Wikipedia Reading

Jimmy_Wales_on_the_birth_of_Wikipedia

It is impressive to see something important like shared knowledge being generated at such a low cost and with the help of volunteers.

I have used this site extensively and found only one error in thousands. One of my students did a search on Edgar Allen Poe and some of the subject line was changed. Other than that it has been completely reliable. I just checked the entry and it has been fixed. Many students have said to me that their other teachers have rejected the site. I think that it is probably more reliable than a great majority of the printed materials out there.

One of the things Mr. Wales said was, the principle of neutrality guides creators of content for Wikipedia. This is truly born out in the entries. In fact, I often will have a student start with Wikipedia for a good overview to leap from.

The idea of collective input and intelligence is working and can only grow further. This is a powerful tool in the advance of intellectual freedom and democracy. People today are no longer at the mercy of those who control the information. Now everyday people control the information. This brings a level of accountability in our society while easing tyranny and control.

My only fear is that at some point these tools could be turned against us as a measure of control. We can write something in a book and it stays, a program can be changed. Let us also hope that our collective intelligence is a good and moral one that will protect all of the citizens of the world. The mass can be just as tyrannical as the few. Can we expect Orwell's 1984?