under the umbrella
of social networks. James Surowiecki, author of The
Wisdom of Crowds, has tapped
into these networks, and more, to provide you with a very readable, enjoyable
look at these emerging networks.
Contents: The Wisdom of Crowds; The Difference Difference Makes: Waggle Dances, the Bay of Pigs, and the Value of Diversity; Monkey See, Monkey Do: Imitation, Information Cascades, and Independence; Putting the Pieces Together: The CIA, Linux, and the Art of Decentralization; Shall We Dance?: Coordination in a Complex World; Society Does Exist: Taxes, Tipping, Television, and Trust; Traffic: What We Have Here Is a Failure to Communicate; Science: Collaboration, Competition, and Reputation; Committees, Juries, and Teams: The Columbia Disaster and How Small Groups Can Be Made to Work; The Company: Meet the New Boss, Same as the Old Boss?; Markets: Beauty Contests, Bowling Alleys, and Stock Prices; Democracy: Dreams of a Common Good; Acknowledgements; Notes
Surowiecki begins the book with a look at an ox weighing competition from 1906. Francis Galton, believed that only a select few were capable of keeping societies healthy. Breeding mattered and the unwashed crowds did not have the mental capacity to make any decision of importance. After the ox weighing competition, Galton was provided with all the crowds' guesses. He believed that the crowd would be off by a magnitude and that only one or two people would have guessed the correct weight. However, after tabulating the results, he found that the average guess was 1,197 pounds. The actual weight was 1,198 pounds. The crowd's guess was perfect. This is at the heart of Surowiecki's book; There is a huge, intelligent crowd out there and you need to understand how to tap into it and use it. He examines all sorts of crowds; traffic, the CIA and NASA, the stock market, and more. Each holds valuable lessons in using the wisdom of crowds which can be applied to many situations.
Social networks are an important result of Web 2.0. For many people, and corporations, they seem to simply be another example of the internet wasting people's time. Surowiecki makes you sit up and recognize the value of these new methods of tapping into the crowd with this enjoyable, highly recommended book. While the internet makes connections easier, throughout history you see that visionaries use the crowd to predict election outcomes (and it isn't through polls), horse racing results, and more. Even using the wisdom of your employees, you can create better products, find new markets, and change the rules of competition. If you want to understand the value of social networks, how to leverage them, or how to truly empower your employees, this book is a "must read." Not only does Surowiecki help you use these networks, he also provides guidance on how to correct poor performing small groups.
Technorati tag: book review Wisdom of Crowds James Surowiecki
Contents: The Wisdom of Crowds; The Difference Difference Makes: Waggle Dances, the Bay of Pigs, and the Value of Diversity; Monkey See, Monkey Do: Imitation, Information Cascades, and Independence; Putting the Pieces Together: The CIA, Linux, and the Art of Decentralization; Shall We Dance?: Coordination in a Complex World; Society Does Exist: Taxes, Tipping, Television, and Trust; Traffic: What We Have Here Is a Failure to Communicate; Science: Collaboration, Competition, and Reputation; Committees, Juries, and Teams: The Columbia Disaster and How Small Groups Can Be Made to Work; The Company: Meet the New Boss, Same as the Old Boss?; Markets: Beauty Contests, Bowling Alleys, and Stock Prices; Democracy: Dreams of a Common Good; Acknowledgements; Notes
Surowiecki begins the book with a look at an ox weighing competition from 1906. Francis Galton, believed that only a select few were capable of keeping societies healthy. Breeding mattered and the unwashed crowds did not have the mental capacity to make any decision of importance. After the ox weighing competition, Galton was provided with all the crowds' guesses. He believed that the crowd would be off by a magnitude and that only one or two people would have guessed the correct weight. However, after tabulating the results, he found that the average guess was 1,197 pounds. The actual weight was 1,198 pounds. The crowd's guess was perfect. This is at the heart of Surowiecki's book; There is a huge, intelligent crowd out there and you need to understand how to tap into it and use it. He examines all sorts of crowds; traffic, the CIA and NASA, the stock market, and more. Each holds valuable lessons in using the wisdom of crowds which can be applied to many situations.
Social networks are an important result of Web 2.0. For many people, and corporations, they seem to simply be another example of the internet wasting people's time. Surowiecki makes you sit up and recognize the value of these new methods of tapping into the crowd with this enjoyable, highly recommended book. While the internet makes connections easier, throughout history you see that visionaries use the crowd to predict election outcomes (and it isn't through polls), horse racing results, and more. Even using the wisdom of your employees, you can create better products, find new markets, and change the rules of competition. If you want to understand the value of social networks, how to leverage them, or how to truly empower your employees, this book is a "must read." Not only does Surowiecki help you use these networks, he also provides guidance on how to correct poor performing small groups.
Technorati tag: book review Wisdom of Crowds James Surowiecki
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