Forum/Internet as a learning tool

[the-pi-guy]

This is something that I've thought about before in the past, but I think it's very interesting.  I often wonder if it's something that most people take for granted.  

The internet is an incredible learning tool, and it seems to me that it happens almost without trying.  

We have threads about predicting console sales and games sales, and despite not being professionals and despite not having super official methods for figuring that kind of stuff out, we very often find that users can still give very good predictions.  And it's not just luck, it's consistently good.  This is something that a lot of us are interested in and getting involved in the conversation has been really a great learning tool, even if there's no professional in the conversation.  Basically in this case, it's just a group of people figuring stuff out by themselves with no guidance.  

This also happens with technology.
People become very familiar with stuff.  What CPU is best?  What GPU is best?  Why is this over heating?  Even answering simple questions like that has a lot of people answering that never learned that formally.  

I think to some extent this has happened to me with math.  Over the past year, I feel like I've learned more outside of class, than I have in class.  I've learned some topics that I've barely even heard of while doing math in school.  Just by getting involved in conversations, random topics popping up, and eventually a lot of it just seems to click.

I just think it's incredible.  

[kitler53]

it's also easy to "learn" things that are wrong.  many sites self segregate themselves to only have like minded and often times extremist views.  via these conversations people convinced themselves something is true even though there is no factual evidence.


vaccinations cause autism.

obama is a muslim.

kim davis is fighting for religious freedom.

[the-pi-guy]

it's also easy to "learn" things that are wrong.  many sites self segregate themselves to only have like minded and often times extremist views.  via these conversations people convinced themselves something is true even though there is no factual evidence.

vaccinations cause autism.
obama is a muslim.
kim davis is fighting for religious freedom.

Absolutely true.  

[Mmm_fish_tacos]

it's also easy to "learn" things that are wrong.  many sites self segregate themselves to only have like minded and often times extremist views.  via these conversations people convinced themselves something is true even though there is no factual evidence.


vaccinations cause autism.

obama is a muslim.

kim davis is fighting for religious freedom.

But traditional school teaches us things that are wrong too.

[kitler53]

But traditional school teaches us things that are wrong too.

like?

[the-pi-guy]

I'm mostly talking about technical skills though, not beliefs.  

like?

-People thought the earth was flat until Columbus

[Mmm_fish_tacos]

like?

Just look at American history.  They lie about a lot. Expecially in elementary school.

[darkknightkryta]

I'm mostly talking about technical skills though, not beliefs.  
-People thought the earth was flat until Columbus

By "People" do you mean foolish people?  Cause everyone else knew the earth was round.  Cause the Roman's knew the earth was round.  Columbus knew the earth was round, he just thought it was a lot smaller than it is.

[Legend]

By "People" do you mean foolish people?  Cause everyone else knew the earth was round.  Cause the Roman's knew the earth was round.  Columbus knew the earth was round, he just thought it was a lot smaller than it is.

lol re read the context. Pi knows.

[darkknightkryta]

lol re read the context. Pi knows.

Does he? DOES HE???

[the-pi-guy]

By "People" do you mean foolish people?  Cause everyone else knew the earth was round.  Cause the Roman's knew the earth was round.  Columbus knew the earth was round, he just thought it was a lot smaller than it is.

The context is about people learning myths in school, and thinking they are true.
It is often taught that the world was believed to be flat until Columbus.  They often teach this is Elementary schools.

Busting a myth about Columbus and a flat Earth - The Washington Post
People in Columbus' Time Did Not Think the World Was Flat
The Flat Earth is a myth. So's that story about people who believed in a Flat Earth. | Capital Research Center
Did Medieval People Believe in a Flat Earth?
Amazon.com: Inventing the Flat Earth: Columbus and Modern Historians (9780275959043): Jeffrey Burton Russell, David Noble: Books

There are people who actually believe this is the case, and I just randomly picked a few websites.  
The reality is that the vast majority of people knew that the Earth was round.  
The idea that the Earth was round goes back to 6th century BC, and by the 14th century most people were quite aware of that being true.  

Does he? DOES HE???

I pretty much literally took a class on it.  So yeah, I'd hope so....

We've actually had discussions about this.  

[darkknightkryta]

The context is about people learning myths in school, and thinking they are true.
It is often taught that the world was believed to be flat until Columbus.  They often teach this is Elementary schools.

Busting a myth about Columbus and a flat Earth - The Washington Post
People in Columbus' Time Did Not Think the World Was Flat
The Flat Earth is a myth. So's that story about people who believed in a Flat Earth. | Capital Research Center
Did Medieval People Believe in a Flat Earth?
Amazon.com: Inventing the Flat Earth: Columbus and Modern Historians (9780275959043): Jeffrey Burton Russell, David Noble: Books

There are people who actually believe this is the case, and I just randomly picked a few websites.  
The reality is that the vast majority of people knew that the Earth was round.  
The idea that the Earth was round goes back to 6th century BC, and by the 14th century most people were quite aware of that being true.  
I pretty much literally took a class on it.  So yeah, I'd hope so....

We've actually had discussions about this.  

Fancy, which class?

[the-pi-guy]

Fancy, which class?

History of Science.
Mostly covered Galileo, Copernicus, and Darwin.
But it went further than that.