While I had planned on writing a more esoteric essay on learning, teaching, and computing, I couldn't resist this little gem of a video:
Several ideas floated through my membranes as I watched it:
- Commenting -- The notion of the inner dialogue that one has with one's self when deciding to provide comments or feedback on another's work is wonderfully represented here. I somehow felt like I was looking in a mirror.
- Anonymity -- People will say the darndest things given the cover of anonymity. Would they say the same things if their identity was revealed?
- Where is My Mind? -- I heart YouTube. Yet I have caught myself staying up far too late on occasion watching silly, intriguing, or absolutely mind numbing videos for no other reason other than -- they are there. This then relates to the notion of...
- PLEasure -- The instant gratification/entertainment the millions of videos on YouTube provides can be both exhilarating and debilitating. While time management is key in some respects, I would love to see the productivity/economics research on how many hours workers of the world spend watching videos over doing their assigned work.
- Misbehaving -- Related to anonymity, the Internet Skinner Box has given a new outlet to the Trickster within us all. Is it ethical to yell "Fire!" in a crowded chatroom/Second Life?
- Share-ware or Y'all-ware-- YouTube provides us connections to a diversity of opinions and ideas that we can quickly and easily share with others. The ease with which we can share videos with others leads me to water cooler conversations with others over things we find on YouTube.
- Viral-ity -- One video seems to lead to another and another building what we might dub a "memesphere."
- Voyeurism -- I sometimes feel I am watching things that I would not be able to see anywhere else. And I keep watching....
- Totem/Taboo -- something this much fun, with this much opportunity for good/evil must be bad for us, unless of course, some one is keeping an eye on us....
- Creativity -- The outlet YouTube provides is the auteur's paradise. Hence, we are able to enjoy works like the one above and many others designed to stimulate our neurons/neuroses.
- On-life/Off-life -- Why does the video above assume that spending vast quantities of time online mean one doesn't have a life? What does this say about professionals who's jobs center on being online? Are our relationships with others vastly different online and offline?
Perhaps, this post has turned more esoteric than I originally planned. While YouTube is not my life (but my Internet connections are definitely an integral part), your thoughts, comments, and video links are most welcome.
Keywords: anonymity, auteurism, behavior, computing, creativity, economics, education, educational technology, entertainment, feedback, learning, life, media, memes, memesphere, mythology, PLEasure, shareware, teaching, time management, video, viral media, voyeurism, YouTube
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