From: "Nina Stratton" ninaeliza@gmail.com Reply-To: English Wikipedia wikien-l@lists.wikimedia.org Date: Thu, 18 Jan 2007 05:20:23 -0800 To: "English Wikipedia" wikien-l@lists.wikimedia.org Subject: Re: [WikiEN-l] Troubling news on Citizendium
On 1/17/07, Marc Riddell michaeldavid86@comcast.net wrote:
From: "Nina Stratton" ninaeliza@gmail.com Reply-To: English Wikipedia wikien-l@lists.wikimedia.org Date: Wed, 17 Jan 2007 08:20:48 -0800 To: "English Wikipedia" wikien-l@lists.wikimedia.org Subject: Re: [WikiEN-l] Troubling news on Citizendium
+!
On 1/17/07, Stan Shebs stanshebs@earthlink.net wrote:
Phil Sandifer wrote:
[...] If Larry wants an encyclopedia free of its biases, he should work on one. But he shouldn't call it an encyclopedia run by experts if he's going to dismiss the experts.
There are plenty of experts going at each other with knives on WP; expertise is simply a fund of knowledge, and does not magically confer diplomatic, communication, or collaboration skills. In fact, great knowledge tends to breed arrogance, making conflict more likely, not less so. CZ adds real names and attributions to the mix, raising the stakes even further by introducing the possibility of effect on one's careers. The organizer would need the superior political skills of an Ivy League dean to make it all work, but Larry's forum postings don't evidence much improvement at diplomacy since the times he was angering editors on WP.
Stan
Ya know what we need in WP, an Article on Expertaphobia: The fear of, and seeming intimidation by, people who know stuff about things.
Someone, I don't recall who it was, wrote that they would never work on something where experts were involved. Really? Who would you go to if you needed heart surgery, or wanted to learn how to play a violin?
Don't look now, but you are working with the aid of experts right now! Those marvelous persons behind the scenes of this computerized market place who make all of this possible. Without them we would be typing into the ether.
Ease up!
Marc Riddell
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Fair enough. As long as my intelligence, experience, and ability to learn aren't discounted. I've been made to feel small a lot in my life by "experts", simply because I didn't have one or two pieces of paper. It's all good now and I love my career and life, but Wikipedia is important to me because it's pretty much the opposite of my past.
People respect my skills and insight here. It's greatly improved my confidence level on all fronts. In fact (why yes, it's quite ironic), I'm planning on going back to school and getting my long-lost bachelor's and masters in Human Services as a direct result of my time here (among other things - my job plays a big part in it too).
Some of the editors that I've come to respect the most on Wikipedia are not only non-experts, they're teenagers. My teenage collaborators have been extremely active, and have gotten references to things no one else could find. They're also knowledgeable, helpful, and kind. When I say teenagers, I'm talking 14-15, not 18-19. They've impressed me in their editing and insight more than any "expert".
Sincerely,
Nina
Nina,
Long before there were university degrees, there was the human being¹s ability to reason, and, most importantly to empathize. A formal education can help you fine tune the first one of these, but no type or amount of this education can give you the second one. You seem to have it. Nurture it, use it you¹re already far ahead of the game.
Whatever formal degrees I may have, I consider them as things I¹ve accumulated on the way to learning something. And, as necessary keys that provide me access to the most important part the persons I am trying to reach.
If someone is trying to put you down, they must need you to be there, so they can be where they are.
Best of luck in your studies and work in Human Services. The field could use many more like you. You appear to have a particular feel for adolescents. I don't know what your present work is in now, but perhaps your self is trying to tell you something about a career change. Consider adolescent psychology; the teens could use someone like you.
Perspective: B.S. = Bull.Shit. M.S. = More.Shit. - Ph.D. = Piled high. & Deep. :-)
Be healthy,
Marc Riddell
"Look at the sky. We are not alone. The whole universe is friendly to us
and
conspires only to give the best to those who dream and work." - Abdul
Kalam
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-- Sincerely,
Nina "Look at the sky. We are not alone. The whole universe is friendly to us and conspires only to give the best to those who dream and work." - Abdul Kalam _______________________________________________ WikiEN-l mailing list WikiEN-l@lists.wikimedia.org To unsubscribe from this mailing list, visit: http://lists.wikimedia.org/mailman/listinfo/wikien-l