Libraries

by joshwilson on 2011/05/18

The future of libraries according to Seth Godin:

The next library is a house for the librarian with the guts to invite kids in to teach them how to get better grades while doing less grunt work. And to teach them how to use a soldering iron or take apart something with no user serviceable parts inside. And even to challenge them to teach classes on their passions, merely because it’s fun. This librarian takes responsibility/blame for any kid who manages to graduate from school without being a first-rate data shark.

I think he’s on to something here. I’m wondering if the kind of place he is describing is the new “third place,” a place for a community to gather that is neither home nor work. What if coffee shops started hiring librarians and creating shared learning spaces. Even better, what if libraries started creating coffee bars to keep people in the library to help foster learning relationships. I’d spend my time there.

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Being Yourself

by joshwilson on 2011/04/22

Braveheart is one of my favorite movies. I used to watch it at least once a week while I was in college. There’s this great scene right after William Wallace gives his first rally-the-troops speech when his closest friends ask him what they should do next. He tells them “just be yourselves.”

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The Digital Dividend

April 12, 2011

Seth Godin nails it on so many levels: It’s a little like the bump we got after the Cold War ended. The peace dividend was there, just waiting for us to repurpose our military, our military budget and our military research. We didn’t. We squandered the window, wasted the money and didn’t rush to fill [...]

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The Golden Spruce

March 1, 2011

I don’t know about you, but I tend to set up totems in my life – little things that I hold dear that represent bigger things that I hold dear. They bear a resemblance to each other, but they exist separately. It’s easy to confuse the totem for the bigger thing, and start to be [...]

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Work and Creativity

February 21, 2011

In 1930 the economist John Maynard Keynes predicted that we would only work 15-20 hours a week. That, obviously, hasn’t happened. Instead, we have learned to squeeze as much productivity as we possibly can out of our work week. In fact, we have even increased the number of hours we work. You see, our economic [...]

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God’s Photo Book

February 14, 2011

Great video from Granger Community

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The War of Art

January 29, 2011
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So, right, I mentioned that I was reading a book a month this year – and, hey! Book #1 is complete. Well, it’s been complete, but I’ve spent the last month pondering it. A book like The Art of War demands both immediate action and a long period of contemplation. If you’re engaged in any [...]

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My 25 Movies for 2011

January 17, 2011
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As I mentioned last week, I’m planning on watching all the movies from the American Film Institute’s Top 100 List. I’ve already watched half of them inadvertently, so I’m picking up the rest over the next two years. The list below is just the bottom 25 movies I haven’t yet seen. There are some movies [...]

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2011 Goals

January 10, 2011
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You need to read another note about New Year’s resolutions about as badly as you need a jab to the eye with a sharp stick. Which is why this isn’t a note about resolutions. It might appear that way, but that’s only because you seem to be impervious to Jedi mind tricks. Or I’m out [...]

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Encouragement for 2011

January 4, 2011
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It’s a brand new year and I have so much to share with you. I have a feeling that this is going to be a very good year. No, I’m not expecting the economy is going to make a sudden break to the upside, that Haiti is suddenly going to be freed of misery, or [...]

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